Uinta County Tourism Competitive Analysis

Delivered September 15th, 2019. Contributors: Amos T., Nyaingo J., Josh T. and

Early FindingsUinta County Tourism Competitive Analysis

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Uinta County Tourism Competitive Analysis- 2

Syracuse, Utah, and Morgan, Utah, both share scenic views of Thurston Peak and proximity to Salt Lake City. Morgan, Utah, is a small community with a population of about 11,014 inhabitants, is Utah's smallest county by total area, and is located to the east of the Wasatch Mountains. Syracuse City's website states, "The City of Syracuse is a vibrant Utah community of 30,000 residents who enjoy a high quality of life in a safe, family oriented community. Syracuse is located just north of Salt Lake City and is nestled between the Wasatch Mountains and the Great Salt Lake. The town is known as the Gateway to Antelope Island." Full details on the competitive analysis of tourism in Syracuse City, Utah, and Morgan, Utah are available on the attached spreadsheet. 

MORGAN UTAH Several attractions exist within two hours drive from Morgan including the City Creek Canyon, Clark Planetarium, Deer Valley Park City, Park City Balloon Adventures, Park City Mountain Resort, Red Butte Garden & Arboretum, the Tracy Aviary, and Utah's Hogle Zoo. 
The Devils Slide located at I84 Northbound in Morgan, UT, is rated 4-stars on a scale of 5 by 16 users. It is a rock formation that attracts several tourists to Morgan. 
East Canyon State Park is located next to Morgan and has a 4.5-star rating on a scale of 5 among eight reviews. The state park is known to have wildlife including bald eagles, hawks, geese, pelicans, and deer. It has accommodation known as the Big Rock Campground and visitors rate it 5-stars based on value.  
Although Morgan is the smallest county in Utah, it located adjacent to an extraordinary summit the Francis Peak Radar Site. The summit is accessible to hikers, bikers, recreational drivers, and automobile drivers after obtaining permits. Camping sites, small ponds, trails, wildlife, and magnificent views are part of this rugged natural setting. 
The main target of Morgan Utah includes business investors, tourists, and people with an interest in nature. 
Several agencies in Morgan use online websites and social media platforms to market the county. Examples include the Chamber of Commerce and Morgan County Planning and Development Services. 
Tourist companies operating in Morgan publish resort images on websites and social media. They also have reviews, ratings, and recommendations on digital platforms like Trip Advisor.
There are 12 internet providers in Morgan, and 9 of them offer residential services. The internet is accessed through broadband by about 91.6% of the residents of Morgan. We have assumed that this high rate of broadband penetration and the use of mobile is the reason most companies use digital advertisement platforms to reach residents and tourists. 
Screenshots on tourism advertisements that are related to Morgan Utah are available in the attached document. 
SYRACUSE CITY, UT Syracuse City Utah has 14 hotels within a distance of 5 miles from its center. 
The Syracuse Farmer's Market is open between July and August. It sells fresh produce, trucks of food items, and features live concerts, etc. Syracuse Utah has 14 parks, one museum, and one community center.
There are six restaurants in Syracuse.
Syracuse (Antelope Island) has about 300,000  visitors (tourists) per year.
Screenshot on tourism advertisements related to Syracuse Utah are provided in the attached document. 
The internet is usually available through broadband to about 99.9% of the residents of Syracuse. Most residents of Syracuse have five to six choices of connection for home Internet. Syracuse comes 27th among 247 cities when rated for the most connected city in Utah. Digital ads are used to reach residents of the city and tourists. 

RESEARCH STRATEGY There is no evidence that the amount of annual visitors nor the cities' target demographic for tourists to both Morgan and Syracuse city are available in the public domain. By the location of both to beautiful nature lovers and the Morman Church, it is assumed the cities target nature lovers and people involved with the church. This is consistent with most visitors to Utah.

The research reviewed government publications regarding trade and tourism, as well as travel agency publications. This strategy could not uncover the yearly visits for both Syracuse and Morgan. We also researched road and air traffic statistics to include the percentage of air travelers and road travelers that arrive at both locations yearly. Morgan has a small county airport, however, the information regarding passenger statistics is not made public. 
 
We reviewed maps published by Bing Maps., Bhuvan, and Google Maps, for lists of hotels around Syracuse and Morgan. Research revealed that there are four hotels in Morgan, and a review of the reports section of the maps, did not provide visitor statistics of these hotels. We also reviewed significant landmarks, resorts, and their ratings. There were no insights published on the number of visitors arriving or leaving hotels in Morgan or Syracuse. 

The research reviewed traveler information databases such as TripAdvisor, HomeAway, Magic Stay, etc., for the number of hotels and restaurants in Syracuse and Morgan. Trip Advisor published statistics of available hotels, however, most of the hotels are located outside both Morgan and Syracuse.  In addition, the number of visitors that stay in camp-like accommodations was researched. 

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Uinta County Tourism Competitive Analysis- 3

The attached spreadsheet, rows 3-11, columns D&E has been filled out with the required details. Below is an overview of the findings included in the spreadsheet, along with a research methodology explaining the approaches used to find the details. Screenshots of digital creatives are included in the attached Google document.
HUNTSVILLE TOWN, UTAH Huntsville Town, Utah features three public parks; playground equipment; ample space for soccer, horseshoes, baseball, volleyball, softball, tennis, and basketball; ice-skating rink; two picnic pavilions; new stage; and numerous trails for recreation (Weber Pathways).
The town also has a history library with information regarding the history of the town.
It also has a cemetery with a feature dubbed, “Names in Stones” to help visitors visualize families and missing pieces.
OGDEN, UTAH Ogden's offerings include 38 recreational parks, 100+ years old Art Deco, 13,300 acres of fresh water for water sports, and 170,000 acres of National Forest.
It features 230 miles of mountain biking, hiking and equestrian trails with over 20 federally maintained campgrounds.
Ogden, Utah also prides in its whitewater park with class 2 and 3 rapids along with being the preferred venue for over 45 films and TV shows shootings.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGYWe started by searching through the respective websites of Huntsville Town and Ogden, Utah, which contained almost all the details included in the attached spreadsheet. However, we also checked external sources, including local publications for information regarding positive and negative reviews (Tripadvisor and Yelp) and details regarding the total number of visits to these areas, since such information was not provided in the individual websites. Unfortunately, for Huntsville Town, Utah, we did not find details regarding the number of visitors going to the place. For Ogden, Utah, we only found visitor information for the year 2014, as there was no current report showing the numbers. All reports focused on providing the number of visitors to specific parks in the region, but not the overall figures for all visitors to the area.

For information regarding visitors to Huntsville Town, Utah, we used three strategies to try to uncover it. First, we started by checking the Huntsville town website, where we found general information regarding the area and what it offers but none regarding the number of visitors it receives. On that note, we moved to our next step.

Next, we started by checking government records including any annual reports providing information on the demographics of that area. We did find several statistics in annual reports published by the county government (Weber County) but none specifically provided figures about the number of tourists who visit the town. The data prevalent in these reports focused more on the general population and demographics of the town, including details about income. Therefore, we opted for our third attempt.

Lastly, we searched for data across media reports, business websites, local news publications, and regional reports on tourism. Most of the reports we found lacked an accurate overall figure of the total visitors to these areas. The reports only focused on specific recreational parks and provided the statistics for those parks. We attempted to search whether those parks are located in Huntsville town, but discovered that they are not. Thus, we could not manually add the number of visitors to those parks to arrive at an estimate of the number of visitors visiting Huntsville Town annually. In this regard, we have inputted N/A in the attached spreadsheet.

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Uinta County Tourism Competitive Analysis

Vernal, Utah attracts many tourists seeking to enjoy the outdoors and adventurers alike. Many sources concur that Vernal is an incredibly beautiful destination that's packed with interesting places to see. All the requested information about Vernal is included in the attached spreadsheet. 
Findings1. Overview of OfferingsVernal, Utah is an area laden with outdoor activities, which comprise many of its offerings. The main outdoor offerings in the region include hiking, rafting, biking, fishing, and boating.
With regard to rafting, Vernal is home to "the Green River [which] is one of the country’s world-class river rafting destination." 
With regard to mountain biking, Vernal is home to "some of the best trails available [which span] hundreds of miles." What's more, people of varying ability levels can enjoy Vernal's trails, as they differ in terms of length and difficulty level. 
There are also a few, popular attractions in Vernal, which include Dinosaur National Monument, McCoy Flats Trail Complex, Steinaker State Park, and the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park, among others. 
2. Target Market Vernal's target market consists of outdoor enthusiasts, adventurers, and dinosaur enthusiasts. 
With regard to the outdoor enthusiast target market, Vernal has been described as "a thriving haven for the outdoor enthusiast." 
With regard to the adventurer target market, Vernal's tourism site refers to the region as "the Origin of Adventure." 
Lastly, with regard to dinosaur enthusiasts, Vernal's tourism site states that the region " is home to Dinosuar National Monument, the only place in the world with an interactive experience with more than 1,500 real dinosaur bones and fossils."
3. Annual VisitorsAccording to the Vernal Chamber of Commerce, approximately "a million people visit Uintah County" annually, which Vernal is located within. 
4. Competitive AdvantagesA key aspect of Vernal's competitive advantage, as a region, is its stunning scenery. Many sources and personal reviews alike attest to the utterly incredible scenery in Vernal. 
Vernal's tourism site describes the region's scenery as "some of the most scenic country around . . . [that offers] an experience unlike any other."
Another focal point of Vernal's competitive advantage is that it's known as "Dinosaurland." According to a prominent Utah travel source, Vernal "is home to the largest quarry of prehistoric Jurassic dinosaur bones." Furthermore, Dinosaur National Monument is situated closely nearby.
A third aspect of Vernal's competitive advantage consists of it's climate and year-round recreation. Vernal's landscape ranges from desert land to mountain vistas. Vernal also gets snow to blanket its landscape during winter, making it a great spot for snowmobiling and cross-country skiing. 
5. Digital Marketing CampaignsOur research found that Vernal has run three digital marketing campaigns. An example of each campaign is included in this Google Doc.
The first digital marketing campaign that we found for Vernal was titled "This is Vernal."
"The Origin of Adventure" was the second digital marketing campaign that we found for Vernal.
The third digital marketing campaign that we found for Vernal was titled "Hotel Vernal Haunt" for Halloween. 
6. Number of HotelsOur research found that there are 16 hotels in Vernal. We included all types of paid lodging (e.g. motels, etc.) in this count, in order to fully assess Vernal's lodging capacity. 
7. Number of RestaurantsOur research found that there are 47 restaurants in Vernal.  
8. Likes and DislikesOn Facebook, Vernal (Dinosaurland) received a 4.7/5 star rating based on 12 reviews. 
Our analysis of many reviews about Vernal found that the following are common likes about Vernal: (1) A cool place for people of any age; (2) Seemingly endless places to see; (3) An interesting, not boring place; (4) Beautiful scenery; (5) Hiking terrain that's suitable for people of many ages; (6) Lack of crowds; and (7) The region's history. 
We did not find many dislikes about Vernal throughout our analysis of many reviews of the region and its attractions. However, the two dislikes we found mentioned by more than one person were that it can get very hot there during summer and there can be a lot of mosquitoes in certain spots. 
9. Links to Reviews This link is to three reviews of Vernal, which were written on the same Facebook page. 
 This link is to the fourth review and this link is to the fifth review that we found. 
 This link is to the sixth review we found about Vernal and this link is to the seventh review. 
 This link is to the eighth review of Vernal that we came across and this link is to the ninth review that we included. 
 This link is to the 10th review that we found about Vernal and this link is to the 11th review. 
 This link is to the 12th review and this link is to the 13th review. 
Lastly, this link is to the 14th review about Vernal and this link is to the 15th review that we included. 
Your Research Team Applied the Following Strategy:We began our research by consulting Vernal's tourism website. From the ample information provided by that source and others, we were able to identify Vernal's regional offerings, target market, and competitive advantages as a destination. We identified Vernal's digital marketing campaigns by reviewing its social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram), as that's where such posts would be included. Information about what people like and dislike about Vernal came from reading numerous travel reviews posted by people who've visited the region in general, as well as specific attractions in the region. To determine the number of restaurants and hotels in Vernal, we searched for all such locations by looking up such on Google Maps. The resulting maps listed all the restaurants and hotels in Vernal, which we then counted, in order to determine the respective totals. Throughout our research, the main sources that we consulted and used were from the travel industry such as Trip Advisor and local sources such as the Vernal Chamber of Commerce. 