How a smaller destination like Revúca can effectively distribute a digital guide

An essential step after creating and publishing a digital guide on the SmartGuide platform is its effective promotion and distribution. Why is this so crucial? Without adequate visibility, visitors may not become aware of this innovative way to explore your city or community, potentially leaving it out of their travel plans. This could result in a missed opportunity to enhance tourism in your town or village.

For some visitors, the journey begins during the planning stage. This is when they discover whether the city offers sightseeing tours or guide services. To ensure they receive all the information you want them to have, it’s important to present it clearly and effectively. Let’s explore how to make that happen.

Benefits of proper promotion -  More tourists, more experiences, more revenue

Promoting a digital guide effectively brings numerous benefits. Visitors will not only discover a new service that helps them explore the rich history of your destination, but they’ll also gain deeper insights into local attractions and leisure activities. As a result, this encourages them to spend more time in your city or town, leading to higher spending on local businesses and services and higher overnight visitor statistics for the destination.

A successful example of digital guide distribution is the town of Revúca, located in the foothills of the Muránska Planina National Park. Although this region stands out for its beauty and wild nature, tourists still have not fully discovered it yet. As a smaller destination, Revúca welcomes approximately 12,000 visitors annually. Visitors coming to Revúca can enhance their experience by using the SmartGuide digital guide to embark on the walking tour "In Search of History," and discover the landmarks that commemorate the town's rich history.

Revúca city representatives try their best to increase the attractiveness of the city, including promoting it through the handy digital audioguide. To maximize its reach, they decided to focus the promotion of the guide on the places with the highest concentration of tourists. Additionally, they drew inspiration from practical tips provided by the SmartGuide marketing team to strategically direct the distribution of the digital guide where it will attract the most visitors.

Effective Tools and methods to inform the public about your digital guide

The primary tool for distributing the digital guide is through marketing materials strategically placed within the appropriate communication channels through which to effectively reach your audience. The most common and effective ways of informing your audience are publishing posts on social media, informing on your or your partner's official website and placing leaflets and posters in tourist information centers and hotels. 

Feel free to use visuals with QR codes and links to easily access your guide, helping spread the word about your exciting news. Each destination automatically receives a basic package of free marketing material designs after creating a guide on the SmartGuide platform. The city of Revúca has decided to make full use of these materials. All visuals are designed with branding in line with their logo, with the dominant color being red, which effectively attracts the attention of visitors.

The most important element of the marketing materials is the QR code. When visitors scan the smart QR code from the materials provided by SmartGuide, it will automatically open the right content in the app in their preferred language, based on their phone settings. If they don't already have the SmartGuide app installed, the same QR code identifies whether they are using Android or iOS and guides them through the installation process.

1. Spread the word about the guide online with web widgets and banners

Planning a trip usually starts online. People like to be inspired by various travel sites or the official website of the destination. With a web widget placed on your website, they can get an interactive preview of your guide. They then simply navigate to the SmartGuide app with the same content and additional features that are useful during the trip, such as geolocation, audio, or offline content. 

To ensure that the widget is easy to find on the website, link it with banners or your logo directly on the homepage. You can also reach out to partners and request them to publish a banner featuring your guide on their website. The web widget is also suitable for a touchscreen kiosk in an information center.

For example, Revúca added a QR code and the SmartGuide logo to the left static panel of their website so that visitors can easily find it. The logo is linked to a web widget that appears when clicked.

Example: https://tic.revuca.sk/smartguide-audio-sprievodca-revuca-0.html

2. Reach visitors with a guide via social media

Use the power of social media to promote your digital guide and reach younger audiences where they spend most of their time.  By sharing engaging posts or stories, you can captivate potential tourists' attention and motivate them to download the guide before they arrive at your destination. At the same time, you can collaborate with influencers, travel groups, or local communities to promote your guide to a wider audience. 

The city of Revúca selected Facebook for their social media promotion due to its large user base. This allows them to effectively reach visitors and raise awareness about the digital guide.

3. Inform visitors efficiently on arrival at the tourist information center

The tourist information center is the main contact point that tourists look for when they arrive in a town or village. Revúca has placed posters informing about the guide on the entrance door of the information center. The poster effectively informs visitors even when the information center is closed.

4. Link physical and digital maps for a better experience

Most visitors appreciate receiving a map at the information center that includes recommended routes and tips on what to see and do in the town. A physical map, whether on an information board or in the form of a leaflet, is a great tool for better orientation and should be accompanied by a SmartGuide QR code. Once scanned, visitors can instantly get a digital, geolocated map in the SmartGuide app that guides them through the destination directly on their mobile device.

5. Contact partner institutions and businesses to request their cooperation in distributing the guide.

Involve local institutions and businesses to collaborate on the distribution of the guide to get information about your digital guide to as wide an audience as possible. For example, you can reach out to cultural centers, hotels, cafés or restaurants.

In Revúca, cultural institutions have supported the successful distribution of the digital guide. In the Litterra Cultural Centre, visitors can find a leaflet with information about the digital guide in the entrance lobby. Similarly, at the Municipal Cultural Centre, a leaflet is available at the sales window and a poster is visible at the entrance door. 

6. Take advantage of outdoor spaces and advertising spots

The use of outdoor spaces and advertising areas is another way to make your new guide more visible to residents and new visitors to the city.

The City of Revúca used the free space in the showcase of the information board in the city center and placed a poster informing about the digital guide, thus attracting passers-by right in the heart of the city.

Conclusion

After creating and publishing a digital guide in the SmartGuide app, a smaller destination with fewer tourists, such as Revúca, should focus on effective distribution and promotion, which is crucial for success. It is important to inform visitors about this novelty already during the planning phase of their trip. A city or municipality such as Revúca should use its main communication channels such as social networks, websites, and local newspapers to effectively communicate this innovative service. At the same time, marketing materials such as posters, leaflets, and stickers should be placed in the places where tourists gather most - tourist information centers, contact points, or cash desks of cultural institutions.

It is also important to link the physical and digital map in the app, which will help visitors to better navigate the city. Don't forget to reach out to partner institutions, hotels, cafes, or restaurants to ask them to put up posters or flyers. Think about where tourists are most likely to be in your city and target these places. Also, use outdoor spaces and advertising areas to put up posters to further raise awareness of the innovative guide in your city.

With the effective promotion of the digital guide, smaller towns like Revúca can successfully attract new visitors, boosting local tourism, bringing more revenue to local businesses and services, and contributing to the prosperity of the entire community.