Visit Pasadena and Explore Seattle Southside’s Boba Passes: A Case Study

‍The Challenges

Both Visit Pasadena and Explore Seattle Southside faced distinct challenges that were effectively addressed through the creation of their unique Bandwango passes.

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Visit Pasadena

Pasadena needed to overcome the stereotype of being a destination for older visitors. Their goal was to attract a younger audience of Millennials and Gen Z by promoting the city’s thriving boba tea scene. With limited beer and wine options, the boba trail also served as an innovative alternative to traditional beverage trails, rebranding Pasadena as a youthful and dynamic destination while driving visitors into the doors of local businesses.

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Explore Seattle Southside

Seattle Southside’s pass was created with three specific goals in mind:

First, to highlight the region’s rich diversity by leveraging food and drink as powerful ways to experience and celebrate different cultures.

Second, to establish a unique identity for their destination. And with nearly 10% of Washington State’s bubble tea shops in Seattle Southside, the boba tea trail felt like the perfect fit.

Third, they wanted to create an inclusive trail that everyone could enjoy, regardless of age, so that anyone and everyone can partake in the fun.

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The Solutions

Though varied in goals, Bandwango partnered with both clients to create user-friendly, engaging, and trackable passes to help them reach their objectives.

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Pasadena Boba Trail

The Pass: Pasadena worked with Bandwango to create a free, gamified pass that celebrated local Asian American history and highlighted Pasadena’s must-try boba spots. The pass was created mainly to target Millennial families and Gen Z, showcasing the young and vibrant side of Pasadena.

Strategic Marketing: The trail was launched for Boba Day on April 30th, perfectly timed to coincide with the warmer months to promote it as the ideal summer drink. The team also utilized both their visitor guide and Instagram to help drive sign ups, featuring QR codes for easy access.

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Seattle Southside Bubble Tea Trail

The Pass: Seattle Southside’s pass is also free, encouraging check-ins to win a prize. Instead of targeting one specific audience, Seattle Southside aimed to create an inclusive experience for both locals and visitors, encouraging them to explore and enjoy some of the diverse flavors and cultures of their destination.

Strategic Marketing: Seattle Southside also utilized timely promotion, launching their trail just before National Bubble Tea Day. They marketed their pass through a multi-channel approach, utilizing a collaboration with a local content creator, organic and paid social media campaigns, and PR efforts at different media outlets to generate buzz and help spread the word.

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The Results

Pasadena Boba Trail

Alongside positive pass metrics, the boba trail effectively helped rebrand Pasadena as a youthful and dynamic destination. They’ve also had many visitors mention how they love boba and the number of options available to grab a quick drink while exploring the downtown area, making it the perfect activity for anyone visiting Route 66.

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Seattle Southside Bubble Tea Trail

Seattle Southside’s effective marketing led to impressive results. In addition to a number of sign ups, completed passes, check-ins, and prizes shipped, they saw a wide reach through local media coverage. Their strategy earned them features on King5 Evening and KOMO 4, significantly boosting visibility.

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Ongoing Success

So, were the passes successful? It’s an overwhelming yes.

Visit Pasadena's pass helped them reach their goal of changing stereotypes while providing ample opportunities for local businesses. When asked what made the pass work for their audience, the Pasadena team said,

"The boba audience is typically younger and more of a tech generation, which makes it easier for them to engage or be willing to use a digital pass.”

Seattle Southside highlighted their pass success as well:

"By bringing attention to local businesses and giving them brand recognition, we created a win-win situation that supports our DEI goals and celebrates the cultural mosaic of Seattle Southside."

These two clients have completely different goals, audiences, and passes, yet both saw great success – proof that these passes can make an impact in any community, driving visitors through doors and fostering local engagement.

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Check out the Pasadena Boba Trail and Seattle Southside's Bubble Tea Trail!