The challenge
TSW wanted to create a useful and distinctive digital companion for exploring Botswana.
The product needed to bring a broad mix of travel, lifestyle and practical information into one coherent experience. TSW had initial ideas and designs, but these needed to be refined and developed into a production-ready mobile app.
After launch, the challenge shifted towards growth. TSW needed a clearer content structure, stronger reasons for people to download and revisit the app, and a better connection between marketing activity and actions within the product.
Designing and building the app
We worked from TSW's initial concepts, improving the designs and shaping the wider user experience as we developed the product.
The app brings together curated places to eat, stay and explore alongside emergency information, currency conversion, local guides and conservation content. Our role spanned product thinking, UX and UI design, technical development and preparing the app for launch.
This created a flexible foundation that could support TSW's original vision while continuing to evolve as its audience, content and commercial partnerships grew.
Creating a clearer discovery model
Following launch, we reviewed how content was organised across the app. Several areas appeared to offer variations of the same thing, making the experience harder to navigate and the proposition more difficult to communicate.
We established What's Hot as the main editorial recommendation layer, with offers and competitions positioned separately as things people could claim or enter.
We translated this into a simpler home-screen direction, led by search and location followed by a curated What's Hot carousel. Filtering was kept deliberately focused:
- All
- Eat & Drink
- Things To Do
This gives people a clearer way into the content without adding unnecessary complexity. The structure can expand as the range of recommendations grows.
Turning attention into engagement
Offers, competitions and app-exclusive activity give TSW's campaigns something immediate and valuable to promote. Instead of marketing a general travel guide, the team can lead with a specific reason to download and act.
Accounts were positioned at these moments of value rather than creating a barrier when someone first opens the app. People can explore freely, then register when they want to enter, claim or contribute.
We also recommended a controlled contribution model for influencers, curators and trusted local sources. This gives TSW access to wider local knowledge while retaining editorial control and avoiding the moderation risks of open comments and public ratings.
Building the foundations for growth
We developed 12 Top 10 collections covering food, accommodation, safari, culture, nightlife, activities and experiences across Botswana.
More than 130 content and image records were reviewed and prepared for import, expanding the app's editorial coverage and making future updates easier to manage.
We also defined an analytics framework using GA4 and Firebase. This moves measurement beyond downloads, helping TSW understand which content, offers and campaigns lead to meaningful engagement and repeat use.
The outcome
DabApps took TSW from early concepts and initial designs to a production-ready travel app, then continued working with the team to shape its next stage of growth.
The revised content model makes the experience easier to understand and gives TSW a stronger proposition to communicate. App-exclusive activity creates more concrete reasons to download and return, while controlled contribution protects the quality of its recommendations.
Together, the original app build and subsequent product strategy have given TSW a strong foundation for becoming Botswana's distinctive, content-led travel and discovery platform.