A first-of-its-kind tourism gizmo was unveiled Wednesday by the Lafayette Convention & Visitors Commission and Firefly Digital in the form of a quarterly interactive magazine for iPads.
A first-of-its-kind tourism gizmo was unveiled Wednesday by the Lafayette Convention & Visitors Commission and Firefly Digital in the form of a quarterly interactive magazine for iPads.
During Wednesday's unveiling at LITE, Firefly Digital CEO Mike Spears described the new iMag - called Allons - as "an amazing way to tell Lafayette's story."
"This medium is probably the best story-telling platform there is, currently," said Spears. "I don't know of any other type of application of this technology outside the educational field. To our knowledge, this is the first time it has been used in travel and tourism as a promotional platform."
Content in each issue, says Spears, will be presented by Jeremy Broussard of the Pyramid Group and will tell Lafayette's story - including where to eat, where to get entertained and where to shop - through the perspective of one of Lafayette's big names.
The first issue of the quarterly magazine features musician Marc Broussard and takes users on an interactive journey to several local hot-spots like Tsunami, Pamplona and Blue Moon Saloon.
"It's not all about Marc," says Spears as he swiped through the multitude of interactive pages included in the first edition of the iMag. "It's about Lafayette, but the story is told through his eyes."
The next issue, he adds, will feature Lafayette's story as told by zydeco musician Terrance Simien.
"What drives the content is what the artist talks about in the interview, which takes the politics out of it," says LCVC Executive Director Ben Berthelot.
The download is free, says Berthelot, and is available both on iTunes and by clicking here.