A property-marketing portal shaped around repeat work
The brief came from a Sandton estate agency that was spending too much time retyping the same print orders for new listings, open day boards and brochure runs. The team wanted a private ordering space where branch staff could select products, enter property details, upload artwork and move each job through proofing before production.
We set the build up around the way estate marketing actually moves. Listings change often, brochure content gets updated, and board quantities shift when a property goes live or a mandate changes. The portal had to keep those changes organised without forcing staff into long back-and-forth admin.
- Product builders for standard property marketing items
- Pricing rules for board sizes, paper stock and finishing options
- Artwork upload with proofing before release to production
- Order tracking for internal teams and branch users
Template structure for boards, brochures and inserts
The agency wanted a system that could handle recurring orders without rebuilding each job from zero. They also needed the portal to support multiple users, because agents, branch admins and marketing staff all touched the same order at different stages. That meant permission controls, cleaner product templates and a clearer path from request to proof to production.
Another constraint was brand consistency across branches. Boards and brochures needed to follow the same layout rules even when different people placed the order. We built the templates so the important fields stayed fixed and only the variables changed, such as address details, agent names, photographs and campaign wording.
- Reduce repetitive order entry across branches
- Keep template fields consistent across every listing
- Allow proof approval before print release
- Make reorders easier for standard property items
Proofing and pricing rules without extra admin
Pricing was built on a matrix that could handle common variations without creating confusion. Board size, quantity, substrate choice and finish all fed into the calculation. Where a product needed extra finishing or a different layout, the system flagged the change so staff could see the effect before the order went forward.
Artwork preflight was just as important. Property print is unforgiving when crop marks, image size or bleed are wrong, especially on signs that face traffic or brochures that need neat folds. We added checks for file type, page size and basic print readiness, then paired that with proofing workflows so the agency could review artwork before production started.
- Price matrix setup for variable formats
- Artwork checks for file size, bleed and layout fit
- Online proofing for internal sign-off
- Status steps that showed where each job sat
Staff training, launch support and the first live orders
Different users needed different views, and that shaped the portal design. Branch staff could place standard orders from templates, while the central marketing team had visibility over proofs, revisions and final approval. We kept the interface plain so a busy agent in the middle of show day could place an order without learning a complicated system.
The B2B side of the portal allowed the estate agency to keep jobs inside one controlled environment rather than letting requests arrive through scattered message threads. That made it easier to maintain artwork history, track changes and keep a record of every re-order for the same property campaign. It also made handover between departments cleaner, which matters when three people touch the same brochure before it goes out.
- Role-based access for branch and head office users
- Central visibility over proofs and revisions
- Cleaner handover between sales and marketing teams
- Repeat ordering from saved product templates
Launch result and what we would repeat
The work ran over six weeks from planning through to launch support. The first stage covered product mapping and template structure, then price rules and artwork logic were added. After that we moved into user testing, staff training and adjustments to the proofing flow so the portal matched the way the agency already handled print requests.
Training covered both admin use and day-to-day ordering. We showed the team how to manage products, review proofs, track order status and use the portal when a listing needed a fresh set of boards or brochures. Once the first live orders went through, the agency had a clearer system for repeat campaigns and branch requests, with less manual checking on each job.
- Week 1 and 2: discovery, structure and product mapping
- Week 3 and 4: templates, pricing and proofing setup
- Week 5: staff training and user testing
- Week 6: launch support and workflow adjustment
Key facts
| Project type | Property marketing web-to-print portal |
|---|---|
| Client type | Estate agency team in Sandton |
| Core products | Boards, brochures and related listing print |
| Main features | Product builders, proofing, pricing matrix, order tracking |
| Rollout period | 6 weeks |
| Service areas | Sandton, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban, Pretoria, Bloemfontein |
