THE PIG - Understanding the Guest Behind the Booking

The Challenge

As part of a broader brand refresh and digital transformation, THE PIG identified the need to evolve its online experience to reflect a new visual identity. A discovery workshop revealed a critical insight: while the brand enjoyed a strong and loyal local customer base, its significant growth over the past decade had outpaced its understanding of who its guests really were.

Our hypothesis was that THE PIG’s website had become overly transactional. It focused on converting visits into room or table bookings, but missed a deeper opportunity to connect emotionally with guests. We believed that shifting towards a more story-led digital experience could inspire exploration, increase visit frequency, and enhance perceptions of value for money. This was not just any lunch or overnight stay, it was a chance to unwind, reconnect, and feel part of something local and meaningful.

Adding to the challenge was the brand’s unique positioning as a “restaurant with rooms,” which resonated strongly with locals. However, our early analysis suggested that a more emotive and experience-led digital proposition could unlock growth from a new audience: urban dwellers and experience seekers who wanted to connect with nature, food and place in a more intentional way.

The Solution

We designed and delivered a mixed-method user research programme to explore current behaviours, unmet needs and new opportunities across both existing and untapped audiences.

Surveys

We launched a detailed survey targeting both loyal guests and those unfamiliar with the brand. The survey covered visit frequency, motivations, travel patterns, on-site spending and influencing factors. This gave us a clear picture of what drove visits and bookings, and what barriers existed for potential guests.

1:1 Interviews

We conducted qualitative interviews with individuals demographically aligned with current guests who had never stayed at THE PIG. This revealed fresh insights around awareness, assumptions and what inspires people to book other properties.

Persona Creation

Drawing on the data, we created seven detailed personas, three based on existing customer types and four representing new growth segments. These personas were built around user goals, behaviours, frustrations and emotional drivers, and were aligned with Mosaic segmentation to ensure commercial and operational relevance.

Strategic Framing

We tested and validated the hypothesis. We helped the team see how a digital experience grounded in curiosity, exploration and local storytelling could encourage guests to discover other PIG locations and make bookings feel like part of a larger journey. This thinking fed directly into wider brand and experience strategy work.