UK based family theme park, Paultons Park, has extended its partnership with mobile app platform Attractions.io to introduce new functionality into their guest-facing app. The update, expected to go live in the next few weeks, will support the park in implementing social distancing measures and help them to re-open safely once government guidance allows.
The new functionality includes both virtual queuing and extended mobile food ordering capabilities which will eliminate the need for guests to wait in line for rides or to order and collect refreshments. The app already allows guests to import tickets into the app, preventing queues at the park entrance, and along with the newly announced functionality the app will help to alleviate the biggest social distancing challenges faced by many visitor attractions in a post-COVID world — playing a key role in the park’s reopening strategy.
The Paultons Park app is already a central part of the guest experience, as Rob Griffiths, Head of Marketing, explains:
“The app already helps visitors make the most of their day out, and delivers ongoing improvements to guest satisfaction. This made it the obvious solution to build upon, equipping our visitors with a tool that not only helps keep them safe but also improves their experience.”
Guests visiting the park this year will be able to take advantage of:
Virtual queuing
Virtual queuing removes the challenge of having large volumes of people standing in close proximity by replacing physical queue lines with virtual ones that guests can join via their smartphones. Instead of waiting in confined lines, guests are free to roam around and get notified when they’ve reached the front of the virtual queue and can board the ride.
Working in unison with the app’s existing day planner functionality, guests will be able to build an itinerary for their day, view live wait times, join a virtual queue and even have the opportunity to purchase fast track onto the rides, all from one place.
Mobile food ordering
Mobile food ordering helps overcome social distancing and hygiene challenges by removing queuing and reducing interactions with staff and communal touch screen kiosks. Guests can browse menus and pay for food from within the app, specify a collection time and location, then get notified when it’s ready.
Paultons Park already conducted a trial of in-app food ordering in summer 2019, resulting in a 38% increase in average transaction sizes compared to walk-up sales, thanks to automatic up-sells, cross-sells and abandoned order recovery.
In-app ticketing
Integrated with Paultons Park’s existing ticketing solution, the app provides guests with instant access to their tickets and membership passes inside the mobile app — available to scan and go at the turnstiles. Paultons Park can also promote targeted upgrade offers such as multi-day tickets through the app, creating a new channel to drive repeat visits and revenue.
An end-to-end solution
Alongside the app’s existing features, the app provides an end-to-end solution that visitors to Paultons Park can use to meet all of their needs, helping them maximise their time on-site, practice safe social distancing and access information and updates in real-time, thanks to targeted messages and notifications.
James Mancey, Operations Director at Paultons Park said;
“The safety of our guests and the quality of the ‘Paultons Experience’ have always been our top priorities. Since closing our doors on 20th March in response to the developing coronavirus situation, we’ve been working hard to create an environment that’s both safe and enjoyable for guests to visit once we’re able to re-open.
“The app will play a vital role, as it helps us solve multiple social distancing challenges in a single platform that is already proven to add value for guests and improve their experience, rather than disrupt or detract from it. We’re excited to extend our great relationship with Attractions.io to make this vision a reality.”
Mark Locker, CEO of Attractions.io added;
“As the industry moves towards re-opening, it’s clear that having the right technology in place to manage the on-site experience and keep guests safe will be more vital than ever.
“Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve been eager to use our expertise to support our customers in overcoming the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19 and we’re delighted to be able to support Paultons Park in their preparations to open safely and successfully.”
For more information about Attractions.io visit https://attractions.io/.
