One aspect of attending any event or venue is the way in which the visitor is treated once they have made an enquiry. So often the process can be lengthy and time consuming to the point that they even lose interest in ever making a booking. The online booking process should be seamless and intuitive but, according to a recent survey, as many as 82% of people, when asked about their online booking experience, rated it as poor.
This situation is further exacerbated when the visitor arrives at the venue as, once again looking at the customer satisfaction survey, they don’t feel ‘valued’. If one looks at online booking systems it’s so easy to address both of these negatives with some software processes which will take the strain and create a quality experience.
As we know we only get one chance to make a first impression and everyone values a positive experience, as that’s the lasting memory they will take away with them, and even talk about to friends, family and even on social media.
Taking all this evidence into account Merlin® decided to do something about it with their new Event-Manager booking platform. The way in which the Merlin® system alleviates these issues is to be in control of the customer journey from start to finish with a very structured process of regular contact.
This process has a number of pre-programmed steps:
- When an enquiry is made on the website the system sends out a welcome email, which can also include other marketing material if required.
- When a booking is actually made the system sends out another email with the tickets attached and other relevant information regarding location, access, facilities, etc.
- At a time prior to the event, determined by the user, the system sends out a third email reminding them of their visit and also including any other information which may be of use to them in preparation for their visit.
- The day after their visit the system will send them a fourth email thanking them for attending, hoping they had a good experience and even linking them to the relevant page to record their experiences. It can also include additional marketing information for future events if required.
- Finally, if for any reason their visit is cancelled the system will send them a cancelation email together with any other information, offers etc. the venue may wish to give them.
As can be clearly seen, this process takes the customer’s hand all the way through their booking and visit to ensure they have a truly positive experience.
However, as we all know here “there’s more” and this comes in the form of ‘attendee details’ in that the Merlin® system allows you to collect whatever information you feel necessary to enhance their visit, for example, ‘Visit Santa’. In this scenario we know that children are going to come and meet Santa to explain to him what they want for Christmas. In the Merlin® system you can collect relevant information in order to make their visit really memorable. How about the child’s name, age, pet’s names, favourite toy or even what they want for Christmas. This information can be available to Santa when the child visits so that really meaningful conversations can be held with them whilst they are with him. Just think how special a child feels when Santa knows all about them, including their name, pets, what they want for Christmas, etc. The fact that all this information is readily available direct from the booking is exactly what is required and means that the customer knows just how valuable they are to the venue and what lengths they have taken to ensure a really positive experience for them.
The Customer is King or Queen and Merlin® ensures they are treated accordingly.
