Ways of booking holidays and finding out about destinations have dramatically changed with more and more people accessing the internet and now Swansea Bay tourism experts have been commended for leading the way with technology.
The Swansea Council tourism team walked away with the gong in the Best Use of Technology category at the Swansea Bay Tourism Awards that celebrated the contributions made to Swansea Bay’s multi-million pound tourism industry in 2010.
Award-winning website www.visitswanseabay.com website attracted close to 125,000 unique visits over the last 12 months – a four per cent increase on the previous year. Figures also show visitors to the website are now looking at 33 per cent more pages compared to last year.
A revamp of the website was undertaken in 2009 that meant it was re-launched earlier this year. Some of the improvements include a new layout, fresh content, more interactivity and extra resources to make planning a trip to Swansea Bay easier than ever.
The website has comprehensive information on what visitors can see and do in the area. This includes sections on natural and built attractions, activities, events and accommodation.
Swansea Council has also made the most of social networking websites like Twitter, Facebook and Flickr as leading marketing tools to ensure the official Swansea Bay destination website reaches new and wider audiences.
Steve Hopkins, Swansea Council Tourism Manager, says the website is one of the main reasons why many businesses have renewed their marketing partnerships with the Council.
He said: “This amazing award is recognition of a true team effort that’s seen the website brought back in-house, developed, re-launched and now marketed as the official destination website for Swansea Bay.
“As we continue to develop our digital marketing activity, the website and all its content are vital parts of our marketing activity as we move forward. We’re also continuing to integrate the website with the new and exciting social media opportunities that now exist.”
Figures show over 4.1 million visitors came to the Swansea Bay area in 2009 and spent over £295 million.
Statistics also show the tourism industry supports over 5,000 jobs in the area.
Cllr Graham Thomas, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Recreation and Tourism, said: “It’s a tribute to the effort that has gone into the creation of www.visitswanseabay.com that our peers in tourism have recognised its value.
“The website is regularly updated with new content and we will continue to add refinements and improvements to ensure it maintains its key status as an important tool in attracting people to the Swansea Bay area.”
Have a look at www.visitswanseabay.com for more information.
