1.
2014 Best
Practices on
the Web
A guide to designing websites that generate awareness,
raise engagement and boost conversions
An
Educational Presentation | Ryan Thompson (Founder & CEO) & Jordan Wollman (Partner & CCO)

2.
Ryan Thompson
Chief Executive Officer & Founder @ Aria
Welcome!
Jordan Wollman
Chief Creative Officer & Partner @ Aria

3.
We change how people
experience destination brands
through strategy, branding,
marketing and digital
experiences

4.
What we’ll cover
1) How to think about your website!
2) Planning & strategy for modern websites!
3) The role and importance of content!
4) Information architecture!
5) Design tips!
6) A wee bit of technical stuff!
7) Thinking like a salesperson!
8) Shareability & social integration!
9) Q&A

5.
1. Don’t build a “website”
You need a digital marketing
platform that is your first, most
integrated impression to the world

6.
It sure as hell doesn’t
belong to I.T.
Your website is the center of the hub of
your digital ecosystem with many
spokes inbound and outbound

7.
Think about
where the
majority of your
marketing and
advertising
lands people…
Source: Heather Timmerman on PreviewNetworks.com

8.
The
Leisure Travel
Lifecycle

9.
BROADCAST
WEBSITE
BOOKING ENGINE
MOBILE OPTIMIZED "
WEBSITE
PRINT
ONLINE TRAVELAGENTS
OWNED MEDIA
DIGITAL
CONTENT
VISITORS GUIDE
PR
CONTENT
PR
SOCIAL REVIEW
PLATFORMS
SOCIAL SHARING

10.
2. Be strategic
Your Digital Marketing Platform
must achieve specific goals

11.
Define your objectives
We think they should be:
1) Increased awareness!
2) Engagement!
3) Conversion

12.
{
Objective:!
Awareness
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
Website traffic volume
Website traffic referrals
Inbound links from third-parties
Inbound search volume
Email subscriber database growth
Social friends, followers, fan volume
Social share of voice / Influence
Earned media coverage

13.
Objective:!
Engagement
{
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
Website time on site
Website repeat visits
Website bounce rate
Social friends engagement
Social sharing
Recommendations
Reviews
Email opens / clicks

14.
Objective:!
Conversion
{
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
‣
Onsite hotel booking
Third-party hotel booking
Visitor guide download
Visitor guide request
Website goal conversions
Website inquiries
Contest entries

15.
Understand your!
value proposition
Sound like branding? Well, it is.

16.
Understand your value proposition
Your digital marketing
platform is just another
marketing channel to
deliver your brand
message

17.
S.W.O.T
Aria uses S.W.O.T. exercises to
define the value proposition

18.
Offset
weaknesses with
strengths.!
"
Offset threats with
opportunities.

19.
Strengths + Opportunities =!
Value Proposition

20.
Identify your audiences
With a good S.W.O.T. yielding a clear value
proposition: match your audiences to it

21.
The intersection of users with your value
proposition informs all decisions

22.
3. Content is [still] king
Without great content,
every marketing function,
including a website, will fail

23.
Invest in content
Content is the smallest budget
item but is as important as
design and function

24.
SEO is dead!
Be a storyteller.!
!
Write good, interesting, sharable narratives.
It’s what your audience wants, and what
Google will give credit for

25.
How to emotionally
approach content
1) K.I.S.S.!
2) Chunk the content!
(clear headlines and delineation of ideas)
3) Use images & video!
4) Encourage engagement!
(through conversation & sharing)

26.
How to practically
approach content
Every page needs the pyramid

27.
The!
content!
pyramid
AUDIENCE
& PRIORITY
TITLE
INTRODUCTION
THE
SHORT, SIMPLE, “ABOVE THE FOLD”
PROOF
CALLS TO ACTION

28.
4. Architecture
The integrity of the structure relies
heavily on its architecture

29.
Organic architecture
Make decisions early on how you will
learn, and implement changes based
on user behavior

30.
Heatmap by CrazyEgg
Track user
behavior!
!
Use tools to investigate
and understand user
behavior

31.
Eye Tracking by Tobii

32.
Horizontal navigation
Don’t force visitors down your
navigational track: use cross-link
architecture. Think Wiki

33.
5. Bring the sexy!
(aka Design)
“Simplicity isn't simple.”!
— Johnathan Ive
!
“But it’s so worth the effort.”!
— Jordan Wollman

34.
Is good design
subjective?

35.
No.!
!
Follow Dieter Rams’
10 principles
of good design

36.
1. Good design is
innovative.

37.
2. Good design
makes a product
useful.

38.
3. Good design is
aesthetic.

39.
4. Good design
makes a product
understandable.

40.
5. Good design is
unobtrusive.

41.
6. Good design is
honest.

42.
7. Good design is
long-lasting.

43.
8. Good design is
thorough down to
the last detail.

44.
9. Good design is
environmentally
friendly.

45.
10. Good design
is as little design
as possible.

46.
6. The technical stuff
Getting it right the first time means
you don’t have to scrap it in 3 years

47.
Evolve… olution
Don’t design pages. Think modular —
from technology, to design, content and its
containers, to features and functionality

48.
Open source!
When possible, go open source (non-proprietary)
!
If not, it means you’re married:
long-terms, hidden maintenance costs, and slow
adoption of new technology and industry standards

49.
Open source!
Technology libraries like JQuery, SASS, LESS,
Foundation, etc., have massive communities of
innovative developers contributing hourly
!
That’s a lot of power at your fingertips

50.
Think!
Mobilewhere the !
First
For many, it’s
experience all begins

51.
Almost 1 in 4
hotel queries
come from a
mobile phone
Via
Google/OTX, The Traveler’s Road to Decision 2011

52.
Mobile these activities
is!
serving as a hub for all of

53.
Responsive design?
Responsive, yes, but mobile-first.
Get that part right, the rest is cake.!

54.
7. Remember the bottom line
Think like a sales person…

55.
Call-to-action
Every page should answer two questions:
!
So what?!
Now what?!

56.
Design with purpose
Every page needs a litmus test:
does this serve a specific purpose? Is it necessary?
!
If not, scrap it.

57.
Utilize landing pages
Landing pages are search magnets,
focus on targeted content, and are
designed to convert

58.
8. Sharing & Social
People share content
that is interesting

59.
Leis
ure
Fac
ebo
ok
Pin
tere
st
Inst
agr
am
Urb
an
Spo
on
Inn
Tou
ch
Jet
Set
ter
Kay
ak
Trav
el +
Trip
Adv
isor
Don’t fret: partner with 3rd parties

60.
Share contextually
Photos on Pinterest
Snippets on Twitter
Stories on Facebook
Deals on Facebook and Twitter
Etc.

61.
One more thing…
Launch Day isn’t the end
Activate a marketing plan to
immediately drive traffic to your
new digital marketing hub

62.
Q&A
ryan@ ariaagency.com
!
@ryanathompson
/ryanathompson
jordan@ ariaagency.com
!
@jordanwollman
/jordanwollman