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September 18, 2011

Hot Topic: Integrating Mobile Media into the Guest Experience

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under How-Tos, News, profession
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Every so often, a new idea has so much traction its all anyone can talk about.  The new idea at AZA this year?  Integration of mobile technology into the guest experience.  Big words.  Simple ideas.

8:30 a.m. Saturday.  Many people have left the conference by now.  Others are simply too tired from a long week (or a long Friday night out) to even imagine dragging themselves out of their comfortable Omni Hotel bed into the chilly gray Atlanta morning to listen to non-industry experts talk about Macro Trends.  But not me.  I’m there in room A305 along with a smattering of other over-achieving, artificially awake zoo and aquarium professionals.

Stan Sthanunathan from Coca-Cola schooling us in world trends

Our reward this morning?  The Vice President of Marketing Strategy and Insights at Coca-Cola, Stan Sthanunathan, and Heather Baldino, the Senior Vice President of Network Marketing and Operations for Turner Broadcasting System.  Big wigs.  Real, world-class big wigs.  For us zoo folks, practically marketing gods.

This session was named Macro Trends in the Zoo and Aquarium Industry.  Not technology trends or social media marketing.  Trends.  But what did both of these big wigs have to tell us?  Get connected to your audience.  And not in the touchy-feely sorta way.  In the digital way.  And its got to be a two-way street.

Stan talked about the importance of this as a means to respond to the changing market.  Today’s biggest changes?  Shifting demographics (the world is getting older), shifting economic center (its China and India, not the great West), sustainability as a core value (especially with limited resources of water and petroleum), the emerging middle class (expect an additional 800 million by 2020), the connected world (think “world news in a matter of minutes, if not seconds”), and a focus on well-being (the US is fat).

As the world changes, zoos and aquariums must adapt and evolve in our relationships with our market.  Baldino pointed out that on-demand entertainment (like Netflix, YouTube, Roku, XBox 360, iPhone, iPad, etc) has skyrocketed in the last two years alone causing a steep decline in non-electronic sources of entertainment.  People who like media, use media.  All kinds and all the time.  People are “watching CNN at home on the couch with their smartphone, pulling stats from the CNN website, investigating things they see on TV.”  The younger generation are even more dependent on media, and much more adept at digital multi-tasking.

So, how do we increase our share of the entertainment time budget of our audience?  How do we expand the experience to before and after their visit to our parks?  Digital media, and more specifically:  mobile media.

Heather Baldino from Turner Broadcasting explaining how the digital landscape is changing the world.

Depending on the source, between 28-38% of the US population carries a smartphone.  Smartphone users access the internet (or some internet based app) at least four times a day, according to Baldino.  More than half of the US population accessed Facebook in June 2011.  These users are not just kids.  In fact, the majority of these users are between the ages of 25 and 54.  What does that mean for zoos and aquariums who tend to focus on content for kids?  It means an opportunity for developing a social experience within the family.

According to Baldino, most of the users of the Cartoon Network’s website and Facebook pages are adults on behalf of their kids.  They don’t access the pages FOR the kids, they access the pages WITH the kids.  These experiences can enhance the zoo visit by “amplifying and extending the experience.”

Of course, it also presents an opportunity to reach out to our heretofore untapped resource of “adults with no kids” market, which as shown in our PGAV Zoo-Goer study, is interested and does exist.

But how do we do that?

On Friday afternoon, a large, happy group of conference attendees met to address exactly that question.  Currently, QR code integration and direct texting are the hottest methodologies in use at zoos and aquariums.  But, Mobile Excursions, LLC CEO, Dan Shropshire, recommends utilizing hybrid apps for smartphones.  Only 20% of the top 80 attractions by attendance are using apps at all, and he thinks its mostly due to price.  Hybrid apps are useful to zoos and aquariums with limited budgets as they utilize web content already created thereby bypassing the resource intense content creation phase.

Craig Leonardi, Lead Product Manager Industry Solutions at AT&T, points out that if you want to delve into smartphone apps and mobile web, you must have easy navigation, big buttons, an editor’s eye to content, and ensure proper formatting.  If you don’t deliver these things, your guest may use the app once and never return to it.  That obviously won’t help us achieve our goals!

Leonardi goes on to suggest the use of QR codes.  If you’ve been asleep for the last year or so, QR codes are the funky black and white squares you see on almost every print ad out there.  You’ll see them on products and packaging, too.  I’ve seen them on Pepsi cups at the Milwaukee County Zoo.  As a consumer, you simply download a QR reader app onto your smartphone, then scan the code with your phone’s camera, and you are instantly connected to some specific web content related to that particular brand or attraction.  The Pepsi cup took me to a web-only commercial parodying and besting Coca-cola’s famous polar bear ads.

The nice thing about QR codes is that any zoo can utilize them with minimal cost as free QR code generators are accessible and easy to use online.  All you need is a computer, a printer, and a video uploaded to YouTube.

That’s exactly what Santa Barbara Zoo is doing right now.  Using a QR code generator called Kaywa, the Zoo is able to easily create expanded content for its guests.  And they’ve even utilized a fan video, which has gone mildly viral.  And I’ll admit, I’m slightly obsessed with it.

If you’re going to use QR codes, Leonardi suggests taking advantage of your guests’ downtime.  Meaning, any time they are standing in line, sitting down, or otherwise not actively engaged in an activity, make these opportunities available.  Dean Noble from the Santa Barbara Zoo went so far to suggest using them at exhibits that are known to be snoozers.  If you’re animals aren’t all that active, offer a code linking to a cool enrichment or training video.  It won’t replace the live animal interaction, but it’ll offer another aspect of the animal that the guest is not currently getting to enjoy.

As for texting, Monterey Bay Aquarium is utilizing a simple scheme to help visitors see cool things throughout their visit.  Everyone loves watching the critters get fed.  So, through a voluntary program where guests opt-in to direct texting for one day, the Aquarium, via text message, suggests guests make their way to certain exhibits minutes before an unscheduled feeding is to occur.   The Aquarium can use this system to selectively send guests to one exhibit or another based on attendance and crowding that day, ultimately helping to distribute guests throughout the Aquarium more efficiently.

With all these cool things zoos and aquariums are doing now, we have to understand that currently, today, right now, usage of these apps, QR codes, and direct texting is very low.  According to both Shropshire and Mike Chamberlain at Monterey Bay, usage hovers between 1.5-2% of attendance.  However, as trust of these new technologies increase over time, usage should also increase.

In order to succeed in integrating these technologies into the guest experience, Baldino suggests that the digital reward must be interactive and short.  According to her, smartphone users are looking for quick info, tidbits, immediate gratification.  She calls it “snacking.”  If the content is too long, you’ll lose the audience’s attention.  She went on to say interactivity is absolutely key to digital content especially for kids.  Things like polls and voting, the ability to collect electronic prizes, like badges or digital animals, and share their collection with friends, photo tagging, games and live chats enable the audience to get involved, to interact, to connect.

Cartoon Network's Games page

“Digital is here to stay,” said Baldino.  It should serve to amplify your product, not be the core experience.  It should engage and connect customers.  Many times, especially the older generations, feel digital experiences are alienating and isolating, which is the polar opposite of what we are trying to achieve in the zoo and aquarium world.  But according to Baldino and Stan, digital is actually community-building.  People tell each other about videos and apps, they send each other links, and talk to each other online.  ”Its the new water cooler,” said Baldino.  ”If you’re going to take advantage of Facebook, do it now.”

 

September 13, 2011

August Animal of the Month

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Articles, How-Tos
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The inaugural run of the PGAV SDT is coming to an end.  As such, I am publishing the final Animal of the Month for 2011.

This month’s fact sheet is all about the king of fish…the Whale Shark.

Enjoy!

 

June 12, 2011

May Animal of the Month: Giraffes!

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under enrichment, How-Tos, profession
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Explore the interesting world of Giraffes!  These long-necked, knock-kneed creatures are surprisingly more like my cat, Pablo, than they are to the more similar-looking horse…They’re skittish, active in the dawn and dusk, and hate water.

As always, enjoy!

Giraffe at Sacramento Zoo's Tall Wonders

For the fact sheet, click: Giraffe SDT AotM May

 

June 5, 2011

April Animal of the Month: Tigers

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Articles, enrichment, How-Tos, profession
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I think we’re catching up to the calendar.  Expect May’s fact sheet next week.

But in April, we investigated the most endangered of the big cats…everyone’s favorite…the striped ghost…Tigers!  Our fact sheet focuses on Bengals, but is applicable to Amurs as well.

As always, enjoy!

A beautiful Bengal.

For the fact sheet, click here:  Tiger SDT AotM April

 

May 3, 2011

March Animal of the Month: Komodo Dragon

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Articles, enrichment, How-Tos, profession
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Yes, yes.  We’re behind.  Stop chastising and enjoy the light reading all about our favorite real life dragons…Komodos!

Komodos, our March Animal of the Month

For the fact sheet, click here: Komodo SDT AotM March.

 

April 27, 2011

Conveying Field Research and Conservation Efforts to Zoo Visitors

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Articles, How-Tos, profession
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By Guest Blogger Christina Clagett

Significance

The purpose of zoos has evolved a great deal over their history. The role of the animal in the zoo has been steadily shifting from a source of objectified amusement to that of ambassadors of their wild counterparts. In the past few decades zoos have increasingly worked beyond their boundaries; researching and reaching out to the native habitats of animals. It is common for reputable zoos to have multiple research and conservation efforts simultaneously underway across the world. The future of zoos and related wild populations depend on these projects, with the ideal result being a combination of efforts inside and outside of the zoo to stabilize and eventually restore native populations.

Zoo visitors of all ages understand that what they are seeing in an exhibit is not the “real thing” despite even the best thematic efforts. However, as they watch a live animal on exhibit, do they understand the role of this ambassador animal in the larger scope of research and conservation? Or do they see a member of a collection there for their viewing enjoyment? The success of conveying deeper meaning varies in zoos across the world; however, a vocal minority opposed to zoological organizations is just one example of a group that currently sees the latter. With so much progress being made in the field directly relating to the future welfare of a species on exhibit, more has to be done to help visitors make a connection between the two. This will add lasting meaning to their visit.

Implementation

For better or worse, attention spans of visitors are getting shorter. Overly wordy interpretive signage hardly commands significant attention and visitors move on quickly if an animal is not engaging at the moment. However, this does open the door for interactive ways to communicate the message. Interactive in this context means any medium from which a user can have a unique experience whether it is a knowledgeable person at the exhibit or a cell phone application. Many of the following strategies are already being utilized to varying degrees in zoos across the world.

In-Person Interpreter

The most simple and cost effective method to convey field efforts to visitors is to have a knowledgeable person, whether it be a trainer or volunteer docent, at the exhibit to literally recount the efforts being made. They could present artifacts sent directly from the field and visitors could have a sensory experience by touching or smelling them. However, it is not practical for a person to be in an exhibit during all operating hours so the message only gets to those visitors who happen to be there at the right time.

Role-Play Areas

A role-play area can mimic field conditions which relate to an exhibit. The scale of these play areas can vary from simple to elaborate or immersive. Most important with this strategy is to celebrate the work being done and encourage conservation by having visitors “play” for the same team as the researcher or conservationist in the field. Viewing areas could mimic the vantage point of the field researcher as the visitor studies the ambassador animal in the zoo. They could collect data with simplified versions of the field research. Real world progress can be chronicled as it happens by sharing information from the field researcher and the game could evolve concurrently with the field work.

Implementation: Technology

The following strategies all depend on the researcher in the field having access to technology to chronicle their work in real-time. Although the information they capture does not have to be shown up-to-the-minute, visitors feel a stronger connection when the content is fresh.

Media Wall/Video Screen

It would be impactful for visitors to see the field work happening on a screen adjacent to the exhibit. For example, having the experience of a close-up encounter while the wild counterpart is visible on a large screen could be very powerful. The researcher could film clips regularly that play on a loop at the exhibit, chronicling recent progress and findings. This would provide a unique experience for even habitual visitors each time as the exhibit avoids becoming static. An added benefit is they come to have an understanding of the field research and will relate it to the animal ambassador in the exhibit.

Social Media

Along the previous topic, the field researcher could take the content they have created and use various social media to share with a larger audience. There could be advertising for this content at the zoo entrances or specific exhibit to spread the word initially and it could be available on YouTube, Facebook or chronicled in a blog. Imagine how it would impact an elementary school science class to follow a particular blog over the school year and see firsthand the real pace of progress; whether quick or painfully slow. Content visitors consume at the exhibit could be reviewed at home on YouTube and shared with friends, convincing them to head to the zoo for themselves.

Animal Apps

As more parents take their children to the zoo with a smart phone or tablet in their bag, the opportunities to share information multiply. Utilizing this technology, all of the data and media collected from the field researcher could be programmed for an experience unique to each guest or group. There are many possibilities to create an interactive experience which combines the exhibit happenings with the field work. Imagine being able access information on demand, and even be able to interact with parts of the exhibit or field researcher with your phone or tablet. In the exhibit, you could control media and interactives with the phone. To go even further, imagine pressing a button on your phone to interact with the animal on exhibit: i.e. controlling an element within the exhibit itself such as a stream current. Not only would this be memorable for guests but could serve as enrichment for the animals as well, as long as it is programmed to prevent getting out of hand. Perhaps there is a limit on how many times such an interactive could be engaged in a given period of time. It should not be ignored that these applications could be a revenue source for the zoos as well.

Game applications which relate to the field work in a similar way to the role play games described earlier could be a huge hit with visitors. Once again, this is something they can engage long after leaving the zoo: it would succeed in keeping guests invested with the animals beyond their visit and create a lasting connection. If kids and parents alike can spend so much time playing games such as “Angry Birds” they could surely get into a game which relates to something they have personally seen or been involved with at the exhibit.

Utilization of an Opportunity

People, particularly children, are often emotionally affected by animals. This is especially true at the moment they connect with an animal in person. We cannot afford to squander the fleeting opportunity of this emotional connection. When a visitor moves on the emotional connection will diminish. We should use the moment to tell them the rest of the story and get them involved and engaged. We as zoo designers should do everything we can to nurture that connection and concern, and integrate the world-wide happenings from the field. We can nurture the formation of future attitudes towards animals and conservation in a more meaningful way than is currently being done on a mass scale.

Christina is a member of the PGAV Zoo Design Specialty Development Team.  She has been working at PGAV since 2008.  She has a Masters Degree in Architecture from Kansas State University, and is especially proud of her work on the currently under-construction Sea Lion Sound at the St. Louis Zoo.

 

April 9, 2011

Animal of the Month: Elephant (February)

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under How-Tos, profession
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So, much like the rest of the world, even a professional development team runs a little late.  Its April, and we’re still working on our submission from March.  And, apparently, I am more behind than everyone since I am just now posting our Animal of the Month from February!

Without further adieu…Here is your Animal of the Month for February 2011: Elephants.

Elephant SDT AotM February

An elephant. Happy February.

 

April 6, 2011

Green Design in Zoos

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Designs, General Thoughts, How-Tos
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Back in October 2010, I was honored to be a part of the AZFA (American Zoo Facilities Association) National Conference in St. Louis, MO.  In the shadow of my green genius partner, Mariusz Bleszynski (AIA, LEED AP), we presented a talk about the real nuts and bolts of green design in a zoo exhibit.

Hypothetical exhibit utilizing a maximum of recycled or recyclable materials.

Because so much green design talk is generalized, we decided to tackle the issue head-on.  What are the practical applications of green construction in a zoo?  Most zoos utilize green methods somewhere on site, but usually it’s applied in what I call the “easy places”: nutrition centers, gift shops, special events pavilions.  Places that are typical construction in a non-traditional setting.  But the question always comes up…how do we make a green EXHIBIT?

Mariusz and I put our heads together and came up with a list of specific things that can, in some cases, be easily incorporated into an exhibit.  In other cases, its more difficult–generally because it costs more up front.

I’ve included a link to the AZFA 2010_If I Were A Green Exhibit powerpoint presentation, but for those who just want the highlights, here’s a list of our top tips:

1.   Maximize Recycled Content: Reuse existing structures, spec materials that are recycled or can easily be recycled; Minimize non-recycled or hard to recycle materials like concrete!

2.  Use Geothermal Heating / Cooling: In thermally balanced environments, you can utilize this energy to heat / cool buildings and even small pools.  Wells can be placed almost anywhere, including beneath the exhibit or building.

Clever Lowry Park Zoo uses elephant shade structures as mounts for solar panels.

3.  Use Solar Panels Strategically: Solar panels cost A LOT so use sparingly if at all UNLESS you have extra dollars to spend on green technology, want to create an educational exhibit, or can use to power specific items such as signage, interactives, lighting, gates, etc.

4.  Water Recycling: Can be any scale from rain barrels from roofs to zoo wide programs collecting run-off and wash down.  Can be used for exhibit wash down, irrigation, and toilet flushing.

5. Use Native Plants: Eliminates irrigation and fertilization needs and can be selected to mimic just about any environment.

6. Use Water Based Chillers instead of Traditional Air Based: More efficient, less noisy, longer lasting.  25% more expensive.  A bargain!

Within the presentation, we outlined initial costs, return on investment, and developed imagery to help everyone understand how these green technologies affect the visitor experience.

What is your zoo doing to become more green?

 

March 4, 2011

How Animal Behavior Drives Zoo Design

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under Articles, enrichment, General Thoughts, How-Tos
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Some designers begin with a poem.  Others look at the educational message.  Still others envision a place.  I always start with the animal.

When I start my design process with the animal, I don’t literally mean that I sit down with Google (or even–do you remember this–flipping through books!) spending  hours researching the animal’s natural history.  What I mean is that I immediately register what I know about that animal and have that inform all aspects of design.  Of course, I’ve been doing this for a while and I have quite a bit of animal trivia logged away in my own dusty library of grey matter.

But, really, what is it that informs design?  What information about an animal is truly useful in creating its surroundings?  The subject of animal behavior is a nearly unending panacea of amazing stories, but determining what facts help inform design can be an overwhelming question.

For fun, below is my absolute favorite (and quintessential) animal behavior example.

To help you navigate the masses of information available about specific animals, I’ve condensed the vast subject of animal behavior into six basic categories relevant to zoo designers.

1. Food Acquisition:  Are they carnivores, omnivores, or herbivores?

2. Social Structure:  Do they live in groups, pairs, or singly?

3. Time of Activity: Are they nocturnal, diurnal, or crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk)?

4. Micro-Habitat: Do they live primarily in trees (arboreal), on land (terrestrial), in water (aquatic), or some combination of any or all of the three?

5. Personality: Are they shy, curious, skittish, indifferent, vicious?

6. Reproduction: Does their reproductive strategy require any particular element in their physical environment?

Pop-up at Jungala, Busch Gardens

Each of the above will provide insight into the physical surroundings that will best house an animal in captivity.  For example, carnivores tend to exert energy in bursts, spending the rest of the day sleeping.  They also tend to prefer the high vantage points where they can scan the horizon and smell the air.  Knowing this, we’d immediately suggest providing this carnivore with several high points in their exhibit, preferably where they can be in close proximity to the guest as they sleep.  Jungala at Busch Gardens achieves this well with their tiger pop-up–highest point of the exhibit is actually a viewing window!

Another great example is the amazing bower bird.  We could easily create just another generic aviary with a gravel floor or concrete basin.  But understanding their reproductive behavior would allow us to create an environment whereby they are able to create their own habitat.  {Or, more than that, we could re-create one of their creations on the guest side of things in order to illustrate their great ability.}

Beyond these basics, understanding animal behavior encourages us to strive for ever-more enriching environments.  To design an enrichment device, or simply to provide a habitat that provides the most basic form of enrichment–choice, requires that you understand the natural history of an animal.

Oftentimes designers who do not have a specialization in animals, jump immediately to the guest experience; creating a place or a story for the visitor.  But, we must understand that a good guest experience at a zoological park revolves around the ANIMAL, not the setting we create.  People come to the park to see animals.  And if the animals look unhealthy or unhappy, the most beautiful ancient Mayan ruins won’t save the experience.  Look to the animals first.  Be inspired by their lives before creating a story, and you’ll see that your final product will be by far the best experience possible for both guests and the animals living there.

Every animal has a story.  Its our job to tell it.

Resources:

“Integrating Animal Behavior and Exhibit Design” by John Seidensticker and James Doherty

“Part Five: Behavior” from Wild Mammals in Captivity

 

January 30, 2011

Zoo Exhibits in Three Acts

Posted by Stacey Tarpley under General Thoughts, How-Tos
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Forgive me. This post will not wrap up cleanly. There will be no final conclusion. No simple 5 step process. This post is simply my musings on design philosophy in zoos. So indulge me. But just don’t expect a Hollywood ending.

Last night, I took my husband begrudgingly to the movies to watch “Black Swan”–which he was unwilling to see until one of his buddies had seen it and confirmed that it was, in fact, worthy of a watch. To me, it was breathtaking. Mesmerizing. Exhilarating. But this is not a website on film review, so I’ll leave it at that. But, what is relevant is the fact that, a day later, I am still thinking about it. Analyzing what made it appeal to me so much. Obsessed with how it attached itself around my subconscious, seeping into my most mundane daily thoughts. How did it achieve this? What made it so special to me?


The matter is important in the context of zoo design for one simple reason: this level of affect is the goal of zoo exhibits. We are in the business of creating experiences and memories that so tightly hang in your mind that you have no choice but to not only think about the plight of wildlife or the environment, but take action to protect it. That’s the real goal, isn’t it? Name the last exhibit that did this to you. Go ahead. Try.

To say that exhibits rarely achieve this is an understatement. So, on my morning walk through the woods with the dog (and I’ll amend that for today’s walk to ‘on my snowy morning walk’), I continued to obsess. And I think I figured it out.

Think about any story that grabbed you—a film, a book, a campfire tale. Most were told in the familiar and customary three act structure. If you haven’t been to literature class in twenty or so years, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version: a story is divided into three simple parts—the Setup, the Confrontation, the Resolution. A three act structure allows the listener (or viewer) to first empathize or relate to the main character, understand (and care about) the basic problem the story is addressing, then finally celebrate the resolution of said problem. Practically all major movies follow this structure, and most books do as well. It is followed because it works. It’s as simple as that.
Now, just because a film or book follows this format, doesn’t mean the story or the execution won’t fall flat, absolutely ruining an otherwise fine idea. There must be more. There must be something that draws you in. You must first empathize with the character (or animal, in our case). You have to relate to him or her. In the first act, we must see a little bit of ourselves in the subject—our failures, our faults, our dreams, our aspirations—or we’ll just not care.


Empathy can carry us only so far, and as we move through the action, or confrontation, something else needs to take hold. We already care about the character, now what makes us hold on? In “Black Swan”, the hook was a purely visceral, physical reaction. This movie was R rated, so the director expertly leveraged sex, drugs, and pain (which I’ve never seen, nor will I, I’m guessing, ever see in a zoo setting!), but combined with the familiar Swan Lake melodies and simple beauty of dance, the body was fully engaged.


This movie was about evoking a physical reaction, every bit as much as it was about the emotional. And nothing I’ve ever seen brought the two together as well as during the resolution of the film. Built into a tidal wave of chaotic flurry, where every frame was an expertly composed visual feast, and moment after moment brought tension and exhilaration to its absolute apex, then, just as we believe we can take no more, the film concluded. Right there. Right at the peak. Leaving you breathless, body abuzz in euphoria. I left the theater alight. Grinning from ear to ear despite the desperately tragic film I’d just experienced. And I’m still thinking about it. Still wondering how we achieve this kind of attachment to zoo exhibits. How we achieve this moment of perfection.

 

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