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Bath Area Self-Catering Association

Bath Area Self-Catering Association (BASCA) is a group of independent owners of self catering holiday accommodation in Bath and its rural environs of Somerset, Wiltshire and South Gloucestershire.

Website:
www.bathselfcatering.com

Our Role:
Web Design / Content Management / Bespoke Development

Description:
Avando Systems were commissioned to redesign the website and build a full Content Management System.

The requirement was for a robust and fast loading portal site displaying all of the properties of the association along with editing tools for each memeber as well as the superuser.  Each member is able to easily update their individual property listing, availability calendar, as well as communicate to other members through 'email features' built into the members area.

Avando systems ensured it would be built in such a way as to ensure it continued to perform well in search engines. The Search Engine Performance of the website has increased as a result of the new system, and the website now frequently is seen in the top of the search results for Self Catering Properties in Bath.

Specific features built into the website include:

Member Features:

• Facility for each BASCA member to create/edit their own property listing and availablity calendar.
• Facility for each member to send around internal notices and referral messages.

Administrator Features

• Content Management System allowing administrator to easily update content on the non-property listing pages.
• Administrator is able to create/edit the BASCA members and member settings.

Other Features

• An automated 'property rotation' scheme (for equal exposure).
• Search Feature allowing for searching of all properties meeting certain criteria (such as availability).

Customer Comment:

The Bath Area Self Catering Association(BASCA) is a group of around 40 owners of self catering properties in the area around Bath. All the properties are managed by the individual owners, thereby offering a very personal service to their guests. Bookings are made directly with the individual owners, who all have their own websites but to gain maximum web exposure, the Association wanted to have a website listing all the properties and gaining good listings on google and other search engines. It was also paramount that the members could easily update their own information and the certain members could act as ‘superusers’ of the system, thus keeping the ongoing costs down for changes in the information shown.

The website started in a small way with just a general property listing page and information about the Bath area but now encompasses a very popular search facility, yearly display of availability for all the properties and maps of the properties.

Over the years that BASCA have been working with Avando, we have had great service and lots of very good ideas for enhancing the site. The guys working on the site have always been very responsive to the on-going issues which get raised and have worked well with the members. They have produced excellent guidebooks to the workings of the site and attended meetings to help formulate new ideas to grow the site.

The BASCA website has now attained superb google listing placement and has steadily increased the hits received each year.

Rowena Wood, Bath Area Self Catering Assocation