Success Story
Thorpe Park, the UK’s ‘most thrilling theme park’, has been tackling their queue management using Playable’s gamification platform.
The collaboration with Playable has enabled Thorpe Park to revolutionize visitor engagement and enhance their marketing strategy through gamified experiences. By seamlessly integrating playable marketing campaigns, Thorpe Park has not only elevated the visitor experience but also unlocked an innovative tactic for lead generation and data acquisition.
As a highly popular theme park, Thorpe Park’s success has led them to an enviable influx of visitors. Yet, this popularity presented a unique challenge — the need to manage queues while preserving an exceptional visitor experience. Thorpe Park’s commitment to delivering an unparalleled experience to their visitors prompted them to seek solutions. Enter Playable’s gamification platform, a game-changer that would not only mitigate queue-related concerns but also drive lead-generation strategies.
“Nobody enjoys queuing, so anything we can do to entertain people in queue lines is great! Playable campaigns have been particularly helpful in solving this. Any data capture we can do at the same time using the games is a nice bonus as well!” James Abraham, Brand Manager at Thorpe Park
“Nobody enjoys queuing, so anything we can do to entertain people in queue lines is great! Playable campaigns have been particularly helpful in solving this. Any data capture we can do at the same time using the games is a nice bonus as well!”
Playable’s gamification platform became Thorpe Park’s secret weapon in creating captivating and immersive playable campaigns. The platform enabled the deployment of engaging campaigns like the spine-tingling “Fright Nights” for Halloween and the captivating “Mardi Gras” treasure hunt. To promote these campaigns, Thorpe Park leveraged the park’s app through push notifications, QR codes on the maps around the park, and in-room screens at Thorpe Park’s hotel – Thorpe Shark Cabins. These gamified experiences not only entertained guests in queues but some of them also transformed the entire park into an interactive treasure hunt. Central to this approach is Thorpe Park’s Games hub, a landing page that houses all of Thorpe Park’s games for easy access for the park’s visitors. The hub includes always-on campaigns, which are always available to visitors, and seasonal ones, which are only available during specific events, ensuring sustained engagement.
The Thorpe Park Quiz stands as a prime example of the theme park’s gamification prowess. Permanently accessible through the Thorpe Park Games hub, and promoted using their app and QR codes on the park’s map and in Thorpe Park’s hotel, this always-on and evergreen game offers a consistent and captivating experience for visitors. Comprising of 5 brand-related questions, the quiz serves a dual purpose: queue management and brand education. With multiple question sets, the quiz is also re-playable and can be played in teams with friends & family members, which makes this game a great example of how gamification can transform queue time into enjoyable, competitive and memorable moments.
Beyond the impressive numbers, the gamified campaigns achieved an invaluable feat—seamlessly captivating guests waiting in queues, effectively turning waiting time into an immersive and educational experience.
Playable’s platform has been a real game-changer for Thorpe Park. With its user-friendly interface and adaptability, Thorpe Park’s team can effortlessly craft and launch a variety of captivating games in a few days only. While they rarely need it, they also know that Playable’s support team is always available online to support any technical or platform-related questions.
Even with a busy schedule, Thorpe Park’s marketing team have managed to create a multitude of games since working with Playable. The platform has replaced what was once a time-consuming and costly process of developing each game one at a time. This newfound flexibility has transformed how Thorpe Park engages with its audience, showcasing the pivotal role played by playable marketing in their innovative approach to queue management.
“That’s the reason I really like Playable’s platform – more than any others. We have limited time, so it’s great that we can do the games ourselves, and as many as we want, with different themes. Before Playable, developing lots of individual games would have been very expensive. I just love the flexibility it brings!” James Abraham, Brand Manager at Thorpe Park
“That’s the reason I really like Playable’s platform – more than any others. We have limited time, so it’s great that we can do the games ourselves, and as many as we want, with different themes. Before Playable, developing lots of individual games would have been very expensive. I just love the flexibility it brings!”
“We value that the existing game concepts work so well for us. Also, it’s great that we can reskin the games and make them look really on-brand.”