MARKETING

Walton County Tourism Department Launches New Website:
 
Launched near the end of October, the new Walton County Tourism website — WaltonCountyFLTourism.com — provides an insider’s look at much of what it takes to keep everything running smoothly when it comes to the county’s number one economic driver. Serving as a one-stop hub, it shares many of the services and resources that help shape the local brand identity. It also provides insight on all the diverse efforts of the county’s tourism department, including ongoing programs and beach maintenance projects.
 
 
Altogether, this user-friendly new site creates a general appreciation for the uniqueness of Walton County, as well as the level of dedication that’s involved in sharing it with the rest of the world. Visit WaltonCountyFLTourism.com to learn more about listing your business, organization or event and possibly becoming a partner.
 
 
Partner Zoom Call:
 
Happy New Year! As we dive into 2024, we want to get together and discuss current industry trends, how your business is doing, what need periods and/or pain points you are facing and what the current booking trends are for spring and summer. We would love to work with you and our agencies to continue the plan in place to ensure you meet your goals.
 
I will hold an open Zoom to discuss these topics on January 18 at 10 a.m. CDT and THIS link. If you are unavailable, please respond to this email or give me or any other director a call to discuss.
Thank you for your continued support of our efforts, and please let us know if you have any specific needs with which we can assist.
 
Book>Direct Accommodations Search Engine: 
 
The Walton County Tourism Department has partnered with Book>Direct to provide accommodation partners with the ability to display real-time rates and availability on visitsouthwalton.com. We especially would like all bed tax collectors to review their rental property listing(s) to ensure we have the most current details in our database.
 
To view the Book>Direct user interface and its functionality, please visit the STAY page of our website. If you need more information about Book>Direct or signing up as a Walton County accommodations partner, please contact Darrelesha Kelly, database specialist, at Darrelesha@WCFLTourism.com or (850) 267-1216.
 

December Website Stats Users & Page Views: 

  • There were 187,353 pageviews and 106,868 new users on the website in December. 
  • Users who visited the site in December were mostly female (65.5%) and were over the age of 45 (71.3%).
  • The traffic coming to the website in December mostly came from
  • from Paid Social, Paid Search, and Organic Search which combined to account for 61.5% off all traffic coming to the site. 

Devices:

  • Mobile devices were the primary driver of traffic to the website, making up 76.0% of total sessions. Desktops continued to account for the most engagement in average engagement duration (0:57), the highest number of pages per session (1.9), and the highest engagement rate (60.1%).

Geography:

  • Top Cities: Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and Nashville.
  • In December, users from Texas, Georgia and Illinois were responsible for the most sessions.

Most viewed pages:

Online Visitor Guide Data:

  • Travel Guide page views were down again in December, as they decreased by 2.4% from their mark in November. Engagements on the Travel Guide page were mixed as Average Engagement Duration decreased, while Engagement Rate increased.
  • In December, there were a total of 109 Visitor Guide requests, which is two more than there were in November.

Social in Walton County:

Through our targeted approach, we can share the destination’s story and network to specifically targeted markets, while providing informational and inspirational content to motivate future visitation.

Check out some of the highlights from our channels:

Facebook Stats:

  • Total Followers – 331,110
  • Total Monthly Reach – 2,874,228 
  • Total Monthly Engagements – 21,179
  • Total Monthly Post Reactions – 19,265
  • Total Monthly Link Clicks – 106 

Visit South Walton:

 

Walton County Tourism:

  • Top Performing Post – facebook.com/122102077460590/posts/311577675179695
  • Content: “We've got a ✨sleigh-full ✨of festive fun happening this season in #WaltonCounty! 🎅Check out our full calendar of holiday events and find your can't-miss celebration here: https://ow.ly/FyKx50Qe6rw”
  • Impressions: 81

 

Twitter/X - Visit South Walton

  • Total Followers – 18,160
  • Total Monthly Impressions – 45,210
  • Total Monthly Engagements – 1,373
  • Total Monthly Retweets – 147
  • Total Monthly Mentions – 69
  • Top Tweet – twitter.com/SouthWalton/status/1739043440019558735
  • Content: “🎵All is calm, all is bright 🎵#SundaySunset”
  • Engagement Rate: 6.09%

 

Instagram - Visit South Walton

  • Followers – 56,943
  • Post Impressions – 2,544,538
  • Total Monthly Engagement – 3,527
  • Total Monthly Organic Reach – 694,041
  • Top Performing Post – instagram.com/reel/C1AV8sMtdRu
  • Content: “THIS is our favorite color. 💙Happy Answer the Telephone like Buddy the Elf Day!”
  • Reach: 6,514

 

LinkedIn Stats:

  • Followers – 1,675
  • Post Reactions – 173 

Visit South Walton:

  • Top Performing Post – linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:share:7137486341000372224
  • Content: “#DYK? More than 40% of #SouthWalton’s land is preserved, protecting some of Northwest Florida’s most precious wildlife. 🦌 Learn more about our wildlife conservation efforts today on #WildlifeConservationDay:  Visit South Walton, FL”
  • Reactions: 19

 

Walton County Tourism:

  • Top Performing Post – linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:share:7138951265803227136/
  • Content: “We’re celebrating #NationalSalespersonDay with a shoutout to our incredible sales team! 🗣️ Curious about the brains behind the brilliance? Meet them here:  Staff Directory - Walton County Tourism Join us in applauding our sales team – Karen Morris, Lisa Burliss and Cade Supple – in the comments ⬇️👏”
  • Reactions: 8

 

Don’t forget to tag us:
 
(#SouthWalton and @SouthWalton) in all social media posts! Not only does this improve engagement, but it also allows our social team to stay connected to you and your business' news.  
 
Beach Safety Toolkit and Promotional Items:
 
The safety of Walton County's beachgoers is a priority. In addition to funding the South Walton Fire District's beach lifeguards, the Walton County Tourism Department shares beach safety information in a variety of ways, including beach flags and signs at our beach access points, printed materials (like our beach guides and maps, travel guides, coasters at local restaurants, beach flag magnets, stickers and window clings), beach condition text messages, social media posts, and radio ads.
 
There is a Beach Safety Toolkit page on our website, where partners and local businesses can download a variety of useful information related to beach safety or schedule a delivery or pickup of promo items. 
 
 
If you'd like any printed beach safety materials to share with your guests or customers, please contact Lisa Foster, industry relations specialist, at Lisa@WCFLTourism.com or (850) 333-2728. We can make arrangements for you to pick them up at the Visitor Center, which is open seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

For current beach conditions and flag updates, text "FLAG" to 31279*

*South Walton Beach Conditions: Message and Data Rates May Apply. Periodic Messaging. For help, text HELP, text STOP to end.