We are excited to be launching a beautiful, modern and responsive new website for the Ferndale Chamber of Commerce! Meet VisitFerndale.com:
With captivating new imagery and content, Visit Ferndale is meant to inspire and engage visitors and define Ferndale as the No. 1 place to stay when visiting the redwoods. And more lodging bookings will translate into more dining and shopping – a win-win for everyone!
In addition to its clean look, easy-to-navigate layout, and new logo courtesy of the amazing Shawn Griggs of Redeye Laboratories, the new Ferndale website will be highly functional, providing several major advantages for Ferndale businesses: responsiveness on mobile devices, an easily updated event list and community calendar, a regularly updated blog that will spotlight businesses, attractions and events in Ferndale and, finally, more detailed businesses listings (especially helpful for merchants without a significant web presence). Here’s the breakdown of how merchants will benefit:
Responsiveness
The new website is completely responsive – meaning it automatically converts to look good and function well on any mobile device, making it easy for people to learn about Ferndale while on the go.
To give you an idea of how important this is, consider that more than half of all Internet searches now happen on smartphones and tablets, and, in 2016 alone, Google saw a 50 percent increase in travel-related searches on mobile devices (according to this interesting Forbes article on destination marketing). That’s huge! A responsive website is critical for capturing potential Ferndale tourists who are traveling nearby on the coast or visiting the redwoods and looking for places to visit, shop and eat.
Events Submission Form
Putting on an event? Members of the community can now use our event submission feature to quickly and easily get an upcoming event added to the chamber's online events list and calendar. Simply go to the website, select “Submit an Event” from the “Events” drop-down menu, and fill out the form at your convenience. We’ll email you for photos and additional details.
We’ve changed the way events are listed as well. Instead of a single long list, events can now be viewed by category on our Upcoming Events page (though they can still be viewed as a single list by selecting “See All Events"). Regularly occurring events such as meetings, classes or other gatherings can be viewed on our Community Calendar page.
Blog
A key component of VisitFerndale.com will be this blog, which will be updated and edited by the website committee with articles from business and community spotlights to articles on attractions and activities in Ferndale.
To keep content fresh and relevant, we will be seeking input and contributions from Ferndale business owners and residents. As with events, this is a great way for community members to participate in the chamber, and in building a stronger business community for all. Instead of waiting for Ferndale to be covered by magazines, we can publish our own content – content that can be infinitely shared on Facebook, blogs, forums, online magazines, and more.
If you’re opening a business, have an event coming up, have recently moved or changed inventory, have a great story to tell about Ferndale’s history, have a hobby, craft, passion or expertise that applies to Ferndale, or if you or someone you know is doing something really cool– let us know!
Expanded Business Directory
The new website allows us to provide more information about Ferndale merchants via business detail pages. We still have a classic business listing, but we have added specific listings for Ferndale lodging, restaurants and shopping.
Each business in these listings is accompanied by a photo and title that, when clicked, takes viewers to an individual page with a short bio, address, number and link to a website, if available. This detail page can be especially useful for businesses without a website, expanding the web presence of our business community.
The addition of images also creates something of a virtual tour of Main Street, enticing viewers to learn more about our historic town and Main Street. To make the most impact, we’re looking for high-quality, high-resolution photos of Ferndale businesses – historic storefronts, unique merchandise, you name it. Submit your best photos and we’ll select a couple for your bio page. Have details you'd like included in your bio content? Send them our way.
Moving Forward
Of course, this is just the beginning. The new website is meant to evolve with business needs and desires, as well as tourism trends. We would love to expand photography and content, add promotional video footage, include pages on history, resources, relocation information, weddings, corporate events, and more. Layout and organization can be adjusted as needed. Photos can be swapped out to feature special events and occasions, and the blog will be available for highlighting the latest news and points of interest.
In short: We are open to change, input, and great ideas. We hope this website will inspire involvement from the community - and help Ferndale businesses continue to thrive.
Have ideas for future blog posts? Let us know! Send ideas to info@visitferndale.com.