New Castlegar Explorers App Rewards Exploration of Castlegar
By Contributor
On April 2, Destination Castlegar and Castlegar & District Economic Development, in collaboration with the Chamber of Commerce, launched the free Castlegar Explorers mobile app, which rewards users for visiting unique points of interest in and around Castlegar, BC. Once people use the app to collect points at various destinations, they can redeem those points for rewards at area businesses.
“Castlegar & District has a rich culture, arts community and outdoor recreation for every enthusiast; and now we have a way to reward people for exploring all of that,” said Andrea Ryman of Destination Castlegar. “The Castlegar Explorers app showcases the best of our area while creating incentives for both visitors and residents to explore and shop at local businesses.”
Castlegar Explorers is both a wayfinding tool and a gamified way to reward people for shopping locally. The app’s Explore button takes users to the map of Castlegar and District, which has pins indicating the location of the area’s unique points of interest, from cultural sites to places for outdoor recreation. Clicking on each pin on the map gives more information about that place. Locations are assigned a point value. Pushing the “Collect Points” button while physically visiting a location will add the location’s points to a user’s point total.
Mark Laver from Castlegar & District Economic Development noted that “our research indicates that shopping locally is very important to area residents, and this App may act to keep more disposable income in the community. Furthermore, with over three-quarters of Canadians owning a Smartphone, this is a perfect way for the public to gain benefits that the Explorers App provides”.
Castlegar’s Chief Administrative Officer, Chris Barlow was thrilled with the new initiative, indicating that “this new app allows users to shop locally, while exploring the best of what our area has to offer. Initiatives such as these will promote our area with state of the art tools that today’s generations have come to expect from forward looking communities.”
Points accumulated with the Castlegar Explorers app can be redeemed for goods or services at any of the Rewards locations listed in the app. At launch, Rewards locations include…
The Castlegar Explorers app is available now as a free download on the iTunes App Storeand Google Play. Local businessesinterested in offering a reward to increase traffic to their place of business should contact Andrea Ryman at destination@castlegar.com.
The Castlegar Explorers app was created using the 468 Insider platform from 468 Communications.
About Castlegar and District
Come and visit the centre of it all. Where mountains and rivers meet in a fertile valley that boasts rich cultural heritage, a thriving artistic scene and more than enough outdoor recreation for every kind of enthusiast. Take the time to reconnect with what’s important by stopping by the little city in the valley. We look forward to seeing you.
About 468 Insider
Available from 468 Communications, 468 Insideris a customizable mobile app that drives visitor engagement and commerce for communities by rewarding users for visiting places. Communities can easily customize the look and feel, locations and content in their own, branded apps. An online control panel provides valuable data including the popularity of individual destinations, periods of peak activity, and what part of the world visitors are from. For more information contact Tim Fry at (206) 660-4321 or visit www.468insider.com.
