Andersonville National Historic Park Case Study

May 2009

Andersonville National Historic Site Increases Visitorship 14% Using Information Radio Stations

Billboards along I-75 in Georgia Invite Travelers to Tune to 1640 AM

Below, Fred Sanchez, chief interpreter and resource manager, describes why and how he uses three Travelers Information Stations (TIS) to attract visitors to Andersonville.

What overall problem or challenge were you trying to solve by getting Travelers Information Radio Stations?

FS: Visitation had dropped off at the Park over the years, from a high of 260,000 in 1998 when we opened the museum to a low of 114,000. We needed to do something to promote the site.

What made you decide on MP3 Edition Information Stations?

FS: I used to be chief ranger at the Jimmy Carter Site in Plains, Georgia, at which time I first became familiar with the value of TISs [Travelers Information Stations]. Harper's Ferry and former National Park Service wireless program chief Frank Weed referred me to Information Station Specialists, who had supplied numerous stations to parks across the country. [See a list of national park stations.]

How was your project funded?

FS: The project was funded through 'Friends of Andersonville' and the 'Andersonville Trust.'

How is your radio system set up and managed?

FS: We placed 2 stations on the Interstate to attract visitors and 1 in the Park itself to greet guests as they enter, i.e., 'Welcome. Here's what we have for you to see . . .' We write our own scripts and hire professional voice artists in a studio in Atlanta to record broadcasts. Then we download the recordings from the studio's FTP site onto our memory sticks (flash drives), which we plug into our station's transmitters. Playlists are usually 3 to 5 minutes long to catch motorists on the Interstate traveling at highway speeds. Our stations' antennas are strategically located near the highway; then billboards announcing the stations are located 2.5 to 3 miles from our transmission sites. With our stations, we purchased from ISS recording software for creating our own messages to advertise special programs, as they come up, and to change messages ourselves, quickly, if needed in an emergency.

What do you see as the overall result of your effort?

FS: One way we measure the success of the stations is to announce in our broadcasts, 'If you let museum staff know you heard this message, you will get a free gift at the museum store.' We have given away many bandanas. Visitation has increased approximately 14% since the billboards and radio stations were put in place.

What advice do you have for others who might be considering the purchase of such a communication system?

FS: The stations themselves are obviously very practical. It's just a matter of the appropriate solution for each individual application. As I said, they're a great marketing and welcoming tool for the Andersonville National Historic Site! Another idea might be to use Information Stations for driving tours to tell travelers about sites they are passing through.

What was your experience working with ISS?

FS: Great. No problems. In our case, we did the heavy installing, and ISS just came in and did the final setup and staff training. It was straightforward.

The Andersonville National Historic Site is situated in Southwest Georgia on approximately 425 acres of rolling green hills, amidst natural oaks and pines and manicured lawns.

The Park maintains one of only two existing national cemeteries still actively burying veterans. Soldiers from Civil War times to present Iraqi Freedom operations are interred there.

Andersonville has the only museum commemorating American POW experiences across the centuries.

Why The Information Station – MP3 Edition?

"The Information Station – MP3 Edition – is particularly well suited to an operator who values the convenience of high quality audio recording, editing and archiving on a PC. Additionally, since the station's messages are not recorded via phone line, the quality level is more like that of a commercial radio station. And of course, since audio files are easy to move around the Internet, having messages in a digital format makes them easy to import from other sources. Finally, the Information Station – MP3 Edition – allows for long-format messages (more than an hour if required), which can be very helpful for interpretation where visitors are stationary at a viewing area or driving a wildlife loop." . . . Bill Baker, ISS

The Information Station offers an antenna system that is simple and compact and may be installed in adjacent yard areas or at locations not associated with buildings. If installed in adjacent yards, the antenna requires only that a support pole be set – no large buried antenna (copper wire) groundplane installation or burial of chemical-emitting ground pipes.

The Information Station's antennas are black to discourage ice build-up. They are finished with a special UV-resistant, architectural-anodization process to prevent color fading.

The Information Station can include a Vertical Profile Antenna System that does not require a groundplane. Major site disturbances such as surface trenching or drilling for the installation of deep ground rods is not required. The Vertical Profile Antenna System also means: 1) the antenna's cables and arrestors are inside the pole for safety and security; 2) theft of copper ground wire is impossible; 3) it is possible to move the system if required; and 4) the aluminum pole is attractive in conjunction with public buildings and may be painted as needed.

The Information Station uses an AM transmitter with a modern synthesized frequency system, so that if a frequency change is ever necessary, it can be easily done without component changes or board-level work. This transmitter uses an efficient Class D amplifier, comprised of only two driver devices for highest reliability. It is the only such unit manufactured and type-accepted by the FCC for Travelers Information Station applications in the United States.

The Information Station comes with message-recording services by professional announcers, free for the first 30 days.

ISS’ electronic designs are nonproprietary. This means that in the future, customers may change out components, as needed, without the requirement to return to ISS; i.e., simple wiring diagrams are provided, so they can service equipment themselves, if they choose, or have a third party assist – all with full ISS support.

Additionally, only Information Station Specialists offers technical assistance for the life of the product.