MONTEREY, Calif. (BRAIN) — The Sea Otter Classic will literally show attendees how to get to a brand's booth, where the daily morning yoga sessions are and the closest route to the beer garden with a new smartphone app.
The user-friendly, intuitive app will become available as a free download for Apple iPhone users on April 1 and Android users on April 13.
It features a 3D map of the Laguna Seca Recreation Area that makes navigating the Sea Otter Expo easy. The app also includes a schedule of events for all four days, an exhibitor list, exhibitor news, social media hits about Sea Otter, festival information and live race results.
Attendees can tap on a booth on the 3D map and find details about the exhibiting company. Tapping the navigate button will guide users to a company's booth from wherever they're standing. The dynamic app can track the exact location of a user on the Sea Otter map.
"One of the most useful features is that when you tap the exhibitor list, names are presented in alphabetical order and tapping on a listing will take you to an 'about' page with a description of the exhibitor," said Frank Yohannan, president and CEO of the Sea Otter Classic. "There will also be opportunities for exhibitors to message attendees as they're in a booth area and the app will include race results and exhibitor events."
Yohannan said the app can be updated even as the festival is underway with booth events and happenings. "It's very fluid. It is designed to be as real-time as possible with schedule information about the event and that on the Sea Otter website," he added.
The app was built by Showguider, an Irish company led by bike industry veteran Tom Kavanagh. Showguider is working toward developing an indoor/outdoor positioning app platform for various trade shows that offers attendees live information and directional guidance. Once the platform is fine-tuned and optimized, it's something the company hopes to offer on a large scale to trade shows and festivals across a variety of industries.
Kavanagh also is a trade show veteran. His other company, KB Media, produces print dailies for international bike shows including the Taipei International Cycle Show and Eurobike.
The Monterey County Parks Department is updating the infrastructure of the Laguna Seca, so public WiFi will not be available at Sea Otter this year. However, the new mobile app is designed to work without WiFi. Still, it will be faster and consume less data for festival attendees to download the app before they arrive at Sea Otter.
Attendees can download the app at their app store. Search for "Sea Otter."
For sponsorship opportunities on the app, contact Andy Tompkins at andy@seaotterclassic.com or (949) 278-6712.
