SWOT Analysis!

After surfing the net for hours and hours, I finally found these five websites to complete my SWOT Analysis. You will see that the first four I found to be quite enjoyable and strong websites. The last one, however, I feel could use a lot of help!

1) The Hotel Goldener Baer: http://www.goldbearhotel.com/

*I found this hotel's website to be the greatest 'opportunity' website, meaning that I found this website to be the one who needs the most improvement. Personally, I feel that if they had this website done professionally, it would create a greater ROI.

2) Hershy Park, Hershey, PA: http://www.hersheypark.com/

3) Dubai Tourism: http://www.definitelydubai.com/

4) Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel: http://sheraton.com/phoenixdowntown

5) Albuquerque, New Mexico Convention & Visitors Bureau: http://itsatrip.org/

The four websites for Hershey Park, Dubai, Albuquerque CVB, and the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown hotel were all very strong websites that provide a high Return on Investment for many different reasons. The Gold Bear Hotel website needs to be professionally done in my opinion, but offers a wealth of information about Vienna.

After a lot of thought and deliberation I have decided that the Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau website to be the strongest of the five websites, and can potentially offer the greatest ROI. There are several reasons why I believe this. First, I think that the website is very easy to navigate. Everything that you might need is located on the homepage. What really makes this nice is that while the homepage has a lot of information, it doesn't overload the visitor. This is helpful because the average time spent on a website is approx. 45 seconds. Because of this it is very important to catch the visitor's attention right away. Second, I feel that this website is very user friendly for all people, from meeting planners to individuals who are looking for a getaway trip. There is a link for meeting planners on the homepage that takes you to a whole different page dedicated specifically for meeting planners. This is helpful because it allows individual travelers and meeting planners to find what they are looking for very quickly without having to click on a lot of links. Third, I think that the 'ABQ Experts' section where locals are able to put in their two cents is genius. A lot of times people want to go somewhere and see what the locals see, not just the tourist destinations, and this is a perfect way to do so. There are ten different dimensions of Albuquerque that you can see through a local’s eye. Fourth, another aspect of this website is that Albuquerque showcases the fact that AAA has voted Abq. the second least expensive city to visit. This is a very important selling point for Albuquerque. In these tough economic times, it is critical to show people that they can still travel afforably. Finally, a last reason why I feel that the Albuquerque "It's A Trip" CVB website has the greatest Return on Investment is because they focus on what they have that is unique to Albuquerque. By this I mean that this website uses the Southwest culture to show how Albuquerque is different than all the rest. This website tastefully showcases Albuquerque's Native American and Hispanic cultures without overdoing it. Because of all these reasons I feel that the Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau really takes the cake!

Other sites visited:
http://www.stayaspensnowmass.com/
http://www.visitaustralia.com/
http://disneyland.disney.go.com/
http://www.waterworldcolorado.com/
http://www.pagosahotsprings.com/
http://www.icehotel.com/

Sources:
"Affordable Family Vacations- Press Release." Albuquerque- It's a Trip!. 2009. Albuquerque Convention & Visitors Bureau. 09 Sep 2009 .

Gilstrap, Greg W. (2009). TDM401 Class1 Power Point. [Power Point Slides]. Retrieved from blackboard.com

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