Join the Dynamic Pricing Revolution [A Starter Pack]

Venues are changing, getting rid of old strategies and approaches, and in the midst of all the commotion, a revolution is in the air! As the world is turned upside down, everything is evolving, and so is pricing and, subsequently: sales.

Besides the field of retail, dynamic pricing is now also conquering the deep waters of the travel & leisure industry. As a performance enhancer for many venues already, dynamic pricing is successfully making a name for itself by only becoming more and more relevant in today's market.

Surely, you do not want to be left behind within this revolutionary process, but be part of the forces pushing it to success! 

Preparation: What you need.

1. Website & Online Ticket Solution

This one is simple:  to use dynamic pricing in your online ticket sales, you will need a working website, and, in some cases, you should already have (or be willing to set up) an online ticket selling channel connected to it.

Wondering what to look out for when deciding on a new ticketing solution? These six features got you covered.
 

2. Data

At first sight, this one might seem obvious, but maybe also quite technical and complex. Let us ease your mind: it doesn’t have to be! 

To kick-start dynamic pricing right and enable it to unleash its full potential, it's crucial to feed the algorithms some data to chew on and spit out your optimal and dynamic prices! 

Thus, you will need to gather some of your historical data. Don’t freak out just yet! Even if you are not tech-savvy, you will be able to do this. 

What you might not be aware of: there is already a lot of data at your disposal. This data is generated through your website traffic, your ticketing solution, and cashier systems, just to name a few. 

To get rid of some of your other worries: a good dynamic pricing software will do the heavy lifting for you moving forward by searching for, delivering, and using the data that is relevant to you automatically. 

Good software will also sort through your historical data and filter out all the useless information, leaving you with the simple task of delivering a CSV file.

With an eye on the future, it does make sense, however, to optimise the mechanisms that you have already in place to leverage even more qualified data. 

3. Manpower vs. basic knowledge!

Depending on the dynamic pricing solution you choose, you will either need manpower or a set of basic knowledge. How is that? It is because the dynamic pricing solutions on the market differentiate greatly between each other; they can go from being simpler solutions to all-in-one solutions. 

Simpler dynamic pricing solutions will require you to have more manpower to handle the software. This includes defining everything it will do regarding data collection and processing; you will have to monitor its functionality and decision-making continuously. 

However, an all-in-one solution will not require you and your team to have these abilities because it will do it for you. Such solutions only ask you to have someone with a clear understanding of the action plan of your business - someone to consult with and to monitor your pricing generation accordingly.

Depending on the dynamic pricing solution you choose, you will either need manpower or a set of basic knowledge. How is that? It is because the dynamic pricing solutions on the market differentiate each other; they start by being simpler solutions and end at all-in-one solutions. 

Simpler dynamic pricing solutions will require you to have more manpower to handle the software. This includes defining everything it will do regarding data collection and processing; you will have to monitor its functionality and decision-making continuously. 

However, an all-in-one solution will not require you and your team to have these abilities because it will do it for you. Such solutions only ask you to have someone with a clear understanding of the action plan of your business - someone to consult with to monitor your pricing generation accordingly. 

4. The right pricing solution!

Last but not least, you will need the right dynamic pricing solution! 

So, how do you choose it? A starting point may be the amount of manpower you have at your disposal. 

Generally speaking, the software, algorithm, or solution you choose should be comprehensive, thorough, and, most importantly, suit your business’s specific needs.

It should be able to easily collect data, process and understand, and strategically use it to generate meaningful prices that will allow you to reach your goals. However, as we pointed out, it should fit your venue by helping you achieve your aims. If the software takes over a lot of fun and useful tasks but does not help you get where you want to be, is it any good then? 

That is why you need a good plan of action, and with the resources we just compiled, you are almost ready to start implementing dynamic pricing.

The action plan: How to get started.

1. Define your objective.

As we mentioned before, to make the most out of your dynamic pricing approach and harvest the seed you are planting with the solution of your choice, you need a clear objective. 

Ask yourself this: what do we want to achieve by switching our pricing approach? What do we need to achieve to get our venue to the next level? And how can a differentiated pricing approach help?

To give you an idea: just as any venue, one of our partners had crowded peak hours/days and weaker hours/days. Having a buzzing full-house during peak hours makes great revenue, but they wanted to find a way to spread this buzz to the more quiet hours and even out the number of visitors per hour/day, enhancing their visitors' experience.

A piece of timeless advice is defining a SMART goal. You probably have come across this methodology. If you haven't, here you go:

Goals which are SMART are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely. 

2. Build a pricing strategy & method. 

Next up, this is an essential step, you need to build a strategy to reach the goals you set in the previous stage. Setting an objective is the base, building the strategy is the frame, and success will fill the picture. The success won’t stick without a base, nor a frame - underlining the importance of a well-constructed framework.

Therefore, we have compiled a comprehensive checklist for you.

Click here to get the free downloadable e-book which includes 7 keys to define your optimal pricing strategy, thoroughly defined pricing strategy concepts, and a printable checklist with guidelines to determine your optimal pricing strategy.

3. Establish pricing rules.

Pricing rules will tell your dynamic pricing software what it has to do. 

Normally, every dynamic pricing solution will allow you to set certain rules that apply either always, on certain days/hours, or under certain conditions. But it is important to note that you do not need to set rules! As we explained before, it is not magic that generates your prices, it's data - data you can trust to do the job. In fact, the less constraints you set around the algorithm, the more it will improve its learning and price optimisation process.

Here, again, it depends on your choice of solution, as well as your objective and your strategy, how many of these rules you have to set, and what they look like. 

To go back to our example from before: An idea to achieve our partners' goal of spreading the visitors more evenly throughout the week, is to use the variable: 'restricting capacity'. 

If the partner defines this variable by deciding the maximum capacity on a day is (let's say, 200 for a small venue) the algorithm knows it has to adjust prices once the capacity is almost reached. 

This could be done by increasing the prices on the days that have already sold a lot of tickets or lowering the ticket prices for those days where not many tickets have been sold yet. 

Revolution Execution - Off we go!

You got the right solution. You got the objective. You got the strategy. You got the proper pricing rules. It's time to execute the final step to get your very own stake in the pricing revolution. 

4. Implement, test & monitor: 

It's time to launch. You did the work - so let's see what it will lead to. 

But please be aware! You are not done just yet. To maximise the impact your work has, it is time to keep yourself updated - test and monitor the changes. 

If you have chosen an all-in-one solution, you are lucky, there is a team that will test, monitor, and even interpret it for you to a certain extent. Your role will be to use the results and useful insights they deliver, and see if you are moving closer to your goals, or if it is the time to change your goals or strategies direction. 

Now, we believe we have equipped you well for the path ahead. 

Remember to prepare yourself well by having an online website, gathering historical data, having either the manpower or a basic set of knowledge, and defining the right pricing solution for your venue. 

Then take action - define your venue's objective and establish a strategy and according to pricing rules that will get you there. 

After execution, don't miss out on optimising by testing and monitoring developments. 

You might now wonder, how do other venues use this plan of action? How do they use dynamic pricing successfully?

Click here to download the free success stories of our partners within the leisure industry. You will find detailed insights into their growth and success with the implementation of dynamic pricing. 

Read about the value that Convious has brought for aquariums, theme parks, wellness, lodging, and more!