HC24

Client

HC24 has been an established provider of accommodation for over 30 years. The market leader offers a wide range of furnished apartments and houses that are ideal for short stays. The HC24 network includes 15 agencies for placements and over 70 employees throughout Germany. This means they place special value on personal advice and support for both potential renters and landlords, who are often private individuals.

The initial situation

The challenge for the Nuremberg-based company was to optimize the connection between the different agencies and the apartment seekers. It was particularly important to choose the right tools to ensure a top-quality user experience.

Solution

Our team developed a well considered solution based on different technologies and a distinct strategy.

Frontend optimization

On the frontend, the team relied on Next.js with Tailwind to create a user-friendly and responsive website for HC24's customers. This involved integrating a central and prominent map tool with self-built search, which becomes an essential tool for users to find their dream apartment. With this innovative search map, HC24's customers can precisely filter their search for desired apartments and directly receive the results that match their expectations in a lightning-fast interface. This search map allows users to filter specifically by certain criteria such as location, size, amenities, and price. This makes the apartment search more efficient and user-friendly.

Data management

Data management is handled by the powerful headless content management system Strapi. This system is characterized by the ease of agency maintenance and the ability to efficiently manage structured data. The use of GraphQL makes it possible to effectively retrieve data for the front end.

Backend optimization

On the backend, a microservices architecture based on Spring Boot was implemented. This architecture enabled the isolation and simplification of domain-specific tasks. A crucial component is the importer, which imports apartment data from various ERP systems, then filters and processes them. At the same time, the data is linked to the corresponding apartment images, which were cropped and watermarked. A special YouTube microservice links YouTube videos to the respective apartments on the HC24 channel. Another highlight is the delivery of the data. In addition to the REST interface for data transfer to Strapi, the microservices architecture enables detailed control of data transfer to various real estate portals such as Immobilienscout24 and Immonet. Each of these portals has its requirements and specificities, which can be easily implemented due to the flexible architecture. To quickly identify and solve potential problems, a service was introduced that reports all import processes to the agencies. This ensures data quality and guarantees smooth collaboration.

Communication optimization

In addition to technological optimization, we also took care of improving customer communication. A mail system was implemented to support agencies in communicating with clients. This system automates the sending of emails and ensures that apartment data are presented in an appealing way.