Blue Beetle

Please describe your company and your position there.

Rove hotels is an award-winning lifestyle hotel brand, offering well designed hotels in connected locations. Designed for the traveller who likes to explore without borders, receive fuss-free service and some touches of local culture.

Rove Hotels defines a new niche in the ever-evolving global hospitality sector. Rove Hotels are reliable, modern and efficient. Regardless of their location, Rovers (guests) will always find locally-inspired modern interiors, relaxed service and all the essentials to enjoy their stay.

Born in Dubai, Rove Hotels is a joint venture between Meraas Holding and Emaar Properties PJSC. The first Rove hotel opened at Downtown Dubai in 2016 and the brand now has over 4000 rooms open or under development across the Middle East. Rove Hotels continues to target properties in well-connected locations and further expansion announcements will follow soon.

About me: I am the head of marketing for Rove Hotels, in charge of the planning and overseeing the execution of all marketing, branding and communications activities for the group.

For what projects/services did your company hire Blue Beetle?

We hired Blue Beetle to develop the Rove Hotels website. We wanted a site that looked fresh and stood out from the rest of hospitality websites, which for the most part tend to look quite similar.

The result as very positive and we even managed to win the Best in Class Website Award at the Interactive Media Awards 2017. Overtime we have continue working with Blue Beetle to enhance the original site with new functionalities and improve conversion rates by making modifications on the UI/UX on regular basis.

What were your goals for this project?

Our main goal was to create a website that would reflect the youthfulness and energy of the brand, and create an experience that differed from the ones of more traditional hotel websites. Additionally, we wanted a website that was dynamic, always evolving.

This was achieved by incorporating placements fed with social media images, that would change regularly so that repeating visitors would always be seeing a different site.

How did you select this vendor?

We did a tender for which we received around 10 different proposals. Out of these, we selected those that fit our budget range and set meetings with every one of them individually.

During the meetings every company presented their own design concepts, as well as functionalities that they believed would fit the site. After internal deliberation, we felt that Blue Beetle's idea was the one in closest alignment with what we had in mind, therefore, we proceeded with them.

Describe the project in detail.

The project was divided in several stages.

1. We had a briefing sessions where both our teams discussed what we were our expectations and what was important to us.
2. We had a wireraming stage where all important sections/functionalities were mapped out into sketches of the site. Once that was approved we moved forward to design.
3. During the design, we established the look and feel as well as the exact quantity of text to be displayed. Where necessary, we made some modifications on the initial wireframes to enhance the result.
4. The development team worked on the site for several weeks. As soon as a page was completed, they shared it with us for review and started adding content onto it.
5. Finally, once all pages were developed, we connected the booking engine and did a final review of the website experience before making it live.

What was the team composition?

The team consisted of Mark, the company founder, 2 account managers and 3-4 web designers and developers.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

In addition to the site winning the aforementioned award, the website is now an effective selling tool for us.

Obviously, there is always plenty of room for improvement and projects to enhance the current experience will continue taking place but overall, we are happy with the developed site, it conveys our brand identity, provides user with most of the necessary information to book their stay and it's generally easy to use.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

As with everything, it took us some time to get things working efficiently. However, once we adjusted to each other, we have kept a great working dynamic over the last 4 years.

They understand well the requirements of the Rove Brand and what we need from them, and from my side I'm always sure that any project in which we work together will be dealt with in a very professional manner and that the final product will be as per the shared brief.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Despite being a small firm, they have managed to keep a great team over the years. Their account management is always excellent, very responsive and accommodating.

The development work is solid, we have never had important issues with the website, other than the usual maintenance. Every new feature has been well tested before made online so that no problems arise.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Due to the size of the company, projects sometimes stay in the pipeline longer than I'd like. I appreciate that they don't rush into things and make sure that the output is always of great quality, although in certain occasions, we would have liked to put things online faster.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the COO of a full service landscape company based in Dubai.

For what projects/services did your company hire Blue Beetle?

We appointed blue beetle to design and develop our corporate website

What were your goals for this project?

Ensure a modern image heavy design that is fast, intuitive and works across desktop and mobile.

How did you select this vendor?

We searched across the UAE for vendors, conducted interviews and narrowed this down to 3 vendors that we felt understood our brand and brief. these we then invited to submit a proposal. Follow up presentations were then held with each of the three vendors after which the decision was made. We felt that blue beetle had the best grasp of what we wanted to achieve and their project management team were effective communicators.

Describe the project in detail.

Initially after proposal approval we had several meetings, firstly content and design, then site map and then we reviewed the work and set timelines for delivery. The gather content platform was used to collate text and images from us. 3 Initial designs were submitted and reviewed where we selected one to move forward with the rest of the web pages. Then periodic meetings were held as requested by Blue beetle to review progress. Once all pages were designed a final meeting for review on desktop and mobile was held before moving to testing.

What was the team composition?

We generally dealt with 4 people and this has been consistent throughout. Mark was our initial point of contact who then handed us over to 2 project managers and design and development manager.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The site is still nascent but already feedback from clients, partners and stakeholders has been very positive

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Really happy with the project management coordination. They stayed in constant contact, meet deadlines, helped our team to understand requirements and also made it fun to work with them.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Communication. They listened, understood and really did keep the project moving whilst being adaptable to our changes.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director of Jpd, a brand strategy and design consultancy based in Dubai and London. We predominantly work with either new brands or rebranding for existing businesses.

What challenge were you trying to address with Blue Beetle?

One of our biggest challenges is client acquisition, which we wanted to improve by developing a new, engaging website to encourage customers to partner with us.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Blue Beetle was responsible for developing and designing the website, which functions on both desktop and mobile platforms. The site, housing our portfolio, serves to attract and encourage clients. The developers ensured the page was properly optimized and fast-running. 

The team focused on making the site easily manageable on our end in order to reduce the amount of time we have to spend on CMS and other aspects. We update our blog and case studies often, so we wanted that process to be as seamless as possible with an accessible interface. 

They also ran Google Ad campaigns and offered their SEO services once the site was built.

What is the team composition?

We worked mainly with four people: an account manager, a project manager, a developer, and a digital marketing manager. There were a few others involved, but they were who we interacted with primarily.

How did you come to work with Blue Beetle?

Blue Beetle has a great web development reputation in Dubai. We reached out to them based on the feedback we’d heard from our colleagues and other contacts. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $25,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in May 2015, and though the website is live, the relationship is ongoing as we consult Blue Beetle for updates and modifications.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Director of Marketing and Brand | Vida Hotels and Resorts

For what projects/services did your company hire Blue Beetle?

Website development and design

What were your goals for this project?

Website development

How did you select Blue Beetle?

Previous experience with Emaar Hospitality

Describe the project in detail.

Creative design and implementation of Origins Social website

What was the team composition?

Danielle and Mark

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Fantastic website design, proactive and patient team ensuring the end result is as per or beyond our expectations

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective, the team at Blue Beetle constantly follow up and ensure no points are overlooked.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team's dedication to the project was really impressive.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not that I am come across

Please describe your company and your position there.

Insurance/Financial Services. CIO

For what projects/services did your company hire Blue Beetle?

Website & Digital Marketing.

What were your goals for this project?

Develop a state-of-the-art website.

How did you select this vendor?

Researching the market in detail.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Website Development. Ongoing maintenance & enhancements etc.

What was the team composition?

Project management / Designers / Developers / Customer support.

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Blue Beetle is a fantastic digital agency with Mark at the helm & we have partnered with them for over 7+ years now. Very professional & friendly, affordable, good communication, attention to detail on the numerous projects we have engaged with them and with quick turn-around.

Their design and development teams are experienced and customer-centric and fully understand what the client wants. To anyone wanting a solid website etc. created, I would encourage them to look no further.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Using Asana project management software, the project was managed very effectively.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Profession, experienced & a friendly team.

Are there any areas for improvement?

NA.