How Foley Main Street Turned Existing Downtown Programs into 240 Verified Check-ins Across 40 Merchants
October 22, 2026
Getting More From Existing Downtown Programs
Main Street managers and tourism marketers invest considerable effort into organizing community activations.
Showing local shop owners that these events generate actual foot traffic without adding extra administrative work remains a constant challenge.
Foley Main Street wanted to build on their monthly Third Thursday activations and seasonal campaigns by encouraging visitors to explore independent merchants.
Rather than running single-use promotions or reprinting paper maps, Foley Main Street needed a way to consolidate their initiatives into one sustainable program.
One Digital Passport for Events, Tours, and Local Businesses
Foley Main Street combined their community itineraries into a single Downtown Foley Passport on Driftscape. Because the system runs directly on the web, participants open it instantly by scanning a QR code or clicking a link without downloading an app.
Visitors earn points, check in at designated locations, and explore downtown stops across several concurrent initiatives:
Third Thursday Visits: Monthly challenges that direct foot traffic into nearby shops and eateries.
Downtown Foley History Tour: Self-guided stops connecting local heritage with active commercial areas.
American Classics Food Tour: A culinary route featuring local dishes and independent restaurants.
Tropical Gnome and Seasonal Hunts: Scavenger hunts that guide families and visitors into participating stores.
Getting More From Existing Downtown Programs
Main Street managers and tourism marketers invest considerable effort into organizing community activations.
Showing local shop owners that these events generate actual foot traffic without adding extra administrative work remains a constant challenge.
Foley Main Street wanted to build on their monthly Third Thursday activations and seasonal campaigns by encouraging visitors to explore independent merchants.
Rather than running single-use promotions or reprinting paper maps, Foley Main Street needed a way to consolidate their initiatives into one sustainable program.
One Digital Passport for Events, Tours, and Local Businesses
Foley Main Street combined their community itineraries into a single Downtown Foley Passport on Driftscape. Because the system runs directly on the web, participants open it instantly by scanning a QR code or clicking a link without downloading an app.
Visitors earn points, check in at designated locations, and explore downtown stops across several concurrent initiatives:
Third Thursday Visits: Monthly challenges that direct foot traffic into nearby shops and eateries.
Downtown Foley History Tour: Self-guided stops connecting local heritage with active commercial areas.
American Classics Food Tour: A culinary route featuring local dishes and independent restaurants.
Tropical Gnome and Seasonal Hunts: Scavenger hunts that guide families and visitors into participating stores.
Making Each Campaign Easier to Launch and Manage
Updating seasonal promotions often consumes significant staff time. Gathering merchant details, reprinting brochures, and re-designing paper maps for every new event drains limited budgets.
Foley Main Street manages recurring events and seasonal promotions through a central dashboard. The team updates locations, alters rewards, and launches seasonal scavenger hunts within the same passport framework, avoiding reprint costs and saving administrative time.
Because visitors access the passport directly through their web browser, participation requires minimal technical effort while merchant partners receive trackable foot traffic.
1,551 On-Site Views, 240 Verified Check-ins, and 7,250 Points Collected
During initial implementation, the Foley Main Street Digital Passport produced measurable participation across events:
240 Verified Check-ins: Recorded directly at downtown shops and dining establishments during Third Thursday activations and seasonal hunts.
7,250 Engagement Points Collected: Earned by participants completing multi-stop itineraries across community campaigns.
Foot Traffic Dispersal Across 40 Merchants: Visits were distributed throughout the commercial district, with top participating stops including Feast & Co. (23 check-ins), Fish River Furnishings and Art Gallery (20 check-ins), South Baldwin Social (20 check-ins), Scuttlebutt Pub (18 check-ins), and Yabba’s Wacky Snack Shack (16 check-ins).
Tracking digital check-ins allowed Foley Main Street to share verified participation figures with local business owners, board members, and municipal stakeholders.
Starting With an Event People Already Knew
Foley Main Street introduced the Digital Passport during their established Third Thursday events. Instead of promoting an entirely new concept, they added the digital layer to existing crowd turnout.
Once visitors became familiar with web check-ins during Third Thursdays, participating in subsequent campaigns (such as the Tropical Gnome Hunt and American Classics Food Tour) required little additional instruction.
This staged rollout helped Foley Main Street establish steady usage and onboard local merchants gradually throughout the year.
“I was really excited to see how the food tour went, and I was really excited to see how our historic tour went. We’re going to continue to build it… it’s going to grow”
— Darrelyn Dunmore, Executive Director, Foley Main Street
What Tourism and Downtown Teams Can Learn From Foley
Attach digital elements to existing foot traffic: Launching a passport alongside an established event builds immediate adoption without requiring a separate marketing push.
Remove app download requirements: Using a web-first format lets visitors scan QR codes and participate immediately without searching an app store.
Spread visitors across commercial districts: A structured passport prompts participants to visit multiple stops in one outing, guiding traffic to side streets and smaller merchants.
Maintain one central platform: Reusing a single passport system for monthly events, food tours, and seasonal hunts reduces staff workload and eliminates ongoing printing expenses.
Share clear performance data: Replace general turnout estimates with specific check-in metrics when reporting back to business owners and funding partners.
Bring Your Downtown Programs Together
Already running tours, shop-local events or seasonal promotions? Driftscape can connect them together in one digital experience, giving people more reasons to explore while making participation easier to join.