Case Study Gem At The Beach: Local tourism WordPress site

Find out about the challenges, difficulties and solutions behind the development of the WordPress website for a local accommodation project in Vila Nova de Milfontes. 

Local accommodation is one of the fastest growing business areas in recent years. Therefore, each project in this area requires original and tailor-made solutions, because only then can it stand out online in the midst of endless competition. 

Discover the website project we developed for the local housing Gem At The Beach - https://www.gematthebeach.pt/.

The Project

Gem At The Beach is a beach holiday home in the heart of Vila Nova de Milfontes, in the municipality of Odemira, in Beja. 

This is a local accommodation that combines the comfort you are looking for in a home with a privileged geographical location, overlooking Foz do Rio Mira and right at the entrance to the beach and the center of the village that is inserted in the Natural Park of Southwest Alentejo and on the Costa Vicentina.

Main Challenge

The most challenging decision of this project was to understand how to organize the contents so that visitors could find all essential information quickly and simply. 

Thus, it was necessary to think like tourists who may be interested in visiting Gem At The Beach, highlighting aspects such as Activities and the possibilities of Restoration that they may have access to in the area. 

What many travelers want, when looking for a particular place to visit, is to live the experience from the same perspective as the residents. And that was one of the major concerns that guided the entire project. 

In this way, we show what local accommodation can offer in terms of amenities, but we also show how to live Vila Nova de Milfontes with the best that the village has to offer. 

The Site Development Process

At the start of the project implementation, that is, in the development phase of the website, there was the certainty that it was necessary to create two versions: namely in Portuguese and in English.

On the other hand, it was also essential to include a reservation form in a prominent place on the website. This form should allow not only to book the holiday home on the desired dates, but also to check its availability for that period. 

But the first major step in the development of the site was choosing the platform that should host it. Thus, we chose WordPress, a Content Management System or CMS that has several advantages as we will see below. 

Why choose WordPress

WordPress was identified as the ideal solution. This CMS allows easy management for website administrators. But, on the other hand, it also ensures a business-level response as the business grows, which helps to maximize revenue. 

However, there are other advantages that WordPress presents and that were fundamental for us to bet on this platform in the Gem At The Beach project. 

One of the great advantages of WordPress is that it is easy to use, even for beginners, which facilitates content management. But it also speeds up the update of plugins and software, as it includes an integrated update management system. 

Grow Under's work stance involves delivering uncomplicated websites to its customers. Therefore, WordPress fits into this mission. 

On the other hand, the platform offers great flexibility, allowing the creation of a variety of websites, with different purposes and designs. 

Thus, it serves both large companies, with complex websites, as well as small online stores or personal blogs, allowing the site to adapt to new needs, as the business grows.

In addition, WordPress sites tend to do well in Google's ranking, since the platform includes several tools that help improve content for SEO- Search Engine Optimization. 

WordPress also has a wide variety of responsive designs, that is, adapted for mobile devices such as mobile phones. And this is another factor that gives sites an advantage in the Google ranking. 

The security issue also boosted the choice of WordPress. This is one of the platform's strong points, as it allows for automatic software updates and also includes a backup plugin to store website data in a remote and secure location. 

The Difficulties

When implementing the Gem At The Beach website, the biggest difficulty was to condense as much information as possible in an appealing and easy to find way. 

The objective was to transmit the added value of local accommodation, but also to reinforce its privileged location. 

Thus, we wanted to highlight the visual component, but without falling into the temptation to include on the website a flood of images with no connection.

In this way, the contents were organized in the best possible way, in an image gallery ordered by categories, also considering the importance of ensuring easy access to them. 

The Solution

The development of the Gem At The Beach website took place around the choice of CMS WordPress, which allowed to take advantage of the platform's advantages. 

Therefore, it was possible to customize the chosen theme to suit the needs of Gem AT The Beach and to create a unique web design. 

We went through several essential phases to arrive at the final solution, in a convergence of cycles and analyzes made by a multidisciplinary team. Thus, it is important to clarify that these phases were as follows: 

1. Collection of all customer information and content
2. Definition of priorities and identification of problems to be solved
3. Develop the various possibilities and evaluate the best solution
4. Implement and test your choices
5. Deliver the project.

This process is based on the agile strategy, an approach that allows optimizing the development of websites following a logic of trial and error and constant learning.

Therefore, the agile method is fast and is able to change and adapt quickly to new conditions or needs. 

This approach is also based on the principle of collaborative work, in which everyone row to the same side, keeping the gear running smoothly. 

The results

After completing the website, it is possible to verify that it complies with the fundamental requirements of the client. 

The website has a unique design and an appealing layout, where the user experience was valued, with easy access to essential content. 

On the other hand, administrators are guaranteed easy content management, not only in the immediate term, but also in the medium and long term. In this way, they can discard requests for technical support for updates or basic adaptations in the short term. 

The possibility of booking the holiday home directly on the website was one of the main objectives of the project, which was fully accomplished.

This is the great advantage of a local accommodation space having its own website, as it no longer depends on other online accommodation platforms. So it does not need to pay fees to intermediaries for reservations. 

The solution found allows to continue working with several platforms simultaneously, even maintaining their independence. Thus, when reservations are made on other sites, the selected dates are also unavailable on the booking form on the Gem At The Beach page. 

The development of an own website allows the customer to have Google Analytics installed and, when properly configured, this tool can give a greater perception of who he´s potential customers are. This way, you get to know your audience better and you can define a digital marketing strategy with better results. 

In addition to technical issues, the website reinforces the online presence of this local accommodation and helps to strengthen confidence in the space. At the same time, it reveals the wonders of Vila Nova de Milfontes and a holiday home that can guarantee many and comforting stays for visitors.