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What Does It Take to Transform Museum Storytelling? Discover how Thomas Fikken, Guide-ID’s Business Development Manager, is reshaping the visitor experience with the Podcatcher Pro – where innovative audio technology meets the art of storytelling.What Does It Take to Transform Museum Storytelling?
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Bringing Stories to Life: Guide-ID at PinchukArtCentre's La Biennale di Venezia Exhibition Since 2023, Guide-ID has had the privilege of working with the PinchukArtCentre, a vital museum of cultural significance in Kyiv, Ukraine.Bringing Stories to Life: Guide-ID at PinchukArtCentre's La Biennale di Venezia Exhibition
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ChronoQuest: Unraveling History's Wild Adventures as Guide-ID's Fearless Business Manager! Buckle up for an exhilarating UK expedition! With Guide-ID’s top-notch audio guide solutions, I explored Cheddar Gorge’s beauty, delved into Beezeum’s captivating wonders, and soaked in the history of Portchester Castle, HMS Victory, and Hailes Abbey. The enchantment of Castell Coch left me breathless. Join me on this thrilling adventure!ChronoQuest: Unraveling History's Wild Adventures as Guide-ID's Fearless Business Manager!
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Biblia Brugge Are you curious about what we can still learn from the Bible today? Then visit Biblia Brugge, the newly-opened Bible experience centre in the Major Seminary. You pass through long cloisters on your way before receiving a warm welcome at Biblia: ‘Take a seat and get ready for a spectacular journey.’ Once you’re comfortably seated, illustrator Klaas Verplancke’s animated film begins to play. You see various questions. Do you dare to be yourself? Do you dare to discover the unknown world? Do you dare to listen in silence? These challenging questions keep you on your toes for the rest of the visit.Biblia Brugge
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New chapter, new perspectives Fall has started, and nature is wrapping everything around us in a colourful jacket. The days are getting colder, and we begin to look for cozy, indoor activities since we are still full of energy after a bustling summer. A summer in which we could explore, engage and enjoy limitless again!New chapter, new perspectives
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A great summer It’s September, which means summer is coming to an end. But I’ve got to say... What a great summer it turned out to be! I published my last article in June, at the very start of summer. After a summer break from writing, I’m back with a new article. This time, I’d like to take you on a time-travelling journey through the past three months and explain why I thought they were so great.A great summer
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Postcards from the world of museums My work with Guide-ID introducing audio guides to museums in North America and around the globe presents a remarkable opportunity to see first-hand how we are emerging from the pandemic. Since the start of 2022, we’ve participated in trade shows like the Virginia Association of Museums Conference (VAM) in Richmond, VA, the Ohio Museums Association Conference (OMA) in Cincinnati, OH and the American Alliance of Museums Conference (AAM) in Boston, MA. It is so wonderful to be finally getting back to seeing our work colleagues, our clients, and our prospects in person once again.Postcards from the world of museums
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Audio guides for life ‘The most important lesson of the past two years has been sustainability.’ Our CEO Frits Polman is speaking. He has been at the helm of Guide-ID for more than 19 years, and, together with a team of 20 employees, he is plotting a well-thought-out course in the world of audio experiences. The past two years with the coronavirus were tough at times – museum doors remained closed, audio guides were left unused. Thanks to flexibility, creativity, and a sharp focus on the mission, Guide-ID weathered the storm well. ‘We turned out to be more adaptable than we thought. The sudden acceleration of the digital world made its enormous potential clear. The need for continuous innovation kept us going.’ We fired some questions at our CEO.Audio guides for life
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Discover a universe of imagination and space exploration What a treat to briefly leave our planet behind and lose yourself in the ‘Space: The Human Quest’ exhibition in Antwerp, where you come face to face with real exhibits and replicas from 50 years of space travel. The exhibition takes visitors on a journey through the past, present and future of space exploration. “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind” - those were the now iconic words uttered by Neil Armstrong when he first set foot on the moon, back in 1969. The exhibition in Antwerp proves once again that space fascinates, surprises and amazes us.Discover a universe of imagination and space exploration
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A plea against smartphones in museums My social media regularly features posts from companies that make apps for museums. Apps that promise heaven and earth, with the-sky-is-the-limit vibes. And to experience all this goodness, all you need is a smartphone. It’s a smartphone utopia for museums and visitors alike. However, now that I’m armed with a good two decades of experience in the museum sector, I feel it’s time to dissect those utopian promises.A plea against smartphones in museums
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Sharing stories in every museum worldwide: this is what our new platform does We want to share as many stories as possible. And despite sharing a huge 486 million stories in 18 countries to date, we’re only at the beginning. Used smartly, artificial intelligence (AI) can help us to tell many more stories in the very near future. Read on to find out how much easier it will become for museums to share their stories with visitors. With our new AI-driven platform, museums will soon be able to produce audio tours quickly, cheaply, and in any language they want.Sharing stories in every museum worldwide: this is what our new platform does
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Go on an audio tour to the land of mammoths Prior to joining the Espace Muséal d’Andenne (EMA), Anne Frank worked as a producer and content editor in the television industry. She is passionate about rallying a large audience around specific content. ‘I look for an angle, something particularly moving. It’s a way to spark interest in the widest possible public, even for content that is not so straightforward. What I like about working at a museum is being able to make culture available to everyone.’Go on an audio tour to the land of mammoths
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From idea to product: the new podcatcher is on the way Guide-ID is a tech company – always has been, always will be. We use technology to make it easy for cultural institutions around the world to share their stories with visitors. We saw the pandemic as an opportunity to create and develop a whole new ecosystem.From idea to product: the new podcatcher is on the way
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Giving back the earth You’re in a zoo. On your device is a soft voice guiding you. It’s telling you about the polar bear and how the arctic ice is melting away. You are looking at two of them playing in the water. One looks up and stares you in the eye. And then the voice goes: they could be lost by 2100, if we don’t tackle climate change now.Giving back the earth
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The importance of inclusiveness: stories for all Inclusiveness has been an important topic for some time, including in the cultural sector. How do you make sure your museum is relevant to as many people as possible? In this article, I’ll show you how Guide-ID enables every visitor to enjoy the story you’re telling.The importance of inclusiveness: stories for all
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Explore the enhancing 'luister' exhibition at the MAS One foggy Saturday morning in mid-January, I visited one of the most iconic buildings in Antwerp: the MAS, the Museum aan de Stroom. I was one of the first visitors, but I certainly was not the only one. A lot of families and some of our neighbours to the north were already on their way to visit the boulevard and the exhibitions. Everyone is welcome here, and the museum belongs to everyone: I felt that immediately. As you make your way on the escalator, you see colourful portraits of people, young and old, with objects they wish to cherish and keep for the future. The exhibition is entitled ‘Alles van Waarde’ [Everything of Value]. Each item has its own story. You can discover the power of storytelling here in the MAS, and especially in the ‘Luister’ [Listen] exhibition.Explore the enhancing 'luister' exhibition at the MAS
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Artificial intelligence (AI), test to speech (TTS), and audio tours Artificial intelligence (AI) is a concept that lots of people will have heard of by now. Many well-known platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Just Eat already use AI systems which are self-learning and automatically improve. While this offers many advantages, it also has a rather scary side: the programmer no longer knows exactly what the system has learned. More on that later...Artificial intelligence (AI), test to speech (TTS), and audio tours
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A small lighted candle At Guide-ID, we live and breathe to help you unlock your stories. We believe audio guides are the best way to connect your visitor to your exhibition. It is my job and pleasure to help you create your own audio tour. Others have gone before you… Let their experience serve as an inspiration.A small lighted candle
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The future is now As you know by now, I’m a fan of ‘less is more’. It’s all about simplicity. But that’s enough about that! Or actually... maybe there’s a bit more to say.The future is now
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Visitors in the spotlight at the Chateau de Baugé Winning over your first customer in a vast country like France is exhilarating. At least, that is how I felt when the Chateau de Baugé, in the Maine-et-Loire department, became Guide-ID’s first French client. I went there over the summer. Due to Covid-19, I had not had an opportunity to do so sooner. I was pleasantly surprised when I visited the chateau and encountered the vision of Isabelle Coulon, the Director for Tourism and Culture. While the chateau’s outward appearance is somewhat subdued, it bursts with life inside. The public has clearly been put at the heart of it. This heritage site is well thought-out with an underlying vision based on the needs of the contemporary visitor.Visitors in the spotlight at the Chateau de Baugé
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COVID-19 has changed everything including audio tours. Or has it? The pandemic has made for a hectic, but also a very exciting time at Guide-ID. Initially, it seemed to have a large impact on our product: sharing stories using our audio players. But in this article, I’ll show you that the pandemic also confirmed what we actually knew all along.COVID-19 has changed everything including audio tours. Or has it?
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Unlocking your treasures, how to make a visit fun for children? At Guide-ID we help museums unlock their stories. One of the perks of my job as a Business Manager at Guide-ID, is that I get to enjoy lots of different audio tours created by our customers. Recently I have been listening to several “kids’ tours”, and I was surprised at how much fun they were. How do museums translate their information into attractive audio guided tours for a young audience?Unlocking your treasures, how to make a visit fun for children?
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On your marks, get set, go! Yes! We finally seem to have turned the corner. Museums can reopen their doors in increasing numbers of countries. Visitors can barely wait to visit museums once more, and Guide-ID is ready to share stories with them once more. During the pandemic, we worked to make our entire platform easier to use for existing and new customers. In this blog, I will explain why we are truly worthy of the title ‘world’s easiest audio guide’.On your marks, get set, go!
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Customer-driven development - How we use co-creation to optimize our products. At Guide-ID, we’re passionate about technology and culture. Combine these two to create the perfect job. Since 2009, our creative team’s passion – and increasing customer collaboration – has driven constant improvements to the Podcatcher platform.Customer-driven development - How we use co-creation to optimize our products.
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The In Flanders Fields Museum comes back to life It certainly felt good to see a sign reading ‘FULLY BOOKED’ outside a museum. The In Flanders Fields Museum (IFFM), like many other Belgian museums, sold out during the Easter holidays. The weather and the Belgian travel ban undoubtedly made a difference. Museums, including the IFFM, remarked that many visitors were people who would not normally visit museums.The In Flanders Fields Museum comes back to life
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Enrich your content with a diversity of perspectives. Connect to your audience by 'speaking their language' in audio tour content. I believe that museums are the mirrors of our society. This is because the collections they display and stories they tell appeal to a diverse audience. When I embarked on my career in the museum sector over 20 years ago, educational services were a hot topic. Museums had begun organizing guided tours and workshops for schools and groups, and placed labels and texts for individual visitors (although these were still often written in technical jargon). This was the point at which museums became even more accessible – you no longer had to be an art expert to understand what an exhibition was about.Enrich your content with a diversity of perspectives. Connect to your audience by 'speaking their language' in audio tour content.
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Building inclusive visitor experiences, where to start? At Guide-ID it’s in our DNA to help our clients tell their stories. Audio guides can open up your museum and make it accessible to all, in ways that you may not yet have considered. Here, we’d like to share with you how we can help you become more inclusive, using the options our audio guides have to offer. Let’s start by sharing the first step towards ‘all-inclusive’ storytelling. When creating an audio guide, start by asking yourself these three easy questions: who, what, where?Building inclusive visitor experiences, where to start?
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Business success means getting up more than you fall down. The Netherlands is yet again covered in a blanket of snow. Cue chaos in the media and on the streets. The national weather agency issues the highest weather alert code, and everyone’s on their guard. Nobody wants to slip. But I take a slightly different view: I know how much there is to learn from slipping up – figuratively. Although the time between falling and getting back on your feet can be quite painful, these are the moments that provide the most valuable lessons.Business success means getting up more than you fall down.
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Celebrating a Remarkable 2024: Innovation, Growth, and Gratitude From the Podcatcher Pro launch to AI breakthroughs and global milestones, here’s a look back at an extraordinary year for Guide-ID.Celebrating a Remarkable 2024: Innovation, Growth, and Gratitude
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Ready to Transform Your Museum’s Storytelling? Meet the Podcatcher Pro Discover how our next-generation audio guide can enhance visitor engagement, boost accessibility, and bring immersive storytelling to life in your museum. It’s time to reimagine what’s possible.Ready to Transform Your Museum’s Storytelling? Meet the Podcatcher Pro
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Get to know Emanuela Kontent: bringing art stories to life in The Netherlands, Belgium, and France! Say hello to Emanuela Kontent! The new sales manager at Guide-ID is here, and she's ready to rock. We had the pleasure of sitting down with Emanuela for a lively chat about her role, her vision, and what makes her tick. Join us for a fun and informal interview that’s sure to put a smile on your face!Get to know Emanuela Kontent: bringing art stories to life in The Netherlands, Belgium, and France!
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A Year like No Other: Reflecting on a Year Full of Challenges and Triumphs What whirlwind of a year it has been. Let me take you back through a year that was filled with unexpected hurdles and some unbelievable victories.A Year like No Other: Reflecting on a Year Full of Challenges and Triumphs
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Meet our new Business Manager in Singapore Eve Loh-Kazuhara works at the National University of Singapore where she teaches world art history and the visual arts of Japan. We’re happy to officially announce that she’ll be our new Business Manager for Singapore.Meet our new Business Manager in Singapore
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Times are tough, but certainly not dull The past two years have been hectic at Guide-ID. Not only were museums forced to close during the pandemic, but we also saw the outbreak of a global chip crisis. And then the war in Ukraine drove up inflation and sparked an energy crisis. Read more about these two turbulent years and a drastic choice we had to make.Times are tough, but certainly not dull
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2020: an unforgettable year2020: an unforgettable year
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Why audio still has the biggest impact in the 'digital age' I’ve been working in the cultural sector for about 15 years, more specifically in the field of audio guides, and have spent the last seven years working at Guide-ID. When I first entered this industry, it was about the time when multimedia tours came on the scene. This type of tour quickly gained popularity, especially at the major museums. Many institutions started to focus on these multimedia tours. After all, you want to keep up with what the public wants. Now, a while later, we’re seeing that more and more museums are switching back to audio-only tours. Why is that? Well, because audio is often the best way to tell your story.Why audio still has the biggest impact in the 'digital age'
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How to ensure that as many visitors as possible listen to fantastic storytelling? I’d say the answer to the question in the title is obvious. I apply this answer to everything I do, whether creating audio tours and the products that go with it, or the way I design my business and organize it. In this article, I will explain my vision on the use (and abuse) of attention, focusing on how you can ensure that the experience you offer visitors is one they’ll actually listen to.How to ensure that as many visitors as possible listen to fantastic storytelling?
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How to use an audio tour for crowd control in your museum or attraction. In the current day and age it is important to guide your visitors through your museum, making sure they can keep their social distance. Thankfully, an audio tour can help you to create the safest experience for your visitors. Why it’s good to use an audio tour, you ask? Because you can use the visitor data it collects to optimize the routing in your museum or attraction. We’ll share three ways you can use your audio tour (data) for this!How to use an audio tour for crowd control in your museum or attraction.
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Relying on our core values in Coronavirus times I’ve been an entrepreneur for quite some time now, more than twenty years in fact. Every day, I work towards my dream of building a global company, and at the same time I bring something beautiful to the world by sharing stories.Relying on our core values in Coronavirus times
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Reopening the world of stories. How are we going to do this in a safe way? On 12 March, we were sitting in a meeting with our marketing agency Strangelove to discuss the development of our new corporate identity and website. One of our business managers, suddenly burst into the room to tell us that all attractions, museums, and exhibitions where large numbers of people gathered were being closed immediately. It feels like it all happened yesterday – but it also feels like it was a lifetime ago.Reopening the world of stories. How are we going to do this in a safe way?