Americans may drive three to four hours to and from an event in a single day to fulfill their basic entertainment expectations. It is not uncommon for a parent who chauffeurs their budding athlete to and from an out-of-town tournament to schedule a single day round trip.
However, savvy organizers of sports and live entertainment have huge opportunities to create new activities or leverage existing activities beyond the core event that are likely to influence someone to transform their one-day trip into a multi-day experience.
Introducing value-added elements such as pre- or post-event entertainment, premium lodging packages, extended merchandise offerings and exclusive experiences are opportunities to create additional revenue streams with both a direct and indirect economic impact.
Persuading individuals to arrive the day prior or extend their stay to an extra day is most effective when event managers or the rights holder communicates and collaborates with business owners and civic leaders in the local market, especially for cross promotions. Innovation and strategic planning are the two key drivers for creating, executing, managing and/or promoting auxiliary activities around a core event that will most likely influence individuals to stay longer at a destination.
The following are five ideas that can influence someone who would generally travel to an event in a single day to extend their trip to include at least one overnight stay:
1. Think Location, Location, Location
A scenic destination can be reason enough for eventgoers to stay in an area for more than a day. An event hosted in an area attractive to participants and spectators has the easiest time of this. Often a youth tournament becomes the default family vacation (sometimes known as a sports-cation) with the main athletic event serving as the cog around which a multi-day family-fun agenda is built.
Tip: Host an event in a location with attributes of a scenic destination.
2. Piggyback Off of a Larger Event
Timing an event or linking it to a larger entertainment weekend or festival is a second idea to influence visitor engagement beyond a single day. Someone traveling to participate in a single game, concert or one-day tournament is more likely to extend their stay if it is connected to a state fair, community festival, holiday extravaganza, exhibition, show trade convention or carnival.
Even a small program at a high school gym or local theater that someone would typically drive to and from in a day can generate enough interest to influence a hotel booking because it is held before, during or after a larger, more exciting event. Organizers of the smaller program can create a perception that it is linked to the larger event simply by careful timing, planning and proximity. A true partnership and co-branding opportunity may exist that would create a win-win for all concerned.
Tip: Contact organizers of an established event and pitch the idea of the extra activity that would require minimal investment in their time, money or energy.
3. Partner with Local Attractions
Similar to the draw of a scenic location, popular attractions are also destination magnets that can be leveraged to promote an event and influence overnight stays. A location near a ski lodge, museum, zoo, theme park, national park, casino or market is a means to potentially attract multi-day visitors, especially if there is a partnership or tie-in.
Sports Force Parks at Cedar Point, for example, is a multi-use indoor and outdoor athletic complex with proximity to Cedar Point Amusement Park and Lake Erie Shores Water Park (all three entities are based in Sandusky, Ohio). While the area itself is a prime destination for water related activities, the amusement park and water park are the popular attractions that tournament organizers leverage to drive overnight stays and additional spending in the area.
The website of Sports Force Parks at Cedar Point promotes access, parking and admission to the attractions for use before, after and during a tournament stay. The most popular option is the All-Star Pass for athletes, families and friends, which is essentially a special rate with free parking for all-access to both the amusement and water park valid for five days from the first use. Discounts for single day admission to the parks are also available.
Tip: Promote the existing activities of the location and even work with city officials or attraction owners to offer discount opportunities for participants along with family and friends.
4. Develop Multi-Day Packages
Event organizers can work with the local community to bundle event tickets with lodging, meals and other activities to encourage longer stays. While Sports Force Parks at Cedar Point already offers a package for the amusement and water park, there are opportunities to expand the package.
Potential options include the selection of overnight accommodation at the Hotel Breakers or Great Wolf Lodge Resort Hotel (an indoor water park) with meal tickets at the Thirsty Pony or Bay Harbor restaurants. The possibilities are almost endless when effort is put towards developing local knowledge and working with vendors to take the planning hassle out of the hands of participants and spectators who are willing and able to extend their stay.
Tip: Develop local knowledge and use a tourism bureau or similar entity to create overnight or multi-night packages for participants and spectators.
5. Enhance Onsite Activities
Beyond the short-term post-game fireworks or kids-run-the-bases activities, more complex and carefully planned immersive fan engagement experiences are ideal avenues to enhance a main event enough to inspire someone to change a single day trip into one that includes an overnight stay.
Onsite interactive zones, fan festivals, tailgates, after-parties, meet-and-greets, behind-the-scenes tours or exclusive access to practices or warm-ups and VIP experiences are all opportunities to inspire multi-day visitor engagement. Event organizers can create or host educational workshops or exhibitions and other networking opportunities for athletes, coaches and fans as part of an extended itinerary.
Even allowing free public use of a venue for tours and walking the day before or day after a game can potentially impact overnight stay decisions. VIP hospitality packages are becoming more popular, especially in conjunction with premium events such as the Olympics, Super Bowl, a world championship, all-star game or high-profile concert tour where persons paying a high dollar can collect autographs, snap a selfie with a trophy, leverage on-court or onstage access, join a private post-event celebration or enjoy a gourmet dinner and wine tasting.
These types of opportunities require a great deal of planning and additional resources to produce, but the revenue generation is generally restricted to the event producer and not shared with the owners of local events and attractions.
Tip: Survey available resources and evaluate both the feasibility and return on investment (RIO) before creating an extended program or fan engagement experience.
Final Thoughts
Any of the five ideas can elevate an event and establish new standards for maximizing economic outcomes that would not be possible if individuals restricted their activity and travel to a single day. By embracing creativity and innovation, rights holders can seize opportunities to drive economic growth for their own operations and within the local community.
One of the best tips for an event organizer is to communicate and partner with local businesses, including hotels, restaurants, attraction owners and tourism operators. The outcome not only creates a regional economic impact but can also assist in producing sponsorship and other revenue-generating opportunities. SDM
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