Case Study with Avalon Park Group, Orlando
New Event Tech Solution for Driving Revenue & Increasing the On-Site Experience
60%
Avg. Revenue Increase
evPay beta test users saw, on average, a 60% increase in event revenue compared to previous years.
90%
Decrease in Avg. Fulfillment Time
evPay improved line speed by reducing the entire purchase time (order input, payment, & fulfilment) by 90%.
3
New Data Categories
Organizers can now analyze 3 new integrated types of data within their event system: product, profit, & transactional.
But First - What is evPay?
A new onsite payment solution called evPay (pronounced Eventeny Pay) was released for beta testing to enhance efficiency and convenience for both buyers and sellers during live events.
Eventeny’s contactless payment technology lets buyers pre-load a balance to their account via the Eventeny mobile app. After funds are loaded, a QR code is generated for easy cardless payment at check out. Avalon Park Group hosted their annual Oktoberfest and implemented evPay to improve their attendee experience by providing an easier form of payment.
Not only were attendees able to purchase card-free, but their time in line also decreased! The total transaction time of an evPay purchase, including order input, payment collection, and fulfillment, was 40 seconds and getting faster. Whereas card transactions using hardware can take up to 30 seconds to only process payment.
On average, events participating in the evPay beta test have seen a 60% increase in revenue due to a faster, more convenient check-out experience. As the technology adapts, this margin is predicted to increase significantly as the time per transaction is optimized for a faster check-out experience.
Avalon Park Group's Decision to Implement evPay
We asked Michelle, Avalon Park’s Event Coordinator, why her team decided to implement evPay at their annual event, Oktoberfest. Her response:
“I loved using Eventeny’s platform for our vendor management system for our tent vendors, crafters, makers, and food trucks. Offering a digital [on-site] payment option sounded like a great way to improve the guest experience by giving people an alternative way to pay for their products.”
Additionally, Michelle stated another driving factor was that evPay provided an opportunity for their local German Club and long-time partners to increase their revenue within the beer garden.
Benefits for Planners & Participants
Planner Perks
evPay opens the floodgates to a new pool of data that event organizers have had scarce access to before. Eventeny planners, like Avalon Park, can measure item popularity and buyer behavior to make data-backed decisions for future events.
For instance, when evPay is used for food and drink services, planners can analyze transaction data to determine staff shift management. For example, the Oktoberfest beer garden was open for 2 days from 4 PM - 10 PM, and 60% of the beer garden’s total profit was realized from 6 - 8 PM on the second day. Therefore, reduced staff can be allocated for the slower times. Additionally, upselling opportunities can be identified from top profitable products paired with undersold items. For example, 25% of purchases were 16 oz beers and 6% of purchases were for pretzels. Using this data, their team can strategize ways to increase undersold products' popularity or make data-backed menu prioritization decisions.
Eventeny organizers have access to 3 primary types of data with evPay:
- Product Data. evPay has helped the Avalon Park Group team determine Oktoberfest's top-selling products so they can make more informed decisions about what items to offer in the future. For example, out of 20+ products sold in the beer tent at Avalon Park's Octoberfest, 3 products contributed to 49.2% of the event's total profit. Therefore, their team will be able to prioritize their menu by investing less in undersold items next year. Alternatively, it could be a marketing opportunity to brainstorm ways to boost undersold products with a high potential for increasing profit.
- Revenue Data. An hourly purchase breakdown by revenue generation can be analyzed to determine what Avalon Park Group's event's most profitable hours were and why. For example, Avalon Park's Oktoberfest peak purchasing window was a 2-hour block that had contributed to almost 60% of the beer tent's revenue. Therefore, their team will be able to adequately staff their beer tent during peak hours and assign staff members to other areas during non-peak hours to maximize crucial resources.
- Transaction Data. Similar to revenue, Avalon Park Group can glean an hourly purchase breakdown by the number of transactions as well and compare it with your revenue data. Interestingly, Oktoberfest's peak transaction volume - only 2 transactions greater (363) than the previous hour (361) - saw a 23% decrease in profit. Therefore, their team will be able to analyze and compare the product data between their peak revenue hour (7 PM) and their peak transactional hour (8 PM) and determine the cause of the decrease to counteract and strategize to increase profit longevity next year!
Participant Perks
On the attendee side, the event payment experience is immensely enhanced by convenience. Similar to Apple Pay or Google Pay, guests can use the Eventeny app to load a balance and pay securely via a QR code instead of pulling out a wallet and inserting/swiping a card every time.
Challenge: Getting Guests to Adapt
Before Oktoberfest, Avalon Park Group utilized 4 primary marketing channels (web, email, social, and on-site signage) to encourage early evPay adapters for a smoother event experience.
To ensure guests were well informed, Avalon Park Group promoted a video and written tutorial resource walking their participants through the process. As a result, over 51% of their purchasing audience utilized evPay within the first year of launch.