In-person events, from sporting events to concerts, present unique challenges and opportunities for organizers. It’s essential to prepare for these gatherings with a focus on enhancing the guest experience.
The events industry is constantly evolving, and ensuring that high-demand, large-attendance events meet audience expectations is more important than ever. These tips can help you navigate these complexities and deliver a memorable experience.
If you’re looking for other ways to improve the fan and guest experience, you should read our blog ‘5 Ways to Improve the Fan Experience.’
1. Create Engaging Pre-Event Communications and Experiences
Set the tone for a great event by engaging your guests before they even arrive. Share exciting updates, sneak peeks, and interactive content through various channels such as social media, email, and mobile apps. By building anticipation and providing helpful information, you can enhance the overall experience and reduce any pre-event stress.
Consider offering exclusive pre-event content or experiences, such as virtual behind-the-scenes tours, interviews with performers or athletes, or interactive games. These activities not only generate excitement but also provide valuable information, helping guests plan their visit and know what to expect. Engaging your audience early fosters a positive connection and sets the stage for an enjoyable event.
2. Simplify the Parking and Ticketing Processes
Ticketing and parking are consistently among the most frustrating aspects of any guest experience. Any complication here can induce stress, from tickets that cost more than anticipated to parking that is too far away from the venue, expensive, or simply difficult to find.
Simplifying this process is absolutely crucial. Options include a single check-out system in which guests can book tickets and parking together for a bundle price with no hidden fees or creating a system in which guests can plan their parking long before they arrive. The easier the planning process becomes for your guests, the more they’ll enjoy the actual event.
3. Diversify Your Food and Drink Vendor Options
We’ve all been there. You attend a game of your favorite team or a concert by your favorite band, and you get hungry or thirsty. Unfortunately, none of the options are appealing, and the lines are so long that even the best food couldn’t get you away from your seat because you’d never come back. The team might win, or the band might rock the venue, but this can ruin the guest experience regardless.
Solving this problem means diversifying your food and drink vendors and the options you have at your venue. The more stands you have, even if they’re small, the shorter the lines will be, and the happier your guests will become. You’ll need to closely manage your vendors, too, of course.
4. Help Your Guests Understand Where They Need to Go
Especially at high-demand events, the venue can get crowded quickly. Your guests will all need the bathrooms during the break, they’ll want some food at halftime, etc. The last thing you need is long lines of people who are making things worse by being confused about where they need to go.
To solve this issue, a clear wayfinding system is absolutely crucial. Your guests should know where to go at all times. Even details like average wait times for different spots can help direct them to areas with shorter lines.
Leverage Your Interactive Map to Manage High-Demand Events
Creating a positive guest experience for high-demand events can be challenging. Fortunately, some tools can be especially helpful in making it happen. Enter interactive maps, which can go a long way towards implementing all of the above tactics. You can:
- Build anticipation before the event and provide directions to your guests’ parking spots
- Highlight food and vendor options to avoid clusters
- Create a wayfinding network throughout your venue that guests can leverage on the phone
As interest in high-demand events remains strong, it’s essential to refine your guest experience strategy. When you’re ready to start, contact us to learn more about our interactive map platform today.