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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, Jan. 25, 2010
CONTACT: Wanda Goodman, (605) 773-3301 or wanda.goodman@state.sd.us
Tourism Launches New Online Co-op Program
Digital Revolution at center of revamped tourism Web site
PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota Digital Revolution, a new co-op program, is now available to both large and small businesses in the visitor industry. The South Dakota Office of Tourism launched the new program last week at the Governor’s Conference on Tourism.
“Last January, I asked the Office of Tourism to create a cooperative marketing program for the visitor industry that would be affordable for businesses of any size, give them an Internet presence, and encourage cross promotion throughout the state for the millions of visitors who come to South Dakota every year,” said Governor Mike Rounds. “That program is the Digital Revolution.”
South Dakota Digital Revolution is an innovative industry co-op program that provides visitor-industry businesses the opportunity to place their visitor-related content on the Office of Tourism’s official travel Web site, www.TravelSD.com. That means partners will be connected to more than two million Internet visitors per year, giving them more information and making it easier to plan vacations in South Dakota.
“The Digital Revolution offers partners the opportunity to create their own customized Web pages directly on the Office of Tourism’s Web site,” said Richard Benda, secretary of the Department of Tourism and State Development. “Each partner is allowed to upload their own content, meaning they can easily add real-time information about their businesses, such as dates for upcoming events, new inventory available for booking or new photos and videos.”
The Digital Revolution is more than just a co-op program for the visitor industry; it is a complete overhaul of the TravelSD Web site. New features include:
- A booking widget for online vacation planning, allowing visitors to book directly from the site
- Enhanced content such as photos and videos
- Sophisticated cross-linking and cross-selling features, which automatically suggest additional attractions to visitors, based on what they’ve viewed
“We have built the site to make the visitor experience even better,” said Melissa Bump, director of the Office of Tourism. “Now we can provide visitors with more detailed information on where to go and what to do, as well as give them all of the online tools to easily book their vacations from one convenient Web site.”
For more information or to become a partner, visit www.SDVisit.com or call the Office of Tourism at 605-773-3301.
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