Ski Resort Websites: A Streamlined Solution to Visitor Overload
Gregg Blanchard /
Ok, so we’ve covered the data about landing page elements and navigation options. The general consensus is that the visitor is likely being presented with too much, too fast. As I mentioned, when you give a visitor more choices, rather than encourage them to take action, the number of visitors that take any action at all goes down. More choices = less action = lack of website efficiency.
So, how do you overcome that? Well, it’s time I do some actual suggesting from my own bag of marketing tricks. I have been sketching out and poking around with something this week that I call the “Custom Website Experience” .
CUSTOM WEBSITE EXPERIENCE
As far as I can tell, there isn’t a single resort that uses anything like this, so this might seem a little bit radical and different. However, with a background in a half dozen industries outside of skiing, maybe I can bring a slightly varied perspective to the table.
The goals I wanted to meet were as follows:
- Meet the needs of multiple types of visitors
- Limit the number of options a visitor is presented with
- Simplify the presentation of information
Here’s my idea…
The visitor arrives at the website as usual, peruses things for about 5 seconds and then this appears on the page (just a lightbox effect hovering on the site itself within the browser, not an actual pop-up, an example):
It offers to simplify the process for them by them answering some basic, multiple choice questions about what kind of skier they are, saving the visitor a few minutes, and giving you a chance to put a customized page full of offers, deals, and solutions in front of their nose in seconds. It even builds your email list. This might be what it looks like:
The results page would pull items from a database of possible answers / solutions to what the visitor needs that you have written previously including:
- A trail map with highlighted runs and lifts the skier would enjoy based on their level
- Lodging deals and options if they are coming from out of town
- Group and family deals if they will are coming en-masse
- Rental information for just about anyone, but especially beginners
- Lesson information for beginners
- Ticket deals and offers
- An option to change the search parameters and refresh the page
This idea is in its infancy and the sketches above are crude, but I think you get the picture. Let your website do the work for them, save them some time, gather a few email addresses, and give the visitor a custom, streamlined experience that helps them find and use the information on your website.
So there it is, I’ve done it, I’ve made a recommendation on SlopeFillers, whew :) I’d LOVE to hear your feedback on this about what you like, dislike, would add, take-away, etc. Just leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
NOTE: Although I did some basic HTML/CSS/PHP coding for the screenshots, the back-end is not yet coded or functional.