Read: TC, Chapter 5: Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose. Be prepared to discuss the differences in the letters on p. 102-103.
Write: Reading Response #4
Find an official tourism or travel website for a location that you would like to visit one day (examples: Visit Scotland or Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority).
In your 200-word response, evaluate and explain how well the site has addressed multiple audiences. Identify at least three audiences in your explanation. Use specific information from Chapter 5 and specific elements of the website to support your evaluation. Note: Be careful not to oversimplify the audience since these sites are designed to appeal to audiences with a wide range of characteristics.
Thursday, January 28, 2016
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For this homework assignment I wanted to look at the San Diego, California travel website. Since I can remember, I have heard amazing things about San Diego, and this last summer I got to go there. I loved my experience there so much that I decided to look into their website to see what other attractions I could see for the next time that I go. When first opening up the tourist website the first thing I noticed was several pictures that make San Diego look like a Californian paradise. There are people sitting by the beach, children running in the sand, bridges going over the ocean, historical monuments, and SeaWorld. Three different audiences that are targeted with this website are families looking to site see, couples looking for a getaway, and friends looking for a good time. This website takes into consideration different personal preferences. There is a quick links section that has links for exploring San Diego, different resorts, family fun, and the nightlife. No matter what the preference of the viewer, this website is highly accessible for whatever the goal is of vacation. One more thing that makes this website ideal is that it keeps the readers expectations in mind. The majority of people viewing this website are planning on going to San Diego for vacation. There is a video at the bottom of the page showing people enjoying all of the different sites, activities, and places to eat. This website does an awesome job at making people who are looking for a place to vacation look fun and exciting for all audiences.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sandiego.org/
Visit NYC
ReplyDeleteGrace McDowell
Reading Response #4
The website I chose addresses visiting New York City. This website is prepared for mulitiple readers and has multiple tabs/links for different audiences. For example, for couples looking to come to NYC, there is information on the home page about Valentine’s Day places and ideas. There are also deals for 2 for 1 Broadway tickets; this appeals to couples, as well. A second audience is families going on vacation. Parents can book a hotel directly from the home page. There is also a list of the top 5 events in NYC right now and maps and guides of NYC to help with trip planning. The third audience and probably most prevalent, is the younger, millennial generation. NYC is especially appealing to young adults and the website tailored their content to match this audience. The font and graphics appear edgy and colorful. There is a somewhat “youthful” appearance to the website and it promotes their social media at the top of the homepage. The tabs directing you to other pages on the website are short, brief words that should be mostly understood by various cultures. The website takes into consideration that its main audiences will probably not be reading through the entire website. They made the website very easy for readers to skim and find the important information they are looking for. However, if readers want more information, it is stored separately in tab sections that take you to another page. The website appeals to a basic reading level, so an audience with a variety of education can be reached.
http://www.poland.travel/en-us - the official website for tourism in Poland
ReplyDeleteThree groups of people they are attracting:
1) Families - On the flipping pictures that grace the top of the website one of the pictures is that of a man standing in a boat with a description to “find your own fairytale”. The top of the website also has quick links that lead to information such as What to see, what to do, Where to stay, and an About Poland.
2) Couples – The second picture is of a man and woman that are in a hot tub relaxing saying that Poland has many different spas that give the people multiple different experiences to relax. Also there is an events calendar underneath that would be a good reason for a couple to go to the country.
3) Historians – The third and final picture is that of the old city center of Krakow which leads to a facts article on the city’s Main Market Square stating that it is the largest medieval urban center in Europe and the city’s heart (Office) the Royal Castle and Kazimierz are also highlighted.
4) Overall Design – the website uses a basic white background and has pops of red similar to the Polish flag which is only those colors; there is a section in the top right hand corner to see the site in different languages; also there are book now and questionnaire tabs on the right side as well; also the “hot tab” items are right on the top of the website which allows for viewers that do not what to see the entire website quick links to what they need in the website
My family and I go to Mexico every summer for vacation and we love it there so naturally I decided to go to a website about that region. Cancun to be more specific, the website I decided to look at is http://cancun.travel/en/. After looking at the webpage briefly you can quickly tell that they are going for several different audiences. At the very top of the page there are 5 pictures side by side ranging from a darker skinned woman and an older woman then going on there is coral reef and the very last picture a teen/ young adult who is zip lining off of a ridge. Just from that one collage of pictures you can tell they’re trying to reach out to several different types of people. When you scroll down to about half way down the page there is huge section just on spring break for college aged kids. By doing this, they are no doubt trying to make people that are college aged think about going to Mexico instead of Florida during spring break. The makers of this website obviously did a lot of research about the people who visit their website and who are interested in going to Mexico and altered it to get their attention.
ReplyDeleteAndy Kurilla
Reading Response #4
ReplyDeleteI choose to look over Greece’s tourism website. It’s a place I have always wanted to visit. When you first open the page, it shows Greece’s beautiful scenery and then there is tabs to open for a variety of activities to do. The color scheme is blue and white which I believe symbols their flag and the style gives it a formal, nice look to it. Based on the activities, Greece attracts a variety of people. One of them is sports which may attract people who are active and like doing sport like activities. They included three different types of sports, water sports, land sports, and air sports. Another type of audience it attracts is for people who are interested in sightseeing. Greece is a good place to sightsee and they included activities to help that such as biking, hiking, caving, grape tour, and wine tours. One more audience I feel that Greece tends to attract is people who are interested in Gastronomy. The visitor site includes a whole section talking about what type of food it has, even including the ingredients some of the food includes. Overall, Greece has many things for any type of person to do but I just felt that they were aiming towards people who are interested in sports, food, and scenery. However I didn’t see the site try to attract a lot of people with a family because they didn’t display the page as a family-oriented type of vacation.
Because I am being rewarded with a visit to Hawaii after I graduate I decided to visit Hawaii.com for tourist information. It is obviously very well organized and visual friendly. Because it is such a beautiful place, they take advantage of that by displaying the vast scenery all over the website to attract more visitors. They understand that their audience, when it comes to people that will view this site, will primarily be people that are well off as far as money, or at least would be eager to spend big on an upcoming vacation. Therefore they advertise everything from hotels to activities to food on the home page of the website. This is no surprise considering tourist attractions make up the majority of Hawaii’s income. They also assume anyone interested in coming to Hawaii for a vacation is more likely to live somewhere where they cannot go to a beach very often. Therefore they advertise a lot regarding the ocean, whether that be sailing, snorkeling, swimming with the dolphins, or just the best beaches to visit. Lastly they recognize that Hawaii is a highly desirable place for a wedding or honeymoon. Therefore they advertise many options for this audience as far as hotels, resorts, places for weddings, and dining services. Considering Hawaii is so big on their tourism, it is no surprise they have done an excellent job in providing for all varieties of visitors to their page.
ReplyDeleteI decided to look at Iceland's travel website. At first glance, the website seems geared towards people that have an idea about where in Iceland they want to go and what they want to do, because at the top of page there is a large search box to find various things in the different regions. But at the top of the page and if you scroll further down there is a sections that are more geared to people that are less knowledgeable about Iceland. So the website, works for both audiences that are clueless and those that are knowledgeable about Iceland. The website is in 13 different languages so they cover a wide array of people. I feel like the website is more targeted to a younger audience. The style is heavy on graphics. The website also have videos and information about Guðmundur, a human search engine, both of which probably appeal more to younger individuals. They promote their social media sites and there is just a younger feel to the page. Another audience is people looking for an adventure and active people. The website uses words like “explore” and “adventure” in numerous places on the site. One of the pictures, is of a person standing on a top of a mountain. They mention many times that Iceland is for people looking for the unexpected.
ReplyDeleteI have always had a passion for the Northern West coast. For this assignment I will research Oregon’s website. The Travel Oregon site has a strong focus on the “out-doorsy” audience. I cannot conclude much about the reader’s education, responsibility, or professional experience. However, I can get a sense of the audience’s age, characteristics, personal preference, and cultural characteristics. The website features hunting, hiking, craft beer, surfing, road trips, and canoeing. These activities are directed for adults rather than children. The designers avoided mainstream concepts and chose more retro/contemporary ideas. Photography shows more nature and single individuals roaming landscapes. I believe this means visitors are young adventurous adults rather than traditional families. Lodging is not luxurious. They advertise lodges, camp sites, and RV parks. International travel is only mentioned once, so I assume the audience is domestic. I can assume the audience is experienced in travel and camping. The authors use several terms related to beach life, camping, and hiking. Pictures and videos were extremely effective for me. This may be because I am ALWAYS wanted to see Oregon or the photography is truly outstanding. Travelers who are looking for a luxurious vacation may not be as interested as me. I think they are crazy.
ReplyDeletehttp://traveloregon.com/
Three audiences that the Las Vegas travel website addressed are business people attending conferences, people looking for a leisure vacation, and people looking for employment.
ReplyDeleteWhen people think of Vegas, it has a negative connotation with drinking and gambling, however, the website tears down that bad reputation. The main page of this website shows that Las Vegas is actually a hot spot for major conferences to be held. It has a tab for conventions and conferences that has a wide array of different information from where different conferences are held to what types of conferences take place. It even appeals to international corporations in one of the tabs.The website also can be displayed in multiple languages, appealing to the international businesses even more.
The second audience, leisure travelers, click on the leisure travel tab and are taken to a web page that features airfare and hotel choices.This page focuses more on the leisure travelers as it has a link for the shows that are featured in Las Vegas. It also shows tours than can be taken. This part of the Las Vegas website is less professional as the business portion. The risque slogan, “What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” appears at the top of the page.
Lastly, another audience that this website appeals to are people looking for employment, which I thought to be strange of a tourism website. Most people visiting a tourism website are looking for the conference page, or leisure page, not the employment page. This portion of the website explains which benefits are included in the employment opportunity, such as dental, health, ect. It has PDF links to job applications. It also includes a statistic, acting as an logo, making the page more credible. The applications are sorted into twp categories, part time and full time.
Spencer Sweetin
ReplyDeletehttp://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/index.kto
For my travel website i picked Korea for reasons related to food and the professional video gaming industry. No other country in the world has larger professional gaming events than Korea and I’d like to see one eventually. The frontpage of the website has faster moving pictures of the landscape than i would like. I believe the idea is that the website wants to expose the reader to multiple fun travel ideas as quickly as possible before they leave the main page. It shows the beautiful sites of Korea, ice skating and sledding which appeals to those who may want a colder vacation.While also stating that it will be holding the Winter Olympic games in 2018 so you should plan a trip down to Korea to coincide with the event. This website is trying to catch the eye of the reader by showing beautiful scenery, then drawing them in with such facts as the 2018 Olympics. Then it tries to interest the reader in the culture of Korea by listing KPOP performances, and leaving an article about different Korean festivals. All in all, everything is very picturesque with very little words to speak of. The website does not expect their readers to want to read out front but to find what interests them most and read more about it.
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/
ReplyDeleteI decided to look at Japan for the tourist location I was interested in because I enjoy the culture of Japan and would like to learn more about it by possibly going abroad to see it firsthand. As for audiences that I saw the website address I saw a few that were worth mentioning. The widest audience addressed would be all the different foreigners that would want to come to Japan. Before gaining full site access, I had to pick from 15 potential languages in which to view the site. I believe that shows the volume of people attempting to learn more about this great country. The next audience I think that the site appealed best to would be young adults. The site had plenty of maps and event itineraries showing off how to get around so I imagine the assumption would be that you would be willing to get yourself around the country to all the locations that you would want to see. Lastly, the two next audiences that I noticed had similar levels of advertisement on the site but weren’t ones I had necessarily thought of. The site had two tabs for children and athletes in an attempt I imagine to show off Japan as a place you would be happy to bring your kids to or if you were into athletics you could enjoy some of the natural beauty of the country as you tried skiing or surfing.
For my travel site I chose Montana. I have visited Montana several times and plan to keep returning. The travel site the state offers focuses towards people how seek adventure, sportsmen, and people who love to learn about history and arts. This site offers a lot of pictures that really bring out what Montana really is. The majority of activities are outside related. They have listed several national and state parks to visit and have activities for the winter season such as, snowmobiling, dog sledding, and skiing. For indoor activities they have Art museums, and Brewery tours available. For the people that are interested in history, the site list famous battle grounds where they have reenactments. The audience they are reaching out to are the people who are older and maintain a active lifestyle. They did list a few attractions for the younger audience such as water parks, cave tours, and dinosaur attractions. Overall I thought the website was good. It contained a lot of attractive images to draw people to an adventure. A person may think that the state doesn't offer many activities but looking at the website they offer more than what people think. Showing the activities through pictures was a good move because you can't describe Montana through words, it must be shown through pictures. http://www.visitmt.com/
ReplyDeletehttp://www.colorado.com/
ReplyDeleteI decided to look at Colorado for a tourism location. Colorado is a place I am interested in learning more and hopefully going to visit one day. I chose Colorado because the beauty if offers cannot compare to anywhere else. The beauty is hard to describe with its snow covered mountains in the winter, and the blooming prairies in the spring time. On the travel site, Colorado list different tabs and options of tourism spots, places to stay and places to visit. Colorado focuses on the people who love the outdoors whether it is to seek adventure in the many forms it offers or sportsmen, art and culture, and heritage and history. These are just some of the things listed on the website. I did notice when I opened the website there was a big, beautiful, eye catching picture of the snow covered mountains. Just looking at it could make anyone want to go whether it’s for snowboarding, or skiing in the winter or just hiking in the spring/summer. This website takes into consideration the different people that might want to visit. This is an ideal website because it is easily accessible by the viewer, they know it’s a great place for vacation. So they make a point to show every aspect of Colorado that makes it a good spot to visit by doing so in pictures. For family vacations, relaxation or all-out adventure, Colorado is the place to explore.
https://www.gotokyo.org/en/tourists/attractions/attraction/index.html
ReplyDeleteI have chosen to examine a site for travelling to Tokyo, Japan. I chose this because it is one of the few travel destinations that I would enjoy visiting. This site was designed with non-Japanese tourists as its main audience, but the site can still be utilized for Japanese citizens who would like to travel to Tokyo and can also even be used for the residents of Tokyo to get to know their city better.
For all audiences, the site is very easy to read and understand, so most people won’t find it difficult to find the information that they were looking for. The first page you see is very professional looking and also provides interesting information immediately about Tokyo that the viewer may want to see. It provides a plentiful amount of information, especially for the primary audience: things to do in the city, where to go, where to stay, transportation information and it even has basic information that a person from outside of Japan wouldn’t know, but would need to know such as weather, where to go to exchange currency, and even table manners. The website is extremely detailed in every aspect that it provides, indicating a high level of praise for the city and for the country.
For my assignment, I chose the romantic city of Dalian located in the southern tip of China’s northeastern Liaoning Province. I was founded by the Russians which makes it an historical landmark with colonial buildings. The website is simply structured and created in an easy one click guide to every part of the city. On opening this site, you’re bombarded with a plethora of beautiful pictures of accommodation, attractions, coral reefs and tastes of a different culture. The website attracts different types of audiences from people looking to golf in a serene environment or for hikers looking to go on long trails, to newly wedded couples searching to go on honey moon in one of the spectacular hotels located around the city or looking to take a ferry to explore the beautiful ocean. The website can be translated English, Japanese, Russian and Korean respectively. When a picture is clicked on, a different page comes on describing what you should expect of what this beautiful city has to offer. The website is easy to access and catches the eyes of those who love something beautiful.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.visitdl.com/Web/
Vacations in Ireland
ReplyDeleteThe website for tourism in Ireland includes information for many possible visitors to the country. The site seemed to detect that I was accessing from the United States, and apparently has multiple versions for users from other countries, so this version of the site is targeted at Americans. First and foremost, visitors to the website are greeted to an invitation to "Explore Ireland's Ancient East." This appeals to those seeking to explore a rich history. It has quick links to pre-made iteneraries and travel packages to experience the most interesting historical sites. Second, moving down the page, Ireland boasts being a filming location for the Game of Thrones series, inviting fans to visit several locations used in the show. It has an entire section devoted purely to Game of Thrones information and possible sites to visit for fans of the series. A third audience is golfers, apparently, as an entire section of the site is also devoted to golf and courses in Ireland, the page plastered with vibrant greenery and quotes describing the beauty of the country. There are many more potential audiences for this site, but those three have some of the greatest amount of marketing, and easiest access to relevant information.
I chose France, because it is a place I have always wanted to visit at least once in my life time. This site has a lot of great links on the website. It has a lot of different pictures, and color schemes, they provide facts all throughout the page, as well as a link for additional facts. This pages audience is for people who already live there by showing places to go, and where to live and all that. Also they provide spots for tourist. These spots are like maps, towns, villages, and where they should visit. Along with a lot more for them, they also address people who are interested in the history of France with a specific link for them. This site uses a lot of different pictures, links, and picture links. They also use a lot of background colors to show different sections. They use white, blue, red, and green. They also used pictures to separate a new section. They talk about the types of food that France offers, Drinks that they offer. Then of course they talk about the Eiffel tower and all the attractions around the famous icon of France.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.francethisway.com/
Anyone who has ever taken a class with Dr. Halimin Herjanto will more likely than not like to visit New Zealand if they haven’t already done so. I am one of the fortunate who has had New Zealand propaganda beat into my skull by Hal. I truly hope to visit someday (maybe on my honeymoon!)
ReplyDeleteWhich brings me to my first audience, although it is not the most outright. Newzealand.com appeals to honeymooners and even those hoping to marry. The website has determined that this category of people, romantics, are going to like certain aspects of New Zealand. Therefore, those specific aspects are exactly what they try and appeal to. “From secluded beaches and exotic rainforests to geothermal wonderlands and snow-capped mountains, New Zealand's landscapes are as romantic as they are varied.” Another romantic thing New Zealand is known for is its wines. New Zealand wine is revered and sure to be on the list of things to try for wine connoisseurs on a getaway.
The next audience I will discuss is adventurers. New Zealand is known for its beautiful scenery and unforgettable outdoor sports. The website is sure to emphasize, in numerous areas, the copious amounts of activities available to travelers and also the sheer beauty of the country. “Bungy, skydiving, caving, canyoning ... New Zealand has every adventure activity and extreme sport you can think of - and some you've never even heard of! All set to a backdrop of mind-blowing landscapes.” And it wouldn’t be a New Zealand travel site without reference to experience “The Middle-Earth.”
Another audience is anyone from the United States. The first page that came up when I accessed the website was of flight plans from the US to NZ. It showed how easy it would be to travel to New Zealand from certain, continuous flights from Los Angeles, and San Francisco. If you look in the URL box, the web page is actually newzealand.com/us/. So I decided to see how much would change if I changed /us/ to /uk/. Instead of the first page being flight plans from the US, the first picture available is of a rugby match. Obviously that appeals more to the United Kingdom than to the United States. The website definitely uses cultural knowledge to draw in its audiences.
http://www.newzealand.com/us/
For this assignment, I chose to talk about Jamaica. I have always wanted to go there and have had many people tell me about their experience. It seems like a really good time. The first thing I noticed about the website was the bright colors and beautiful pictures of the beach. The tabs on the page describe different groups of people. When you go on the Jamaica tab it gives different categories and under culture they have a tab for Spring Break which attracts young adults. On that specific website they talk about the concerts and clubs that will be open during that time. The website also has bright colors and big bold words. This attracts the younger crowd. A section on the website describes the people and culture of Jamaica. This is good because teens are most likely traveling without their parents so they aren’t going on blindly to the culture. Another group that the website focuses on is couples. They have a tab and website for weddings and honeymoons. They call themselves “The Island of Love” which means they are popular with couples. Also they give ideas of where you could have your wedding and reception. If you are looking for a honeymoon they have a package for that. That’s two different audiences in one category. Lastly, the website attracts the working class. They have conferences and meeting buildings there. They have the Montego Bay Convention Center which is like a hotel and conference area. They also give leisure activities for groups to do. Also for meetings they have several categories that can accommodate groups meeting on the island, along with leisure time activities the website highlights the different exhibits that they offer.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ireland.com/en-us/
ReplyDeleteI chose Ireland; because it is a part of my heritage and I have always wanted to go there. When you first open the webpage the first thing that pops up is a statement about the history. This gives me the sense that they are trying to appeal to people into history. Then they go through different attractions or tours you can choose from. They bring up the “Game of Thrones.” This appeals to people into this TV show and might even appeal to those who have heard of it. They also give some statistics about why you should go to Ireland. The last thing they put on the website is prices and different options. One option that stuck out to me was the honeymoon one. This appeals to newlyweds and younger couples. They have a deal on this package, so they are trying to get them to go and most likely they will get a lot of tourists this way. People for their honeymoon are always trying to go somewhere new and different. What could be better than traveling out of the country and to a beautiful one like Ireland? To me these packages appeal to me the most; because I am trying to convince myself that I am getting a good deal and that I am going to have a great time.