Smith can make you money

Odette Fussey
Sales Manager Russia Experience

‘We are a small niche tour operator with a proven background in selling bespoke Trans-Siberian Trips. We recently made the decision to upgrade our website to increase our market share. This was to be a two-pronged campaign in that we wanted to be able to attract clients from all over the world and, of course, increase sales from Europe as well. To do this we needed a much more professional, inspirational and informative web site so we went to Smith Design for some much needed help. You must consider that what we do for a living is unique and that to understand the complexity of it yet still make it exciting and appealing to a wide client base is not an easy wish list. We did wonder if we could achieve all our goals, while not losing the spirit and excitement of this trip.

I am happy to say it has been a fantastic investment and the success of the site is already proven. It has now been live for six months and in that time we have seen a 20% increase in bookings from all over the world and more importantly, in these lean times, we are all seeing a very healthy upturn in our sales across the board. We know without doubt this is due to the new site and we would not be seeing such a great start to 2010 without it. I am happy to say that Smith have been a pleasure to work with and to continue to work with.'

The brief:

Deliver a new corporate, customer facing website with higher and better quality sales opportunities directly through the site.

Business objectives: 

• Use the website to improve our bottom line by streamlining our sales process  
• Raise the profile of The Russia Experience in our market and in the press
• Reduce the involvement of external agents and the need for our brochures 

The audience profile dictated the design position – not too young or 'backpacky', real experts offering the inside track to a once in a lifetime experience. This meant getting across a diverse offer in a highly visual way using extensive on-the-ground photographic resources commissioned and art directed by Smith. 

We also had to create a sense of the established and knowledgeable – such a trip requires real experience, and ramping up the scale of ‘trustworthiness' was a key requirement. This was done by using little known ‘inside story' facts and previous traveller quotes placed throughout the site.

Structurally, the trip and ‘next action' information is clear, quick and easily accessed and can be viewed as a whole or selected and compared on key criteria such as leaving dates and prices. The site also includes sophisticated search facilities, online booking and anti-spam/security protocols. Profile was raised through a larger and more obvious press and PR section and a comprehensive library of images and background information.

View case study images