This section of our documentation is about using the publisher dashboard to manage vouchers. For guidance on how listeners redeem voucher codes, please read our section on how listeners access your tour.
What are voucher codes and credits?
- Voucher codes are 8-character alphanumeric codes (like 1SAMPLE2). When someone enters a voucher code, they can download your tour directly in the app. Voucher codes also come in the form of links, which can be used to redeem the tour on the web.
- Each credit is valid for a single download of your tour. Every time someone uses a voucher code to download your tour, one credit is deducted from your balance. When you run out of credits, you can purchase additional credits on your publisher dashboard here.
Most of the time, you’ll use voucher codes to give listeners access to your tour without them having to purchase it through the VoiceMap website or apps. This can be to share your tour with friends and family for free in return for ratings and reviews (we even give you 20 free credits once your tour is published so you can do this) or, if you want to sell your tours through your own platforms, like your website.
You can distribute voucher codes however you like: give them away for free, sell them directly, or work with resellers who buy them in bulk. VoiceMap only charges you for the voucher credit—after that, you keep all the revenue.
Managing vouchers using the publisher dashboard #
Track and purchase credits #
The Credit Balance tab shows all your credit allocations, including your promotional credits, credits you’ve received as part of your publishing plan, and any credits you’ve purchased.
You can also buy additional credits. Just click on Buy Credits, enter the number of credits you’d like to purchase, and make payment. The credits are added to your balance and can be used to issue or top up vouchers immediately. You’ll see the purchase and a link to a receipt in the same list as your other allocations.
On the Basic Plan, extra credits cost $2.00 each. On the Growth and Priority plans, the cost per credit is $0.89. On the Pro Plan, you are allocated 1,000 voucher credits per year and additional credits cost $0.62. On the Premium Plan, you are allocated 5,000 per year and additional credits cost $0.31.
Manage your vouchers #
The Manage Vouchers tab of the publisher dashboard has three sections: Summary, Issue Vouchers and Your Vouchers. You can access this tab from the My Account menu or from the first tab of the dashboard.
Summary #
The Summary shows how many voucher codes you’ve issued for your tours, how many of those vouchers have been redeemed (so how many listeners have downloaded tours using those vouchers), and the number of credits you have left. Listeners can only use your voucher codes when you have enough credits left, so if you’re running low, you can purchase some more on the Credit Balance tab.
Issue Vouchers #
To issue a new voucher, scroll down to the section called Issue Vouchers and select:
- The tour your new voucher can be used to redeem
- How many unique codes you’d like to create
- How many downloads you’d like each voucher to be valid for
Let’s say you want to create 150 voucher codes, you could opt for 150 codes with 1 download each, 1 code with 150 downloads, 15 codes with 10 downloads, or any other combination. You can also choose to have “No download limit”. The best choice comes down to how you intend to distribute your tour.
Voucher codes can be unique, with one code valid for only one copy of your tour, or you can make a single code valid for as many copies of your tour as you like. Unique codes are more difficult to manage, but they make it impossible for people to abuse this system by – for example – buying one copy of your tour and sharing the code they receive with friends. (We haven’t noticed any abuse like this so far.)
When you click on the Create Vouchers button, the vouchers should appear in the list below, in the section called Your Vouchers.
You can edit your codes later, under Your Vouchers, and you can also adjust how many downloads you’ve allocated to each code – or delete unused voucher codes completely.
Your Vouchers #
The table under Your Vouchers lists all the vouchers linked to your VoiceMap account. It has six columns:
- Voucher Code, which can be sorted alphabetically
- Tour Name, which can be sorted alphabetically and also filtered by tour
- Limit, displaying how many downloads the voucher code is valid for
- Used, displaying how many times this code has already been used to access your tour
- Created At, which can be sorted to show the oldest or newest codes first
- Redemption Link, displaying the url that can be used to redeem your tour at voicemap.me
You can edit voucher codes. Click Edit to change a code’s text (must be 8 characters and unique) or adjust its download limit. When you change a download limit, your number of vouchers issued updates immediately. For example, if you reduce a voucher’s limit from 100 to 50 downloads, your issued vouchers will go down by 50.
To delete a code, select it using the checkbox to the left of the table, then click on the Apply button at the top of the table, next to the Bulk Actions dropdown. You can only delete vouchers that have no redemptions.
Voucher codes can also be added to a tour’s url, allowing for redemption through the VoiceMap website. When users click on links with a voucher code, they see Redeem instead of the tour’s price. This Redemption link is automatically generated when you create a voucher.
You can export the entire list as a CSV by clicking on the button at the top of the table labelled – you guessed it – “Export table to CSV”.
Credit expiry #
Credits normally expire after one year. You can see expiry dates on the Credit Purchases tab. When credits expire, they’re removed from your balance. You’ll receive an email when your balance is running low, but if you’re actively using vouchers, check your balance regularly to avoid disruptions. If you’re on an annual Pro or Premium plan, your new credits are automatically added to your balance each year.
Instructions for redeeming tours with voucher codes #
When you provide a listener with a tour code, you also need to provide them with instructions to redeem that code.
We recommend giving instructions for redemption in the VoiceMap mobile apps – unless you specifically intend for the tours to be played using the interface at voicemap.me, that is, in which case you can use the urls at the far right of the voucher code list.
The basic instructions for redemption through the VoiceMap mobile apps normally look something like this:
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YOUR VOUCHER CODE: 1SAMPLE2
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TO USE IT:
1. Install VoiceMap from the Apple App Store or Google Play
2. Create an account
3. Select Tour Codes from the menu, then select Enter Codes
4. Enter the code 1SAMPLE2 then select Download Now
This is often enough, but over time – and tens of thousands of redemptions – we’ve expanded these instructions to include more detail, and we now recommend something like the following:
To use your tour, please read the important instructions below and disregard all other codes except for this one: 1SAMPLE2
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DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Install the VoiceMap mobile app. (Just search the Apple App Store or Google Play for VoiceMap Audio Tours.)
2. Create an account
3. Select Tour Codes from the menu, then select Enter Codes
4. Enter the code below then select Download Now
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#
YOUR CODE:
1SAMPLE2
[FOR UNIQUE CODES, VALID FOR 1 COPY PER CODE] This code can be used to redeem one copy of the tour. Codes are not case sensitive.
[FOR CODES VALID FOR MULTIPLE COPIES] This code can be used by every member of your party. If you have booked for three people, for example, three people can download this tour using the same code. Codes are not case sensitive.
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PLEASE ALSO NOTE:
• You can download the tour at any time, before or after your booking date. It’s best to download the tour before you set off for the starting point.
• When the download completes, you’ll see a screen with a photo of the starting point and directions to it. The red start button will become active when you are at the starting point.
• This tour follows a set route and includes turn-by-turn directions. It works best if you start it in the right place and follow the directions from one location to the next.
• The download should only take a few minutes to complete. If it takes longer, please cancel the download, go to Account, select Purchased and download the tour from there.
• Remember to bring your own headphones, unless you have booked a driving tour.
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SUPPORT:
For technical support and other queries, please email [email protected]