Did you ever stop to think what people were searching for when browsing our visitors’ bureau online? Visit Buffalo Niagara (VBN) recently posted the top ten destinations that people were interested in (or clicking on)*, both in Buffalo and the Niagara region. With 30% of the web traffic coming from Canada, VBN is starting to spend more time targeting what many Buffalonians have considered, for a long time, the low hanging fruit. After all, with the economy down, more and more people are looking at ‘staycations’ and day trip alternatives, rather than expensive getaways. That’s why we should be paying even greater attention to ‘Torbuffchesterton Falls’. That’s my own version of urban studies theorist Richard Florida’s ‘Torbuffchester’ (the mega-region of Toronto, Buffalo and Rochester). The ‘ton’ is for Hamilton and ‘Falls’ is obviously Niagara Falls.
Topping the list of website queries on the VBN site is none other than… the Galleria Mall. There were no real surprises on the list other than the Explore and More Children’s Museum. That, to me, was a welcome result that suggests that families are willing to travel and explore outside of their normal boundaries when there is something to do for the kids. Remember this post from back in September? Seeing that Canalside also made the list, the combination of Canalside and Explore and More might just be one of the package draws that would resonate with visitors to Buffalo. Either that or get the Main Place Mall back on track by starting with a facade-lift that doesn’t look like a derelict dead man’s zone. The word ‘mall’ obviously still carries clout! People are looking to shop – it’s just a matter of giving them a place where they want to shop. In the meantime we’ll continue to promote shopping on streets like Elmwood and Hertel.
*Visits to the site have increased 87% year over year.