Social Media / App

Explore the Bruce Rewards App


Winner
Submitted ByBruce County

PURPOSE 

Launched February 2024, the Explore the Bruce Rewards app aims to enhance the ways visitors explore Bruce County. The innovative app provides incentives to encourage visitors to explore destinations, attractions, tourism operators/businesses and experiences. We want adventure seekers and explorers to find niche Bruce County experiences that they cannot find anywhere else in Ontario. 

EFFECTIVENESS & OBJECTIVES 

The app has been highly effective in achieving its objectives. It has attracted 415 unique visitors from 41 different postal codes, driving significant traffic to curated tours like the Lighthouse and Hiking Tour. Social media engagement has been strong between both organic and paid campaigns. The success of the app can be shown through other factors, including exceeding the goal of 750 app downloads by the end of 2024, which was accomplished by the second quarter. 

The app’s objectives are to incentivize visitors to explore all communities in Bruce County by: 

  1. Encouraging visitation throughout all seasons. 
  2. Showcasing tourism assets. 
  3. Increasing visitor length of stay and spending. 
  4. Dispersing visitors to less-trafficked areas. 
  5. Promoting as a tourism destination.  

CHALLENGES & CHANGES 

  1. The first vendor did not meet the security requirements of our IT team, causing a need to find a new vendor before launch. 
  2. Driftscape partnership required adaption of their platform to support our needs. 

Results 

  • 611,055 impressions and 7,999 clicks for paid campaign launched June 25.
  • 453 engagements and 11,722 reach on Instagram.
  • 20,291 reach, 22,637 impressions and 731 engagement on Facebook.
  • 1,341 downloads.
  • 18,880 page views.
  • 363 listings on app.
  • 415 unique visitors from 41 postal codes.
  • Top 5 include Lighthouse, Hiking and Peninsula Tours, Farmer’s Markets & Pick Your Own and Paddling Tour.
  • Visitors from Manitoulin Island, Toronto, Listowel, Cambridge, Mississauga, Gravenhurst, Quebec, Alberta and USA.
  • 44 users collected points, creating awareness for 139 listings.

TARGET AUDIENCE 

Residents of Southwestern Ontario who are: 

  1. Nature Lovers: 35–54-year-old couples with kids. 
  2. Memory Makers: 35–50-year-old couples with kids. 
  3. Mellow Vacationers: 55+ working couples.  
  4. Knowledge Seekers: 55+ females with grown children. 
  5. New Canadians: 25–34-year-old couples with kids. 

TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION 

The app fosters engagement and interaction between visitors, local businesses and the project team. This dynamic interaction is key to creating a responsive, engaging and effective tourism experience.  

SUSTAINABILITY 

The app promotes responsible tourism. A sustainable approach includes incentivizing visits to a wide range of attractions and businesses, encouraging exploration across all seasons and promoting hidden gems to reduce congestion at popular tourist destinations and working to spread the environmental load more evenly. The incentivization plans intend to grow with the app. Visitors earn points for redeemable rewards through GPS when visiting listings. Redemption includes promotional gear such as t-shirts, hats and toques. Overtime, the app will include redemption options from participating listings including discounts, free swag and products. 

The app tours and listings can be toggled on and off to reflect seasonality or the creation of special tours alongside local events. The app highlights the unique cultural and historical aspects of Bruce County, fostering a deeper appreciation among visitors. The app encourages visitors to engage with attractions and support local businesses. 

Additional Supporting Materials 

1. Digital Ad Campaign with Aber Creative  

2. Organic Social Media Posts 

3. Website Link: https://explorethebruce.com/rewards/  

4. App Link: https://driftscape.app.link/BruceCounty?a=s&o=2091&m=m 

 

 

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