With a continuous marketing schema you can get most out of your tours and more importantly ensure your visitors will get most out of your offer.
Getting prepared:
Understand what channels your visitors use to prepare for their visit: Your visitor will get the best user experience if the izi.TRAVEL app is already downloaded on their phone, for example when they are at home or in their hotel. It is even better when the guide or tour is also downloaded so visitors do not need an on-site internet connection.
Check your on-site free WiFi anyway: We found that a slow or paid WiFi connection will have a negative effect on the number of people who consume your content. If possible then provide your visitors with free WiFi.
Train your staff: your staff will welcome your guests and identify their needs. They need to understand the value of your audio guides and steer the visitors towards your stories.
Online promotion
The best way to promote an audio guide is online. It is a digital service and visitors have to download and/or install it. Therefore the closest you can get them to start using your guide is when they are already using digital services, like visiting your website or reading your newsletter or social media. Here is an overview of the best online promotion methods.
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Effect
Description
WEBSITE
1
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Link on homepage Publish a link to the izi.TRAVEL tour on your homepage and it has a great impact on usage. Ideally include a banner for extra attention.
2
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Link on the webpage with opening hours / parking information Place a reference to your guide on the contact details page as visitors will look there when preparing their visit.
3
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Separate webpage with an overview of your tours Create a separate page with links to your tours. Make sure that the url contains the word audio guide or tour (like www.museum.org/audiotour); this will also improve the findability in Google search
4
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Show a preview on your own website with the widget With the izi-widget you publish (parts of) your tour on your own website. See http://widget.izi.travel for instructions.
5
+
Add an audio guide icon to your social media icons Place the izi.TRAVEL icon next to the social media. Contact support to get a customized icon in your lay out!
6
+
News item on website Announcing a free mobile audio guide is great content for your news section. Make sure you added a direct link to the app in the store or your landing page.
MOBILE WEBSITE
7
+++
Special layout for mobile website Your audio guide will be more relevant to mobile visitors of your website; if you have a responsive website you can give the link to the audio guide a better position in the mobile view.
SOCIAL MEDIA
8
+++
Facebook Post stories on your Facebook page; every story/object of can be shared on social media. Reuse the content of your guide as much as you can! Tip: a post on Facebook reaches 2% of your followers, so don't hesitate to post different stories multiple times (like every day or week).
9
++
Twitter Post links on your Twitter to your guide. You can post a stories/objects of your tour on your Twitter too. Reuse the content of your guide as much as you can!
10
+
LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest, Instagram Post links on other social media to your guide. You can post all stories multiple times. Use www.buffer.com to schedule your posts.
izi.TRAVEL
11
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Give your Tour an appealing name Visitors are more willing to download content with a name that triggers curiosity and excitement.
12
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Complete the content provider profile page on izi.TRAVEL Create and maintain a strong brand identity on our platform. Make sure your CP profile in the izi.TRAVEL CMS is fully up to date.
13
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Sponsors Leverage your institutions sponsors and donors and let them communicate your mobile audio stories to their customers. Discuss with sponsors how to include references to your content in their marketing communication.
14
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Cross links If you have more than one guided tour you can link them, so that they reference to each other. The visitors will see all tours available under your brand in the section 'See also'.
15
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Cross-links with other CPs Cooperate with CPs of nearest museums/tours and ask them to make a link from their content to your content. And you can return the favor.
16
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Search engine optimization Improve guide/tour description by adding relevant key words and hashtags to improve search engine ranking.
OTHER DIGITAL MEDIA
17
+++
Article in newsletter Announce the tour in every newsletter. Use the stories in the tour to provide a different angle.
18
++
QR-code and link on your etickets Place a link and a QR-code to your tour on your etickets
19
+++
IP address of WiFi network If the WiFi network in the museum has a static IP-address - enter it in izi.TRAVEL CMS. In this case when visitors launch the izi.TRAVEL app, the app will prompt like "it looks like you are in XXX museum. Open it?". To know the IP-address of the WiFi just connect to this WiFi and open in browser web-page http://whatismyipaddress.com/
20
+++
Landing page for WiFi Make a special landing page for your local WiFi. This is a web-page where the visitor will be forwarded automatically immediately after connection to the WiFi. Put on this page information about your audio guide or even just forward to www.izi.travel/app. It will significantly simplify the app installation procedure for visitor.
Offline promotion
Offline and on site promotion are very important to trigger your visitor to start using your guides. Here is a link to the promotion kit that you may freely adapt to your needs and use.
#
Effect
Description
POS MATERIALS
21
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Download cards Small - business card size - downloads card to put on the counter. Ask your account manager for a nice holder. [download template]
22
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Roll up Place a roll up at the entrance of your location. [download template]
23
++
Postcards Place postcards in your display. [download template]
24
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Tickets Announce your tour on your entrance tickets. Staff can point the link or the QR code out as they hand over tickets.
25
++
Table 'posters' in café or restaurant Place an announcement on the tables in your museum's café
26
+++
Update existing POS materials Announce a free mobile audio guide in all existing POS materials. It might take some time, though, to reprint them.
Floor sticker Place a sticker with a reference to your guide on the floor
29
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'free' headphones Provide (free) headphones at the start of your tour for those who download the app and content.
30
++
Green graffiti Using green graffiti as guerrilla marketing (50 pieces = 695 euro, http://www.paintityellow.nl)
31
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Campaign team Hiring a campagne team to promote the tour (2 people a day = 320, http://www.paintityellow.nl)
Image
Other ways
#
Effect
Description
INTERNAL
32
+++
Train your staff Your own people make the difference between a good and a memorable visit. It is very important that the staff and volunteers understand and support your tours and are prepared to address visitor's questions. Experience shows that offering them a short workshop is actually even a great team-building exercise.
33
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Make your management to experience the tour Usually the management of a institution is very happy with the result of your work, but did they actually listen to your stories? In practice we find that when management really experiences the product themselves their opinion is very positive and you will get more support/budget for promotion of your guides.
34
+
Newsletter for employees Don't underestimate the network of your employees. It is a free word-of-mouth advertisement.
35
++
Free drink (if they share on social media) Stimulate your visitors to take the time for downloading the app and content by offering them a free cup tea or coffee in the museum cafe while they do it. The introduction story for the museum is also a good way to entertain the visitor while they download the content!
EXTERNAL
36
+++
Press release To send out a press release about your new tour is very effective. Especially if online media will publish it with a link to your tour, so emphasize the media to add links to their reviews.
37
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Launch event Organize a meeting or a drink to launch your stories; invite press, friends of the museum, colleagues from other museums. In this occasion the director/curator of the museum will entertain the visitors with curiosities about the collection. Make sure the visitors use social media on the event.
38
+++
Cooperate with the local tourist authority Go out and visit your local tourist authority and tell them about your new and innovative offer. Probably they are very willing to promote your guide on their website, social media and place postcards in their store. They may even consider to create an outdoor tour that leads from the main tourist attractions to your location!
39
++
Partner promotion Find partners in the hospitality industry to promote your guide/tour as complementary service like hotels, restaurant, tour operators, tourist organisations, etc. You may consider creating a city tour that names the venues that promote it.
40
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Start crowd sourcing projects Use the izi.TRAVEL platform to set up projects where you engage with external parties like schools, (other) historic associations or expert groups,like bird or technology lovers. They will promote your publications when they participate.
We hope this overview inspires you to promote your tours in an effective way. If you have questions or suggestions please let us know at support@izi.travel
Update the local WikiVoyage WikiVoyage describes activities to do in your region; update it with a link to your tour.
+2
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Entertain the waiting line Do you have a waiting line for your museum? Entertain your visitors with a tour with will prepair them for the visit. Add a quiz where the winner can 'skip the line' to engage your audience.
