Laws of attraction
How can I get more people to visit my development?
That’s a frequent question we get asked by our clients, although sometimes the phrasing is less direct: how much space should I give to each category? Or, what should the price-positioning of my offer be?
These questions, and others we answer, all centre around driving increased footfall to a development, and then creating an offer appropriate to the catchment to release spend.
Our work on travel hubs generally doesn’t seek to answer the first question; as long as people have to travel long distances quickly and in (relative) comfort, they'll have to visit airports and train stations. But while the footfall may be guaranteed, there is no certainty that the passengers passing through the terminals will convert into spending customers. There are several aspects that travel hubs, and airports in particular, should consider when seeking to convert passengers into customers:
The commercial layout
How passengers flow through a transport hub can be largely controlled or determined. Unlike a visit to a shopping centre, someone passing through an airport or train station is usually going from point A to B without then returning to point A (at least not in the short term). This linear journey means that the planning of the commercial layout can be controlled to place a particular type of offer before another, ensuring that high-appeal, impulse goods are placed in flow, with more destinational offers situated further away.
Other factors, such as visibility, unit placement, signage and wayfinding, all need to be considered, as does the interaction of the commercial offer with non-commercial amenities. In our work on airports we have seen a strong correlation between well-controlled flows and high sales, provided that the offer is aligned to the profile.
The customer profile
We’ve written previously on the importance of understanding your customer base. Successful brands spend millions of dollars on CRM systems and research to find out as much as possible about their customers, from consumer research through to A/B testing of websites. Travel hubs likewise need to know what to offer their passenger base, from the product and cuisines, and the price-positioning they are interested in.
Although primary research is a useful approach to understanding your passengers it’s not the only way in determining who is passing through your asset. Detailed trading data analytics, experimenting with pop-up and seasonal offers, and flow and motion tracking can all be used to build a clearer picture, allowing the curation of a commercial offer more relevant to the customer base.
Non-commercial
An important part of space planning, and how people perceive and experience the commercial offer, is the consideration of non-commercial spaces, including seating, toilets, landscaping, circulation space, and information and signage. For downtown shopping centres the associated leisure activities are often the primary reason to visit a centre, with the traditional retail and food & beverage playing a supporting role. In travel hubs however, these areas are often overlooked or ignored completely, but they play a fundamental role in establishing the success of a commercial offer.
Providing spaces for different need cases, and enhancing the commercial environment with interesting artworks and vibrant spaces provides a reason for people to remain in the heart of the offer, driving increased penetration of the surrounding units.
Our work across all types of commercial entities, from out-of-town outlet centres, to large malls and shopping districts, through to travel hubs around the world allows us to understand the key drivers of footfall. Most importantly, this enables us to gauge sentiment towards the development and what needs to be done to increase visitor numbers.
Chris van Ryswyck