GREATER VICTORIA – Think Local First, a small business member organization that encourages people to patronize local businesses in Greater Victoria, has launched the Think Local First mobile app.
The free app rewards users for visiting more than 190 locally owned businesses as well as points of interest that make Greater Victoria one of BC’s most popular destinations. The app was created using the 468 Insider platform provided by the British Columbia Economic Development Association (BCEDA) and 468 Communications.
“If we want people to think and shop local first, we need tools that make it easy and rewarding to do so – for residents and tourists alike,” says Paul Hadfield, President of Think Local First. “The 468 Insider platform allows us to create incentives to explore what’s unique about Victoria in a way that’s fun and highlights our local businesses.”
The Think Local First app is both a wayfinding tool and a gamified way to reward people for shopping locally. The app’s Explore button takes users to the map of Greater Victoria, which has pins indicating the location of local businesses and the area’s unique points of interest, from heritage sites to places for outdoor recreation. Clicking on each pin on the map gives more information about that place.
Locations are assigned a point value. Pushing the “Collect Points” button while physically visiting a location will add the location’s points to a user’s point total. Points accumulated with the Think Local First app can be redeemed for goods or services at any of the Rewards locations listed in the app.
The app is available now as a free download on the iTunes App Store and Google Play.
Think Local First is a non-profit society directed by a group of enthusiastic volunteers who are all small business owners in Greater Victoria. The goal of the organization is to encourage people to patronize local businesses to keep Greater Victoria a vibrant, sustainable community and make it a better place to live.
