5 Ways a Loyalty Rewards Program Can Help Grow Your Amusement Park or FEC Revenue

Get these benefits and more when you implement a guest loyalty rewards program at your amusement park or FEC.

Every entertainment venue is trying to learn how to operate smarter and differentiate their business from the competition. With consumers today who are more loyal to brands whose values they can identify with, a great way to differentiate yourself is through your park’s loyalty or rewards program. But it isn’t just about giving something away for nothing.

There are many different types of rewards programs: including tier based and points programs, based on winnings, dollars spent or visits, and not every program would be right for your facility. But if you’re still on the fence about whether they can help your business, read on for several key ways a guest loyalty rewards program can help you increase revenue and strengthen your brand. A well-designed loyalty rewards program can help your amusement park or FEC do these five things.

No. 1: Encourage more in-the-moment spending.

Many consumers subscribe to the, “it’s not about how much you spend, it’s about how much you save” mentality, and that’s a win if you show the guest value right away in your loyalty rewards programs. Just like how I’ll always order one or two more items to get free next day shipping on Amazon, many guests are encouraged to spend a little more to get closer to your next reward benefit or tier.

You could choose to enroll all incoming guests in your program or require that they opt-in. The key to maximizing the opt-in approach is to position benefits in both the short and long term. Guests need an immediate win (like a bonus of a free appetizer with a food and beverage purchase, an extra $5 game card bonus or another type of BOGO discount) early in the program to provide a compelling incentive for joining and boosting initial purchases.

No. 2: Motivate influencers and increase conversions.

People spend more with brands they like. And brand evangelists who are (or behave like) influencers provide your business with word of mouth referrals which make you a worthy choice in the eyes of their audience, so it makes sense to provide compelling incentives that people want to talk about. For example, travel programs such as Southwest Rapid Rewards and Marriott Rewards use points incentives to help motivate loyal fans to spread the word to their connections about credit card offers. Operational practices can be combined with software functionality to create incentive programs to help motivate loyal fans.

In addition to the service and experience you’re offering to guests at your amusement park or FEC, providing some incentive or rewards to get influencers to take action for your facility can boost frequency of visits, spending, and the number of guests through the door. Think about benefits that would be most meaningful for your most frequent, most loyal guests.

No. 3: Gain insight into the personas and buying behaviors of your guests.

One key to creating meaningful programs is to better understand your guests’ desires and habits. In fact, your most frequent park visitors may not be those who spend the most, or who are the most loyal. Loyalty rewards programs that accumulate points or achievements based on overall spending or items purchased at your amusement park or FEC are great because they offer you a glimpse into guest visit frequency, spending, what they’re buying and how they’re engaging with your attractions.

No. 4: Build a dynamic marketing database.

Understanding both the unique habits of the people who patronize your amusement park or FEC the most, coupled with the demographic information you have in your customer profiles, builds a one-of-a-kind database for use in target marketing based on demographics, purchase type, purchase frequency, age group and more in very customized, unique ways.

The more you know about your guests, the better equipped you are to engage with them on a personal level, and build incentives and offers that speak directly to them. This will help you get in sync with the very people you want to see more of.

No. 5: Elicit feedback from the people who know you best.

Getting to know your guests is just one piece of the puzzle – they’ll also get to know you as well. Your loyalty rewards program participants can serve as a great resource to help you understand where your operations and sales teams excel, and where they don’t. Many businesses elicit feedback using a Net Promoter Score to learn how healthy their customer experience is and reduce customer friction and churn. According to a recent Customer Loyalty article on Hubspot, existing customers can spend as much as 67% more than new ones, so it’s critical that you have a finger on the pulse of what your existing customers think about your business.

These are just a few of the key benefits that a customer loyalty program can bring to your bottom line. And when constructed and implemented well, can be a key differentiator for your business in the market.

Learn how CenterEdge Advantage POS can help you manage your loyalty rewards programs and keep guests coming back for more.