Hemisphere Freight Services
Empowering growth through a program of modernisation
The Problem
With the growth of the global logistics market set to more than double in the next decade, Hemisphere Freight Services had invested in state-of-the-art warehousing facilities to increase their market share. Whilst organic traffic to their 2019 website had been good and the site was effective in bringing in leads, 2024 had seen performance plateau. Page speed insights had started to decline and Google updates were having a negative impact. The site was looking and feeling its age. We needed to ensure that their visibility could be optimised and that Hemisphere could be empowered to further own their digital space. We therefore proposed a program of modernisation through redevelopment to ensure that they were positioned for growth.
The Solution
The technical modernisation project included integration with business systems to optimise efficiencies, ensuring that booking systems were available to customers 24/7. A multisite installation enabled efficient management of their New Zealand business arm from within the same interface. Redevelopment also presented the opportunity to refresh the user experience and evolve their brand look and feel. A comprehensive program of SEO work complimented the development, ensuring not only that traffic was maintained through the transition, but increased. Optimisation of key terms relating to their enhanced warehouse offering was prioritised as was seeing an uplift in core web vitals from 24 to 70-95.
New Future Value
The new website has been really well received and achieved the goals set within just a month of launch. Traffic is up 0.5% and organic SEO performance for broad terms like air freight and road haulage is already rising up the rankings (position 51 in 4 weeks). A number of initiatives contributed towards this success, including adding more depth to on-page content, which is key to inspiring confidence and increasing valuable enquiries.
Director, Hemisphere Freight Services
Global logistics company, Hemisphere Freight Services (HFS), provides clients with a full logistics service to enable the warehousing, import, export (including customs) and shipping of goods via road, air and sea. With facilities in Ipswich, Felixstowe, Liverpool and Heathrow and a new warehouse in Great Blakenham, the company is investing in growing their customer base and market share.
As a family run business with a value-driven global offering, there is considerable growth potential, paired with a genuine dedication to quality service and support. They are known for their team of approachable, knowledgeable logistics experts.
The global logistics market is currently valued in excess of $9 trillion, with an expectation to grow beyond £21 trillion by 2033 with a compound annual growth rate of 9.35% in the period. There are increased expectations around efficiencies, sustainability and speed of delivery. Hemisphere’s customer base is broad B2B, with significant scope for cross sell of additional services. They specialise in 3pl solutions, warehousing, global logistics, project logistics, , customs clearance services,, energy and renewables logistics.
The global logistics market is highly competitive. Optimisation techniques and the adoption of technology such as AI, IoT and automation help to improve operations and efficiencies, whilst strategic partnerships, mergers and acquisitions facilitate growth.
The website performance was declining and being based on outdated technology posed a significant risk. The design wasn’t attracting the level of new customers that supported the growth that HFS are looking to achieve.
An evolved brand look and feel would be realised in a new website design which would have user experience at its heart and be built on current technology. Built as a multisite installation, a version would be available for the New Zealand business arm. The new website would also allow the flexibility for growth whilst maintaining the requirements of existing customers to manage their shipments.
The work required to optimise the outcomes of the project included:
- Increasing organic sessions.
- Increasing goal conversions.
- Increasing enquiries via the contact form or phone.
- Ranking uplifts across target keywords to drive local and national growth across the portfolio of services, but specifically the warehousing service.
- Improving Core Web Vitals (CWV) scores across Performance, Accessibility, Pest Practice and SEO to between 70 and 95 from 24-91.
- Building authority through provision of insights and case studies.
- Integration with various business systems including warehousing, location tracking and booking.
To accelerate the performance and outcomes of the website project we:
- Delivered an SEO strategy for the first six months which included content and technical recommendations.
We transitioned the website from using ACF Flexible content to the modern Gutenberg Block editor, allowing for a more visual and consistent editing experience.