Client
Campbell's Resort
Case study · Campbell's Resort
How a resort open since 1901 put booking on the first screen
A website redesign for a lakeside resort with rooms, dining, weddings, meetings and a beach, built around the question every guest asks first: when can I stay?
Industry
Hospitality and resorts
Location
Lake Chelan, Washington
Services
Website redesign, UX research, UI design, Information graphics
Outcome hub
Grow revenue
The problem
125 years of stories, and guests couldn't find the booking link
Campbell's had everything a lake getaway needs: rooms on the water, a pub and veranda, wedding and meeting venues and a private beach. Online, each one lived on a different path, and booking sat behind a menu. Guests who were ready to book had to go looking. Guests who were just dreaming never saw why this resort was different. The owners wanted the new site live ahead of the resort's 125th anniversary.
What we did
Three decisions that shaped the new site
1. Start with the guests, not the pages
We reviewed the site's analytics and wrote five guest profiles: a young family, a multi-generation family, a state association planning a meeting, a local leisure stay and a local dining or event guest. The new site map and navigation were written around their questions.
Key takeaway: Your site map should mirror the questions customers ask, not your org chart.
2. Put the booking question first
The homepage opens on the lake at sunset with arrival date, departure date, rooms and guests right on top of it, on desktop and phone. Ready guests book in one step; everyone else keeps scrolling into the story.
Key takeaway: One clear main button beats a menu of options.
3. Show the place before describing it
An illustrated amenities map replaced a long list, a before-and-after slider puts the 1901 building next to today's, and a live webcam shows the beach with weather and air quality.
Key takeaway: Show the place before you describe it.
Also in this project: the Pub & Veranda and Shaka Shack restaurant brands, the resort monument signs, and the 125th anniversary identity.
Inside the project
Page designs for rooms, dining, meetings, weddings, gallery, history, events and webcam; footer; colors and type; aerial photos.
What changed
Before and after, in plain terms
Booking moved from a menu link to the first screen on every device. Rooms, dining, meetings, weddings and events each got one page and one next step. The resort's history moved into the pages guests read before booking.
[FIGURE: add a booking or traffic change once Campbell's approves it.]
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