Attending the Nebraska State Fair this year? There will soon be an app for that.
State Fair board members approved a $12,500 contract Friday for the development of a new smartphone application for fair-goers.
It will give fair-goers an events calendar, a list of food and commercial vendors and GPS capability to guide them to booth locations. It'll even help the weary fair-goer find where he parked his car.
Fair organizers say the app is just one way they're staying up-to-date.
"The application is just the next step forward so we can communicate one on one with fair-goers," Sponsorship and Marketing Director Shaun Schlief says.
Entertainment and Events Director Chelsey Jungck says with the evolution of smart phones and high percentage of cell phone users who have smart phones, it was a natural step for the state fair.
"Apps are readily available," Jungck says. "It's time we get on that bandwagon, and it's just the next step in our technological evolution as a fair."
Organizers say it helps with another goal they have for the 2012 fair: expansion. Schlief says it stretches the fair-going experience past the two weeks at Fonner Park.
"It's good not only during fair time, but it connects us to our fans 365 days a year," Schlief says.
The application is expected to be ready for downloading in the iPhone and Android app markets by late spring.
