From CampusBird Blog
Babson College is once again demonstrating why it has been ranked first for entrepreneurship for 22 years by U.S. News and World Report. The new Babson College digital map platform, based on CampusBird technology from concept3D, is the centerpiece of an online hub that enhances how individuals gather information and provides a variety of benefits for a wide audience of prospective students, families, recruiters, alumni, current students, faculty, staff and other campus visitors.
Babson’s interactive map includes 360-degree panoramic views, detailed photos, written descriptions of a range of buildings and venues, and directions to specific locations on campus. The content and experience offer audiences the ability to engage and acclimate to campus from a virtual perspective, while the mapping and direction features provide basic functional, directional needs for on-campus visitors and community members.
“The appeal of a product like CampusBird is that it provides users a variety of benefits and doesn’t just focus on solving one need for one audience,” said Gene Begin, Senior Director of Integrated Marketing at Babson College. “It’s a solution for many different initiatives, such as accessibility, event parking virtual tours and many more.”
Navigation is one of the key benefits of the new platform. Built on top of Google Maps, the technology is viewable online and via smartphone and allows for panning and zooming. Babson’s initial data show that more than 20% of visitors are accessing the map via mobile devices.
But the platform is about much more than navigation; the new hub is also an information marketing tool that allows visitors to virtually learn about and experience all the campus has to offer. For example, users can see high-resolution photos of the Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, which provides a home for the College's entrepreneurship center and features teaching, research and office space, as well as view an online video of students participating in Babson’s Summer Venture Program.
Planned future enhancements include maps for Babson’s two satellite locations, along with nearly completed virtual tours for undergraduate admission, graduate admissions and the sustainability points of interest.
“The ability to direct link to ‘hidden’ tours from departmental and school websites will be a great addition to their web experience for campus visitors,” Begin said. “Some of these tours will even include specific directions and tours for events and programming.
For more information and to view the map, please visit http://maps.babson.edu.
About Babson College
Babson College is the educator, convener, and thought leader for Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®. The College is a dynamic living and learning laboratory, where students, faculty, and staff work together to address the real-world problems of business and society—while at the same time evolving our methods and advancing our programs. We shape the leaders our world needs most: those with strong functional knowledge and the skills and vision to navigate change, accommodate ambiguity, surmount complexity, and motivate teams in a common purpose to create economic and social value. As we have for nearly a half-century, Babson continues to advance Entrepreneurial Thought and Action® as the most positive force on the planet for generating sustainable economic and social value.
Topics: CampusBird, Campus Map, College Campus Tours, Interactive Virtual Experiences
