Discussion of the Populairty of Disneyland Look-a-Likes

London Resort Company Holdings has publicized that they are going to open a theme park, inspired by Disneyland. They claim that it will be the “first of its kind” in the United Kingdom. It will have many entertaining and attractive sections, like daytime and nighttime parades, hotels for tourists to stay in, indoor entertainment, like Disneyland, it will include character themed food items available for sale. As for transportation methods the park will establish public footpaths, cycle routes, to make it easier for the public. As well as having a massive car park space, and providing a parking lot for coaches, motorcycles, and bicycles. As wonderful as it may sound, the theme park business still needs to consider some factors such as, pricing strategies will be used for the price of tickets, the advantages to the economy of building such a large sight, how market segmentation will be used, and how promoting the theme park is going to look like.

The points that were mentioned above are all valid, however, factors of demand should be undertaken first. To continue with this, it should be noted down that the upcoming theme park will require more jobs, increase local spending in the country, and make the economy more productive. By using primary research, the following points have been conducted regarding the soon to open park.

Factors that might influence demand for the new theme park Demand is the amount of a good or service that customers are willing to purchase at any given price. The lower the prices, the higher the demand and vice versa. An increase of jobs and more jobs created will act as a large portion of the demand levels. Unemployed locals will have the chance to get jobs and contribute to the production of the economy. This factor will accord to the increase of income to the society. Functional needs will influence demand in a sense that, locals and travellers would want to improve their daily activities, and they have the power to, once the theme park opens. People will get to experience joy, relief, and security in the theme park, and this is what emotional needs are. Consumers may not head home with any tangible goods, but they are able to experience the joy of the theme park. Once that message gets spread demand will increase, especially to the consumers who want to feel good. Using penetration pricing, and having low priced tickets at the start will increase demand for the theme park. More on pricing tickets will be discussed.

How LRCH will use market segmentation Market segmentation is a technique used in firms to enable them to target the right products to its right customers. It involves identifying different wants and needs of the different segments available in the market. London Resort Company Holdings could divide their segments in four different ways which are, geographic, demographic, psychographics, and usage rate. Geographic segmentation is used when a business wants to target consumers worldwide and encourage them to travel and visit their theme park. This can be done by online advertising, radio advertising, and newspapers.

Since the theme park is in the UK, there are many cities that are hours away and so geographic segmentation is used to bring those people to the theme park. Age, gender, and family status is an important factor to commence. This is called demographic segmentation. LRCH would target children aged 5-12 by having kiddy games and mascots of the trendiest cartoon hanging around the site. The theme park said that they would have a large theatre with 2000+ seats thus having an entertaining site for the child if they get tired. Teenagers would be targeted by having games that would give them an adrenaline rush and advertising it as a remarkable ride that is impossible to forget. Parents would be targeted by having coffee shops, scarier rides to go on, and spreading the message that it is a place of memories and a way to make their kids happy. The advantages of having a segmented market would be that the right factors being targeted at the right people will result in customer satisfaction and often make them want to return to the theme park. It also allows the business to create more rides and more products because they know who to target and how, therefore would help them grow and create more profit. A coordinated marketing mix:

• Pricing strategies for tickets to the theme park. There are quite a few pricing strategies that can be used in the theme park, most commonly are seasonal pricing, day-of-the-week pricing, and demand based pricing. However, there are also other strategies that can be used for example, penetration pricing which is when prices are set at a low base at the start of a newly opened company and price skimming is the opposite and it is when prices are high at the start of a newly launched firm or product and lowers the prices over time.
• Seasonal pricing is charging different prices for tickets depending on the seasons. For example, most tourists travel to the UK during the summer time and so during the time, prices for entrance would be higher than usual because more people would be there. Day-of-the-week pricing is like seasonal pricing, although rather than setting different prices during different seasons, it would be during the week. Monday-Thursday are weekdays therefore prices would be a bit lower than if it were a weekend. Lastly, demand based pricing is the most commonly used strategy. Reason being, consumers would pay any price at such a high level of demand. LCRH should consider using demand based pricing and seasonal pricing. Starting off by using demand based pricing would result in the theme park making a large profit, because demand is high for something that is brand new.

Above the line promotion is used to target a mass audience, mostly used to spread awareness and let people know about the new upcoming business or in this case a theme park. LRCH can use above the line promotion by hiring an advertising agency and have it on the behalf of the company. Television, radios and the internet such as Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat could be used to promote the theme park six months prior. Am advantage of using social media applications in these situations is that word online spreads around fast resulting in people being aware of the theme park in a faster time than usual and increasing the demand for it. Below the line advertising is using mediums other than a radio. By using this type of advertising, people who don’t use their televisions or phones much can be informed about what is happening. This includes advertising on newspapers, going from door to door and handing out flyers about the theme park, starting campaigns, mails and emails. Below the line advertising is a cheaper way of advertising compared to above the line. Using these methods, people locally and globally will be made aware of the upcoming theme park.

Identification and analysis of the two most important factors you think might affect the success of the theme park It is important for LRCH to understand that as they are a newly opening business they need to consider some factors so that they can be successful. Firstly, the theme park should be built on a flat site because they are easier to build on compared to lands that are on a mountain and such, and less land will be lost if it were build on a flat site. Recognizing the correct market and market segments is important for the theme park to succeed because a successful park knows how to target their customers and make them feel satisfied at their visit there. This can be done by the help of market research. Most theme parks try to attract people that are away from 2 hours or so but with the help of above the line promotion they can also attract people globally. Lastly, setting a good price is the key to having a successful theme park. Customers want to be able to afford entering without a hassle and so setting a fair and reasonable price. To conclude, price and market segmentation are the two most important factors that I think will influence the success of the theme park.