The scope of Pokémon Go is almost incomprehensible; after just over a month since its release, it has double the engagement of Snapchat and it is closing in on Twitter’s percentage of daily active users. The ‘Go’ aspect of this new craze has all of us here at Checkfront jumping on the bandwagon, being that it is the most any digital game has ever motivated its users to get active. Despite a few identifiable safety risks, such as groups hunting Pokémon in the middle of a busy highway… It’s tough to see any downsides to the phenomenon.
Savvy businesses have begun to realize the potential in engaging players, and we’ve conjured up a few ways for your tourism business to get involved in what is spectated as the new “Pokéconomy”.
Create a tour based on where to catch the best Pokémon
Do a bit of research about where to catch rare Pokémon in your area, then create a tour following those locations! It won’t be hard to find the niche market to book the tour, just be sure to spread the word via your social media accounts. An E-Commerce platform in Taipei made a Pokémon Go bus tour that nearly 1000 fans registered for, while only 14 got admission. You can still inform the audience of each location’s cultural significance and make sure only the best local food and drink accompanies your tour; so not only will you draw in a large profit, but
Start doing Poké-routes
If you’re a transportation company, start thinking about offering special Pokémon rich detours. There is no exhaustive map of where Gyms and Pokémon are located, but there are some handy resources that you can use. Check Reddit as there is most likely a group in your city where people discuss the best places to look, there is also a rarity chart on there that you can refer to. It is important to move quickly if you want to establish yourself among this emerging culture, there are already a few taxi companies have created these specialized tours.
Host a “Lure Party”
You can actually lure Pokémon to any location, for just a bit of real-life money. For a surprisingly affordable price, you can attract the other-worldly creatures to your venue for one half hour, and you can do so as many times as you’d like. To bring it to the next level, some bars have started making Pokémon themed cocktails, Jigglypuff anybody? To set a lure, open the Pokémon app, tap the red Pokéball at the bottom of the screen, tap “Shop” then scroll down and tap the purple Lures to purchase. You will be redirected to your app store’s payment system, after which you will re-open the app and tap the red Pokéball again, then tap “Items” and tap the purple Lure to activate.
Tell the world
Use screenshots to post photos of Pokémon you find on business missions on your social media accounts! Find ways to incentivize your customers to do the same.
While a key foundation in Marketing is originality, now is not the time to turn your back on a global trend. Augmented reality technology is advancing faster than ever, which suggests that this is only the beginning of Pokémon Go’s reign. There is a ton of room for growth, some day soon the game will be able to use your phone’s camera to make it appear as though Pokémon are actually interacting with the environment around you. Even if Pokémon Go does end up to be a passing fad, the core value of getting involved is the opportunity to drastically widen the demographic that your business attracts, which will have a long lasting impact.
Get started today by downloading the game for free from Google Play, or in the App Store.
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