Total tech transformation: How Visit Frederick achieved community-wide conversions

Overview

Visit Frederick, the destination marketing organization (DMO) for Frederick County, Maryland, invested in a fully integrated technology stack from Granicus (Simpleview) to transform its operations from every angle. The team took a holistic approach to its travel tech and now leverages a unified customer relationship management (CRM), content marketing system (CMS), digital asset management (DAM) system, digital marketing services, and an industry-leading accessibility platform. This strategic program overhaul resulted in more streamlined workflows, enhanced user experience, and a solidified role as a vital community hub.

Situation | Lost in tech translation 

Visit Frederick is a lean but ambitious team with high expectations for its destination website. Before Granicus, the DMO struggled with an archaic and fragmented digital infrastructure — causing the following hiccups in operations: 

• The website's front end and back end were built by separate companies; the data-rich back end couldn't communicate with the user-facing front end.
• The team had no way to make real-time content updates, instead relying on external agencies to make changes at an hourly rate.
• The organization lacked a CRM system, meaning all partner and sales data were managed in Excel spreadsheets.
• Digital assets were disorganized and stored on a shared county computer system, making it nearly impossible to search for specific images or videos.
• The existing site did not have digital accessibility accommodations.

Recognizing the need for a comprehensive change, Visit Frederick sought a travel tech provider that understood the unique needs of the DMO world — particularly regarding complex events calendars, content-heavy websites, and digital accessibility. They needed a solution that would modernize their technology with seamless integrations and empower their small team to work more efficiently.
 

Solution | A holistic approach

Visit Frederick chose to build an entirely new foundation from the ground up by implementing Simpleview’s CRM and CMS simultaneously. This ensured an integrated system where data could flow from the back end to the front end, powering everything from member listings to the online events calendar.

"We see our website as our number one marketing tool; it's financially where we make our biggest investment. Having products that integrate makes it so much easier," said Becky Bickerton, assistant director of Visit Frederick.

The DMO recognized its new site would be a missed opportunity if it didn’t reach the right audiences online, so the team called upon Simpleview’s expertise in digital marketing — specifically search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns. Viewing these services as an extension of its own staff, Visit Frederick gained access to dedicated experts who constantly manage its digital presence, provide strategic recommendations, and keep the website optimized.

"One of the best things about SEO is having the Simpleview hive mind showing us everything that's going on across the industry,” said Jake Wynn, senior marketing and communications manager at Visit Frederick. “We learn what’s working, and we have a benchmark to judge ourselves off of. We feel this benefit all the time; we often talk about just how much of an asset [our SEO expert] is to us." 

To maximize its travel tech stack even further, the Visit Frederick team attended Simpleview Summit with the goal of meeting new partners who offer products that would enhance and integrate with their website. "We really try to pay attention to the companies that Simpleview partners with, and a lot of that education comes from Simpleview Summit,” said Bickerton. “We meet with folks at their tables and look at the different integrations because we really want to work with other companies that know and integrate with Simpleview."

To address its crowded asset management, the team upgraded to Simpleview DAM powered by Cloudinary. This provided artificial intelligence (AI)-powered search capabilities, improved organization, and made it effortless to find and use the perfect image or video. The established connection between DAM and CMS allows the team to design and update web pages with greater creativity and efficiency. "Cloudinary makes it easier to find things,” said Wynn. “It allows me to have more flexibility to play around with different design elements. I’m not just trying to get it done as fast as possible; I can think and do things more deliberately."

And finally, to ensure the site was accessible to all users, the DMO implemented AudioEye — a digital accessibility solution that integrates flawlessly with Simpleview CMS websites, requiring little effort from the DMO to set up. "Onboarding with AudioEye was the easiest thing I think I've ever done,” said Bickerton. “We signed a contract and they did everything else. It was great." The Visit Frederick team can now rest easy knowing its website is compliant with the latest digital accessibility regulations and guidelines and accessible to every visitor — thanks to AudioEye’s industry-leading digital accessibility platform and subject matter expertise. 
 

Results | Community-wide conversions

The new, user-friendly website delivers a superior experience, guiding visitors through the marketing funnel with clear calls to action. For the first time, the team has intuitive, easy-to-use tools that allow them to edit and update the website daily — a testament to how easy it is to manage and how central it has become to their marketing efforts.

In addition to the easy-to-use site, the implementation of Simpleview’s digital marketing services has been a key driver of success — and the numbers speak for themselves: 

• Conversions increased by 3.2%.
• Time on site improved by 21.6%.
• Engagement rate increased by 48%.
• Click-through rate improved by 35.6% (and is 494% higher than the industry average).

The total tech overhaul has also fostered deeper community connections. With powerful tools like Map Publisher available with Simpleview CMS, Visit Frederick can support local government and community partners by creating and sharing resources like historical tours and event maps. This has positioned the DMO as an indispensable resource, using its technology to drive collaborative projects that benefit the entire destination.

The unified system has streamlined internal processes while empowering Visit Frederick to amplify its impact — proving that the right technology can be a powerful tool for community-wide growth.