Backgound

Haldimand County is a picturesque community in southern Ontario, known for its natural beauty and vibrant local culture. To attract visitors, generate revenue, and keep residents engaged and informed, the county wanted to enhance its tourism website to effectively showcase its recreational opportunities, highlight local events and initiatives (like their holiday wishbook), and shine a spotlight on local businesses.

The challenge

The county’s previous tourism website was not functioning as optimally as necessary. It suffered from a few deficiencies, such as:

• Accessibility and standardization issues.
• A lack of clear structure and consistency limits its effectiveness as a marketplace for external visitors.
• The need to visually highlight the county’s attractions, including hiking, biking, boating, and local businesses.

Why Govstack?

The evaluation committee received over 25 responses to their RFP. They chose Govstack because of our knowledge of the industry, our long history of municipal experience, and our expertise in helping other municipalities create attention-grabbing tourism websites. Govstack was also chosen because of its intuitive adaptation to the unique tourism needs of the municipality.

In particular:

– Image resizing

– Dynamic search enablement

– Intuitive backend functionality allowing for easier file management

The Govstack platform provided the perfect solution with its responsive design and flexibility. The tourism division leveraged the platform to:

• Experiment with Features: The team utilized the Govstack Events Calendar to promote local events and activities.
• Create Visual Stories: The platform made it easier to build engaging content that showcased the county’s unique attractions.
• Leverage the Ease of Use: The tourism division found the platform intuitive and efficient for implementing new features and designs.

The tourism team embraced Govstack’s flexibility to:

• Build a “Wish Book” feature to promote local businesses and encourage visitors to explore what the community has to offer.
• Repurpose the news feed, transforming it into a dynamic storytelling tool rather than just an alert system.

We wanted to be as clear as we could about what you could do here. There are a lot of recreational opportunities, especially in the summer, with the Grand River and Lake Erie. The new platform lets us showcase that beautifully.

Erin Haase,

Haldimand County

Results

The revamped tourism website now offers users a modern interface with eye-catching images that display the best the county has to offer. The end result is a site that has achieved significant success, including:

1. Attracting Visitors: The site now acts as a marketplace, encouraging external visitors to explore and shop in Haldimand. 
2. Visual Appeal: High-quality visuals and clear layouts make the county’s attractions more enticing and accessible.
3. Event Promotion: The Govstack Events Calendar has become a cornerstone for promoting local events and businesses, driving both engagement and attendance. effectively and fostering stronger community involvement.

Conclusion

With Govstack, Haldimand County has successfully reimagined its tourism website, turning it into an essential tool for economic growth and visitor engagement. The platform’s flexibility and focus on government needs allow the county to create an inviting and functional online destination that beautifully showcases all Haldimand has to offer.