Website design and stakeholder strategyß
Overview
Think about Alberta and your first thought is likely the mountains of the Banff National Park, or perhaps the Calgary Stampede, but the province’s other great attraction is the incredible landscape known as the Canadian Badlands. An area of hoodoos, coulees, rattlesnakes and dinosaurs, tourism officials from the area were looking for a way to engage local and international travellers and put the Canadian Badlands back on the map in a very competitive market.
Initial wireframes for Canadian Badlands home and interior pages
Initial concept moodboard for Canadian Badlands
Challenge
As we kicked off this project, the Canadian Badlands’ team made it a priority that the new website would have to include an area where tourism companies, (including accommodations, venues and services) could input, share and gather information. As well, it was imperative that the website conveyed the idea that the area offered more than just dinosaur bones, and was a destination worthy of exploration.
Solution
Having reviewed several tourism websites, we quickly found that too many followed the “brochure-on-the-internet” design template, or offered content that was selected to satisfy the stakeholders and not the user’s needs. Very early in our design, we introduced a concept that brought to the fore the variety and quirky nature of what the Canadian Badlands offered. We backed this by including plenty of rich media (videos and photos) as well as an earthy, gritty and authentic colour palette to help convey the Badlands’ experience. To ensure that potential visitors got the most out of their stay we also included an itinerary builder and online booking engine that made it more efficient for users to getaway to the Canadian Badlands.
Canadian Badlands interactive map