Brand Audience: 10 Tips to Broaden the Spectrum

Do you feel like you are only serving one class of people? Have you ever used your demographics to decide who your primary audience is in your location? Tracking the people that come into your park?or FEC is important to determine the type of audience that you can, and do, cater to.?

You should be using analytics. The analytical data will report to you if you have the ability to upsell products. If you don't have the clientele coming into your establishment who have money to spend, you probably aren't going to sell much of your higher-priced items. The whole point here is knowing your audience and knowing how to market and price accordingly.?

Are your demographics showing that you only have low income customers? You want to keep all of your customers. Having great value for your low-income customers is a great idea to retain their loyalty. However, you should be setting your goals to draw in a more financially capable crowd.?

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. Does your brand, logo and colors attract a certain customer from either low or high incomes??
2. Do you offer only low-income pricing or do you have a strategy to upsell??
3. Are your locations clean and highly maintained like Disney in a well-cultured atmosphere?

Capturing the Attention of the Wealthier Guests

Your brand needs to expand into all groups of people. You should be able to cater to each crowd. Having products and games and rides to suit everyone's needs is a must. You don't?want to exclude any group of people. After all, that is not how you gain loyalty. But, you should definitely be continually trying to attract new guests, the ones with more money to spend are a smart target.

Your brand is your entire identity. First and foremost, you should be focusing on training your team.?Your staff should all be on the same page when it comes to your brand identity. If they are getting it wrong and not promoting it properly, then it will be harder to get solid brand recognition.

Tips to Draw in The Big Spenders

Believe It or not, there are some simple strategies that you can do that can help attract the higher paying clientele into your facility. Take a look at the tips below to see if you are offering everything you should be in order to get their attention.?

1) Do You Provide A Premium Package?

Designing a premium package is one of the most simple things you can do that can attract people who are willing to spend more money, get more in return. Be sure to make all of your packages highly visible so that they can make comparisons and decide which package is best for them.?

2) Do You Have Luxury Packages & Services??

Creating a package to reflect quality and exclusivity can attract higher-paying guests. The higher-paying customer is not going to obsess on the price, but rather the special treatment and extra benefits that most people wouldn’t be able to attain.?

3)?Building Trust & Credibility With Your Brand

High-end guests look for certain businesses. They will choose an authority in the industry over other less reputable companies any day. Show them that they can trust you to provide them with the best service and thrills in the industry.?

4) Carefully Market To Their Needs

When you are launching your marketing strategies, it is essential to include these luxury-driven guests. They will probably not be on the channels that you market to every day. Instead, you may have to branch out a bit and learn their habits. Where do they spend time online? What type of publications do they read? Then advertise your luxury services and premium packages there.

5) Excellent Customer Service is a Must!

These high-end customers want the best in the industry. YOU have to provide that experience. It is not enough to attract them, get them there only to find you don’t live up to their standards or expectations. Make sure that you offer consistency, the highest level of customer care & guest experiences, as well as efficiency in all services that you provide.

6) Over Communicate All Packages & Luxury Offers

Your packages and deals should cater to various types of guests. Customize your strategies to distinguish a clear relation to the lifestyles of the audiences you are marketing to. A focus on value will attract one type of guest but exclusive deals, and catering services will market to another. Be sure to do both and make them highly visible and communicated to your guests.

7) Do you Have A Rapid Response System In Place?

All classes of people like to feel important and deserve a quick response to problems that may arise. It is a good practice to have a damage control team standing by in case you have complaints. If you don’t, you run the risk of your guests leaving dissatisfied and any trust you may have built will be erased. Train your response team to be friendly and keep all communication on a professional level in the facility as well as on social media. Have fall back/emergency perks to keep the guests happy in extreme situations.

8) Create Smart Partnerships

Connecting your park or FEC with the right companies that can complement your brand is essential. If you partner with hotels in the immediate area, there is a difference in class & quality if you chose a Super 8, over a Hilton to partner with. Make wise choices. The customers you want to attract are willing to pay the price for quality.?

9) What About Price Competition & Alienating Consumers?

This is an unnecessary worry. By making sure that you are providing deals, combos and packages for all classes of people, no one is going to feel left out. Also, remember that your wealthier clients tend to associate high prices with high value.?

10) Do You Have A Unique & Exclusive Offer Available?

The higher-class guest wants deals that are exclusive, something that they feel privileged to have. For instance:

• Enjoying rides & attractions when they are normally closed.
• Paying for “front of the line” access on popular rides & attractions during peak times.?
• Perks can include limited edition products & services.
• Sneak peeks and preliminary experiences of new attractions & rides are also a hot selling point as the high-end guest will not want to miss out!?

These tips can help you entice a customer base with more spendable cash into your park or FEC. Do you currently have them in place? Do you have a tip, not on this list? Feel free to comment on your strategies.

07-09-22

?Tim Murphy is CEO of APX Operating Company, dba Boomers Parks, under the ownership of Cerberus private equity ($55B assets). Boomers Parks owns six family entertainment centers and two water parks with locations in California, Florida, and New Jersey.

As CEO of Boomers Parks since 2020, Tim took these eight parks from bankruptcy to profitability in just a year – in the middle of a global pandemic. When Boomers acquired these parks, they were operating at a $10 million loss. Tim transformed the customer experience and added new revenue streams to generate a 180% increase in revenue in 2021 (and on track to be a 250% increase in 2022).?

Tim launched his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has since served more than 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands across more than 10,000 locations in C-suite and senior positions.

?Additionally, Tim is a Board Director with Coney Park, Happy City, and YuKids - Family Entertainment & Amusement Parks, part of The Carlyle Group ($275B assets), a private equity firm that operates 150+ family entertainment centers and amusement parks in Latin America.?

?Tim has worked with top-tier entertainment and restaurant brands including Disney, Rebounderz Trampoline Parks, Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, etc.), Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, Applebee’s, Sonny’s Bar-B-Q, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco, Hardee’s, Golden Corral, and Firehouse Subs.?

Tim has overseen more than 35 purchase transactions involving over 1,200 restaurants, stores, and park locations.?With extensive experience in buying and selling businesses, handling negotiations with buyers and sellers, and creating strategic partnerships to build strong brands, Tim has facilitated deals ranging from $11 million to $350 million+.

?Tim is a member of IAAPA, CAPA, FAA, AAMA & WWA. He is a licensed commercial real estate broker in the State of Florida. Tim earned a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and?an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.