MARKETING

COVID-19 Response:

In response to COVID-19, South Walton has taken steps to adjust its marketing strategy. Currently, we’re focused on keeping potential visitors up to date on business changes and any applicable regulations related to COVID-19, including steps to ensure visitor and resident safety.

For those in market already, our focus is providing information on how to keep our community safe, as well as updates on local businesses that are offering adjusted services and are open for business. 

Our goal is not only to inform, but to also continue to keep South Walton top of mind with our guests by providing up-to-date information, virtual experiences and pertinent news related to our community.

 

COVID-19 Travel Updates Page Stats:

The main VSW COVID-19 Travel Updates page launched on March 18 and has seen 287,837 page views (March 18-Sept 3), 234,787 of which were unique page views, meaning the page was viewed 53,050 times by users returning to the page for another reference. Forty-seven percent of this traffic originated from organic search. Users spent an average time of 1:40 on the page. Specific sub pages include:

 

Virtual Beach Vibes:

Guests can enjoy a bit of the South Walton from their own homes, thanks to our Virtual Beach Vibes series. Utilizing South Walton’s social media channels, this series showcases South Walton partners (including musicians, artists, chefs and accommodation partners), and provides an opportunity for fans around the country to join the South Walton community, even before they arrive.

In total, our Virtual Beach Vibes series received more than 21.6 million impressions on Facebook, and more than 8.7 million impressions on Instagram from March 16 – May 31, 2020. Currently our marketing is geared toward educating visitors before they arrive in South Walton, and then reinforcing that message once they are in-market. See an example here: 

Want to learn more? Check out our Virtual Beach Vibes page or CLICK HERE to head over to our Beach Neighborhoods playlist.

 

 

Interested in getting involved? Reach out to Catie Feeney, our social media specialist, at Catie@visitsouthwalton.com.

 

July Website Stats:

  • Users & Page Views: 
    • Users who visited the site in July were mostly females (64.7%) between the ages of 45-64 (42.6%) and were new visitors (71.5%). New visitors saw a small decrease of 5.2% while returning users increased by 7.3%.
    • Traffic to the site in July was relatively flat with very minor decreases compared to June. Sessions, users and page views were down between 0.2% and 4%, while pages/sessions and average session duration were down 1.6% and 3.2%. 
    • Traffic was heavier at the beginning of the month with sessions peaking on July 6 with 5,568 sessions and July 1 with 5,506 sessions. After July 13, there was a 32% drop from 4,959 sessions to 3,340 sessions on July 20 and 26. The remainder of the month saw a decrease in traffic. 
  • Devices:
    • Consistent with previous months, mobile devices continued to bring most of the traffic to the site at 69.9% in July. While mobile devices bring in the most sessions, desktop devices continue to show higher engagement metrics with the longest average session duration, highest number of pages per session and lowest bounce rate.
  • Geography:
    • Texas accounted for the most sessions to the site with 22,855, followed by Georgia with 19,052 and Florida with 17,067. Sessions from Missouri saw an increase of  18%, while Alabama, Ohio and Illinois saw increases ranging from 3-13%. 
    • Top Areas viewing our site: Atlanta, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Mobile-Pensacola, Houston and Panama City. 
    • The most viewed pages:
      • The most viewed pages on the site in July were the COVID-19 Travel Updates Page, followed by the Before You Visit Page and the Home Page. 
      • Of the top 10 most viewed pages, those with the largest increase in page views were the Beach Safety Page (476.7%), the Before You Visit Page (37.2%) and the Santa Rosa Beach Neighborhood Page (21.4%). 
      • 40-50% of these visitors likely to consume additional content from other pages after viewing these pages.
    • Online Visitor Guide Data:
      • Page views on the online Visitor Guide Page saw a small decrease of 15% after a 54.9% increase in June. Average time on page increased by 6.6% and bounce rate increased by 27.5%. 
      • Travel guide page views decreased by 42% this month. From the travel guide page, the most visited pages were the visitor guide page, the COVID-19 travel updates page and the home page. 

 

Print Publications:
Visit South Walton is proud to offer a family of publications including: VISIT, STAY, PERFECT, FOREVER, EXPLORE and SAVOR. CLICK HERE to see online versions of each guide. 

  • VISIT is a revamped version of our Visitor Guide, complete with features on the South Walton culinary scene, lifestyle, events and outdoor exploration.
  • STAY showcases our diverse collection of accommodations, in addition to annual events and the different ways you can "stay" in South Walton.
  • PERFECT celebrates the businesses and events that were honored as our 2020 Perfect in South Walton Award winners. 
  • FOREVER is your guide to weddings in South Walton. Learn about the variety of venues available and all of the ways you can create lasting memories on your big day. 
  • EXPLORE is exactly what you need to get out and discover South Walton's abundance of natural beauty, outdoor activities, live music and dynamic arts and culture scenes. 
  • SAVOR is our spotlight on all things culinary in South Walton, from waterfront and fine dining to coastal casual eats and full restaurant listings. 

  

We'd love for you to share these free guides with your guests. We've lifted the limit on the number of guides we can now distribute. Contact Industry Relations Specialist Lisa Foster at Lisa@visitsouthwalton.com or (850) 333-2728 to place an order. 

 

Beach Flag Magnets:

VSW beach flag magnets are available in the Visitor Center for pickup. The Visitor Center is open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Please contact Lisa Foster, industry relations specialist, at Lisa@visitsouthwalton.com for more information. 



BookDirect Accommodations Search Engine: 
Visit South Walton has partnered with BookDirect to provide accommodation partners with the ability to display real-time rates and availability on visitsouthwalton.com. Our Partner Extranet does not sync with the BookDirect platform at this time. Please email Haley@visitsouthwalton.com to add or update a rental property listing.

To view the BookDirect user interface and its functionality, please visit the stay page of our website. If you need more information about BookDirect or signing up as a South Walton partner, contact Lisa Foster, industry relations specialist, at Lisa@visitsouthwalton.com or (850) 333-2728.

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Visit South Walton
25777 US Hwy 331 S | Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
VisitSouthWalton.com | (850) 267-1216