12th June, 2024
Seasonality. The very word is enough to strike fear into the heart of visitor attractions across the country - but do certain times of year have to be so scary?
Every attraction should be able to find chances to offer new twists on their offering which balance the peaks and troughs of attendance, even out cash flow and ease staff scheduling.
An outdoor venue like a farm park might have to get creative during the cold months when people would prefer to be inside, while an indoor venue like a museum might need a special summer promotion to lure people in from the outdoors. Each has seasonal opportunities to capture a new demographic or secure return visits from current customers.
Q4 is another good example. In the retail world, this is known as the ‘golden period’ because spending and earnings see a considerable spike. In fact, stats from Statista show the boost in retail events and sales spending between October and December is far more apparent in the UK than the rest of Europe. There’s clearly an opportunity for attraction brands to tap into this appetite for spending; though it does take some creative thinking to get right.
At DigiTickets, we help businesses in the attractions industry prepare for seasonal periods with online sales and marketing tactics that build anticipation and demand throughout the year. Here are a few examples of brands that take advantage of seasonality in their own way, and how we've helped.
Tulleys Farm is one of the most successful event operators in the UK, and its creative seasonal events calendar is the perfect example of turning seasonality into an advantage.
The Tulleys Tulip Fest features over 100 different flower varieties, from early bloomers to mid-season and late-season varieties, which creates a rolling kaleidoscope of colour in fields throughout the season. The festival is also a perfect way to encourage demand and balance pre and post-Easter footfall dips.
Later in the year, its Halloween-themed Shocktober Fest boasts award-winning music, interactive theatre performances and haunted hayrides – making it one of their biggest draws.
Each of Tulleys’ events has its own look and feel, so we’ve designed an engaging website for each that highlights its frightful festivities. Tickets are released in limited batches, and prominent text states how many have been sold out and when the next will be made available. This rewards loyal customers who plan ahead and shows newcomers that the event is in high demand, both of which drive sales. The approach has been a huge success for Tulleys – attracting over 100k visitors within a 28 day period.
Our Website Vision team designed things so Tulleys can decide in advance how many tickets it wants to release and at what times. That means one set-up session for a year's worth of promotions. There’s no hassle for the vendor or the customer – but that's our job: doing the heavy lifting to make sure vendors and customers seamlessly connect.
One of our favourite seasonal events is Wild Lights at Dublin Zoo. It features spectacular light shows, sculptures and immersive experiences. Visitors walk down paths lined with beloved storybook characters, animals, and plants which come alive to the sounds of enchanting music.
Each year has a different theme, which is not attached to a specific holiday, so visitors are drawn throughout the season. With over one million customers per year it's the most popular family attraction in Ireland.
Since the zoo has done the hard work of creating a great show, we at DigiTickets do our best to make sure the big crowds that come are able to get through the gates as quickly as possible.
Our point of sale system, ProPoint, quickly processes the massive amount of ticketing information coming in as guests arrive. With handheld scanners and a little training, the zoo staff gets everyone out of the queue and into the show!
Nothing says ‘golden period’ like Christmas. British Garden Centres (BGC) is renowned for their Christmas experiences and Santa's grottos. They're full of bright lights, colourful costumes and tasty treats. It's no wonder they receive rave reviews year after year, and we do all we can to make sure visiting is easy.
By making sure their more than 60 garden centres get their own events pages, each site's unique offerings are clearly listed for potential customers. We even use geo-location to indicate which centre is closest. This keeps customers on the ticketing site and making purchases instead of trying to count miles on Google Maps!
BGC’s online buyer journey is purpose-built to require as few clicks as possible (usually three or four). Customers are very sensitive to loading and checkout times, so efficiency is crucial to turning prospects into buyers.
All these small tweaks add up to a big difference, taking the hassle and guesswork out of the purchase process so families can get the planning over with and get on with the merrymaking.
With all of seasonality's challenges and opportunities, getting started with a new offering can seem a little overwhelming. The important thing is to experiment with new ideas to find what works best for your guests.
It's a journey, and we at DigiTickets are here to guide you every step of the way. Make sure to download your free copy of our latest report – Your Roadmap to Selling More Tickets in 2024 – for more expert insights and industry trends!
Get in contact with us to discuss how we might be able to help.
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