giving/Black Friday rush. According to Pingle, parents “are so excited that they are buying an experience that can last the whole year.” Other incentives. There are other ways to incentivize repeat visitation, many of which require the ability to capture vis- itor information. Fortunately, digital waiv- ers make this process infinitely easier, and many booking software programs automatically capture email addresses. At ZipZone, every customer receives a thank-you email at the end of their visit that includes a coupon for 10 percent off a return visit. This is a great way to gain individual business from group sales, where children who climbed with their school might tell their parents about the experience. Pingle advises that this offer also “lets [customers] know that this doesn’t have to be a one-time thing.” For traditional challenge course pro- grams, where businesses traffic largely in group sales, the incentives look a little different. Sue Crumbaker of Hale Reser - vation, a popular nonprofit challenge
value” add incentivizes groups to book, according to special events manager Nick DiMatteo. While conversions to gym memberships are negligible, the perceived value creates a wow factor that helps bolster repeat business for the team-building experience, which current- ly sees roughly a 75 percent return rate.
Variety attracts repeat business to Ohio’s ZipZone Outdoor Adventures.
WHAT BRINGS THEM BACK?
While strategic pricing, product position- ing, and marketing can certainly provide a pipeline to attract repeat customers, these strategies gloss over one critical question, “Do the customers want to come back?” The operators we spoke with agree that no one would come back if not for the quality of the service. Tailored experience. For Shaw Dunton of APEX Adventures, a traditional ropes course business based in Santa Cruz, Calif., personal relationships are the backbone of his business. Many of his customers have been coming to APEX for more than 20 years, and his school and corporate clients have a 90+ percent return rate. For Dunton, every
course program that serves many of the schools in the Boston area, says pricing can be a factor. At Hale Reservation, customers always have the option to lock in the prior year’s pricing if they book by a certain date. This often leads return customers to commit months before they would normally book. At Chelsea Piers Team Building in Manhattan, the follow-up process takes a step further. The venue, a traditional team-building operation housed in a high-end gym and sports training facility, offers every team-building guest a free day pass. Only 10 percent of visitors take advantage of this, but the “huge
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