How Mechanics Bank Arena Saw a 15% Jump in Email Opens

Mechanics Bank Arena, nestled in the heart of Bakersfield, California, stands tall as an entertainment venue. With its 10,000 seat arena, 3,000 seat theater, amphitheater, and ice rink, it hosts a wide range of events.

We had a chat with Nick Wynne, Marketing Manager, who has been at the forefront of promoting events for an impressive 13 years at the arena.

The shift to a new ticketing provider presented Mechanics Bank Arena with challenges, particularly in the areas of effective email communication and getting insights into ticket sales data.

"We needed to find a way to reach our customers via email and also a way to pull data that is more comprehensive than just box office audits."

The Solution

Confronted with these challenges, Mechanics Bank Arena adopted Encore Pro, significantly enhancing their marketing strategies. Let’s explore how Activity Stream proved to be the solution they needed:

1. Simplified Email Operations:

Nick sheds light on Activity Stream's email management, saying:

"It's easy to use, but also comprehensive. And the way it pulls in the data from our ticketing provider makes it really seamless in terms of what we need to do to reach our customers.”

2. In-depth Analytics:

Analytics capabilities became a game-changer for Mechanics Bank Arena.

According to Nick, "The analytics are amazing. They're very easy to understand, and the interface is clean and simple. It’s straightforward to find key information.”

"To streamline the process, I set up some colleagues with access. The platform's intuitive design meant they could navigate effortlessly, finding the information they needed without any guidance. It's user-friendly and empowers our team with independent access to critical data."

3. Industry-Specific Expertise:

A key differentiator is its comprehensive understanding of the live entertainment industry, tailored specifically for the needs of live event organizations.

Nick emphasizes, "We briefly used a generic email marketing tool and it was a whole different world working with it. It didn’t understand that we’re trying to sell tickets or that we’re trying to send in a note before people come to a show. They’re just built on sending emails to customers. You can tell that Encore Pro knows the ins and outs of our world. They clearly know what people who run venues are looking for in terms of product and data."

4. Responsive Customer Service:

The impeccable customer service offered by Encore Pro became a cornerstone of their partnership.

Nick applauds, "The customer service is great. Anytime we've had any issues, it usually gets resolved very quickly. They’re also always open to work with us, in terms of needing new functionalities or different options.”

“I’m often amazed by their client mailings every few months when they introduce new features I hadn’t even thought of. They’re constantly updating the software and thinking ahead in terms of best ways to reach our customers and to analyze our data. It’s amazing that they take a proactive stance and give us more options to do our job."

The Results

The integration of Encore Pro into the marketing operations at Mechanics Bank Arena yielded impressive results:

1. Open rates are 10 to 15% higher compared to their previous ticketing provider.

Nick reveals, "Our open rates have increased by 10 to 15%. The secret? Direct emails from our venue, cutting through the clutter. In the past, emails from our former ticketing provider led to information overload. Now our direct approach stands out and our customers recognize the source.”

“We also get good open rates with the clever segmentation feature. We’ve been using some of the genre based segments. We won’t be sending promotional emails for, let’s say, our hispanic shows to our entire database, since half our database doesn’t speak Spanish. The segmentation feature allows us to easily target the relevant audience.”

2. Deeper audience understanding for targeted strategies.

Nick gained valuable insights about their audience through Encore Pro. He told us, "The platform's interface simplifies data visibility, and diving deeper allows us to analyze ticket sales in specific zip codes and understand purchasing patterns within distinct demographics. This has been incredibly helpful. For instance, we've identified hotspots like the Los Angeles area for certain shows, allowing us to tailor our digital marketing efforts accordingly.”

“The real game-changer is the demographic data readily available at our fingertips. Knowing, for example, that 75% of purchasers for a specific show are female, directs our ad buyer personas to focus on women aged 18 to 54. This level of insight streamlines my targeting strategy, making it easier to understand and connect with our consumer base effectively."

3. Emails can be built in 5 minutes.

Nick illustrates the swift email-building capabilities of Encore Pro, sharing:

"In the live event industry, quick turnarounds are common. Just yesterday, a promoter needed a promotion email urgently. I crafted the email in five minutes. Its drag and drop simplicity, especially with existing templates, has been transformative. This flexibility is invaluable, and while I don't want to oversimplify, the platform allows me to create an email in less than five minutes when needed. It's a fantastic tool, adding agility to our marketing endeavors."

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