This is topic Targeting New Patrons in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


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Posted by John T. Hendrickson, Jr (Member # 849) on 03-29-2003, 01:49 PM:
 
I'm basically in charge of the booth operations at our theater(don't get down on the floor much anymore), but I'm often asked for my thoughts concerning our general operations. Our principle owner asked me the other day to give some thought to how we can target new patrons.

Here's our situation:
We are in a mall and have had a complete makeover to a 13 screen operation. We also have a Ben & Jerrys and a Nathans as part of our theatre complex. The new operation is now three years old and business is growing, but we don't want to leave any stones unturned.

I have some ideas kicking around in the back of my brain, but I'd be interested to hear what all of you do to get new customers through the door.
 

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Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 03-29-2003, 04:01 PM:
 
I've always believed that what gets people through the door to any movie theatre is first and foremost the films themselves. If Hollywood is producing what people want to see then there is no problem (the famous "If you build it, they will come" philosophy). Just as important, but still second is the theatre and theatre staff. Nobody is going to drive any further than they have to, but they will if the local 8 or 9 plex sucks. Last, are promotions, promotions, promotions. Your theatre doesn't have to go all out for every film coming in, but one or two promotions per month are always good for roping the "I'll wait 'til video" crowd.

That last point about promotions can be a secret weapon. We offer a pumkin weight guessing contest during Halloween with those mega size legumes you see at the county fair. Hell, these people eat it up! And if you guess the correct weight you get a free night at the movies for you and two friends, including concessions. Remember, people want something for nothing. I know it sounds hickish, but from the postcards they fill out, we chart our demographic: what towns their coming from, how often they visit our theatre, favorite genre, etc etc.

Something else we've experimented with was picking up low budget independent films done locally. Few months back we ran "The Bread My Sweet" staring Scott Baio. It was no "Greek Wedding", but it tells the story of people lives in Pittsburgh's Italian American community after the matriarch of the neighborhood contracts cancer. I think this is probably a fad in our company, but you may want to try it. As you might expect our business for this film wasn't really that good, and appealed primarily to retired Italians.

As I mentioned above, get good product, retain a courteous and well-trained staff, and think outside the box with some silly ideas, and you'll bring them in.
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 03-29-2003, 04:36 PM:
 
Are the "basics" well-covered? Is the place kept clean? Adequate staffing? Attractive and well-lit? And of course, is presentation as good as it can be? The most important thing is that patrons consistently have a good time at the movies when they come to your theatre. If that goal isn't being met, I don't think all the promotions in the world will help a theatre much. OTOH, if the basics are covered, then promotions may be a good way to boost the headcount.
 

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Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 03-29-2003, 07:49 PM:
 
The theater(re)s at Disney and Universal sometimes have midnight screenings of "contemporary classics" in the off months. Last October, they sold out 2 screens on both Friday and Saturday for "Goonies." This unique fare often brings in people who are coming because it's something special, and have never been to your theater before. Good publicity.

Being in a mall, however may be difficult if you have to adhere to the mall's operating hours.

=TMP=
 

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Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 03-29-2003, 11:00 PM:
 
Midnight shows are great for extra revenue since most night owls are into the junk food scene. But midnights can also cause your reputation extra headaches too. I understand where Tomas is coming from using the Disney example, and thats great. However, for mainstream cinemas experimenting with midnight shows it will take about a month to figure out #1 if its a success and #2 how do I staff it. Here in western Pennsylvania midnights do great. At our theatre we run a big crew until 10:00 PM, then everybody goes home except a manager, one box attendant, one concessionaire, one usher, and myself. After the late shows go in, the box attendant, usher, and myself go home at 12:00 AM (well I usually go to the bar). The concessionaire and the manager then close the place down.

Here in the sticks we don't usually have any major problems with unruly crowds like you may find in the suburbs of bigger cities. Oh we do have the occasional drunk or stoner, but their usually so bombed they just fall asleep anyway. In the seven years we've been offering midnight shows I can count on one hand how many times security was asked to stay late.

One last point: If you're going to do midnights, take my advice. Send home the flat-chested high school girls, get some nice curves and do a topless concession stand after 1:00 AM. That'll target some new patrons!
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 03-30-2003, 09:00 AM:
 
The number one thing is my book is, "Don't have a theater run by a bunch of Borg Drones!"

How many times do you walk into a place and the box office girl takes your money with a blank stare?... The concession stand attendants blankly push the popcorn across the counter at you?... The ushers tear tickets and barely manage to grunt at the customers as they file by?

This is the number one thing that turns customers off, IMHO.
You have to pay attention to the customers or else they won't come back again. Why should they get out of their easy chairs and turn off their home video unless you give them a good reason?

You don't have to act like you are "best buddies" with every customer but DO make eye contact for cripes sake!

Words like "Hello", "Goodbye" and "Thank You" are probably the most valuable words in the English language. Use them often and with a genuine tone in your voice.

I'll bet you a nickel, if you do this, your business will start to pick up!
 

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Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 03-30-2003, 10:43 AM:
 
Great suggestion, Randy! That reminds me of another little "tip" I heard along the way...

As your ushers are waiting for everyone to file out of the auditorium, instead of just standing there with brooms ready to swoop down, take the time to talk with the customers. "Did you enjoy the movie? How was such-and-such scene? How about that Digital Sound? We just installed some new FilmGuard in this theater, what do you think?" Customers LOVE this, and if you get the right ones, you spark up some interesting conversations.

=TMP=
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 03-30-2003, 10:53 AM:
 
This interacting-with-the-customers is a great idea. Sometimes the Cinemarkers here wheel a concession cart into the auditorium before the show. Instead of just standing there, often they take the opportunity to interact with the audience by asking movie trivia questions and giving out "prizes" (usually some freebie like mints that the theatre is handing out anyway, but hey, it's the thought that counts). They even do little comedy bits sometimes. It may be corny, but it personalizes the experience some for the audience and makes it memorable. Anyway I think the eye contact thing is important, sincerity and all that, without trying to be everyone's buddy.
 

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Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 03-30-2003, 11:56 AM:
 
Since malls are open early and midnight shows are a pain in the butt, how about a morning movie program? We do a morning movie program. It doesn't rake in the dough but it does more than pay for itself.

The trick is to get the Mall involved in the marketing. They have a vested interest in drawing people to the mall as well. The two groups you might target are young children and their moms and seniors. Many malls have a senior mall walking prgram. What better to do after walking the mall then watch a movie.
 

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Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 03-30-2003, 12:07 PM:
 
How about early-morning kids' shows in the summer months?

Most General Cinema (now AMC) theatres do this, usually on Wednesday mornings, with a different title each week. Titles range from Pokemon crap to Wizard of Oz. It's usually a mix of a few classics plus whatever childrens' hits came out in the last year or two. Tickets are $2 at the door or a "season pass" thing for the equilvalent of half-price admission. Shows are at 10:00am and usually do pretty well (and sometimes have to be interlocked!). Obviously concession sales are excellent, though staffing and cleanup may be an issue. This seems like it would work really well in a mall theatre if you could get the mall to put up signs and help promote it for you.

Another idea that I have tried to "sell" to several theatres but haven't been successful in doing yet would be to give your customers something "extra" in order to differentiate your theatre from the competition. My suggestion would be to run shorts before every feature and advertise this. Give the customers something that they can't (easily) get at home or at your competition. Most people like shorts and it also gives them some extra time to visit the concession stand before the feature starts. Another way to differentiate your theatre would be to not show slide or film advertisements and add a "no pre-show advertising!" line to your newspaper ads. Many people (especially the middle-age and older crowd) hate being bombarded with advertising after paying $8-9 to see a film, and you could probably get some of them to go out of their way to see films at your theatre rather than the competition by not showing ads (with exceptions for film trailers and self-promotional snipes like concessions, gift certificates, etc.).

Midnight shows are fun, but really only work well if you're in or near a college, which you probably aren't if you're in a mall. I had lots of fun running these (when I was a college student myself), but I doubt they'd do great business in most towns.

All of these ideas assume that your film presentation and customer service (friendly employees, clean theatres, etc.) are already top-notch. If not, then please work on these aspects of your operation first, then try some of the other ideas suggested in this thread. (Oh, and if/when you run repertory prints, please, please take good care of them. And don't run mono prints in SR and don't book anything that is 1.33 or 1.66 unless you can show it properly. Thanks.)
 

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Posted by Aaron Mehocic (Member # 15) on 03-31-2003, 01:50 PM:
 
Scott said:

quote:

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Midnight shows are fun, but really only work well if you're near a college, which you probably aren't if you're in a mall. I had lots of fun running these (when I was a college student myself), but I doubt they'd do great business in most towns.

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quote:

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One idea I am presenting to the owner tonight at our staff meeting is that we got 250 mini posters for "Holes" and I want to have a promotion where anyone that buys a combo from the concession stand gets a free Holes Mini Poster while they last...

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Be careful! Some licensing agreements don't allow the giveaway of promotional materials if the people have to buy something. I forgot which studio it was (probably Buena Vista) that sent a letter explaining this along with some keychains or other stuff a few years ago. We had the same idea.

=TMP=
 

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Posted by Claude S. Ayakawa (Member # 1401) on 03-31-2003, 04:36 PM:
 
Another idea theatres could try is a "Frequent Movie attendance" club similar to the airlines frequent flyers clubs. A card can be issued and stamped every time a patron buys an adult ticket. As soon as the card is full, it will be good for one free admission. Another card can be issued for food at the concession and free snacks can be offered as soon as a card has been completed.

-Claude
 

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Posted by David Stambaugh (Member # 1102) on 03-31-2003, 04:40 PM:
 
Regal has their "Crown Club" card. I've racked up a couple free sodas and popcorn, and a free admission.
 

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Posted by Charles Everett (Member # 889) on 03-31-2003, 05:16 PM:
 
Claude is likely not aware of the AMC MovieWatcher club, given his location.
 

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Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 03-31-2003, 11:09 PM:
 
A good way to target new patrons is to set up a machine gun position on the roof.
 

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Posted by Daryl C. W. O'Shea (Member # 1303) on 04-02-2003, 12:24 AM:
 
Gee Michael, I've had some customers that I wouldn't mind you targeting.
 

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