Media Release
April 16, 2015 11:38 a.m.
AmeliaIsland.com, the consumer website of the Amelia Island Convention & Visitors Bureau, has been named the best travel and events website of 2014 by Kentico, a content management system that runs more than 18,000 websites in 90 countries, including more than 450 dedicated to travel and tourism.
The annual Kentico Site of the Year contest seeks out the best Kentico CMS and EMS implementations and selects the top three from each category to be voted on by the public. The Amelia Island website, designed by SilverTech, was named a finalist in early March 2014, along with Visit Dublin and Australia’s Adventure World, before winning the public vote on March 3.
“We’ve gotten great feedback on the new AmeliaIsland.com website from visitors and from our colleagues in the Florida tourism industry,” said Gil Langley, President and CEO of the Amelia Island CVB. “This recognition from Kentico and the results of the public voting further underscore the commitment of our team to successfully develop and maintain an outstanding website for the traveling public.”
According to Kate Harris, Amelia Island’s Director of Interactive Marketing, “This website allows us to reach travelers where they are in the journey from hearing about us to planning and booking, through enjoying their time here, to sharing their experiences with friends and family. Being singled out in a global competition is not only exciting, it’s a great opportunity to introduce Amelia Island to a worldwide audience.”
With the redesigned website, the Amelia Island Tourist Development Council (AITDC) and SilverTech worked to heighten the destination’s web presence and create a site that is easy for the team to update and manage. SilverTech, Kentico and the AITDC created the website, which emphasizes the beauty of Amelia Island, to generate awareness of the destination and create a helpful tool for visitors to plan and book their stay.
“We chose Kentico for our work on the Amelia Island website because of Kentico’s intuitive and user-friendly interface,” said Jeff McPherson, Chief Digital Officer at SilverTech. “We wanted to push the envelope with our design – so we focused heavily on photography that captured the spirit of Amelia Island. The Amelia Island Tourism Council is now seeing a 450% increase in conversions. I couldn’t be more proud of the team for designing and award-winning, effective website.”
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About Amelia Island
Northeast Florida’s coastal treasure, Amelia Island is a barrier island rich in colorful history and breath-taking natural beauty. Amelia Island offers long, beautiful beaches, abundant wildlife, and pristine waters. Upscale resorts with world-class spas, championship golf and exclusive dining blend effortlessly with a captivating collection of bed and breakfast inns and historic districts. The island is home to Fernandina Beach, once a vibrant Victorian seaport village, and now a charming downtown district of eclectic shops, attractions and eateries. Forget the everyday getaway; Come make memories on Amelia Island. For visitor information and online planning, visit www.ameliaisland.com.
Congratulations to Gil, TDC staff and SilverTech for this award. Clearly if you build a quality website that is rich with information for tourists and visitors they will come. One suggestion based on inquiries I see on the message boards of TripAdvisor: when there is a special holiday/event coming up (i.e. Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas) where restaurants will have different operating hours or special menus, it would help to post that information four to six weeks in advance so folks can make their plans (and reservations).
Great job!