Is Cheas
The real strength of Smartresults is having professionals who work in sync. They immediately saw what Is Cheas could become and the potential it had.
San Vero Milis, Italy
12
Background
Is Cheas is a luxury agriturismo located in the countryside near San Vero Milis, in west-central Sardinia, not far from the beaches of the Sinis peninsula. Founded by Francesca Ledda, it began as a sustainable farming business and a hospitality project built with respect for the environment, traditional Sardinian architecture, and the identity of the local area.
The property welcomes couples and families and has gradually expanded its offering over the years. What started with four pinnetti, accommodations inspired by ancient local shepherd shelters, later grew to include six lodges, all with private gardens and pools.
Alongside hospitality, Is Cheas has also developed a high-end ecosystem of experiences and gastronomy. Its restaurant, which is also open to outside guests, is one of its most distinctive elements. The property also offers certified Sardinian grape production, with the wine made by a local winery, vineyard tours and tastings, cooking classes, horseback rides, and a spa area with massages and treatments.
The request
Is Cheas is a sophisticated project with a strong identity and a clear vision. That is why, when Francesca turned to Smartness, she was not simply looking for a tool to increase bookings and profitability.
“We needed someone who believed in the project together with us, and the Smartness team immediately saw what Is Cheas could become and the potential it had. That is not something to take for granted.
Ours is a property unlike others in Sardinia, and it promotes a new vision of the luxury travel experience. We needed to make ourselves known, but we also wanted someone who could help us tell our story in the right way.”
So the request to Smartness came from this dual need: on one side, to grow commercially by increasing direct bookings and reaching the right target guests; on the other, to protect and strengthen the brand’s identity.
The solution
When the Smartness team carried out a detailed analysis of Is Cheas’s performance data in 2023, they found a business with an already positive foundation, including a strong share of direct bookings and a healthy overall balance:
- OTAs accounted for 24%
- offline direct bookings represented 49%
- the booking engine contributed 27%
What Is Cheas was missing was a step change: an integrated strategy capable of capturing demand more effectively, growing the booking engine, and supporting long-term, well-structured business development.
For this reason, Smartness proposed that Francesca activate Smartresults, the results-based model that combines software, specialist consulting, and operational management in one single growth project, with a variable commission based on the results actually achieved.
Smartresults then set up coordinated work across four areas:
- Digital experience, with Smartsite Ultra, which completely redesigned the website to better express the Is Cheas brand story and support the user journey through to booking.
- Revenue management, with Smartpricing Ultra, to optimize rates, better interpret demand windows, and increase the property’s ability to capitalize on its positioning.
- Direct channel, with Smartcrs, to manage inquiries and negotiations more effectively, improve conversion rates, and strengthen the role of the booking engine within the distribution mix.
- Demand generation, with SmartadsUltra, to reach users with high booking intent and support direct channel growth through targeted campaigns.
“We started first with the website and then added the other services. I realized that they are all interconnected and complementary. If they are not used as a whole, they cannot deliver the expected results.”
The results
With Smartresults, Is Cheas built a growth trajectory that strengthened and accelerated over time: the first major jump came after one year, in 2024, followed by a second acceleration in 2025.
Revenue and ADR: steady growth
Between 2023 and 2025, Is Cheas recorded revenue growth of +131% and an increase in overall average ADR of +13%.
More specifically:
- in 2024, revenue grew by +62% and ADR by +6%
- in 2025, revenue grew by a further +42% and ADR by +6%
Growth therefore came not only from overall business volume, but also from the average value of each booking. Is Cheas sold more while also becoming more effective at capturing the full value of demand.
Direct bookings: more control over distribution
Over the same period, total direct bookings increased by +109%.
More specifically:
- in 2024, direct bookings grew by +40%
- in 2025, they grew by a further +50%
The growth path therefore did not concern total revenue alone, but also the property’s ability to generate more bookings through its own channels, steadily strengthening the direct channel over time.
Booking engine and conversion
The booking engine was the strongest-performing lever of all: between 2023 and 2025, it recorded growth of +278%.
More specifically:
- in 2024, it grew by +94%
- in 2025, it grew by a further +95%
This was paired with an improvement in conversion rate, which reached 46%: almost one inquiry out of two turned into a booking.
“By working on an aligned project, where revenue, marketing, positioning, and market selection are all managed hand in hand, we achieved not only an increase in ADR and bookings, but also an improvement in conversion rate.
That means we are speaking to the right target audience. I think this is the real strength of Smartresults: having professionals who work in sync with each other.”