Case Study: Ripples Bathrooms
Ripples founders Roger and Sandra Kyme opened their first showroom in (suitably named) Bath in 1988, showcasing their impressive bathrooms.
The business has since grown into a highly successful bathroom franchise that provides jobs for more than 50 people, including franchisees, bathroom designers, as well as six staff who work at the company’s Bath HQ.
Like many other growing businesses, Ripples had outgrown its website. “Our previous website was well over 10 years old and it had become tired and dated,” remembers Marketing Manager, Rachael McInnes. “The back end was built on an old CMS [content management system] and its limitations prevented us from updating the site with new content. We needed a website that better showcased our portfolio and brand, with an easy CMS.”
Rachael McInnes, Ripples Marketing Manager
Exceeding client expectations
A new website was long overdue and Rachael and her colleagues wanted one that was engaging, attractive and responsive, so that it looked great on all devices. “Crucially, it needed to truly represent our brand, showcase our beautiful bathrooms and provide potential clients with the information they need.
“We’re a well-respected brand with more than 30 years’ heritage and we wanted a website that exceeded client expectations. Our new site had to excite, inspire and advise potential clients, enabling them to learn more about our showrooms and design expertise.
“Our website is one of our key lead generators and all of our social and digital advertising points to it. Wherever a client interacts with us online, we wanted to ensure that it’s a seamless, cohesive representation of the Ripples brand, matching the high-end, personal experience they get in our showrooms.”
Squarespace expertise
After some online research, Rachael decided that Squarespace was the best solution for Ripples, but Ripples lacked the necessary in-house skill to create a suitably impressive bespoke website from a Squarespace template.
“We’re based in Bath, so after a quick Google search we found Manage My Website, which is also here,” she explains. “The case studies on their website impressed us. Not many local suppliers offer the Squarespace expertise we needed and after meeting Allie [Astell, Manage My Website founder], we knew our search was over.”
Finding a web agency that genuinely gets your brand and understands your needs is crucial, stresses Rachael. “When people think of Ripples they think of luxury, quality and design, and these qualities can be hard to convey on a website, away from our showrooms. Budget was also key, of course, as it is for all businesses, especially as we were starting a large project just after a pandemic! Good value for money was essential.”
“Communication from Allie and her team was quick and clear – the whole process was painless”
On the same page
Planning and building Ripples’ new, highly impressive website took just over six months. “Communication from Allie and her team was quick and clear – the whole process was painless,” Rachael continues. “Allie and I were very much on the same page when it came to organisation, so our various spreadsheets and constant check-ins kept the process smooth.
“Allie was always at the end of the phone to help with any questions. She’s very positive and approachable, and no task was too much trouble, even when we changed the website colours and fonts half way through the project. Allie and team did an excellent job of working with our brand guidelines and she willingly shared her extensive Squarespace knowledge. With more challenging questions, she was always willing to go away, do some research and come back with the answer.”
Rachael says the entire Ripples team is very proud of the company’s new website. “It’s more in line with the rest of our marketing, whereas our previous site was a weak link. Our new site is classic and clean; it let's the stunning images do the talking. Our new website will last – it isn’t going to look dated any time soon.”
Willingness to help
Working with Manage My Website also brought other benefits, Rachael says. “Online brochure requests are a key lead generator and Allie and her team helped us to make the process more efficient. The look and feel of our new website is vastly superior, so we're confident it will engage potential clients and generate more leads. It’s also better optimised for search engines, so we should attract significantly more website visitors.”
Manage My Website’s approachability is a key USP, says Rachael, and she describes its willingness to help as outstanding. “Even post-launch, Allie’s been checking in to make sure that everything is working as it should be. She also provided helpful training to make sure the handover of website management was smooth. Would I recommend Manage My Website? Without any doubt or hesitation,” she concludes.
“Would I recommend Manage My Website? Without any doubt or hesitation”
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