During the cost of living crisis, we're finding that one-off bookings are decreasing, whereas the bookings for pre-set events, like birthday parties, are remaining stable. But what does this mean for your business?
- If your events include free food, you're losing that portion of your income
- You're not making money from passing trade
- Once a party is over, it's over, you might not see the same group for a year or more. Whether it's because the kids have found something new to do, or because the stag/hen is only planning on getting married once. Most of your time ends up being taken up finding new party bookings.
So what are our four tips for attracting new visitors during the financial crisis?
1. Be happy
We all know that during a cost of living crisis, your visitors would rather stay at home and watch something on their streaming service. Not only is it typically cheaper than going to an activity centre, but they also don't need to leave the house and spend their money on fuel.
So what can you do?
Quite simply, be happy.
Activity centres are better for visitors' mental health and well-being. You need to show them this with your marketing.
2. Don't worry about your visitors not coming back
While it might be the case that it's easier to win back existing customers than it is to gain new customers, don't sweat it if you can't get them back.
Just keep focusing on the new ones you're going to gain with your marketing efforts. The money you spend trying to get one visitor to come back, you could be spending gaining ten new visitors.
3. Don't hide what you do
Do your potential visitors know what you do?
It's easy to tell visitors that you have a high-wire course onsite, but have you also told them that you have a zip-wire and trampolining for those who like to stay closer to the ground?
If your potential visitors don't know whether you meet their needs, they're not going to spend time trawling through your website or social media to make sure you tick all their boxes.
Make it clear up-front what you do and don't hide.
4. Spell out who you cater to
If someone is glancing at your marketing, will they know whether they can bring their family to your activity centre? Or do you only cater to adults?
If it's not clear who can attend your centre, you may be putting off more people than you're attracting. For example, if parents aren't aware that their 11-year-old can take part in paintballing, they may discount it as a family activity they can do.
So how can you make sure your marketing is working?
Every business is different, but if you take into account the factors above, you should be able to gain traction.
Whether that's making sure you advertise what you do and who you cater to. Or whether you need to make sure you spell out exactly what you offer.
As always, if you need any help with your marketing, reach out today.
