Promos For Small Parks

By Allen F. Weitzel

In tough times with more competition for entertainment dollars, amusement facilities vying for the same core market, need to pull out all the stops to bring guests to their door. For those parks that don't have access to mega-budget marketing budget, we offer some promotions ideas that do not to require much time or money.

1. Local Resident Night
Guests with IDs showing local residency get a large discount or get in free. Or, maybe they receive free mini-golf or go kart tickets for free after paying the gate price. Use your imagination.

2. Senior Citizen Afternoon
Any guest over a certain age would receive a significant discount. Schedule a Grandparent Day where the child pays full price and grandparent gets in free. Then schedule some grandparent type entertainment for the park that day, such as banjo bands, bingo contests and the like.

3. School Art Days
Schools always are looking for ways to promote art and education. Set up a day, during the school year, when school kids can bring their art work to the park (based on a specific theme or pictures they have drawn of your park); and post the art work on bulletin boards around the park. Any child who brings such a picture will receive a discount for them and their family. Ask a local school teachers to judge the best picture and that child gets a special prize. You could make this a yearlong event, with a grand prize for the best picture at the end of the year.

4. Car Night
Not any car, but a special car. Run a co-promotion with a local car dealer so that any visitor driving that dealer’s brand into the parking lot gets one free admission for one family member, or discounts for the whole family, or free parking. Have an in-house drawing , sponsored by the car dealer, to give away a free car. Give guests questionnaires at the toll or ticket booth asking for information on their automobile purchases, a questionnaire which, when they turn it in, gives them further in-park discounts or coupons, and the car dealer a marketing database.

5. Car Load or Van Load Night
Offer $5 off the admission or ride tickets for those, who arrive at the park in a van or car load. They receive coupons at parking lots. This could also tie into a "Spare The Air" day for those who take public transit or ride their bikes to the park. A Bike Day could work as a promotion as well.

6. Sports Car Night
Anyone driving into the parking lot in a sports car gets $1 off parking and $3 off admission, and you get your own little Sports Car show in the parking lot. Be wary of car owners taking up two spaces when they park. You could also do a Hot Rod night giving discounts for cars from the 1950s and ’60s. Car buffs love opportunities to show off their cars.

7. Beebop Night
Take the Hot Rod night concept one step further and turn the entire park into a ’50s/’60s promotion. Anyone who was a teenager in the ’50s or ’60s (proof of age required) would get 50 percent off admission.  Play ’50s music over the park background speakers. Have employees dress in ’50s clothing.

8. Food For Homeless Friends Event
This must be handled with compassion and taste. Guests bringing a can of usable food receive a free ticket or discount (actually a discount seems mercenary on this kind event; you need to offer a free ticket). The food is donated to local charity or homeless shelter. Your public relations department would want to let the local press know about this effort.

9. Garage Sale Day
Set aside a portion of your parking lot for vendors (make them pay for their vendor spot and a cleanup deposit) and invite the public to join in the fun. This kind of promotion is a way to gain income for your parking lot on a day when the park is not normally open to the public.

10. Photo Event
Anyone turning in an unreleased photo they have taken of the park, receives free admission. In return they provide rights to the park to use the photo. The best photo turned in during the event gets a grand prize. Consider discounting all film sold in the merchandise stores for that day. Contact your company film sponsor and see if they wish to participate in this promotion.

Here’s a few other groups you could consider for special promotions: teachers, safety or health care professionals (doctors, nurses, EMTs, paramedics, safety professionals, hospital staff, red cross workers, etc.), Boy or Girl Scouts (scouts wearing their uniform or showing their scout ID. get admission), press (show their press pass and receive admission and discounts for the family), tourist week (guests from out of state, who show their out-of-state driver's license receive a discount), parents without partners (or family support groups), celebrity night (any guest who brings a photo of themselves with a celebrity gets a discount), housewife/husband (“domestic goddess/god”) day, unofficial grad night (bring a high school diploma get 50 percent off admission).

As a double benefit, some groups spotlighted for promotion attention could also be considered as target groups, by your Sales Department, for group outing events (picnics and gatherings).

Work with your suppliers and purveyors and see if they will provide products as giveaways for the first 2,000 guests who visit on s specific date. In return, you could sponsor a Thank You event for the suppliers and their families or mail the company admission passes good any day during the season.

On an on-going basis, do a Welcome Wagon promotion to acquaint new area residents to the park. Provide discount coupons to local realtors for distribution to new families, or allocate tickets through Welcome Wagon chapters or the Chamber of Commerce in your area.

You do not want your facility to become a "bargain basement" park, but carefully timed promotions throughout your season can assure a solid flow of Guests to your park and fill up those slow Tuesday afternoons or off season evenings.

Allen F. Weitzel is an amusement industry veteran, who has worked in or managed almost every operation known to exist in a conventional amusement park, including marketing and sales. In his spare time, Allen is a freelance writer and consultant to the industry. He currently works and resides in California. Mr. Weitzel can be contacted at weitzel@blueneptune.com.