This entry reminded me that I had found some great examples about how zoos and aquariums are using social media and the Internet.
Georgia Aquarium
- In the spring of 2009 the aquarium offered an admission discount to their Twitter followers and their fans on Facebook and MySpace. The promotion brought in $42,000 in sales. They were able to track this through a URL created for the promotion.
(information is from What's your Twitter ROI? How to measure social media payoff) - In 2007 they started a relaunch of their website. A new feature was to allow visitors to the aquarium to submit their photos through flickr on their group's page. The pictures would be added to their map.
(information from Starting Small with Social Media: Georgia Aquarium Flickr Photogroup) - More examples about Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube in this PowerPoint Presentation
The aquarium uses e-mail marketing as a big part of their communications strategy. Their primary newsletter is called Aquamail.
They get e-mail addresses from their visitors through kiosks at exhibits and texting at dolphin shows. Visitors can stay in touch with dolphins or jellyfish by subscribing to Aquamail at the kiosks. The staff holds quizzes and contests at dolphin shows and use text messaging to capture answers and visitor information, and the visitors are invited to subscribe to Aquamail. When a visitor subscribes to Aquamail, they get a welcome message reminding them where they submitted their information and a call to action to update their profile.
More information at From Dolphin Encounter to Facebook Fan.
Other Examples, Stories, and Presentations
38 Ways Zoos and Aquariums are Engaging Audiences Through Social Technology
Using Social Technology to Engage Zoo & Aquarium Audiences
Two Social Media Strategies Perfect for Earth Day! Birch Aquarium and Monterey Bay Aquarium
Two-Way Communication Using Social Media
Zoos Are Among Big Cats in Twitter Kingdom
Social Media: Am I Doing it Right?