Time to Celebrate
Makes: Encouragement for first-time audiences to come to you for their special occasion
Cooking time: 2 hours
This recipe card was created in collaboration with Indigo-Ltd
Research* shows that 54% of audiences in 2023 were first-timers. So, how do you bring those patrons back again?
With this recipe, you can strategically use your customer data to encourage first-time attendees to return for a special occasion.
Outcomes
- Convert people on your database who have never made a booking with you
- Bring first-time attendees back to celebrate their next special occasion
Ingredients
Data
People in your database who have never made a booking.
Key Messages
- Make your special occasion unique by celebrating with us.
- We have everything you need for a memorable celebration.
Prep
- Think about all the different occasions you could target and make an occasion calendar to plan your email campaigns. This campaign isn’t just for the winter holiday season!
- Find or create photos of small groups of families or friends enjoying themselves in your venue. They could be celebrating a birthday or another special occasion.
- Create a web page which brings together your "great night out" offer: entertaining shows, any food and drink offer or deals with local partners. Use a filtered what’s on list or keep it generic so you don’t have to keep updating it manually. Think about the whole experience for your guests - from before they arrive to the end of their night.
- Build several celebration packages to suit different occasions, such as welcome drinks. Make it easy for someone to book these for a small group. Set them up in your ticketing system as an add-on during the purchase path.
- Create flexible email and web content blocks that focus on group ticket prices, coat check, ticket insurance, no booking fees, and ease of transport, including any deals with local taxi companies.
Cook
- Create an email template which highlights all the benefits of celebrating with you. Take inspiration from how attractions and retailers talk about occasions.
- Amend your email subject, using your occasion calendar, to tailor the messaging to specific occasions: end of the school year, Mother's Day, wedding anniversaries, birthdays, etc.
- Use specific knowledge of your customers, where you have it, to tailor the email subject messaging. For example, if you know their date of birth, you can create happy birthday messaging which can be sent some time ahead of the special day.
- Automate as many of the campaigns as possible: keeping it generic, with links to web pages that you keep up-to-date is the key
Also try...
Using this recipe to craft an email that's targeted to those on your database who have made one previous booking.
Bon appétit!
Keep exploring our recipe box to fill your pantry with more ideas and insights on how to reach tomorrow's audiences.
*These recipes were crafted in response to the Tomorrow's Audience Indigo Share: Hot Topic, created in partnership with Spektrix and in association with a consortium of many of the UK's leading arts organizations. The rise in first-time audiences is mirrored in our US and Canada data, and we're confident that the tactics recommended here are relevant to both regions.