Ticketing technology needs to be upgraded at theme parks, zoos and museums in order to adapt to new distribution opportunities, according to tourism insights company Arival.
It says that significant investment is needed in the industry, in its report Ticketing Tech: The State of and Outlook for Attractions Technology and Distribution. The report cites a lack of attention and investment at large attractions that current capture the majority of travellers’ time and spending. The smaller, independent suppliers and operators that serve the big attractions, it said, are currently the focus of support.
Consumers, said Arival, are looking for "seamless digital experiences" and that is placing pressure on larger attractions to pay more attention to ticketing solutions to gain more mobile access, inventory data and third-party integration.
Says the report: “In some respects, the ticketing technology sector today is comparable to hotel-industry technology of 10 or even 15 years ago. However, a shift is under way. The attractions industry is inching toward cloud-based systems and connectivity for distribution and other third-party systems. New entrants are stepping into the sector and consolidation and investment among established players are bringing much-needed change.”
The survey identified several themes that indicated the future of ticketing technology for big attractions. It showed that many use customised on-premises technology for their unique needs and that made change difficult. There was also a reluctance to adopt new ticketing systems because of worries about their reliability, the cost and their complexity.
Luke Finn of Roller, the provider of ticketing, POS and CRM software, said: “In this day in age, customers expect a great online checkout experience. If the experience is not mobile friendly, or the flow is slow and clunky, this makes people frustrated and ultimately leads to a decrease in conversions. Customers are willing, wanting and trying to buy, but lose interest whilst trying to hand over their money.
“Traditionally, what we have seen in the market is that ticketing vendors are investing heavily in the back-end, customised systems, but not investing in helping to improve the guest experience or the purchase flows. Vendors that have on-premise and dated systems, are restricted by their ability to innovate in this area and the attraction operators are inevitably suffering as a result.
“Attractions should be investing in ticketing platforms that are continually focused on reducing the friction in the customer purchase process.”
