MuPon

Since 2004, Tokyo Art Beat has been publishing information about over six hundred exhibitions per month, via their website, iPhone app and paper map. Over the years, Tokyo Art Beat has steadily broadened its reach towards more casual culture seekers, while building relationships with the museum community.

In 2010, AQ approached Tokyo Art Beat with an idea for broadening TAB’s reach: MuPon, a coupon app for Tokyo-area museums.

Launched later the same year, MuPon gives art-goers a one-year subscription to exclusive discounts on admission to thirty of Tokyo’s best museums. Each month, MuPon lists over 3,500 yen of discounts on exhibition tickets, café fare and bookstore products. In its first year, the app was downloaded by more than 18,000 art-goers, at a price of 500 to 1,000 yen (5 to 10 USD).

AQ designed the app in close collaboration with museums and users to ensure a smooth experience integrated with existing ticket counter operations. No numbers or barcodes, just tap the ticket and show the app to the cashier.

As discounts are used, the app doubles as a personal scrapbook of ticket stubs. Now with built-in notifications for new discounts and Twitter integration, MuPon has become the most effective promotion tool for some of TAB’s museum partners.

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