Commentary
FECs: Will you be ready for your customers?
When businesses reopen, your consumers will be coming out in a massive roar, and you want to focus on plans that will draw customers to your business. Will your staff be ready? Will your venue be ready?
August 3, 2020 by Sara Paz
As we said in an earlier blog, it is imperative you work on your reopening readiness plan with a clear understanding that it's not "just open the doors and back to business-as-usual."
This pandemic has changed the playing field. Research tells us consumers will not return to businesses they perceive as unsafe and/or brands that have disconnected during the lockdown.
Consumers are suffering serious cabin fever, and when restrictions are lifted there will be a huge consumer surge, if what happened in China is any indication. Your consumers will be coming out in a massive roar, and you want to focus on plans that will draw customers to your business. Will your staff be ready? Will your venue be ready?
While many of us are awaiting governments to lift restrictions for businesses to reopen, it's the time to start planning your customer win back strategy after COVID-19. Having this operating and promotion plan ready allows you to execute quickly and in real time.
Here are some ideas for welcoming back your customers.
1) Host a grand reopening event
Invite your entire social media community and charge a flat rate to attend (sell the tickets online, pre-paid; lower price online and higher price at the door) for a 4-hour party.
Host an all-you-eat BBQ, free-flow drinks, free or high discounted game-play, have a PR Wall where attendees can stand and take a picture and post on social media with a hashtag for the event (encourage customers to upload their pix and tag your business; pick a winner every hour), post your own pix while your event is happening and encourage attendees to do the same. It will attract more people in real time who will think, "there's a great party happening now, a flat rate entrance fee is good value, and the venue has dramatically elevated hygiene standards, so it's "good, clean, fun."
Having this operating and promotion plan ready allows you to execute quickly and in real-time.
Your reopening event will communicate the following: it is not business as usual, your business has re-opened and it is better than ever, with a greater menu, greater packages for family, better bundle deals on games, and more fun for the entire family and friends than any other family entertainment center.
2) Elevate your hygiene environment
All businesses are communicating the measures and steps they are taking to mitigate risk and protect their employees, customers and the industry from the coronavirus. You must do the same. It requires you to have a clear operating plan. If you haven't already, it's the time to switch to contactless payment processes, which assures your customers of a safe (virus-free) environment.
Contactless payment kiosks and readers eliminate risk of unhygienic coins and paper tickets, and/or cash payments (which can carry viruses for three days), plus you need to give consumers the ability to game using a virtual game card on their mobile wallet, which means zero contact (no app download), dramatically reducing risk of virus transmission.
3) Demand generation campaigns
Ongoing social media campaigns (which cost nothing) can help you build consumer buzz and re-engage customers around your FEC's reopening. Engage customers in simple and straight-forward competitions with winners. The prize should be something that drives traffic to your venue.
Offer special prices on seasonal passes, birthday party events, game league parties, gift cards (pay $10 and get $20), etc. It encourages repeat visits and drives loyalty to your FEC. You can run promotions tied to future national holidays and occasions, like graduation gift cards, birthday parties, Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Your guests have amazing memories of their experiences at your FEC and can't wait to return. Your win-back strategy ensures your business is on the list of top places they visit when they come out and play, and your grand opening event ensures the crowds come to you first and experiences the "new and improved" you.
The opportunity is now. Don't wait. If you haven't already, start planning it.
Image courtesy of Embed.
About Sara Paz
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