3 Must-Have Payment Methods for Your Entertainment Business

These payment methods will keep guests coming back – and spending money in your entertainment facility.

Entertainment facilities are continually seeking ways to improve and grow their revenue, cut costs and minimize risk and waste. Innovation appears in many forms, from consideration of adding a new attraction or offering to developing new sales or marketing strategies.

Entertainment businesses operate in a “What’s next?” mentality of consumer economy where new opportunities crop up all the time, and savvy operators are often left asking, “How can my business encourage repeat visits and guest loyalty?” in addition to, “How can I increase per cap spending for the people currently in the building?” 

One way to accomplish these goals is by staying up on payment trends. The easier it is for a guest to make purchases, the more likely they’ll be to stay in your facility longer – and spend more. Read on for three current payment trends in the entertainment industry that can help you achieve your business goals.

No. 1: Make payments safe and easy with tokenized tender

Tokenized tender, the method of replacing sensitive credit card information with a unique generated placeholder, provides your guests a safe and efficient way to pay for items and attractions in your facility. Tokenized tender can be used in conjunction with any system media in your park or facility such as barcoded tickets or wristbands, magstripe cards or Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. Further, it can be used per visit or for an extended time period, such as for a season pass.

With tokenized tender, guests have faith that their personal information is secure because their credit card information isn’t being stored. Furthermore, guests can set spending limits for individual users within their account, or can even set a master limit for their entire family or group so that they don’t have to worry about interrupting their fun or accidentally overspending. This helps make enjoying your facility safer and easier for your guests.

No. 2: Develop a repeating revenue stream with recurring billing

Offering your guest membership programs, classes and packages can be a great way to lock in their loyalty and encourage them to visit your facility or park on a regular basis. Recurring billing options can help entice guests to purchase memberships to gain access to special programs because of the lower regular payment. Often the upfront investment is reduced and guests have the freedom to cancel the program if necessary without a large loss. Membership perks could include offers of discounted passes or programs, enrollment in a class, special merchandise and more.

No. 3: Confirm secure transactions with signature capture

One of the most rapidly changing technologies for payments is signature capture with EMV devices. In addition to EMV technology reducing the number of card-present fraud charges, signature capture enables you to research transactions in a report rather than searching through stacks of paper receipts. This technology allows you to handle less paper, saving you a lot of time filing and sorting all those receipts.

There will always be new payment technology, and staying up on the trends will help you to keep your business competitive. Your software can make it easier for you to seamlessly add these new technologies into your business.

Did we miss any cutting-edge payment methods? Share them with us in the comments or connect with us on Twitter.