Cinema Mobile Ticketing – a customer focused approach

Cinema Mobile Ticketing – A customer focused approach.

The British have a propensity for queuing, or so we're told. Standing in line waiting for a meal, a match, a show, a film is a part of life. However, while many businesses would delight in the prospect of consumers queuing up to buy their product, for exhibitors it can mean exhausted resources and frustrated customers.

Mobile technology for ticketing, vouchers and marketing offers exciting opportunities for theatres willing to address this issue and is the key to improving the convenience and flexibility for the customer as well as cutting administrative burdens.

Acceptance and convergence

The convergence of technology has transformed the way we use mobile phones. Consumers are increasingly viewing their mobile handsets as more than a phone or camera - it's also a transactional tool.

A record 3.3 billion text messages were sent in May 2006, according to the Mobile Data Association. As individuals and businesses we are becoming inseparable from our mobiles - a BDDO survey in spring 2005 said that 60 per cent of us even take our mobile phones to bed. This familiarity with the mobile offers flexibility and convenience for the purchasing consumer and opens up a new sales channel for business.

It's all about the customer

In terms of improving the customer experience, mobile ticketing offers multiple benefits. First and foremost it offers convenience. Traditional sales channels require the consumer to spend time queuing or waiting for their transaction to be processed. Mobile ticketing technology offers an alternative where customers buy their tickets in the usual way and request that it's sent to their mobile phone. The customer receives their ticket instantly as a barcode via SMS which is redeemed at the screen entrance - queuing is cut and the customer is happy.

Consumers can have a mobile ticket at their fingertips wherever and whenever they choose.

The financial incentive

The business case for mobile ticketing is compelling; it facilitates a customer focused approach to ticketing. It offers a means for improving operational efficiencies and streamlining internal processes as well as opening a host of promotional and marketing opportunities.

Making the purchasing process more flexible and convenient for the consumer will ultimately encourage pre-show sales. With real-time information on the volume of tickets sold in advance of a screening, and the ability to track the ticket from dispatch to redemption, exhibitors can capture and take advantage of customer data.

Reducing overheads

Through the introduction of mobile ticketing cinemas can also reduce their overheads. A single scanner can allow customers to redeem tickets in real-time - admitting multiple customers in the time it would usually take to process a single transaction. This reduces pressures on PoS staff and with an increasing number of transactions completed with credit and debit cards, the volume of cash in circulation on site is reduced.

Mobile ticketing, linked to an existing box office Information Management System, can also ease the burden of recording an audit trail. Rather than tearing the ticket at entry and then recording the stubs, real-time data is collected at the ticket redemption point. Mobile ticketing systems can bolt onto existing EPOS and be hosted either on site or at head office.

Adding value and customer loyalty

Mobile communications can deliver far more than a ticket. By bundling coupons, promotional offers and creative content with the mobile ticket, exhibitors can add value to the experience and drive consumers to concessions where the margins are much higher.

Access to customer data enables exhibitors to offer loyalty schemes which reward members with redeemable points or vouchers encouraging multiple visits.

As mobile ticketing technology becomes more at home in the cinema, the perceived value of the cinema experience grows. Consider the possibilities for branding and advertising; customers could receive film trailers, interviews, documentaries, music, games and ring-tones with their mobile ticket.

The future is bright

The mobile is increasingly becoming accepted as a legitimate business tool and our dependence on this device is continuing to grow. It is possible that in the near future, the mobile will be all that's required for the entire transaction - from ordering online via WAP, to receiving the mobile ticket as a barcode and redeeming it at the screen.

In the short-term mobile ticketing will offer early adopters a competitive edge. In the long-term, it will cut queues, facilitate more efficient ticket sales and enable cost savings - an exciting and compelling proposition that will affect the bottom line.