WeChat and Destination DC begin first ‘City Experience Mini Program’ in United States
The official marketing organization for Washington, DC has expanded its partnership with social platform WeChat to better cater to the Chinese tourist market. Destination DC (DDC) will be able to tap into the 963 million monthly active users that use the Tencent messaging app.
WeChat has expanded its partnership with Washington, DC to better cater to Chinese tourists
The DDC city experience program was designed to be an interactive guide that helps tourists make the most out of their stay in Washington. Through a map-driven layout, visitors will get an interactive tour through top attractions, as well as audio tours in Mandarin in place of a human tour guide. It will have new attractions and content added every week and will soon feature top dining, shopping and tour offers that tourists can take advantage of.
WeChat had been part of Destination DC’s tourism strategy for the Chinese population. Building a following through the app, it achieved the highest traffic growth among US cities. With the partnership expansion, DDC will continue growing its outreach initiative, Welcome China, to continue interacting with travelers before, during and after their trip.
On the expansion of the partnership, DDC’s chief executive officer said, “One of the biggest challenges for Chinese travelers in any western city is knowing where to go and what to do. We are thrilled to partner with WeChat to enhance the visitor experience for the 304,000 Chinese travelers who visit Washington, DC every year, especially as we hope to grow Chinese visitation."
WeChat has become an integral part of Chinese culture; it was recently announced that the app broke the 900 million user mark and cemented itself as more than just a messaging app.