COMMUNITY MAPS
With an experienced Czech travel guide, we created a guide that brought unseen places to thousands of travelers.
During a time where travelers were “trapped” in their homes due to a pandemic and many of them lost their source of income, Krista Audi launched a travel group focused on the beauties of the Czech Republic. Something unexpected happened – the group Amazing Places in the Czech Republic began to spread virally, growing spontaneously in front of the founder’s eyes and became one of the fastest growing accounts on any social network in the Czech Republic. To easily blog and share her travel tips with people, she needed a map with advanced filtering features. First she tried the maps from Mapotic, after which she approached us with specific requirements. Together we have created a map that is suitable for integration in a blog article and also works seamlessly in the travel enthusiast application, which soon gained thousands of downloads.
ABOUT THE CLIENT
Amazing Places in the Czech Republic is a popular Facebook group founded and managed by young traveler Krista Audi who has traveled to more than 40 countries and also publishes the magazine HappyMag.cz. The group was formed on Facebook during the covid lockdown in the spring of 2020 and by the spring of 2021 it had collected over 500,000 followers. Krista shares non-traditional tourist destinations with people and shows them that the Czech Republic is a wonderful location for tourists.
0
+
followers on Instagram and Facebook
0
+
Photographers participated in the app creation
+
Amazing places in the Czech Republic
+
App downloads on the day of launch
0
+
Average times a post is shared
0
+
Different categories for sorting places on the map
Aim of the project: Creating an application that provides travelers with a quick and easy guide for selecting their next trips.
In 2020, Krista Audi approached us with a plan to improve her travel map. “She established and managed her first map of amazing places on Google Maps, but she ran into limits – the map did not have enough features and did not allow users to filter according to their needs. It was also necessary to display the map in the Google map layer – we at Mapotic are independent from the map layers, so the data can be displayed in many different layers. ” says Ivo Gajdorus, CEO of Mapotic. That’s why she turned to Mapotic and described to us her ideas about what the map must meet.
Krista has found that she needs a premium version of Mapotic, which will allow her to easily insert map sections with precisely selected filters into blog articles.
To do this, she wanted a handy and quickly implemented mobile application with a map. This was requested by her followers, who wanted easier sorting of tips for trips. Directly in the application:
- they can save favorite places,
- comment on them
- and rate them.
The application also serves as an important business tool for Krista – she can insert advertisements for restaurants and work with sponsors. The key was to launch the app as quickly as possible and make it as clear as possible for tens of thousands of travelers around the Czech Republic.
Challenges we faced during the Amazing Places project
UX friendly mobile application for tens of thousands of users
Possibility of promoting client’s e-shop on the map
Filters and map sections embedded in blog articles or networks
Community features such as commenting, saving places and ratings
Advanced advertising options on the Map
Display Amazing places on the tourist map layers of Mapy.cz
Realization: Popular mobile app for travelers and an embedded map
Together we have built an online embedded map and mobile application that allow the client to pursue their hobby – travelling – and make money even with closed borders. We built the road map on 5 basic pillars:
1
Detailed filtering and other smart features of the map
The basic requirements for Krista’s project were much more advanced functions than offered by Google maps. She needed to structure the content, add photos, and set up filtering so that her places can be easily found by everyone. From parents with children or dog walkers to people looking for a suitable alternative for their trip due to unpredictable weather. The app will help them to quickly filter out the ideal trips and in a short period of time they will choose their destination for the day. "On Mapy.cz you have to spend hours looking for places, because they are not sorted. Our app will make your search results easier to interpret, you can use filters to find viaducts, viewpoints, windmills, ruins and places with free admission.”describes Krista Audi.
2
Options for sponsoring and inserting advertisements
At a time when most travelers had lost their advertising revenue, Krista Audi decided to really step into her project. She has launched an e-shop with filters for Lightroom or Photoshop and other photo (editing) tools, and plans to offer travel equipment in the future. The app can be used as an acquisition channel for an e-shop, acquire sponsors to support the app, insert advertisements for restaurants or accommodation, connect it to the Google AdSense advertising system and eventually offer followers a paid premium version of the app.
3
You can also view the map in the winter version of Mapy.cz
In order to make the map as useful as possible, we have enabled the map layers by mapy.cz. This means that you can precisely plan your trips in the app using the detailed tourist map layer by Mapy.cz. "Mapy.cz is very practical for outdoor travel in the Czech Republic, so we included them in the application," says Ivo Gajdorus.
4
Easy community involvement in content creation and better app features
The goal of the mobile app is to build a community around Amazing Places. The more fans the app collects, the better its sponsorship and advertising opportunities. That's why we've set the option to save your favorite places, comment on them, and rate them. "We are constantly improving the app. Soon there will be a possibility to enter data or photos for the user, as well as a function for saving places. There will also be the possibility to address registered users with a newsletter, “ says Ivo Gajdorus.
5
Advanced options for embedding maps on a blog
Because Krista needed to embed maps on her blog, she uses an advanced version of Embed PRO. In such an embed, you can filter any parameters and insert the filter directly into an article or post on social networks. So when she writes an article about traveling for parents with prams she simply adds a map to the blog only with trips that are suitable for that group of travelers. In the same way, she can display only a certain section (zoom) of the map and insert it in an article about traveling in a specific area like, Bohemian Switzerland.
"Because we visited a large part of the places, my mother and I created a list of them in the cottage one afternoon and found a partner for the development of our application on the same day. We could develop our own solution, which would take months and would be difficult to invent and create, and we would miss a great opportunity in the form of releasing the application during the lockdown. Mapotic offered a modular and fast solution. I am very grateful for the readiness of Adam and Ivoš from Mapotic. The cooperation went smoothly and on time. For the last few days of the test run, Adam was always available to help me. In addition, they are great visionaries and are always thinking about how to improve the application and their maps with new features. So the Mapotic tool is really thought out almost to perfection with its functions. ”
Krista Audi, Founder of Amazing Places in the Czech Republic
The result: A fast-paced and configurable mobile application with a content management system for real-time content management and user engagement
Together with Krista Audi, we have developed a new platform for gaining more followers and building a community around Amazing Places. The project also gained other opportunities for advertising, cooperation with sponsors and promotion of the e-shop for travelers.
The result is the easy embedding of map sections or maps with filtered values directly into articles in HappyMag.cz magazine.
People can easily browse and search for interesting places in the application, where they can save selected trips and write their comments. Only one month passed from the initiation to the creation of the complete app, and over 10,000 users downloaded the app in the first twenty four hours. It has become the most downloaded application in the Czech Republic in the App store. You can also download it on Google Play.
Let's launch your new project together!
About Mapotic
EUROPEAN UNION
European structural and investment funds Operation programme Prague – Growth Pole Czech Republic.
In 2020, the company Mapotic, s.r.o received support from the European Structural and Investment Funds, implemented through the Operational Program Prague – Growth Pole of the Czech Republic and drawn through II. call of specialized vouchers (reg. no. CZ.07.1.02 / 0.0 / 0.0. / 16_027 / 0000607). The support was aimed at the participation of the Mapotic s.r.o. at the Prague implementation site in order to increase the competitiveness. The expected output is innovation and launch of other services and products of the company.