How to Get More Bookings: 10 Expert Tips for Maximizing Conversions and Guest Satisfaction

In the fast-paced world of attraction and venue management, securing more bookings is not just about optimizing for SEO or building an email list. It's about leveraging strategic insights and industry expertise to drive conversions, enhance guest satisfaction, and boost revenue. 

In this expert-driven guide, we'll explore ten practical tips from industry leaders and ROLLER customers on how to get more bookings, with a special focus on optimizing the guest flow through ROLLER's intuitive Progressive Checkout.

Strategy 1: Optimize your website for user experience

Expert insight: Thomas Mahon, Director of the Museum of Play and Art

“Being able to deliver a really beautiful online ticketing process - like seamless - being able to optimize it, being able to tweak it, being able to test, many understand how impactful it can be if you get the online and offline integration thing really well-tuned, that can have such an impact on a visitor experience.”

Actionable steps:

1. Simplify navigation to booking pages
2. Optimize for mobile responsiveness
3. Implement Progressive Checkout for a frictionless experience

Strategy 2: Leverage social proof and testimonials

Expert insight: Daniel Watkins, Owner and Operator of GC Aqua Park

In a digital age, online reviews significantly influence the reputation and success of any business. Daniel’s parks use ROLLER’s Guest Experience Score to fuel business growth by increasing positive word of mouth and online reviews. The GX Score is a guest feedback tool that automatically sends post-visit surveys to guests and prompts guests who give positive feedback to share their thoughts on public review sites.

For Daniel, this is one of the key ways that ROLLER delivers a return on investment. In 2022, the GX Score helped him to increase the number of Google reviews for the aqua park from 600 to 4,000, a staggering 567% increase! While the quantity of reviews is impressive, the quality of the guest experience at the park is equally notable, with a stellar rating of 4.9.

This isn't just a testament to the business’s commitment to guest satisfaction; it's a strategic move that boosts their organic marketing activity and improves their bottom line. With this level of traction on Google, it’s easier for new guests to find out about the park online, and the business doesn’t need to spend as much on paid advertising. "Now that we've got so many reviews on Google, our ad spend is decreasing, and our clicks are increasing,” says Daniel.

Actionable steps:

1. Collect and display genuine guest testimonials
2. Encourage guests to share their experiences on social media
3. Use ROLLER's social media integration to embed real-time updates

Strategy 3: Implement a strategic pricing model

Expert insight: Sheryl Bindelglass, CSP, ICAE, CEO of Sheryl Golf

“Dynamic pricing provides the ability to optimize pricing in real-time based on various factors such as demand and capacity levels. This flexibility enables businesses to capture the maximum value for their services, ensuring that prices align with customers’ willingness to pay. It can provide a strategic and advantageous approach to maximize revenue.

Additionally, dynamic pricing combined with the ROLLER platform provides valuable insights by reporting sales patterns and trends. It allows managed peak and off-peak hours, combos/bundling, and overall pricing strategies. This offers your center/park a competitive edge by optimizing prices in real-time, streamlining operations (staffing), and providing valuable insights for strategic decision-making.” says Sheryl Bindelglass, CSP, ICAE, CEO of Sheryl Golf.

Actionable steps:

1. Analyze historical booking data to identify peak times
2. Set pricing based on demand patterns
3. Utilize ROLLER's pricing dashboard to make adjustments

Strategy 4: Bundle attractive packages and add-ons

Expert insight: Elyss Larkham, Business Development Manager at Oakvale Wildlife Park

Now that they use ROLLER’s industry-leading online booking system, sales have skyrocketed. “Going from the previous reservations system to ROLLER, our wildlife encounters were up 300% in the first six months,” comments Elyss, Business Development Manager at Oakvale Wildlife Park. Not only are sales up, but they’ve been able to invest in and expand their experiences. They’ve doubled the number of encounters to eight different experiences, which provides a broader range of memorable experiences for guests and expands revenue potential. “We previously only ran three to four encounters. Because we have the ability to sell online, we’ve been growing our encounters offering,” says Elyss.

Actionable steps:

1. Create attractive package deals with bundled services
2. Highlight popular experiences during the booking process
3. Offer contextual add-ons as part of the online checkout flow to increase spend per head

Strategy 5: Leverage email marketing strategically

Expert insight: Brandon Wiley, CEO of Hownd

“The key to successful strategic email marketing is crafting campaigns that resonate with your audience's unique needs while guiding them towards a decisive action. Each email should provide value with a clear and compelling call to action. This approach transforms email campaigns from mere messages into powerful tools for driving sales through impulse purchases and promotions." - Brandon Wiley, CEO of Hownd

Actionable steps:

1. Build segmented email lists for targeted campaigns
2. Use ROLLER's email marketing integrations for automated campaigns
3. Track and analyze email campaign performance using ROLLER's analytics tools

Strategy 6: Enhance guest experience with personalization

Expert insight: David Lim, General Manager of Tomorrow Entertainment

ROLLER's robust data collection and reporting capabilities allow him to gather extensive information about customer behaviors. This data is then used to analyze customer preferences, purchase patterns, and demographics in-depth. By understanding their customer base, David's team can target specific segments with tailored marketing campaigns, enhancing customer engagement and spend. David commented, “It gives me the confidence in the decisions that I’m making. It's not just a hypothesis or qualitative feedback somewhere.”

Actionable steps:

1. Collect guest preferences during the booking process
2. Use ROLLER's data analytics to personalize communication
3. Give customers a more personal party experience by allowing them to customize their party package inclusions 

Strategy 7: Streamline communication channels

Expert insight: Christina Stang, Co-Owner of Skateworld

Her team communicates and collaborates on bookings in ROLLER, leaving comments in Venue Manager so that guests have a consistent experience, regardless of which Skateworld team member they speak to. “Having a clear line of communication is really nice,” says Christina.

Actionable steps:

1. Integrate all communication channels into ROLLER's platform
2. Utilize automated communication for booking confirmations and reminders
3. Implement a centralized system for managing guest inquiries and requests

Strategy 8: Implement limited-time promotions

Expert insight: Elyss Larkham, Business Development Manager at Oakvale Wildlife Park

Oakvale's admissions numbers shift with seasonal fluctuations, with school holidays drawing large crowds and mid-week periods or rainy days experiencing lower footfall. ROLLER's flexible product configuration options enable Oakvale to sell different products and packages at different times of the year to drive sales year-round. For example, they develop special offers to push off-peak online sales. “During our quieter months, we create packages and specials with ease in ROLLER. This year, we had free park admission with every encounter purchased midweek,” notes Elyss.

Actionable steps:

1. Set up and promote limited-time offers using ROLLER
2. Utilize countdown timers and urgency-inducing language
3. Monitor the performance of promotions through ROLLER's analytics

Strategy 9: Harness the power of influencer collaborations

Expert insight: Barry Zelickson, Owner of Next Exit Entertainment

"Work with local influencers or local personalities to create teaser content or behind-the-scenes glimpses to generate anticipation and curiosity about your upcoming events," says Barry Zelickson, Owner of Next Exit Entertainment.

Actionable steps:

1. Identify influencers relevant to your target audience
2. Offer exclusive experiences or discounts for influencer collaborations
3. Leverage ROLLER's tracking tools to measure the impact

Strategy 10: Monitor and analyze booking data

Expert insight: Ian France, Commercial Manager at ITV Studios

Before switching to ROLLER, reconciling numbers took a lot of work because it was challenging to differentiate guests who booked in advance from those who paid cash upon arrival. This led to significant amounts of manual labor that would tie up their staff, along with concerns about the accuracy of the data that was ultimately reported.

“The fact that I can understand and work with ROLLER with such confidence and ease is a great credit to it as a platform.” Ian France, Commercial Manager for ITV Studios, shares how easy it is to use ROLLER’s reporting to understand how the business performs across all 17 parks. “I use ROLLER every day. I’m looking at figures and historical analysis and looking ahead at bookings for a particular month, and in turn, it really is an essential tool in forecasting for the next month or quarter. It's a platform that I find easy to use and gives us great insights and data for analysis,” says Ian.

Actionable steps:

1. Set up a custom view of reports based on your key performance indicators
2. Monitor conversion rates, drop-off points, and popular attractions
3. Use insights to optimize the booking process and guest experience

By implementing these expert-driven strategies, attraction and venue operators can not only increase bookings but also enhance the overall guest experience. ROLLER's Progressive Checkout, with its emphasis on guest flow, speed, and minimal friction, serves as a pivotal tool in achieving these goals. 

As you embark on the journey of maximizing bookings, leverage ROLLER's intuitive platform to drive conversions, increase revenue per head, and create unforgettable experiences for your guests.