Please
join me on November 11, 2009, in a tribute and honorary salute to all
of the men and women serving in all branches of the U.S. Military - Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force or Coast Guard. Thank you all for your tireless dedication to keeping our country safe.
Sincerely - qtags President, Jeremy Konko
Proud US Navy Veteran
The Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau (GHCVB) featured GuestAssist in a recent EXPO newsletter, outlining how the text-messaging program is facilitating communication between their show management and attendees.
GHCVB is uses GuestAssist text-messaging for everything from giving directions and providing updates to schedule changes and responding to first-aid needs.
GuestAssist is a product of qtags - a Houston based corporate mobile solutions company.
The Ministry of Education is using text-messaging by qtags to deliver SEA results to parents & students, and to encourage registration for classes & additional testing. The program, created by imedia goes live in the Summer of 2009 and is the first of series of planned programs with the Ministry of Education in Trindad & Tobago and other locations in the Caribbean.
qtags text messaging works on a shared short-code 78247 and is operational throughout North America and the Caribbean.
GuestAssist is pleased to announce that the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League will be the first CFL team providing their unique fan texting service to fans at Percival Molson Stadium this coming season. The Alouettes join a growing list of teams and venues that are using GuestAssist to deliver an elevated game day experience for ticket holders. These include stadiums and arenas in the NCAA, NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS and now the CFL.
"We are very pleased with our growth
in Canada with end users from the NHL, MLS and now CFL adopting GuestAssist.
GuestAssist allows guests to use their cell phones to text a venue
specific keyword into stadium operations, opening a discreet conversation.
Issues relating to security, medical and guest services can be qualified
quickly and the appropriate personnel can be dispatched to serve the
guest", said GuestAssist founder Jeremy Konko.
"Montreal Alouettes fans are passionate about their team and football. Ownership is committed to providing the best game day experience possible and believe that GuestAssist will help us deliver on that commitment. Our guests are our most valued asset and we believe the GuestAssist platform opens a new communication channel that will support and grow that valued relationship ", said Mark Weightman, VP, Operations and Events.
“GuestAssist gives large venues such
as stadiums, arenas and theme parks a proven tool for communicating
with customers and managing and responding to operational needs and
ticket holders’ requests,” Konko said. “Text messaging is the
ideal communications vehicle in loud stadiums and it allows for secure,
anonymous communication and real-time response.”
GuestAssist will also provide the Alouettes
with post-event reporting and analysis of guests’ concerns to help
the team’s front office improve staffing, fine-tune security procedures
and better understand fans’ common questions and further concerns.
Houston-based GuestAssist is a member of the Stadium Managers Association and the International Association of Assembly Managers.
About the Montreal Alouettes
A charter member of the Canadian Football
League, the Montreal Alouettes were founded in 1946 and have won five
Grey Cups. The East Division's most successful team over the last decade,
the Alouettes have won six division titles since 2000 and are the current
defending division champions. The Alouettes play their home games at
Montreal's Percival Molson Stadium. For more information, visit MontrealAlouettes.com.
About GuestAssist
GuestAssist is an enterprise feedback management platform that gives your customers easy access to you, and gives you a vehicle to engage them. It is text and web-based and allows stadiums, conferences, event managers and hoteliers to talk to their guests via text messages using their own mobile phones. GuestAssist is currently licensed for use at venues across North America, such as:
• Yankee Stadium (New York Yankees)
When Yankee Stadium opens in April 2009, GuestAssist by qtags will be in the starting lineup.
The New York Yankees, Major League Baseball's most storied franchise, have selected GuestAssist to improve fans' game-day experience at the state-of-the-art facility, currently under construction in the Bronx.
GuestAssist provides instant two-way, text messaging-based communication between ticket holders and event staff, allowing for improved management of safety, security and guest services. The Yankees are the first Major League Baseball team scheduled to implement the system for the upcoming season.
"GuestAssist is the clear industry leader in stadium communication
services, with a proven track record in facilities across the National
Football League," said Yankees Chief Operating Officer Lonn A. Trost.
"We believe it will make a big difference in our guest services,
enabling us to provide the best possible experience for Yankees fans
watching their team play in Yankee Stadium."
GuestAssist will provide a simple text message code that will permit fans to send questions, concerns or requests via their mobile phones to Yankee Stadium's Command and Control Center. The number will be communicated to fans via Stadium signage, public address announcements and other means.
A single staff member can handle and respond to incoming requests through GuestAssist's customized software interface. The operator can send reply messages directly to the fan's phone to answer questions or obtain more information, and, if necessary, can quickly dispatch safety/security, medical or guest services staff to the appropriate location.
GuestAssist will also provide the Yankees with post-event reporting and analysis of guests' concerns which will help the Yankees improve staffing, fine-tune Yankee Stadium security procedures and better understand Yankees fans' common questions and further concerns.
Trost further stated, "This key feature will allow us to identify issues and make adjustments, all based on the input we receive from fans. It could be anything from where to station support personnel to improving directional signage. GuestAssist's post-event reporting will enable us to see trends and respond as needed."
GuestAssist has a number of new features under development to expand the system's capabilities, said Jeremy Konko, chief operating officer of qtags. But it has already had a major positive impact for professional sports franchises using it.
"One of the best GuestAssist stories we've heard is one about season ticket holders who traveled two hours to a game only to find they had left their tickets at home," said Konko. "They used GuestAssist to quickly contact Guest Services and were helped within minutes. That's the kind of situation that used to cause a great deal of frustration for guests. Now, for teams like the Yankees and others who are using GuestAssist, it's an opportunity to showcase excellent customer service."
In addition to the Yankees, GuestAssist is expanding its customer base to a wide range of other major college and professional sports venues and even non-sports events such as concerts and festivals, Konko said.
Houston-based qtags is a member of the Stadium Managers Association and the International Association of Assembly Managers.
About GuestAssist
GuestAssist is a web-based communications service that enables one-to-one text messaging communications between fans and guests and central stadium or facility operations. GuestAssist is currently licensed for use at venues across the U.S. such as:
About qtags, llc
qtags llc provides mobility solutions to stadiums, arenas, conference
centers, government agencies, and corporations throughout the United
States, Canada and the Caribbean. Learn more at www.GuestAssist.net.
From 10/20 RCR Wireless article -- GuestAssist noted as short-code application providing consumer benefit of communication and security.
From the perspective of a consumer, text messaging provided via short codes is no different from ‘phone to phone’ text messaging that uses a longer code. There is no reason to distinguish the regulatory treatment of short-code text messaging and ‘phone to phone’ text messaging simply because of the length of the address used to send the message,” the public-interest groups stated. “Yet, the carriers’ documents confirm that wireless carriers often discriminate against would-be providers of text-messaging services via short codes based on the content of the information or the type of services they seek to offer.”
The public-interest organizations insist wireless providers are abusing their role as gate-keepers of short codes and thereby undermining an increasingly important means of basic communications for schools, public safety, voter registration and other entities. The groups scoff at the notion that short codes are simply a medium for marketing and billing, calling the view simplistic and misleading in view of “the increasingly vital role that text messaging via short codes plays in our society and democracy.” They said short codes are being used for the United Nation’s new ‘text messaging for peace’ campaign; Mobile Voter’s effort to encourage voter registration; Qtag’s new service enabling attendees at a sporting event or a concert to contact stadium authorities about a medical situation or unruly fans; a Boston police program to curb crime by texting tips to law enforcement; and donations to the Red Cross. Such applications of short codes, according to the public-interest entities, are not included in MMA’s list of acceptable uses.
From 10/20 Article by Don Muret - Staff writer -
More news about GuestAssist - the security system adopted by NFL teams and others to provide a quick, anonymous way for fans - event attendees to communicate with security teams and keep the environment safe.
The advent of text messaging as a preferred method of communication has made managing NFL crowds more effective, according to stadium operators and security officials. Twenty-six of the 32 NFL teams have incorporated a text message system at their facilities, and league officials expect …
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Mark Yost in the 10/14 Wall Street Journal article
discusses the benefits of using text-messaging based services to provide customer security and satisfaction at NFL events.
One continuing problem, he said, is that about 45,000 of the Eagles' 70,000 fans come through the gates in the 45 minutes just before kickoff. Obviously a few troublemakers get through, so the Eagles have two systems to help corral them.
The Linc was the first NFL stadium to have a text-messaging system that allows fans to anonymously report trouble. They simply text their section and seat number and security comes down. "I have 3,000 people on my staff, but with anonymous texting I have 70,000 eyes that can help me, as well," Mr. Bonacci said.
The text-messaging system used by the Philadelphia Eagles and 14 other NFL teams is GuestAssist.
