What’s Up Interactive Launches New Look for Georgia Aquarium

Dec. 10, 2008 - PRLog -- ATLANTA -- Georgia Aquarium, one of the premier tourist attractions in the Southeast, has lifted the curtain on the first phase of its redesigned Web site. The work is being done by the aquarium’s online agency-of-record, What’s Up Interactive - WUI (http://www.whatsup.com), an Atlanta-based interactive marketing agency.

“A lot has changed at the aquarium since it opened in November 2005,” said WUI CEO Richard Warner (http://www.richardwarner.com). “In an incredibly short time the Aquarium has grown to become one of the south’s premiere attractions and is continually reinventing itself.  They have a plan in place to introduce a fresh, new element every three months, and are building a new $110 million dolphin exhibit scheduled to open in the fall of 2010. Understandably their Web site needs have evolved. People know there is a world-class aquarium in Atlanta -- our assignment was to redevelop their site to reflect the constant parade of new elements that make it such a wonderful place for families to visit.”

Georgia Aquarium is the world’s largest with more than eight million gallons of water and the largest collection of aquatic animals. To insure its status as one of the region’s leading attractions management has committed to its “New Every Ninety Program” -- having a major new attraction every 90 days, ensuring that anyone who has visited will have a reason to return again and again.  

“After working with What’s Up Interactive on a second redesign, they have truly become an Aquarium team member. They have done an excellent job of designing a homepage that reflects the changing face of the Aquarium and effectively communicates what it feels like to walk through the Aquarium’s doors,” said Beach Clark, Vice President of IT at Georgia Aquarium.

The aim of the revised site is to tease browsers with a hint of what they will find when they visit the aquarium.

“We want to recreate online the experience visitors feel when they stand in front of the aquarium’s big windows for the first time,” Warner said. “With the growth of new technologies and better bandwidth, we have more powerful interactive tools to tell the Aquarium’s story.”

Visitors to http://www.georgiaaquarium.org will not see a complete change right away as WUI will launch new and updated sections over the next several months.

“The new homepage and direction of the new Web site, where we will be implementing social networking and interactive components, will allow the Aquarium to keep our audiences engaged and entice them to visit us in person,” Clark said. “As the Aquarium and the guest experience evolve, we know that What’s Up Interactive will help us evolve online as well.”

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About What’s Up Interactive: What’s Up Interactive is a relationship-driven interactive marketing agency dedicated to growing our customers’ businesses. WUI delivers creative online strategies that engage visitors and convert them to buyers through Web site development and technology, multimedia solutions including video and podcast production and innovative social media strategies. Our clients include The Coca-Cola Co., Georgia Aquarium, Fox Television Stations and Industriaplex, among many others. To learn more visit www.whatsup.com.