Using Kiosks Can Boost Ticket Sales
Many organizations using kiosks report shorter ticket lines and increased ticket sales. So picture this:
It’s a rainy Saturday afternoon and your family is getting restless staying inside the house, so you decide to head over to your favorite museum. Unfortunately, it seems everyone else had the same idea and the line to the ticket desk is painfully long. You notice a row of ticket kiosks along the wall that seem to be moving visitors through at a much faster rate, so you move over to buy tickets from one of them. Within minutes, your family is out of line and happily exploring the exhibits.
Here are some things to keep in mind if you are interested in implementing kiosks at your organization:
1. Start Small and Grow
Your box office and website sell far more than just single tickets so it can be tempting to want your kiosks to do everything from day one. In reality, it’s better to start small. Allow your visitors to get used to buying same day single tickets first, then grow kiosk functionality to sell things like memberships and special events, as well as to take donations. Other creative ideas to eye for the future include email list sign-up, visitor surveys, and food and drink vouchers.
2. Cost and Implementation
Installing kiosks is a financial commitment because it incurs both hardware and software costs. Start by scoping out requirements of what you want your kiosks to do. For example, should they be able to take cash as well as credit cards? Will they need to print tickets? Where will you be installing them–would you ever need to move them for special events at different locations? Once you have a sense of the hardware requirements, compare different kiosk models to find the right one for your organization.
Decisions will also need to be made about the design and implementation of the kiosk purchase path. Some organizations choose to use a modified version of their website purchase path, while others prefer to build a custom path specifically for use on their kiosks. There are pros and cons to each option, so consult your web vendor for help.
3. Data Security
We’ve all heard horror stories of people having their bank information stolen after using an ATM with a skimmer attached. The same risk applies to your kiosks. One way to help is to ensure your kiosks have chip readers. Also, your IT team should put a process in place for regular checks of the machines to ensure no one has tampered with them.
Adage has been happy to help some of our museum and theater clients (like the Royal Danish Theater) get their kiosks up and running. We’d love to tell you more about it–please contact us!
Since joining Adage in January 2016, Lauren Bowser and her team of developers have successfully completed several website redesign projects. Most of her projects like The Guthrie Theater integrate a front-end built on Episerver with the Tessitura Network. She enjoys guiding her clients through the rapidly changing digital world and helping them achieve their business goals. Lauren holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Sociology from Miami University.
