The Shenandoah Valley Travel Association (SVTA) is pleased to announce that tourism in the region is growing, and that a newly redesigned website is ready for visitors.
Travel data from the past five years shows visitor spending in the region has been on a continued upswing.
The Virginia Tourism Corporation reports that travel-related expenditures in the Shenandoah Valley were up 13.8% between 2011 and 2015, which outpaced the state average for the same time.
The organization’s newly redesigned site centralizes information for travelers interested in the Shenandoah Valley. This new site replaces an existing site, which handled about 350,000 visits annually.
“We expect this site to continue to serve as the region’s number one tourism marketing tool,” says Julie Armel, President of SVTA.
INM United, a Richmond-based digital development agency, was tasked with the design and build-out of the new site.
“We greatly simplified the new site, with streamlined navigation for users. We implemented a more colorful, interactive—and most importantly, mobile-friendly—design. With these changes, we expect to drive more visits and more engaged traffic,” says Aaron Brenner with INM United.
SVTA plans to focus its outreach to top-source markets such as Washington DC, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, and New York as well as nearby drive-markets such as Richmond, northern Virginia, and Virginia Beach/Norfolk.
The organization is focusing on five strategic directives to increase visitation to the area – enhancing brand engagement, online digital affinity marketing, social media marketing, public relations, as well as the statewide distribution its popular Travel Guide.
“Intention to travel has been strong,” says Esra Calvert, Director of Research for the Virginia Tourism Corporation, citing a recent VTC survey that shows a majority of travelers to Virginia to want to spend and travel more.
“Tourism is a powerful economic engine for the Shenandoah Valley. As the official tourism marketing organization for the region, SVTA is looking to significantly grow both domestic and international travel in the years ahead,” says Armel.
About the Shenandoah Valley Travel Association
The Shenandoah Valley Travel Association is one of the country’s oldest travel organizations. It is the official destination marketing organization for the Shenandoah Valley region, which spans two hundred miles in two states (Virginia and West Virginia.) The association is a resource for tourists, convention and meeting organizers, and wedding planners. For more information, VisitShenandoah.org
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