Selected Work
THE PROOF
Every engagement here is presented with client permission or with identifying details removed. What you're looking at is the quality of thinking, the depth of diagnosis, and the nature of the recommendations - not a client list.
Boutique Wine Estate & Hotel
Hospitality Audit · Social Media Strategy · Brand Observations
I was invited to conduct a full social media audit and develop a strategic proposal for a well-regarded Cape winelands estate and boutique hotel looking to transition from their existing social media management.
The audit identified seven structural issues affecting the brand’s visual and narrative consistency - including a significant format problem (over 50% of content formatted for landscape on a vertical-first platform), an absence of any brand narrative thread, and a meaningful gap between the positioning language used on their website and what was being communicated through social execution.
Going beyond the social media brief, I identified three further commercial observations: a brand naming inconsistency creating confusion between the hotel and restaurant identities; a Google review architecture issue where restaurant reviews were suppressing the hotel’s overall rating; and an underexploited wine division experience with untapped commercial potential.
Delivered as a 24-slide audit report with prioritised recommendations and a full strategic retainer proposal.
7 structural issues
3 commercial observations
Commercial Strategy · Competitive Analysis · Channel Audit · Audience Positioning
Exclusive Hire Estate
An 11-bedroom Victorian estate with 26 acres, a 16-seat hot tub and all rooms en-suite - priced at the top of the Lake District large-group market, but generating minimal bookings after 22 months of activity.
My analysis found that the problem was neither the product nor the market. It was the execution. The property was listed exclusively on Airbnb and Booking.com - platforms built for individual travellers while the actual buyer searches on Rural Retreats, Kate & Tom’s, Unique Home Stays, Coolstays and Big Cottages. The property did not appear on any of them.
Beyond the channel gap, I identified eight structural issues: no standalone brand identity, photography that documented rather than evoked the property, listing copy that listed features instead of feelings, a social media presence with 134 posts and one to two likes per post, no curated guest experience, a B&B pivot actively undermining the exclusive-hire premium, and no direct enquiry path for the audiences most likely to book.
The work included full competitor benchmarking against four comparable properties with live pricing data, audience segmentation across four high-intent buyer groups, six zero-cost quick wins, and a financial model showing break-even required fewer than two bookings per week.
Delivered as an 11-slide commercial turnaround strategy with a 90-day pilot proposal.
8 structural issues
4 competitors benchmarked