Located in the Grass Valley neighborhood of Oakland, California, the Oakland Zoo is managed by the Conservation Society of California, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wildlife both locally and globally.
The zoo is home to over 700 native and exotic animals and is recognized for its outstanding animal care, particularly its elephant care program, and for its 17,000 square foot, state-of-the-art veterinary hospital -- the largest wild animal veterinary facility in Northern California.
From themed, fun rides to adventure explorations of the African Savannah, Flamingo Plaza, Tropical Rain forest and Wild Australia, each enclosure and every activity promises hours of fun and education for both parents and young zoo-goers.
Since opening in 1922, the zoo has undergone many phases of development and fund-raising drives to promote its various activities. In 2011, the non-profit organization joined BizX to find creative ways to preserve cash.
Since then, the zoo has been able to offset a significant amount of cash expenses by using the BizX alternative currency. These have included employee perks and other incentives for which they would otherwise have had to pay cash.
In turn, BizX community members purchased zoo guest passes and parking passes from the BizX Marketplace, and the organization has preserved cash flow, while acquiring new visitors who might not have planned a “zoo day” if they didn’t have BizX dollars in the first place.
Another significant event when BizX successfully partnered with the Oakland Zoo was when the organization was trying to find ways to promote their annual Zoo Lights celebration, known to be the largest LED Holiday light display in the Bay Area.
“It’s such a wonderful event, and we wanted to make sure that everybody in the Bay Area knew about it,” says Nicky Mora, Senior Manager, Marketing/PR at the zoo. “We also knew that with BizX, there were a lot of media options that we could utilize to get the message out.”The zoo met with BizX to talk about the most effective ways to get the word out. The discussion covered options ranging from outdoor billboards along crowded highways and intersections to coffee sleeve advertising to colorful print ads in local magazines and newspapers. Ultimately, the zoo decided that the best way to reach their audience was through a radio campaign on CBS.
“It turned out great,” Mora said. “We were able to use BizX dollars we had accumulated through selling our extra guest passes on the BizX Marketplace to run a radio campaign promoting this event. We were able to secure competitive pricing, and didn’t have to pay cash.”
The zoo was able to target the audience they wanted, ensuring that future generations will be able to experience this Oakland institution for years to come. And the relationship with BizX continued to solve their advertising needs.
Visit the BizX Marketplace to find out more about visiting the Oakland Zoo using BizX!
