The starting point for great online strategy is often a company’s website. Your website is like home base – a place for customers to learn about your business, explore (and maybe even book) what you have to offer, and understand your unique story. Whether it’s a special offer/promotion, a blog post, or even a great review, much of your online strategy will link back to your website. Here are some of the Best Practices employed on the TourismTechnology.com website.

The website has a flat navigation structure, with no sub-menus, but if sub-menus are required, secondary navigation menus and breadcrumbs make it easy for the user to find their way around the site. The site should include standard items such as Privacy Policy, Site Map, Legal Information or Terms of Use as appropriate

SEO

Best practices for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) have been implemented on this site, including:

• Keyword phrases have been identified and incorporated into the text
• Each page has a custom title and meta description
• The URLs are descriptive of the page
• Images have ALT tags set
• Addresses and phone numbers are provided on every page
• This website has been designed to be easily readable and navigable on smartphones, tablets, and full sized screens

Analytics

The only way to determine if your website is successful is by measuring.

• Google Analytics code is on every page
• Calls to Action and Conversions have been identified
• Google Analytics has been set up to record successful conversions
• Google Tag Manager has been used on this site to more easily update Google Analytics recording

Accommodation Best Practices

If you have an online accommodation business, there are some best practices to follow.

• Provide detailed information on the property and accommodation
• Allow users to check availability
• Provide pricing information and calculate pricing
• Provide currency conversion if many of your guests are from out of country
• Provide payment options
• Process real-time booking with immediate confirmation
• Include a Frequently Asked Questions section
• Provide information and/or policies on reservations and cancellations
• Highlight your unique offering with packages and specials
• Provide your address and phone number on all pages, along with an easy-to-find map to your location

E-commerce Best Practices

If you are selling online:

• Provide details on items, not just the product name
• Display related products that may be of interest to the user
• Allow for product filtering
• Use a dynamic shopping cart which allows the user to add/or delete items
• Provide shipping information, cancellation and refund information
• Add a Frequently Asked Questions section
• Provide clear, easy-to-find contact information
• Provide payment confirmation to the user
• Customize analytics to track sales
• Optimize for search engines with ALT text, key phrases, clear URLs and well-written and unique product descriptions