What is Timed Entry Ticketing?
Timed entry ticketing is a system designed to help manage crowds and promote social distancing at popular attractions, museums, and events. It ensures that people can enter the venue when it is safe to do so without overcrowding or waiting in long lines. Rather than entering at any time, visitors book tickets online with a designated entry time for an easy and efficient entry experience.
A recurring challenge of timed entry ticketing is making sure that visitors show up at the designated time they have booked their tickets. To ensure this happens, venues need a reliable method of tracking attendance which could involve a digital reservation system or physical tickets with barcodes or QR codes. By having a record of who has registered for the event in advance, venues can easily identify any discrepancies when guests arrive.
Prompt Customer Service is Key
Everyone wants to have a positive reputation when it comes to customer service. Timed entry ticketing introduces an urgency to customer service interactions. It’s important for attractions, museums, and events operators to provide excellent customer service throughout the entire ticket-buying process from beginning to end. This can include offering timely responses to inquiries about availability or providing helpful instructions on using the online booking system. Additionally, if there are any malfunctions or technical issues along the way then venues should have staff available to assist customers as quickly as possible.
Here are 10 tips for a successful timed entry ticketing experience for you and your customers:
1. Have clearly defined entry times
Having clearly defined entry times helps ensure that your guests have enough time to plan their visit and know exactly when they will be able to enter the venue. This also eliminates any confusion or delays at the door.
2. Offer flexible booking policies
Be sure to offer flexible booking policies so that customers can easily adjust their scheduled tickets if needed. Consider offering options such as rescheduling tickets for a different time slot or refunding tickets upon request.
3. Make sure your ticketing system is accurate
Your ticketing system should always be up-to-date with accurate information about the availability and pricing of your tickets. This will help prevent any errors when selling tickets online or at the door.
4. Use promotional strategies to drive sales
Promote your timed entry ticketing option through various marketing channels such as social media, email campaigns, ads, etc., to drive more sales and increase awareness of this new system among potential visitors. Additionally, you may want to consider offering special discounts or promotions for those who book timed entries in advance as an incentive to purchase early on.
5. Monitor visitor numbers in real-time
With a well-designed timed entry ticketing system, you should be able to monitor visitor numbers in real-time so that you can adjust accordingly if necessary (i.e., add more slots or close off certain times). This will help ensure that your venue remains comfortable throughout the day without overcrowding or long lines at the entrance door.
6. Automate Where Possible
Automation can be an incredibly helpful tool for streamlining the ticketing process. By automating certain processes, such as pre-selling tickets or assigning tickets to specific time slots, you can save time and resources while ensuring accuracy in your operations. Automation also makes it easier to track sales trends over time, so you can identify areas of potential growth or improvement.
7. Offer Flexible Payment Options
Offering flexible payment options gives customers more flexibility when purchasing tickets, and it increases their likelihood of actually completing the purchase. Give customers the option to pay via credit card, debit card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay—whatever payment methods are popular in your area—and watch as more people take advantage of what you have to offer. Bonus Tip: There are many opportunities for things to get held up without the right payment processor in place. Legacy payment processing tools often struggle to delineate between problem scenarios and modern event trends. When sales spike or attendees register from uncommon places, some providers reject payments or require extra steps as fraud prevention. Because of Square’s commitment to innovation, agility, and smart design, many features make it a top choice when considering payment providers. Discover why Square is the best cutting-edge payment processing tool for your events.
8. Keep Your Website Updated
The best way to ensure that your website is up-to-date is by regularly checking it yourself. This includes verifying that all links are working properly and that all information about upcoming events is accurate. Additionally, make sure that any important changes or updates are reflected on both the desktop version of your website and the mobile version—you don’t want customers feeling frustrated because they’re getting outdated information on their phones!
9. Make Sure Your System Is Secure
When dealing with customer data or processing payments online, security is always paramount. Make sure that your website is PCI compliant (if necessary) and protected by SSL encryption technology (which should be used for any website). You should also keep up with any security updates from third-party providers such as payment processors or ticketing systems—it’s better to be safe than sorry!
10. Provide Support For All Types Of Customers
Finally, make sure that you provide adequate support for all types of customers who may be using your system. This includes both technical support (for those who need help navigating the process) as well as customer service (for those who need assistance with refunds or changes to their tickets). The more support you provide, the better chance you have of turning first-time visitors into loyal return customers!
Create Customer Loyalty with Brushfire
One of the most obvious challenges faced by popular attractions, museums, and events when implementing a timed entry ticketing system is ensuring that visitors can book their tickets in advance of the event. This means having an efficient, easy-to-use online booking process that allows customers to select their desired date and time for entry. It’s also important for there to be adequate availability of tickets so that visitors are not prevented from attending due to the venue being at capacity. For this reason, venues need to be able to accurately gauge how many people plan on attending each day and adjust their ticketing accordingly.
Are you looking for an industry-leading platform to create a successful timed entry ticketing experience? Brushfire can help! Use our powerful ticketing software to support your timed entry ticketing, increase attendance, gain key insights, and create repeat customers. Our innovative tools and top-notch customer support are second to none.
Learn more about our timed entry ticketing solutions by scheduling a free consultation with our team!