There are more entertainment options and distractions now than at any point in history. In the palm of our hand, we can watch our favorite team or performer, listen to a podcast or contact anyone we know instantly. This begs the question: How do we engage with patrons and cultivate sustainable relationships when the entire world is at their fingertips? Patron engagement starts with proactive communication prior to the event. Whether your goal is to maximize attendance, encourage in-event participation or make sure your patrons park in the correct place, communication before, during and after the event is critical. This article will give you a starting point on how to better engage with your patrons by proactively communicating with them.

For the purposes of this article, we define proactive communication as targeted, relevant and actionable advanced communication executed with a clear goal. This means that even if you are sending communication during an event or following an event, the recipients of your communication and its desired affect have been determined weeks, or even months, in advance. With respect to technology, this article will focus on email and text communication only.

Step 1: Define your pain points with respect to your audience activity.

Here are a few questions to get started:

• What is your inventory utilization? Are no-show rates increasing?
• What is your current average per-capita spending at events?
• Are your patrons aware of and participating in meet and greets, VIP services or other in-event experiences?
• Are season ticket holders utilizing their benefits (discounts, loyalty program, ticket exchanges and single-ticket discounts)?
• Do you get feedback from patrons? If so, how do they contact you?
• Does your audience activity impact the execution of your events? If so, how?

By determining your pain points and opportunities, you can start to reflect upon how your current communications have affected their behavior — do you think they pay attention to emails, signage or any other helpful communication you have created?

Step 2: Determine your patrons’ favorite mode of communication.

• Is it text or email?
• Have patrons ever asked to have a receipt or ticket texted to them?
• Do your patrons check your website or call the box office to get information?
• Is it time for a change or update to your communication platform?
• Would your patrons enjoy an easier way to renew their season tickets?

And don’t forget to review your sales channel reports and talk to your front-line staff. Your box office representatives, ticket sellers and ushers are constantly receiving feedback — use that feedback to your advantage.

As you are asking yourself these questions, go back to your pain points in Step 1 and think about how communicating the relevant information proactively could have impacted the event. For example, if your per-capita spending is decreasing, sending a text a few hours prior to the event about in-event experiences and amenities (such as meet and greets and VIP receptions), merchandise areas and concessions will help your patrons navigate the venue and feel more welcome. Or, if you want to show appreciation to your subscribers, offer them seat upgrades (complimentary or paid) or other perks via text or email in the days leading up to an event. This lets them know you appreciate them and want them to have the best experience possible because they are a subscriber. In both examples, include helpful links in the first couple sentences of your message so taking action is easy and fast for the patron.

Don’t forget: Be strategic. Send only relevant communications to patrons likely to act on the communication you have sent and send it via their preferred way to communicate. Recent industry reporting from INTIX proves that patron’s preferred communication methods are changing rapidly, and you may need to take greater measures to make communication relevant.

Predictive Analytics

Employing predictive analytics can enhance your communication strategy. By analyzing historical ticket-scan and sales data, you can start to predict patron activity with respect to attendance. If you are predicting a high no-show rate among season ticket holders, perhaps a text welcoming them to the event will encourage attendance and how much you appreciate them. If your ticket-scan data tells you that this is an audience predicted to arrive early, maybe a text about concessions, in-event experiences or merchandise areas near their seats will be relevant to the patron and increase per-capita revenue.

As you are creating a proactive communication strategy, you may also need to consider updating your current communication platform and analytics tools.

Step 3: Consider your resources and the latest technology. 

Whether you’re an early adopter of the latest tech or you just want to get more out of your current systems, you must first consider your resources including time, staffing, budget and technology. Does your current ticketing software have communication tools built in, or will you need to shop around for new technology? Ticketing technology is constantly evolving, so keeping yourself informed of available communication platforms and software integrations will help you make an informed choice if you need to update your communication means.

Proactive communication can make your organization stand out in a world of distractions. Delivering targeted and actionable communication to your patrons can help you increase revenue and provide your patrons with the best possible experience.

This article was sponsored by SeatCycle.