Though I was one of the first in line to buy the Iphone, I’ve never downloaded or used what’s become commonly known as an App — a fun or useful thing that your phone/Ipod can do for you.
But when the Houston Zoo said they were offering an App, I decided it was time. And it was easy — I simply pressed the app store button on my device and typed in “Houston Zoo”. The App appeared and I hit the download button. Voila! Within seconds, without having spent a dime, there in the palm of my hand was all the information I needed regarding the zoo – as a visiting member, and as a volunteer whose job it is to answer questions from our guests and help their visit be an easy and memorable one.
I’m here to encourage you to try it yourself if you haven’t already. You don’t even need to be at the zoo. Just pull out your Iphone or your Ipod Touch and follow the steps I did and check it out. It’s as helpful for planning your visit before you come to the zoo as it is when you’re on grounds.
As a docent these are a few of the questions I get asked all the time: When is the next Keeper Chat? Where is the carousel from here? Are there recycling bins on grounds? Where are the rest rooms, the food courts, the ice cream places? How far is it to the gift shop? Is there a back exit, even though we came in the front? What’s this tiger/elephant/stork/warthog’s name? While the Zoo will always have plenty of people like me walking around to help our guests, all of these questions and more can be answered in a pinch by the App. And I learned yesterday that the zoo is about to add several new videos, pictures and features — and, they will continue to update and improve it to better serve you.
So I’m, curious — for those of you who’ve used the Houston Zoo App, will you leave me a comment telling me what you’ve liked best about it or tell me of a situation where the App was helpful to you?
If you have something other than an iphone or ipod touch: We’re looking to expand into other smart phone applications –like Driods and Blackberries –and would love to know how many of you would like to have something designed for those phones. Just let us know in the comments. Thanks!
Written by Rochelle Joseph. Please visit Rochelle’s own blog, Adventures in Nature, at http://naturegirrrl.blogspot.com/
