Above: Gateway To Sedona Editor Terree Duncan, following acceptance of the Readers Choice Award for Best Website.

Sedona, AZ: On September 11, 2009, the publishers of Gateway To Sedona received a nice surprise in the form of an email exclaiming: "YOU were chosen as the BEST WEBSITE by our readers!" It was soon learned that Gateway To Sedona had been awarded the Readers' Choice for "Best Website" in Sedona, conducted by KUDOS, the Verde Independent and Bugle newspapers (a division of Western Newspapers).

Gateway To Sedona (www.GatewayToSedona.com) is Sedona, Arizona's, largest online magazine and directory, with thousands of articles and photos covering the attractions and wildlife in the area. The portal also showcases hundreds of member businesses that depend on tourism in Sedona and the Verde Valley.

"This was a complete surprise. We were not expecting this award at all, and didn't even know we were in the running," remarks Victoria Oldham, co-publisher of Gateway To Sedona.

Gateway To Sedona launched on July 4th, 2002, with its first, photo-essay-style article about the Fourth of July celebration at the now-defunct Sedona Cultural Park (accompanied by photos taken by co-publisher, artist and photographer, Chuck Oldham). Today, the online magazine now presents a massive collection of articles to a large following, including visitors from Canada, the UK, Japan, and Germany, in addition to the US.

Publishers and Gateway designers Chuck and Victoria Oldham credit many factors in the success of Gateway To Sedona, with particular acknowledgement to the Gateway To Sedona team: Editor Terree Duncan, graphic artist Malou Leontsinis, and writer Sarah Horton.

Terree Duncan, Editor of Gateway To Sedona, picked up the award certificate on September 30th at KUDOS' open house to celebrate the 2009 Readers' Choice Awards. Terree has been with Gateway To Sedona since 2005, and oversees the preparation and publishing of new articles and calendar events each week. Victoria adds, "Terree is an exceptional editor and writer, and is so helpful to our advertising clients. She continually adds to the beauty of Gateway To Sedona's pages, and our clients express their appreciation to her all the time."

Malou Leontsinis, accomplished artist, graphic designer and photographer, has placed her unique signature on Gateway To Sedona's pages since moving to Sedona from Luxembourg in 2004. Although most people avoid looking at online ads, many of the ads Malou created for Gateway's clients have been works of art in themselves. Her art and design can be viewed online at www.axentcreative.com.

Professional writer Sarah Horton penned a wonderful series of articles about Sedona and Grand Canyon wildlife and attractions for the Gateway To Sedona Visitor and Web Guide, a 200-page fine quality print guide about Sedona and Northern Arizona released in 2006. Most of these articles are also posted online at Gateway To Sedona. During the first years working with Gateway, Sarah lived in Jerome, Arizona; she currently resides in Portland, Oregon.

In feedback surveys received by the publishers, website visitors typically find Gateway To Sedona in the search engines, especially Google; they are overwhelmingly interested in one of two things: planning their vacation and lodging, or relocating to Sedona. They are also interested in timing their visit to coincide with special events.

The Gateway To Sedona Event Calendar is Sedona's most popular online calendar, with thousands of daily page views and visitor referrals. Within minutes of publishing, Gateway To Sedona's photo-rich articles and calendar events are picked up by a variety of news sources, such as CNN, Google News and Topix, ensuring publicity for Sedona's happenings and member businesses (member businesses receive a link to their website when they contribute an event).

Gateway To Sedona is a production of Trade Winds Advertising (www.tradewindsadvertising.com), owned and operated by Chuck and Victoria Oldham. If you would like more information about Gateway To Sedona, contact the publishers at 928-282-4326, or email to: info@gatewaytosedona.com.


Posted October 3, 2009.