Digital Wayfinding Can Create a Frictionless Experience in Venues
In a post-COVID world, we are eager to return to our favorite entertainment venues to enjoy live music, sports games, plays, exhibitions, and more. However, with the return of live entertainment came confusion and overwhelm when navigating large and crowded spaces. With digital wayfinding, visitors can navigate crowds without the stress of simultaneously having to figure out where to go. This burden – of finding seating or amenities – can be alleviated by providing interactive, real-time geospatial data and maps to provide turn-by-turn directions for each visitor, allowing them to spend less time searching and more time enjoying their experience, therefore maximizing the efficiency and success of the venue.
Moving With Ease
Digital navigation devices can be helpful as a form of crowd control by keeping the flow and direction of foot traffic moving more efficiently. Much like outdoor GPS systems, guests can enter their seating section (or other relevant locations or places of interest) as soon as they park their car or exit public transportation. They will then be given step-by-step directions to their destination without having to search for physical signs or ask for verbal assistance, which can cause congestion, bottlenecking, or long lines in certain areas.
It will also guide and point them directly to amenities, such as:
- Elevators, escalators, or stairways
- Bathrooms
- Ticketing or information booths
- First aid or other emergency services
- Accessibility seating or services
More Choices, More Engagement
A managed navigation system at places like arenas, theme parks, restaurants, or theaters helps guests have a positive experience while also increasing revenue opportunities for the venue and its partners.
These places are full of secondary revenue streams, with several places of interest such as:
- Food courts
- Bars
- Merchandise
- Other shops or kiosks
For example, if a guest at a sporting event knows they want to buy a t-shirt as a souvenir or that they want to get a hot dog and a beer during half-time, they will be able to be efficiently guided to each of those points. Without directions to those particular items, the guest may not find them in time and will opt to return to their seats before second-half gameplay begins, meaning the venue would make less money from them not making all their intended purchases. Digital wayfinding generates more footfall to create these secondary revenue streams, while the guest also has a more positive experience and is more likely to return in the future.
Wayfinding Is a Win-Win for Everyone
For entertainment venues and their partners, more visitors equals more profit. But the interactive nature of digital wayfinding can also help visitors have a better experience by creating solutions to some of the following scenarios:
- Alleviate stressful scenarios that can often result in a sensory overload for people who experience anxiety in large crowds.
- Providing real-time updates with detour options in the case of construction, changed layout or congestion.
- Showing guests all the available options for food, drink, and retail. (Visitors are more likely to make purchases if they know exactly what’s available.)
- Providing alternate, accessible routes for people with disabilities or other specific requirements.
Digital mapping applications can also benefit venue employees and clients who may need efficient transit directions from one place to another.
It also helps make the world safer by granting every attendee access to all the data and emergency exit details in the palm of their hands. While it can also help enhance and streamline an evacuation, where timing and execution are paramount. And, if First Responders must be notified of an emergency, digital maps can aid them in reaching their location as quickly and speedily as possible.
Offering a digital map and wayfinding system at your venue will ensure your events are safe and cost-efficient while bringing in more revenue and generally keeping your visitors happier.
