While it’s early in the site’s existence to share detailed results, the initial news has been very promising. Comparing year-over-year, all lodging referrals are on an upward trend, which we expect to continue as more potential visitors discover the site.
Yosemite Mariposa County Tourism Bureau
A New Look for a Classic Destination
Noble Studios led the Yosemite Mariposa County Tourism Bureau through a complete website overhaul that made Yosemite.com a crucial resource for all stages of the traveler’s journey.
Refining the Traveler’s Journey
Noble Studios has been a proud partner of the Yosemite Mariposa County Tourism Bureau for years. When it came time to freshen up its web presence at Yosemite.com, we stepped in to bring it into alignment with the needs of its users. The new site needed to be a crucial resource for all stages of the traveler’s journey, educating them on why they should choose Yosemite Mariposa County for their next vacation.
Get in Touch
Three Opportunities
- Upgrade the functionality of the website to reflect responsive, modern design
- Make Yosemite.com a leading source for trip planning inspiration
- Promote lodging within Mariposa County
A Mobile-First, Customized Approach
We knew it was imperative to make the website as easy to navigate as possible, and this began with a mobile-first approach. Because nearly two-thirds of all travelers use their smartphones to plan and book travel (and the number climbs every year), the site had to be agile, responsive and designed to be consumed on smaller devices. We performed user testing during design to ensure that all elements — from the page layouts to the navigation — were intuitive for mobile users. Using a story-driven approach combined with search engine optimization strategies, we made the site not only easy to find, but easy to negotiate once there.
We also:
- Created custom blocks
- Added a Mega Menu
- Integrated analytics with a custom dashboard for the client
Upgrade the functionality of the website to reflect responsive, modern design
Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) rely on travelers spending money while in market. Our desire to upgrade Yosemite.com’s interface was driven by this understanding. We helped place a major emphasis on educating travelers on lodging options, not just around Yosemite National Park, but in all parts of Mariposa County. We added static, graphics-based maps to give the “lay of the land” along with filtering options to take the user experience to the next level.
Make Yosemite.com a leading source for trip planning inspiration
Once a visitor comes to understand just how vast and varied Mariposa County is, they can begin honing in on the type of trip they’d like to take. Building on Yosemite.com’s extensive library of pre-built itineraries, we highlighted the trips that already provided visitor value and identified gaps where we could better tell the story of a visit to Mariposa County. The result is a series of enhanced itineraries catering to short trips, trips with dogs, value-based trips, trips tied to a certain time of year and many more. Knowing what to expect on an upcoming trip provides confidence that a visitor is going to experience exactly what they hope to experience.
Promote lodging within Mariposa County
With the goal of increasing lodging bookings within Mariposa County, we boosted stakeholder visibility by encouraging more engagement with their listings. We promoted longer visits year-round as well as shoulder season visits to help spread out the times of year when people come to the area — not just the high season of summer. By letting users filter by lodging type and location within the county, we helped them decide whether they’d stay in a cabin, resort, B&B or traditional hotel/motel.
Increasing Lodging Referrals
-
5
%
Increase in Book Direct Referrals
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46
%
Increase in Lodging Referrals
Ready to get to work?
Lets make this year your best yet.
