Boise has cool, funky, small-city appeal. And though the city has received a lot of media attention, for much of the country it’s still an unknown destination. It was clear we needed to put our city on more people’s radars and maybe even change a few perceptions. What’s the best way to do that? By getting them here, so they can experience Boise’s forward-leaning, urban vibe in the middle of some of North America’s most spectacular landscapes. The problem was that the former Visit Boise website was built on an outdated Content Management System (CMS). Content updates were a challenge. We uncovered a content-first approach that would be the most helpful for potential visitors. The entire website copy and experience had to be reimagined and built from scratch with this new learning in mind. While this forced our team to rethink every URL, it also allowed us to create micro-moments on the website to highlight the human experience in Boise.
+ US Travel's ESTO Award, Gold - Best Destination Website
+ Web Design
Redesign and rebuild visitboise.com to create a visitor-first content experience, focused on inspiring travel planning.
“Visit Boise is going home with a Destiny Award, “Best Destination Website.” Thanks to our marketing partners at Duft Watterson for the countless hours put into helping make this site shine... your work is being recognized and we thank you.”
We took a stagnant website that had a dated user interface and lacked user-friendly content and turned it into a consumer-focused experience with seasonal content, visitor guides based on interest and tools to help plan the best Boise vacation possible.
Our team developed a “plan your trip” tool that allows potential visitors to input the season they’re visiting Boise and activities they’re interested in, such as outdoors, nightlife, family activities or shopping. They’re then presented with a number of helpful blogs, events and a list of popular businesses that match their selected interests.
Like the city, we wanted our design to be unique when compared to other destinations. Vibrant colors cover the website, paired with quirky sticker elements and large headlines that call out Boise’s unique offerings. Our illustrated neighborhood map is interactive, allowing potential visitors to learn more about each neighborhood before booking a place to stay. All of this was accomplished while maintaining gold-standard WGAC 2.0 accessibility compliance and mobile responsiveness for users researching on their mobile devices.
Our award-winning, refreshed website focused on supporting the primary business goals of generating tourism and hotel revenue for Boise by:
This successful redesign of the Visit Boise website experience ultimately led to the 2023 U.S. Travel ESTO Award for Best Destination Website. And following the launch, visitboise.com saw an average increase of 327% in site visitors, 241% in returning visitors, and 128% in average session duration.
Let's create something unforgettable.
