How London Heritage Quarter achieved 1,200 users in 1 day, and over 11,000 in 6 months.
Introduction
London Heritage Quarter (LHQ), a bustling central district encompassing Victoria Coach Station, Parliament, Whitehall, Trafalgar Square, and the Royal Courts of Justice, set out to transform how visitors engage with the area. In partnership with Vicinity, LHQ launched the LHQ Hub app in July 2024, moving away from physical Privilege Card Schemes managed by the Northbank and Victoria Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) to a digital-first, user-friendly mobile app. The results?
Greater sustainability, heightened engagement, and impressive user stats within just a few months of launch.
The Challenge: Modernising the Privilege Card Scheme
Previously, LHQ operated two separate Privilege Card Schemes, with over 75,000 plastic cards in circulation, providing around 300 exclusive offers and deals across the area.
However, the physical card format presented limitations, from environmental impact to logistical constraints.
LHQ needed a solution that could unify these schemes, reduce plastic waste, and offer a richer, more interactive experience to attract modern users.
Key goals included:
Unifying Offer Platforms: Combining two card schemes into a single, easy-to-use digital app.
Enhancing User Experience: Allowing visitors to view, redeem, and explore offers, events, and trails.
Sustainability: Removing reliance on plastic cards while reducing plastic production and waste.
Streamlined Business Engagement: Making it easy for businesses to participate and share deals on a single platform.
Jade Thomas, Communications and Marketing Manager, LHQ
""The LHQ Hub app has redefined our district, evolving our traditional privilege card scheme into a cutting-edge digital platform. This modernisation has allowed us to connect with visitors and businesses in a more dynamic and impactful way. Thanks to Vicinity's innovative platform, we brought our vision to life swiftly and effectively. It has equipped us with the tools to promote local businesses, enhance visitor engagement, and create a truly unforgettable experience for everyone visiting London Heritage Quarter."
The Solution: A Digital Transformation with Vicinity's App Platform
The Vicinity platform provided an ideal foundation for LHQ to transform its Privilege Card Scheme into an app-based, highly interactive experience. With Vicinity’s customisable white-label solution, LHQ was able to:
Unify Offers and Events: Centralise exclusive deals, offers, events, and walking trails in one app, encouraging users to explore and engage with the area.
Boost Sustainability: Eliminate plastic cards, replacing them with a digital app that aligns with their environmental goals.
Improve User Accessibility: Deliver instant access to deals and information, enhancing convenience for locals and tourists alike.
To kick off the app, LHQ launched with hundreds of active offers. The app featured a robust initial selection, giving users an enticing introduction to the platform.
Implementation: Engaging Businesses and Driving User Adoption
Success hinged on a carefully crafted rollout strategy aimed at both businesses and end users. Key steps included:
Business Engagement: LHQ proactively reached out to all existing offer partners to prepare them for the transition from physical cards to the app, highlighting that little change would be required on their end. LHQ provided training materials to ensure businesses were well-equipped to support the new digital scheme.
Launch Events and Marketing: To attract users, LHQ organised pop-up events at high-traffic office buildings, targeting office workers during lunch hours. The events included branded merchandise giveaways, QR code downloads, and app demo sessions, helping users download the app on the spot. Additional marketing support came through monthly e-newsletters, promoting app benefits and exclusive offers.
Continuous Communication: Since the app’s launch, LHQ has maintained monthly contact with partner businesses, using insights from the app’s dashboard to keep businesses engaged and up-to-date. This helped ensure that high-quality, relevant offers remain active on the app, improving user retention.
Monthly Competitions and Push Notifications: LHQ further boosted user engagement by offering monthly competitions, special heritage and wayfinding trails, and push notifications to inform users of seasonal offers and activations
App User, DLL Whitehall’s Review.
"Love the app, so many cool discounts on there to make commuting into London a little more friendly, welcoming and cost effective! Also a great way to discover the area. Would recommend."
Results: A Rapidly Growing User Base and Impressive Engagement Metrics
In the first four months post-launch, the LHQ Hub app has exceeded expectations, delivering tangible results across user acquisition, engagement, and business interaction:
Over 11,000 Users: The app has attracted more than 11,000 users so far, a significant achievement that showcases the demand for digital access to exclusive local offers and events.
High Engagement with Offers: Over 18,500 views and 14000 deal redemptions were logged, with one partner business seeing 537 redemptions in just two months.
Active Interaction with Competitions and Trails: LHQ’s monthly competitions drew over 3700 entries, while themed trails received 1,700+ interactions.
Increased App Interactions: With over 45,000 interactions recorded, the app has become a vital tool for both users and businesses within LHQ, offering insights into popular offers and areas of interest.
Key Success Factors
Several elements contributed to the success of the LHQ Hub app launch including:
Established Business Relationships: Having a strong existing network of participating businesses allowed LHQ to easily transfer physical card offers on to the app, providing a variety of engaging content at launch.
Strategic Launch Events: Hosting pop-up events at local office buildings provided direct engagement with a key audience and encouraged instant downloads.
Quality of Offers: Maintaining a range of high-quality, always-on offers ensured ongoing value for users, while seasonal and limited-time deals helped keep content fresh and engaging.
Henry Jinman, CEO of Vicinity
"The LHQ Hub app showcases the transformative power of technology in place management. By consolidating legacy systems into one streamlined platform, we’ve not only enhanced user convenience but also demonstrated how a branded app can create meaningful connections between businesses and their communities. This success is a testament to the collaboration between our platform and LHQ’s visionary team, setting a benchmark for digital engagement in urban districts."
Conclusion: Inspiring Other Districts with a Proven Model for Success
The LHQ Hub app demonstrates how a well-executed digital transition can elevate a place’s engagement with visitors and residents alike. By aligning with Vicinity's platform, LHQ not only streamlined user access to exclusive offers and local insights but also transformed its Privilege Card Scheme into a powerful tool for visitor engagement, sustainability, and business support.
For other districts seeking similar success, the LHQ Hub app exemplifies the importance of early business buy-in, targeted user outreach, and a thoughtful mix of always-on and seasonal content to sustain user interest. This case study underscores how a branded app, when designed and launched effectively, can invigorate a place’s appeal, driving both footfall and digital engagement.
These successful examples and case studies demonstrate the powerful impact of digital solutions and mobile apps in our towns and cities. By integrating elements such as interactive trails, digital loyalty schemes, personalised offers, and advanced data capture, these towns are supporting physical local businesses by merging in the digital world. These examples serve as models for other towns and cities aiming to harness the potential of digital innovation for economic and social growth.
Ready to Elevate Your District’s Reach? Book a Demo today and learn how Vicinity can help you create an engaging, branded app experience for your community.