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Ticketing parkworld-online.com


Parks adopt airline-style approach


to ticketing Since 2010, the Dutch company Pricetag has been providing dynamic pricing advice to theme parks and attractions, allowing them to employ the same flexible approach to pricing as the airline industry. Starting with Slagharen in The Netherlands, and more recently at Minitalia Leolandia and Rainbow MagicLand in Italy, visitors can benefit from low ticket prices if they are prepared to visit off peak, with prices rising according to demand.


Also known as yield management, dynamic pricing allows businesses to make the most of what is a finite inventory – in this case the number of days and hours a park are open and the guest capacity over that period. By tempting visitors with cheap midweek prices, attraction operators can potentially shift capacity that would otherwise go unsold. The pay-off for guests that visit during a peak period, and pay more for the privilege, is that they can enjoy a more comfortable experience when they get there.


At Slagharen, management observed a 20% drop in guest complaints about queues, while in-park spending was up by an average of 15% during the season dynamic pricing was implemented. Average ticket revenue was up a whopping 31%. The park also bucked the national trend that year and posted an increase in attendance, thanks to spreading visitation more evenly over the season, rather than relying on the summer months for the bulk of its trade. To secure the best prices, guests book in advance online using Pricetag’s system, and because the park has a better idea of how many people are coming each day, it can plan resources more efficiently and reduce staff costs. Pricetag has developed as many as 84 pricing models that can be applied to suit different parks and attractions, taking into account such factors as weather,


hotel occupancy, a visitor’s proximity to the park and even their level of influence on social media. It can also implement IP address pricing, which alters prices according to the amount of times someone has logged in from the same computer. If ever you suspected an airline was tweaking its prices because you had already searched for a flight, now you know that might not be an impossibility! Pricetag founder Eric Pastoor says it’s always worth inserting a few of your lowest prices even on peak days, so that potential guests are convinced they can grab a bargain and don’t become disenfranchised with the system. At Slahgaren, 85% of visitors surveyed were in favour of dynamic pricing. “There are two types of guest,” observes Pastoor,


The booking screen from the Minitalia Leolandia website shows the varied range of prices available to guests


“those that just want to go to a park on a particular date and will pay whatever it costs, and then those that always go for the best price and deal. These guests will benefit from dynamic pricing as you generally have greater flexibility in when you visit an amusement park compared to when you must take a flight.” The Pricetag system can be connected both to web shops and in-park cash registers and is “cloud native”. As well as the increase to revenue and other headline advantages, it also offers various useful data. Winner of an honourable mention for best new product from IAAPA in 2012, Pricetag has offices in The Netherlands, UK and USA. See the ad on page 35 for more details.


pricetag.nl


MARCH 2014


39


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