Thinkwell had a nationwide survey conducted that polled over 1,000 adults with children to analyze their spending choices at family-friendly LBEs, specifically family entertainment centers, children’s museums, aquariums & zoos, and restaurants. The goal of the survey was to determine whether families would be inclined to visit one of those venues more often and spend more money on purchases if they were completely infused with specific intellectual properties from a major motion picture, television show, video game, or book.
READ THE ACCOMPANYING WHITE PAPER HERE.
Tag: guest experience
Writing Rollercoasters: Stories, Spectacle & Games in Physical Places
Hear one of the world’s leading experience designers Dave Cobb talk about the future of physical space, how we’ll interact with each other, and the role of gamification in creating engagement. From retail to amusement parks, and from public spaces to universities, the gamification of the physical world promises to unlock new and exciting ways to socialize, interact and explore. Get inspired and find out.
Writing Rollercoasters: Stories, Spectacle & Games in Physical Places
Hear one of the world’s leading experience designers Dave Cobb talk about the future of physical space, how we’ll interact with each other, and the role of gamification in creating engagement. From retail to amusement parks, and from public spaces to universities, the gamification of the physical world promises to unlock new and exciting ways to socialize, interact and explore. Get inspired and find out.
Theme Park Master Planning
Master planning for a theme park involves many elements of the theme park master plan effort. Land use planning, infrastructure development, site development (grading, etc.), traffic and circulation are all traditional components of theme park master planning. Specific to theme parks, theme park master planning includes program development to determine a projection of how many people will visit the park per year, during the peak month and peak day, and how many people will be instantaneously in the park on that peak day. Those projections are done in conjunction with operational consultants, economic feasibility consultants, architects, park planners and the creative team. On top of all that, the theme park master plan includes a matrix of attractions that comprise the total ride, show and attraction mix for the park. There are expansion zones for future development. There is facility programming that informs how many restrooms, ticket windows, retail venues and food and beverage outlets will need
to be built in order to provide adequate services for all those visitors. These elements make up the traditional theme park master plan.
Thinkwell provides theme park master planning, integrated resort master planning, master planning for mixed-use projects and other types of projects that include location-based entertainment and/or education components. To be specific, Thinkwell goes beyond traditional theme park master planning and includes a new set of disciplines Thinkwell finds lacking elsewhere in the
development of theme park master plans. Thinkwell includes in our theme park master planning efforts what we call Content Master Planning and Guest Experience Master Planning.
Content Master Planning is a new way to look at traditional theme park planning. Content Master Planning look at not only the physical layout and programmatic aspects of a project, but also takes into consideration and pays particular attention to how that experience unfolds for a guest from the moment they pass through the project threshold until they complete their experience. Content Master Planning considers how the physical environment helps convey the story being told to the guests and how each element of the Experience Design – attractions, live shows, rides as well as food & beverage and retail – integrate
into that storytelling and how the experience and story unfolds for a guest as they move from place to place within a project.
Much more than the mere placement of buildings, uses and guest flow, Content Master Planning and Guest Experience Master Planning takes all elements of the guest’s experience into consideration and looks at how each of these elements symbiotically relate to one another for the purposes of storytelling. It’s part of Thinkwell’s Environmental Storytelling® approach. It becomes a richer, more textured and meaningful experience for the guest when projects are approached and developed in this manner.
Thinkwell works with traditional architectural firms on the details: land-use planning, infrastructure development, traffic and circulation, etc. And Thinkwell works with economic feasibility and operations firms & consultants as a team to formulate a program and operational and business philosophies. Thinkwell’s approach leads us to unique creative solutions and business
solutions as well. By considering how the guest’s experience unfolds as well as the strategic and business goals of our clients, we problem solve new ways to deal with traditional businesses, new ways of exploring guest experience that offers new possibilities, new ways to connect with audiences and new competitively advantageous project approaches.
The holistic nature of the theme park master plan – every aspect of the project can affect the next – is complex. These complexities are only exacerbated by the additional rigors of Environmental Storytelling, Guest Experience Master Planning and Content Master Planning. Layering each of those planning elements onto the theme park master planning process ensures additional effort, creative visioning, planning and thought go into each design. This is why Thinkwell’s theme park master plans are a dramatic improvement over many other’s theme park master plans. Very few projects in the world can boast they deliver Environmental Storytelling with Content Master Planning and the added richness and fullness of experience Guest Experience Master Planning brings to the project.
Here’s a simple example: A guest walks into a land of Park A. Ahead is a dark ride, themed as a haunted house. The exterior of the ride projects the theme outward with precariously hanging shutters, broken windows and chipped paint. It may be Victorian in setting. Adjacent to the haunted house the guest visiting Park A finds a hamburger stand, also Victorian in theming. Further
away, a retail outlet sells t-shirts emblazoned with Park A’s logo and the park’s mascot.
Park B, developed by Thinkwell utilizing their proprietary planning disciplines of Content Master Planning, Environmental Storytelling and Guest Experience Master Planning offers similar components but in an entirely unique context: As the guest walks into the land of Park B, each element presented before the guest reinforces the next. The architecture, interior design and propping actually work to subliminally tell the fictional backstory of the zone, supporting the theme and storytelling found within the haunted dark ride. The lands themselves speak volumes to the guest: each area offers visual clues about the background context for the environment, while character graphics, signage, audio and performers enhance the storytelling. From one linear meter into the land to the next, each element of what the guest sees, hears and feels tells them more about the story
unfolding in front of them. Yes, this takes more work. More planning. More design. More forethought in the development of the park. But these theme park master planning disciplines and techniques are what set apart the run-of-the-mill
from the world class.
Theme park master planning is part science, part art. When all the elements of the development, from the planning principals to the artistic are considered – while keeping of paramount importance every aspect of the development from the perspective of the guest – the project comes together in a harmonious, symbiotic way that is artful, meaningful and impactful.
Museums & the Digital Revolution: Consumer Trends in Mobile and Interactive Technology Integration in Museums
As museums and the visitors they attract are evolving, is this a space looking for increased digital and mobile interactivity?
Last year, Thinkwell released the company’s first Guest Experience Trend Report revealing the growing trends among Theme Park guests and their use of technology when they visit Theme Parks. Surprisingly, the results revealed that younger guests were much less concerned with mobile integration and that families and older guests primarily have an appetite for consumer-oriented mobile integration in theme parks.
This report inevitably led Thinkwell to think about this topic in relation to the company’s other specialized fields. We asked ourselves if we thought these results would carry across the various market segments in which we practice. With such high focus on technology and mobility in our lives today, are guests looking to integrate technology into their visitor experiences? Museums and the visitors they attract are evolving, so Thinkwell asked, is this a space looking for increased digital and mobile interactivity? The 2014 Trend Report honed in specifically on the current museum guest experience and visitors’ expectations and desires for such digital and mobile integration.
Thinkwell began a nationwide survey analyzing behavioral patterns in relation to guest experiences in museums. The survey reached over 1,400 museumgoers and found that 69 percent of the respondents bring mobile devices (tablets and/or smartphones) with them while visiting a museum. Of that 69 percent, a total of 73 percent used their device during their visit, most notably to take photos. Similar results were found in last year’s report on theme park mobile integration.
Though museums are using indoor GPS systems in conjunction with apps to push location-appropriate content to visitors, tailored to the exhibit they are in, Thinkwell is only seeing about 32 percent interest in such a feature. This result explains why over half of museum app users have uninstalled or not installed an app due to concerns about personal information, and 19 percent turn off the location tracking feature on their cell phones. Results show that this consumer market is not extremely eager for location-aware app advancements to enhance their in-museum experiences.
WHAT MUSEUM GUESTS LIKE
When asked to rank what they find to be the most beneficial features of museums, respondents chose as their top three: educational for me and/or my family, the ability to see real art and artifacts, and the content of the exhibits. Guests are visiting a variety of museums, from art to history to zoos and aquariums to get the personal satisfaction of bettering themselves and their families through education and learning.
The desire to see real art and artifacts contradicts a report from last year that suggested guests would be satisfied with highly accurate reproductions, as younger generations gravitate towards content and experiences, rather than originals. Our findings show that across all age demographics, guests highly value access to the authentic artifacts and art pieces available at museums, citing it as the second most important aspect of museums.
In regard to features that could improve a visitor’s experience, 42 percent would like to see more interactivity incorporated, and 40 percent of respondents feel that the use of audio related to a topic or object would be beneficial. Interestingly, a small minority of respondents would like to see an increase of adult-only extended hours and events. The interactivity guests seek is not limited to those found in digital devices. Visitors are interested in social and personal interactions that break beyond the four walls of the museums, with activities such as: after-hours events, classes and presentations from artists and subject-matter experts for children and adults, and kids crafts. They are more interested in increased human interactivity than in digital integration such as mobile apps or 3D printed, touchable objects.
On average, visitors spend a total of three hours at museums per visit. Not only do respondents ages 18-44 spend more time per visit than those ages 45 and up, they are also more likely to visit museums more often. Forty-four percent of respondents ages 18-44 visited museums 5 times or more during the past two years, while only 32 percent of those ages 45 and up did so.
WHAT MUSEUM GUESTS DO NOT LIKE
While Thinkwell had many findings in the annual Guest Experience Trend Report pointing to the positive qualities of museums, we also found that over 57 percent of visitors are highly concerned with cost of entry for museums today.
Other negative factors affecting museum visits included overcrowding and outdated content. Respondents felt strongly about having newer exhibits and special events as encouraging factors of repeat visits. Overwhelmingly however, 88 percent of respondents ranked their last museum visit as quite enjoyable or better.
Some believe that digital integration in the museum space is necessary to expand the experience both virtually and in terms of new types of physical space to engage those accustomed to interacting with a screen. However, Thinkwell’s findings reveal that the museum space is one used to escape screens and the digital world. Guests are focusing more and more on the authenticity of the art and artifacts.
MOVING FORWARD
In an increasingly interconnected and digital world that gives easy access to infinite amounts of data and information, the value and role of museums has come into question. While it’s clear that museums need to adapt to shifts in technology, guests still look to them for authority and authenticity. Digital technologies can be helpful to museums in order to supplement their content, but visitors still crave social interactions, personal enrichment and access to original, authentic objects. Custom experiences can be tailored to the individual, but guests still want those experiences to take place in a physical space with real live experts there to teach them and answer questions.
“We believe the best way to engage visitors in an experience is to have them participate in stories they can relate to and that are authentic and compelling,” said Craig Hanna, Chief Creative Officer of Thinkwell Group. “Museums are competing not only for time but also attention. Consumers can get content from their mobile devices. Museums need to do what they do best—present authentic content in a meaningful way that connects with their core constituencies—while also incorporating digital technologies to keep those experiences fresh and up to date with consumer expectations.”
“The results of the survey are fascinating and, for museums, heartening. Real stuff, real stories, real human experiences: it’s what museums do best, and it’s what visitors crave,” said Cynthia Sharpe, Senior Director of Cultural Attractions and Research for Thinkwell Group. “In conjunction with the fantastic research done by Jay Greene’s group at the University of Arkansas at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art regarding the value of field trips and the importance of facilitation, it bolsters the approach of using personal digital technology as a tool in the storytelling and educational arsenal. The educational and emotional impact of seeing real artifacts and experiencing great interpretation is paramount.”
Survey Respondent Demographics
Qualifying participants were United States residents over the age of 18 who had visited a museum/exhibit in the past 24 months. Of the 1,407 respondents, 42 percent were male and 58 percent were female. Nineteen percent were between the ages of 18-29; 26 percent between the ages of 30-44; 28 percent between the ages of 45-60; and 27 percent are 60 and above. Household incomes ranged between $25,000 and over $150,000. Less than 1 percent held less that a high school degree, 6 percent held only a high school degree, 29 percent had some college or an Associate degree, 40 percent had a Bachelor’s degree, and 27 percent had a Graduate degree. The survey found very little correlation, if any, between gender or location and current mobile behavior or interest in increased mobile integration for museums experiences.
Thinkwell is available for speaking engagements. Please contact us for more information.
View the White Paper accompanying this infographic here.
Museums & the Digital Revolution: Consumer Trends in Mobile and Interactive Technology Integration in Museums
As museums and the visitors they attract are evolving, is this a space looking for increased digital and mobile interactivity?
Last year, Thinkwell released the company’s first Guest Experience Trend Report revealing the growing trends among Theme Park guests and their use of technology when they visit Theme Parks. Surprisingly, the results revealed that younger guests were much less concerned with mobile integration and that families and older guests primarily have an appetite for consumer-oriented mobile integration in theme parks.
This report inevitably led Thinkwell to think about this topic in relation to the company’s other specialized fields. We asked ourselves if we thought these results would carry across the various market segments in which we practice. With such high focus on technology and mobility in our lives today, are guests looking to integrate technology into their visitor experiences? Museums and the visitors they attract are evolving, so Thinkwell asked, is this a space looking for increased digital and mobile interactivity? The 2014 Trend Report honed in specifically on the current museum guest experience and visitors’ expectations and desires for such digital and mobile integration.
Thinkwell began a nationwide survey analyzing behavioral patterns in relation to guest experiences in museums. The survey reached over 1,400 museumgoers and found that 69 percent of the respondents bring mobile devices (tablets and/or smartphones) with them while visiting a museum. Of that 69 percent, a total of 73 percent used their device during their visit, most notably to take photos. Similar results were found in last year’s report on theme park mobile integration.
Though museums are using indoor GPS systems in conjunction with apps to push location-appropriate content to visitors, tailored to the exhibit they are in, Thinkwell is only seeing about 32 percent interest in such a feature. This result explains why over half of museum app users have uninstalled or not installed an app due to concerns about personal information, and 19 percent turn off the location tracking feature on their cell phones. Results show that this consumer market is not extremely eager for location-aware app advancements to enhance their in-museum experiences.
WHAT MUSEUM GUESTS LIKE
When asked to rank what they find to be the most beneficial features of museums, respondents chose as their top three: educational for me and/or my family, the ability to see real art and artifacts, and the content of the exhibits. Guests are visiting a variety of museums, from art to history to zoos and aquariums to get the personal satisfaction of bettering themselves and their families through education and learning.
The desire to see real art and artifacts contradicts a report from last year that suggested guests would be satisfied with highly accurate reproductions, as younger generations gravitate towards content and experiences, rather than originals. Our findings show that across all age demographics, guests highly value access to the authentic artifacts and art pieces available at museums, citing it as the second most important aspect of museums.
In regard to features that could improve a visitor’s experience, 42 percent would like to see more interactivity incorporated, and 40 percent of respondents feel that the use of audio related to a topic or object would be beneficial. Interestingly, a small minority of respondents would like to see an increase of adult-only extended hours and events. The interactivity guests seek is not limited to those found in digital devices. Visitors are interested in social and personal interactions that break beyond the four walls of the museums, with activities such as: after-hours events, classes and presentations from artists and subject-matter experts for children and adults, and kids crafts. They are more interested in increased human interactivity than in digital integration such as mobile apps or 3D printed, touchable objects.
On average, visitors spend a total of three hours at museums per visit. Not only do respondents ages 18-44 spend more time per visit than those ages 45 and up, they are also more likely to visit museums more often. Forty-four percent of respondents ages 18-44 visited museums 5 times or more during the past two years, while only 32 percent of those ages 45 and up did so.
WHAT MUSEUM GUESTS DO NOT LIKE
While Thinkwell had many findings in the annual Guest Experience Trend Report pointing to the positive qualities of museums, we also found that over 57 percent of visitors are highly concerned with cost of entry for museums today.
Other negative factors affecting museum visits included overcrowding and outdated content. Respondents felt strongly about having newer exhibits and special events as encouraging factors of repeat visits. Overwhelmingly however, 88 percent of respondents ranked their last museum visit as quite enjoyable or better.
Some believe that digital integration in the museum space is necessary to expand the experience both virtually and in terms of new types of physical space to engage those accustomed to interacting with a screen. However, Thinkwell’s findings reveal that the museum space is one used to escape screens and the digital world. Guests are focusing more and more on the authenticity of the art and artifacts.
MOVING FORWARD
In an increasingly interconnected and digital world that gives easy access to infinite amounts of data and information, the value and role of museums has come into question. While it’s clear that museums need to adapt to shifts in technology, guests still look to them for authority and authenticity. Digital technologies can be helpful to museums in order to supplement their content, but visitors still crave social interactions, personal enrichment and access to original, authentic objects. Custom experiences can be tailored to the individual, but guests still want those experiences to take place in a physical space with real live experts there to teach them and answer questions.
“We believe the best way to engage visitors in an experience is to have them participate in stories they can relate to and that are authentic and compelling,” said Craig Hanna, Chief Creative Officer of Thinkwell Group. “Museums are competing not only for time but also attention. Consumers can get content from their mobile devices. Museums need to do what they do best—present authentic content in a meaningful way that connects with their core constituencies—while also incorporating digital technologies to keep those experiences fresh and up to date with consumer expectations.”
“The results of the survey are fascinating and, for museums, heartening. Real stuff, real stories, real human experiences: it’s what museums do best, and it’s what visitors crave,” said Cynthia Sharpe, Senior Director of Cultural Attractions and Research for Thinkwell Group. “In conjunction with the fantastic research done by Jay Greene’s group at the University of Arkansas at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art regarding the value of field trips and the importance of facilitation, it bolsters the approach of using personal digital technology as a tool in the storytelling and educational arsenal. The educational and emotional impact of seeing real artifacts and experiencing great interpretation is paramount.”
Survey Respondent Demographics
Qualifying participants were United States residents over the age of 18 who had visited a museum/exhibit in the past 24 months. Of the 1,407 respondents, 42 percent were male and 58 percent were female. Nineteen percent were between the ages of 18-29; 26 percent between the ages of 30-44; 28 percent between the ages of 45-60; and 27 percent are 60 and above. Household incomes ranged between $25,000 and over $150,000. Less than 1 percent held less that a high school degree, 6 percent held only a high school degree, 29 percent had some college or an Associate degree, 40 percent had a Bachelor’s degree, and 27 percent had a Graduate degree. The survey found very little correlation, if any, between gender or location and current mobile behavior or interest in increased mobile integration for museums experiences.
Thinkwell is available for speaking engagements. Please contact us for more information.
View the White Paper accompanying this infographic here.
Infographic | Museums & the Digital Revolution: Consumer Trends in Mobile and Interactive Technology Integration in Museums
Thinkwell’s findings of their nationwide survey analyzing behavioral patterns as they relate to existing and potential mobile integration into the museums and exhibit experience is illustrated in the infographic below. This survey marks the second release of Thinkwell’s Guest Experience Trend Report, which provides market research insights to the themed entertainment industry. The annual report measures and distills consumer interests in varying topics related to guest experiences.
Read the White Paper accompanying this infographic here.
Infographic | Museums & the Digital Revolution: Consumer Trends in Mobile and Interactive Technology Integration in Museums
Thinkwell’s findings of their nationwide survey analyzing behavioral patterns as they relate to existing and potential mobile integration into the museums and exhibit experience is illustrated in the infographic below. This survey marks the second release of Thinkwell’s Guest Experience Trend Report, which provides market research insights to the themed entertainment industry. The annual report measures and distills consumer interests in varying topics related to guest experiences.
Read the White Paper accompanying this infographic here.
A Theme Park in Your Pocket: Consumers Trends in Mobile Technology Integration in Theme Parks
Thinkwell’s findings of their nationwide survey analyzing behavioral patterns as they relate to existing and potential mobile integration into the theme park experience is illustrated in the infographic below. This survey marks the launch of Thinkwell’s Guest Experience Trend Report, which provides market research insights to the themed entertainment industry. The annual report measures and distills consumer interests in varying topics related to guest experiences.
The survey, conducted among more than one thousand theme park goers, found that 67 percent of the respondents are interested in seeing increased mobile integration at theme parks, because it would improve the overall guest experience.
Of those surveyed, 80 percent took a mobile device (a smartphone and/or tablet) on their last theme park visit. Among the respondents who took a mobile device, a full 72 percent spent “a few minutes on and off throughout the day” engaging with it. Fifteen percent revealed that they did not use their mobile device during their theme park visit, although they did take it with them.
“Mobile technology is ubiquitous and theme parks have to embrace this ‘distraction’,” says Craig Hanna, CCO, Thinkwell. “We are continually looking for ways to keep guests engaged in the ways that they want to be engaged, utilizing these devices to improve the guest experience or interact with visitors in new ways that enhance the parkwide milieu.”
The survey participants were asked to rank a series of mobile features and enhancements from most to least desirable. The most popular features were more customer service-oriented, helping visitors save time, including front-of-line access to rides, shows and attractions. The respondents also highly ranked having the ability to check queue wait times from anywhere in the park, using GPS to locate friends or family members and using a mobile device to plan an itinerary.
Predictably, as mobile devices have replaced traditional cameras, 78 percent of participants took photos with their smartphones and tablets. Forty-four percent shared their photos on social media. Reluctant to cut-off communication with the outside world, 43 percent talked to or texted someone, 43 percent checked their e-mail and 29 percent kept up on social media.
Qualifying participants were United States residents over the age of 18, who had visited a theme park in the past 2 years and owned a mobile device. Of the 1,034 respondents, 48 percent are male and 52 percent are female. Thirty percent are between the ages of 18-29; 32 percent between the ages of 30-44; 24 percent between the ages of 45-60; and 13 percent are 60 and above. The survey found very little correlation, if any, between age or location and current mobile behavior or interest in increased mobile integration.
Download a printable form of the survey infographic here.