Making a Splash with Withington Baths’ Online Presence
We’ve recently wrapped up an exciting project for Love Withington Baths, a local charity operated by the community, which successfully saved the iconic landmark from closure in 2015.
As the last Edwardian working pool in Manchester, Withington Baths holds a special place in the city’s heritage. Our goal was to give Withington Baths a fresh digital look through an overhaul of its online presence.
Dive into the detail of how we made this collaborative project happen.
Setting out a clear plan
Since taking on the day-to-day operations of Withington Baths, the charitable organisation has dedicated itself to restoring the building’s unique character while expanding its offerings. This included transforming the old warden’s quarters above Withington Baths into Withington Works, a co-working space that opened its doors in 2017.
Its old website wasn’t quite hitting the mark though – it lacked important detail and didn’t match up with the organisation’s identity.
So, when conceptualising its new online home, together with the client, Conker had very clear goals in mind. Together, we aimed to achieve a fresh feel, something that’s as friendly as Withington Baths and Withington Works themselves. We also wanted to make sure it was easy for website users to find their way around and encourage people to get involved.
With the Baths looking for a long-term solution, we needed to make sure the website would stay useful and look good for years to come.
Making it Happen
We kicked off with collaborative workshops to identify and understand the charity’s stakeholders, which helped us guide the direction of the project while ensuring that it stayed within budget. From this, we created a technical brief, focusing on how the website should work just as much as how it should look – making sure that the most important information was easy to access.
After gathering these insights, we developed a site navigation structure and conceptualised the website’s pages, ensuring they aligned with Withington Baths’ own goals. Creating seamless integration with their current CRMs while leveraging analytics to monitor performance was a vital part of the process, as was crafting fresh, user-friendly content in alignment with the client’s brand. Finally, we orchestrated social media campaigns and developed engaging newsletters to unveil Withington Baths’ fresh digital presence to the world.
The Result
More than just a new website. We helped to create a hub for Withington Baths and Withington Works users alike, helping them to find information, book their favourite classes and desks, and so much more. This also extended to the wider South Manchester community, who can now view and participate in community events held by the charity. As our client put it, working with us didn’t just mean a new website – it meant a whole new digital identity that shines for the community.
Speaking about the project, Jenny Green, Withington Baths Board Member said: “Working alongside Conker Communications was a game-changer for us. They really understood our vision and worked tirelessly to bring it to life. From creating engaging content to making sure our website looks fantastic and is easy to use, they went above and beyond. With Conker’s help, our online presence now truly reflects who we are and has made a real impact in our community.”
Want to see how we can help your brand shine? Drop us a line and let’s see how we can work together.
