Visit Kansas City: Elevate Your Experience

The setup

A destination at the center of attention

When Visit KC, the DMO for Kansas City, Missouri, approached Envisionit, they were ready to turn a surge of national attention into sustainable demand.

Feeling millions of eyes from around the planet watching them as a 2026 FIFA World Cup host city, the team needed a modern digital experience to better showcase the city’s culture, their vibrant food and music scene, and the passion found only in ‘The Heart of America.’

It was time for a refresh. They needed a website that could meet the evolving needs of travelers, meeting planners, and partners. Streamlined trip planning. Improved accessibility. And a strategic boost to meaningful actions like partner referrals, newsletter sign-ups, RFP submissions, and bookings.

Our challenge was to build a site that reflects Kansas City’s unique identity while remaining flexible enough to engage multiple audiences (from weekend visitors to event planners)—all without slowing the Visit KC team down.

Our team delivered a 47% increase in partner referrals in the first month.

The solution

From inspiration to action on one cohesive platform

After extensive research, Envisionit delivered a user-centered, mobile-first experience featuring immersive photography, authentic storytelling, dynamic event and business listings, and interactive city exploration tools.A flexible component system powers tailored microsites for major moments and campaigns. A user-friendly backend empowers the Visit KC team to update and repurpose content quickly.

And we layered the build with first-party data considerations, accessibility best practices, and evolving search trends (i.e., AI’s influence on discoverability), so the platform can keep pace with traveler behavior and organic visibility.

Build highlights include:

Dynamic event and business directories inspired by best-in-class DMO patterns
Interactive maps to explore by interest and neighborhood
Itinerary builder and storytelling modules that move visitors from browsing to planning
Localization features for international travelers
Flexible, campaign-ready microsites aligned to Visit KC’s “From the Heart” brand expression

The strategy

Designed for many journeys, optimized for engagement

Our strategy centered on deep audience research. We created an architecture with intuitive paths and content tailored to visitors, meeting planners, and travel trade. We prioritized discovery and inspiration while making CTAs (i.e., save an itinerary, view a partner listing, submit an RFP) organic and effortless.

We built for speed and iteration. The flexible CMS components and content model allow Visit KC’s team to quickly build special-event microsites, remix content modules, and elevate timely stories without developer bottlenecks.

Dynamic integration of partner listings throughout the experience keeps local businesses front and center, increasing downstream value for stakeholders.

We aligned the look and feel with the VIsit KC “From the Heart” campaign, with rich visuals, heartfelt storytelling, and design details that celebrate KC’s culture and community. Every interaction reinforces brand affinity while guiding users toward conversion.

The results

Early impact and stronger partner value

The redesigned VisitKC.com is already driving stronger performance where it counts most. Key outcomes within the first two months of the new website launch:

47%

Increase in partner referrals

14%

Increase in pages per session

1.73%

Increase in page views

Why it matters:

Visitors are exploring more content and deeply engaging with the brand story
Partners are receiving significantly more visibility and referrals
The scalable framework positions Visit KC to adapt quickly for major events, traveler behaviors, and search shifts

“What impressed me most about Envisionit was how deeply they immersed themselves in our organization and destination. They didn't just check a box — they spent three days in Kansas City meeting with our team and partners, touring the city and really getting to know what makes KC unique. That level of effort gave them the insight to capture the essence of our brand and deliver a website that feels authentic to who we are. The end result exceeded our expectations."

Lee Prutsman Visit KC Senior Marketing Manager