Black Rock Oceanfront Resort

Driving Direct Bookings and Expanding Digital Presence for a Coastal Retreat.

Overview

Black Rock Oceanfront Resort is an award-winning destination in Ucluelet, BC, located along the rugged coastline of West Vancouver Island. Known for its upscale accommodations, breathtaking ocean views, and commitment to sustainability, the resort offers guests a premium, nature-immersed experience.

Operating in a competitive tourism landscape dominated by online travel agencies (OTAs) such as Expedia and Travelocity, Black Rock partnered with Tiny Planet Digital to increase direct bookings and strengthen its overall digital presence.

Tiny Planet Digital was initially engaged to provide Digital Marketing Consulting and Google Ads Strategy & Management, with a later expansion into Social Media Management following early success.

The Challenge

Black Rock faced several operational and marketing constraints that limited growth potential:

Heavy reliance on OTAs, reducing profit margins due to commission fees
Limited in-house technical expertise in digital marketing
A single team member managing all marketing and sales efforts
Budget constraints requiring careful prioritization of initiatives

Beyond increasing bookings, the resort needed clarity on what was working in their marketing and a partner who could guide them with both strategy and execution.

“Tiny Planet Digital has been so easy to work with. They have taken a major piece off my desk by helping us manage our Google Advertising and now our social media management. They are responsive and fun to work with.”

— Heather Riddick, Black Rock Oceanfront Resort, Director of Sales & Marketing

Approach

Given budget limitations and the need for immediate impact, Tiny Planet Digital prioritized a performance-driven strategy:

Phase 1: Google Ads (Performance Foundation)

Conducted targeted keyword research focused on high-intent, low-competition search terms
Built and launched Google Ads campaigns designed to capture demand efficiently
Optimized campaigns continuously based on performance data (CTR, CPC, conversions)
Focused on driving qualified traffic directly to the booking website

Phase 2: Social Media Expansion (Brand & Engagement)

Following strong early results, the engagement expanded to include social media management:

Reimagined Black Rock’s social presence to reflect its premium, experiential brand
Developed engaging visual content (reels, graphics) aligned with guest experiences
Focused on increasing reach, engagement, and brand awareness to support long-term demand generation

Throughout the engagement, Tiny Planet Digital maintained ongoing communication and strategic alignment with the client, ensuring efforts remained focused on business outcomes.

Execution

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Results & Impact

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Google Ads (First 30 Days):

18.4% click-through rate (significantly above industry benchmarks)
$0.31 average cost per click (highly cost-efficient acquisition)
Over 5,000 impressions and nearly 1,000 clicks
Strong increase in qualified website traffic driving booking intent

Ongoing Performance:

Average CTR of 34% and conversion rate of 8.9% across campaigns
Improved ability to track and understand marketing performance

Social Media Growth:

Gained 2,000+ followers within the first year
Instagram reach increased from 8,000 to 20,000
Increased engagement and website traffic from social channels

Key Takeaways for Hospitality Clients

Start with high-impact channels: Paid search can quickly generate qualified demand
Prioritize efficiency: Smart keyword strategy can outperform larger competitors with bigger budgets
Build in phases: Start with performance, then expand into brand channels like social

Measure everything: Tracking and data clarity are critical for sustainable growth
Don’t go it alone: A strategic partner can unlock significantly better results with limited internal resources

What the client had to say...

We were looking for a professional agency to help us boost our SEO ranking. After several months of working with Tiny Planet Digital, we’ve found that they were so experienced and knowledgeable, and was able to boost our ranking right to the top of Google! We are super happy with with them and are continuing to work them in the future. If you want a SEO team that is thorough and has lots of experience, this is the team for you!

Julie was easy to work with and very helpful and collaborative. Julie and her team provided carefully crafted reports and plans for improving our digital marketing efforts and went through them in detail with our team. If you’re a non-profit or business looking to improve your digital marketing efforts, we highly recommend working with the Tiny Planet Digital team!

Since working with the Tiny Planet team, I've been able to maximize my team's resources and trust that their team will handle anything that comes their way. The team has been organized, communicative and very easy to work with.

Tiny Planet Digital has been so easy to work with. They have taken a major piece off my desk by helping us manage our Google Advertising and now our social media management. They are responsive and fun to work with.

We have been clients of TPD for only 6 months, but so much has been accomplished! In a highly saturated marketplace, TPD stands out for its holistic outlook, strategic agility, and genuine service orientation that ensures they understand our brand, product, and people first - then build communication out. Hospitality is both universal and hyper-personalized, and a partner with first-hand experience in it is key to helping us drive direct booking revenue and create success. Local, (genius) woman led, and great at what they do - TPD is exactly the kind of partnership we seek to find and fortify!

Tiny Planet has been a valuable asset to our small business. The team at Tiny Planet has been responsive and helpful in answering our questions in a timely manner. They have always been highly professional and we have been pleased so far with their SEO optimization and marketing strategies that have helped our business grow.