Kiss from Hévíz: an innovative approach to tourism marketing through a photo campaign
About this good practice
In order to promote Hévíz as a tourist destination, the Valentine's Day game was launched 4 years ago. Photo spots were set up in public places around the town and guests were invited to take selfies/photos and upload them to their social media profiles using the hashtag #hevizkiss. Participants were then entered into a prize draw. The issue was that not all uploaded photos could be tracked on social media (e.g. due to private profiles), so the following solution was found.
A sub-page was created on the official tourism website - heviz.hu, to create a registration interface. Guests could upload their photo, enter their contact email and agree to data processing. Of course, participants are still encouraged to share their photo on social media. Visitors can read about the game online,find a bilingual (Hun-Eng) illustrated description at each location. QR codes help to easily access the website.
The game benefits the tourism in several ways. The photos serve as a form of advertising. It is an entertaining activity for the visitors. By registering on the website, guests can be added to a database (in line with GDPR reg). They can subscribe to a newsletter. It also promotes the heviz.hu website, where other tourism-related information can be discovered.
Main beneficiaries are local entrepreneurs who initiated the game, the Tourism Office who benefits from increased visitors and promotional content and the tourists who enjoy a fun, and may access to additional information.
Resources needed
The creation of the game's landing page did not require any specific financial resources as it was developed on the existing heviz.hu website by our own staff. The game was also managed by our team. This approach is cost-effective and fits seamlessly into our existing digital infrastructure.
Evidence of success
Without the landing page, we had no access to participants’ contact details, and retrieving photos from social media was difficult and time-consuming, often incomplete. This year, the online version resulted in 439 uploads from 186 unique users. Between 1–20 February, the heviz.hu game page had 1,843 views, and the registration page 902.
Potential for learning or transfer
While this type of marketing campaign is not a new concept, maximising the benefits is essential. Reaching the target audience can often be a challenge, so it is essential to collect and exploit the available data in all possible ways. In the early stages, photos uploaded only to social media were difficult to track (e.g. incorrect or missing hashtags, uploads to private profiles). Therefore, uploads were moved to a simple form-based landing page, allowing contact details and image downloads to be collected from a central interface, and managing GDPR issues.
The current practice is the result of four years of development. The way the game is structured allows for new photo locations and features to be added each year, which can make the campaign more attractive over time, or it can be expanded to include other special occasions.
As a technical note: today’s smartphones produce large image files, so the registration system must be capable of handling high-resolution photo uploads.