Travel at the highest level
Nestled among the ancient hills of Tuscany, the village of Monteverdi is made up from a self-contained collection of medieval buildings, lovingly revived into a luxurious resort that encompasses so much more than simply a place to stay.
Contained within the storied streets are a contemporary art gallery, performing arts venue, fine-dining restaurant, osteria, gym, library bar, meeting and retreat centre, lounge and terrace bar and even a privately sponsored archaeological dig.
Monteverdi truly is, the Tuscany of your dreams.
ERIN WHITIS CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, MONTEVERDI
The Challenge
In early 2024, Monteverdi approached 80 DAYS to help reimagine their online presence, aiming to better capture the essence of their unique hilltop hamlet.
We were immediately captivated by the breathtaking Tuscan landscape and the medieval charm of Castiglioncello del Trinoro, nestled within the pristine Val d'Orcia region.
This shared passion fuelled the creation of a new website, meticulously crafted to reflect the authentic Monteverdi experience, followed by strategic digital marketing activity to share its story with the world.
What was the rationale behind a new website?
Erin: Fundamentally, the tech really needed to be updated. Our backend was very old and a complex setup with two different systems. We were constantly updating the site, suffering from outages and some things just not translating.
The more guest facing piece was of course updating the visuals and the UX/UI – we had quite a complex navigation and a site that was designed years and years ago. And at that time, we didn't have such an extensive image library, so the website was relying heavily on copy rather than visuals.
Of course, when you think about how travel decisions are made today, you want people to be swept away. You want people to fall in love. The website wasn't really allowing people to understand what our offering was. Because if you see these beautiful views of the Val d’Orcia, of our rooms, it's very easy to fall in love.
So with all of that, it was a full front-end to back-end situation where everything needed to be completely redone.
How did you find the process of redesigning of your website?
Erin: From David and Benji doing the initial site visit to the handoffs to the rest of the team and everything in between, I had the upmost confidence. Not just in the process, but also in the expertise and capabilities, because it was important that we were working with a partner that is deeply ingrained within hospitality.
Also, on the softer side of things, it's having people that understand and can feel what the experience is and that's all about fit, which isn't necessarily easy to find. There was just a very easy understanding of our sensibility and our founder and owner's vision. I think the value of that is immeasurable, but from a process perspective, it was just very simple, smooth and straightforward. I didn't have to worry about it, which is great, because this is such a big project, and we're a very small team.
It felt like the entire 80 DAYS team was working with me, and so it could have been quite overwhelming, but it really wasn't at all.
How well do you feel the new website reflects your brand?
Erin: Before, most of our guests or travel agents, when they arrived to the property, their response was always 'Oh wow, I had no idea it would be like this'. I don't think there would be a world where we could capture every single thing about Monteverdi, but the website would just generate a lot of questions; 'What is a hilltop Hamlet?', 'What is a medieval village?'. The instinct would be to write it down, but it's much better if we can just show the guest and give them a sense of how it feels, without giving it all away - which would be impossible anyway!
We'd been building our brand identity and it was well expressed on many channels, like our Instagram or our sales materials, and the website needed to evolve alongside.
Today, whether you're a travel agent, from Virtuoso Travel Week, a guest that's found us from a friend sharing our social posts, or if you've seen our paid media ads... when you land on our website it all just makes sense.
The new website is a beautiful representation of what lies ahead. With digital expectations setting your in-person expectations, this is now so much closer to reality. It's more consistent and has unified our channels, opening up the world of Monteverdi in all its beauty.
Beyond the visuals, how well does the copy convey the Monteverdi experience?
Erin: At Monteverdi there's a level of softness and consideration for the details and that's really well reflected in the copy. And this is apparent everywhere you look, whether it's talking about our accommodations and the feel of the linens, or the pristine, lush, landscapes. think there's an extreme focus on detail without being verbose. That extreme focus on detail is what a guest experiences first hand and what they remember; it’s what they love and what they want to see telegraphed in writing to signal that our hotel is a fit for them.
It would have been very easy to come across as stuffy, unapproachable and 'old school luxury'. But again, credit to David and Kirsty, their understanding of our owner's sensibility and how he views the experience really shines through. The team did such a good job in interpreting who we are and the copy aligns perfectly with the visuals.
And how do you see the Monteverdi site evolving in the future?
Erin: It’s exciting to have a new website alongside a property and experience that is in its final form. It was really the perfect time to redesign the website. We now have a platform, a digital destination, that can house the complete Monterverdi experience and tell the story so beautifully.
Of course, the way we want to position Monteverdi and the website is very much experientially driven, so we're very much focused on what those experiences are and inspiring our future guests to craft their own stay. Now, they can visit the site and think "well, I'm there for a few days and it's springtime, I could go horseback riding or I could do this, or that" - it's about curating a Monteverdi experience as they wish.
How confident are you that the website will contribute to the long term success of Monteverdi?
Erin: Even after just three weeks we are seeing an increase in bookings so I anticipate that to continue, especially after we roll out the Italian language version of the site.
Also, we've just seen more direct bookings in general and I would expect that just by user behaviour, along with our new website, that that will continue to increase. Of course, that would be incredibly meaningful, especially as we think about our annual commercial plan.
So far, so good. Especially because it's not just an increase in bookings and room nights, but it's also an increase in revenue. Part of this is tied to a new paid media strategy so the payoff from both of these together is incredibly satisfying.
Originally, when I was introduced to 80 DAYS, I was focused purely on our website. I didn't have paid media in mind. I do think that the benefit of having a team that's integrated has been an unlock for us, from a commercial perspective.
From a paid media perspective, we're absolutely seeing the benefit of having that expertise, having people who are so well-versed in hospitality working on our accounts.
Finally, what's been your overall experience of working with 80 DAYS?
Erin: It's pretty rare to have a team where you can say, I know they have it. I know that they're talking to each other behind the scenes. It's this level of joined-up thinking and professionalism that I appreciate deeply. And again, because we have a small team, having trusted partners makes all of the difference.
The expertise is so apparent. From our initial conversations to the launch of the new website, I really trust the 80 Days team.
And that's just such a wonderful kind of dynamic to have in a partnership like this.
Looking to redesign your hotel's website? We'd love to chat.