How Three Rivers Park District used Rebrandly to streamline communication across 30,000 acres of parkland.
There are QR codes on trail markers across 25 parks. When a vendor migration unexpectedly broke hundreds of the destinations behind them, not one sign had to be reprinted. Here's the system that made that possible.
Goal
Connect physical signage across 25 parks to digital resources - and learn how visitors actually use them.
Blocker
Every destination change meant reprinting and replacing signs in the field.
Constraint
A sign stands outdoors for years. The link printed on it can never change.
Outcome
Six branded domains, per-department workspaces, and destinations updated by API without touching a sign.
Summary
Three Rivers Park District manages 30,000 acres of land across 25 parks. With a vast network of trails, facilities, and programs, the Park District needed an efficient way to connect physical signage with digital resources while maintaining flexibility across its extensive park system.
With Rebrandly, Three Rivers found a comprehensive link management solution, simplifying QR-code communication throughout their park network. The solution has reduced maintenance costs and facilitated the collection of valuable park usage data, all while enhancing the experience for millions of park visitors each year.
"Having a short, easily intuitive link is powerful for us."
Amanda Huber
Geographic Information Services (GIS) administrator
Overview
A park sign is the most permanent thing a marketing team will ever publish. That's the whole problem.
Parks connect people with nature, but large park systems face an inherent challenge in providing visitors with the information they need to enjoy the park's offerings.
Three Rivers Park District manages 25 parks around the Twin Cities. Serving seven million annual visitors, the Park District manages everything from hiking trails and boat launches to art installations and seasonal events.
The Park District needed to connect physical locations with digital information, provide visitors with easy access to resources, and collect data on park foot traffic. Traditional methods of information delivery, like signs and flyers, were inflexible, costly to update, and did not provide insights into visitor behavior.
30,000
acres of land
25
parks
450
permanent employees
1,500
seasonal staff
The Challenge: Managing communication across a huge geographical area
QR codes bridged the physical and digital park. But every change to a destination meant sending someone out to replace a sign.
With 450 permanent employees and 1,500 seasonal staff coordinating countless activities from hiking trails to art installations, communication at Three Rivers Park District is complex and critical.
Scannable QR codes are a convenient and creative way to connect visitors with information when they are out in parks. These QR codes appeared on trail markers, interpretive signs, facility entrances, and printed materials, creating critical bridges between physical spaces and digital resources.
As QR code usage expanded across the park system, the Park District needed a link management system to maintain these essential communication channels without constantly reprinting signs every time a QR code needed to be updated.
“Having a short, intuitive link is powerful for us. Being able to update destination URLs on the fly while keeping the URL the same is essential, especially with signage in the field.”
Amanda Huber
Geographic Information Services (GIS) administrator
The solution: Centralized link management across departments
The short link on the sign is permanent. Everything behind it can be changed from a desk.
After thoroughly evaluating multiple options, the IT/GIS department chose Rebrandly as the organization's link management solution.
Integration capabilities were a decisive factor in their selection. Rebrandly's connections with tools like Zapier allowed the team to automate workflows with their existing systems.
This integration potential ensured Rebrandly would fit seamlessly into their technology ecosystem rather than becoming another isolated tool for their team to manage.
The Park District deployed Rebrandly-generated branded QR codes extensively throughout their properties. They use QR codes in a variety of ways:
On marketing materials to publicize events and activities
To provide information to visitors on one of their multiple “art walks,” as well as interpretive signage
As a method of payment for boat launches
The IT/GIS department led the implementation, establishing six branded domains across the park system for various purposes. They created separate workspaces for different departments, including Marketing and IT/GIS, allowing teams to manage their links independently while maintaining consistent branding and analytics.
Impact: Enhanced visitor experiences and operational efficiency
Poetry trails, art tours, cashless boat launches — and one afternoon that would otherwise have cost 300 signs.
With reliable link management in place, the Park District expanded their digital offerings through interactive art tours, poetry trails with multimedia components, and intuitive wayfinding systems—all accessible through visitors' personal devices. Remote payment options eliminated vulnerable cash boxes at boat launches and other facilities.
The analytics capabilities provided unprecedented visibility into visitor engagement. Over the past year, the Park District collected nearly one million clicks on public maps, revealing patterns in visitor behavior and interests. This lets them calibrate park development and resources based on estimated foot traffic. Additionally, language preference data helps inform future multilingual content development.
1M
A vendor migration broke hundreds of destinations at once
What happened
A vendor server migration unexpectedly changed hundreds of destination URLs.
What they did
The team programmatically updated every destination without changing the short links.
The result
300+
physical signs never replaced — saving substantial time and money.
"It's a sign of a good product that I don't feel the need to have regular contact with anyone as the manager of the team. If I'm not talking to anyone at Rebrandly on a regular basis, then things are going well."
Wayfinding everywhere, and geofenced routing
Three Rivers Park District continues to expand its use of Rebrandly. It plans to implement its wayfinding program across all parks and explore geofenced routing capabilities for region-specific experiences. The solution has become a critical infrastructure component supporting its mission to connect millions of visitors with enriching park experiences.
