Lamont County Now Website

https://www.lamontcountynow.ca

Lamont County Abstract: Website Category EDAC

Redefining Digital Engagement: Economic Development Website

In September 2024, Lamont County Economic Development launched a dynamic new website https://www.lamontcountynow.ca, to serve as the digital front door to economic opportunity in the region. Designed with both form and function in mind, the platform elevates Lamont County’s ability to attract investment, support entrepreneurs, and provide actionable resources for industrial site selection/foreign direct investment.

Purpose of Project & Anticipated Outcomes

The legacy website no longer met the expectations of modern site selectors, business owners and decision makers. It lacked mobile accessibility, relevant content, and tools to support data-driven decisions. There were four primary objectives:
1.Attract new business and industry to the region by providing new data visualization tools.
2.Provide easily accessible, real-time economic data and property listings.
3.Showcase local major businesses including a business directory.
4.Increase engagement from key audiences including investors, real estate agents, and site selectors.
Anticipated outcomes included increased web traffic, higher conversion rates on inquiries, greater social and SEO visibility, and improved stakeholder satisfaction.

Target Audience
The website was designed for several distinct audience segments:
•Primary: National and regional site selectors, investors, and C-suite executives (ages 35 – 65), with interests in transportation & logistics, petrochemicals, manufacturing, environmental and value-added agricultural.
•Secondary: Local small business owners, real estate agents, and entrepreneurs (ages 25 – 60), as well as community development partners.
•Tertiary: Workforce talent (job seekers, students) media and others seeking regional data or success stories.

User experience research guided both the design and content strategy to meet the preferences of these groups—emphasizing mobile responsiveness, ease of navigation, and industry-specific best practices.

Effectiveness / Meeting Objectives
Within six months of launch, the website showed strong performance:
•~50% increase in organic web traffic.
•15 qualified business inquiries, up 60% from 2023.
•Double the amount of users and sessions suggesting deeper user engagement. Total sessions of 4,795 (10,380 page views) and 4,193 unique users in 2024. To date in 2025 (as of June 27th) 2,078 total sessions, 4,582 page views and 1,808 unique users.
•The site is now a key component investment pitch decks and utilized by decision makers when considering the County as an investment destination.

Challenges & Changes Made
We faced challenges balancing visual storytelling with data volumes and making the content work with our web provider, so we:
•Re-wrote website copy, shortened and condensed key messages
•Created our own GIS collection form for those interested in selling their parcels and integrated into the website.
•Created a basic business directory to support the community and shop local messages.

Conclusion
The redesigned LamontCountyNow website is more than a digital facelift—it’s a core strategic asset that delivers on the promise of modern economic development. By aligning clear objectives with user-centered design and agile execution, the project has strengthened our competitiveness, expanded our digital reach, and fostered lasting connections with key audiences. It stands as a model for how communities can use digital platforms to drive real economic development outcomes.