Travel Inspiration at Your Fingertips

Google Analytics is the primary tool we use to measure website performance. Data is reviewed on a weekly basis and more extensive reporting is done on a weekly, monthly and seasonal basis, to help identify strengths, trends and areas for improvement. We use this platform to track and analyze key performance indicators, on page events and activities, engagement, content trends, visitor demographics, device usage, general site engagement, visitor flow and campaign success. In addition to ongoing reporting, we use Google Analytics data to help inform all site enhancements and ongoing maintenance needs.

We utilize user testing several times throughout the development cycle of new enhancement projects and run competitive user testing to understand how TravelWisconsin.com compares to its main competitors. Every enhancement project begins with a strategic planning phase, where we run baseline user testing on the existing functionality to get an understanding of how users are interacting with the current version and identify opportunities for improvement. Once we move into the design phase, we run another round of user testing on the wireframes or prototype to get user’s feedback and make any adjustments before moving into development.

Heat mapping allows us to see how users are clicking and scrolling on individual pages on the site. We run a heat map on every creative iteration of the homepage, as well as key pages before and after enhancement projects. We’re able to segment this data by device type, user type, search term and referring source, which allows us to get a better idea of how users are interacting with pages on the site and inform enhancement opportunities.

Our strategic team developed in-depth personas and sub-personas to help us understand the characteristics, needs and challenges of our main website users. These personas were based on primary research data from Google Analytics, as well as secondary industry and consumer research. These personas are used in every project we do and are used as a basis for testing user criteria during user testing.

The Fun Finder is an interactive tool that provides users with a way to get trip inspiration by trip type, location and dates. Based on the criteria entered by the user, the tool randomly generates a trip plan, including location, activities, events, places to stay and dining options. Results are displayed on a map with an accompanying list, which allows users to dig deeper and learn more about each individual recommendation.

Fall and snow condition reports serve as a way for users to explore the fall colors and snow conditions in real-time, while also connecting them to additional trip planning information. A list of reports by location and a map are used and provide users with a way to see the color and condition status, weather, additional information, user photos and call-to-action buttons to learn more about the area. These reports also provide users with additional tools, to share the report, upload a photo and embed the report on their own website.

The selfie stand map is a tool that was built to gain awareness of the selfie stand program and provided users with a way to explore the locations around the state with selfie stands. A user sees the view of the entire state and pin clusters to indicate the general location and volume of pins across the state. In the content area, users see an alphabetical listing of all selfie stand locations with the name of the location and the point-of-view thumbnail. After a user clicks into a selfie location, a more detailed view is presented, which includes the name of the selfie stand, a point-of-view photo, detailed directions to where the stand is located, user-generated photos from that specific selfie stand and a call-to-action to the listing page, where they can learn more about the area and nearby activities, restaurants and places to stay.

Articles are presented in an easy, readable format, which includes content, imagery, calls-to-action and related content. The format is completely flexible and allows for many different layouts and types of articles to be presented using the same admin process. Images can be placed within the content at any point to break up the content and maps can also be inserted to highlight the specific place the copy is referencing. Maps are collapsed by default giving the user complete control on what they want displayed while keeping pages shorter on mobile devices. Tags are located at the bottom of the page for further exploration as well as related articles.

User generated content (UGC) was implemented across the site to provide users with a glimpse of how other travelers are experiencing Wisconsin. Showcasing UGC across the site offers a mix of produced and user content and provides inspiration to those early in the travel planning stage. Applying UGC to location and trip ideas pages gives the user a better understanding of what to expect in those locations, while providing more insight and content that some listing pages may lack in.

The website features a strong integration of the brand and marketing campaigns, including campaign imagery, landing pages and extensions. Ascedia works closely with the Department of Tourism, its advertising agency and marketing committee year-round to integrate branding and campaign initiatives into the site.