Aintree Racecourse – home to the John Smith’s Grand National – has witnessed a near 50% increase in website visitors and unique visitor numbers on the back of a site overhaul and SEO programme created by The Purple Agency.In total the new site has generated over 1.1 million unique visitors (up 46.65%), and page views rose to over 3.8 million in the past six months.Aintree offers extensive conference and exhibition facilities, an Equestrian Centre (featuring major show jumping and dressage events), a golf centre, and also hosts private functions such as weddings, dinners and parties.Aintree marketing & PR manager Emma Owen said: “This is a vindication of our commitment to redevelop the website and attract more sales directly.“As part of this development, the enhanced search engine optimisation has certainly led to a significant leap in site visits. That’s got to be good news not only for events like the John Smith’s Grand National, but also for the total profile of Aintree, our conference and events services, and the other unique products and services we offer throughout the year.”Purple Agency digital account director Paul Roades added: “It’s not just about creating websites, you also have to ensure those sites work doubly hard by developing programmes which drive exactly the right traffic.“That’s just what we’ve done for Aintree over the last six months. The proof of that success is not only the leap in direct ticket sales for unique events like the Grand National, but also a significant increase in site visits and unique visitor numbers for Aintree’s wider package of events and hospitality services.”