Top 57 US Zoos & Aquariums Ranked in 2022 Digital Customer Experience Report

LaneTerralever finds 69% of zoos and aquariums have a presence on TikTok, but only 15% use the platform to its fullest extent.

PHOENIX, Aug. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- National marketing and customer experience agency, LaneTerralever, ranked 57 of the top zoos and aquariums in their "2022 Zoo & Aquarium Digital Customer Experience Report " with the Denver Zoo, Maryland Zoo and San Diego Zoo leading the rankings.

After years of social distancing and pent up demand, U.S. families looking to experience large-scale attractions such as zoos and aquariums have taken off this year. While many of the changes seen in the early days of the pandemic are a thing of the past, there are a number of changes to guest experience that will be permanent, including how guests interact online.
"Many attractions employed new digital content like behind-the-scenes videos and created new experiences like drive-through exhibits to survive during pandemic restrictions. Now, with operations back to normal, we are finding guests have a new level of expectations," shared LaneTerralever Attractions Expert, Hannah Tooker.

LaneTerralever's "2022 Zoo & Aquarium Digital Customer Experience Report" addresses these changes and expectations using a standardized set of criteria across critical elements of the digital customer experience including website, social media and brand experience. These insights provide perspective on how zoos and aquariums are connecting with guests and creates a benchmark ranking system showing comparisons to industry peers, along with identifying areas for improvement.

Serving as experience number one, a website is one of the first touch points for a potential guest. It also serves as the main source for information and ticket purchases. For the purpose of this report, assessments were performed on mobile and desktop design, website performance, ADA compliance, search engine optimization, page load speed and ease of purchasing tickets online (e-commerce flow). Surprisingly, 32% of zoos and aquariums are still not properly optimizing their mobile ticket purchasing process, and only 17% are using a progress bar at checkout for guests to track where they are in the process.

Social media was weighted highest across the three digital customer experience areas. A zoo or aquarium's social media presence should authentically encourage attendance and provide up-to-date information. High marks were given for the following: value-based content, a diverse channel mix, high-engagement metrics, thoughtful strategies, affinity building, TikTok adoption, influencer utilization and if they incorporate paid social ads into their efforts. Most have quickly adopted TikTok with 69% already having a presence on the channel, but only 15% are properly using the platform.

For brand experience rankings, the areas of consideration were perceived brand value, customer sentiment, differentiated brand positioning, message clarity, customer loyalty programs and effective use of email and SMS marketing. It is important for zoos and aquariums to establish themselves as brands visitors want to have an ongoing relationship rather than just an occasional activity. This encourages long-term customer loyalty versus one-time visits.

"When considering the various elements that make a memorable experience for zoo and aquarium guests, we increased our depth of research, building upon what we learned in our 2021 attractions report," said Hannah Tooker. "The decision to dig deeper, provided us with thorough insights on how to improve a guest's digital experience from start to finish."

For access to the full report, visit LaneTerralever.com/ZooReport2022.

ABOUT LANETERRALEVER
LaneTerralever is a tourism and attractions marketing agency that has developed a deep understanding of how visitors select an attraction, destination or entertainment experience and the marketing strategies that move them to take action. We perform primary research to uncover insights about the visitor journey and publish digital experience reports to allow attractions to benchmark against one another.

Our efforts aim to drive an increase in visitors, membership program engagement and ultimately transform guests into life long, loyal customers. We're proud to work with a number of partners including The Phoenix Zoo, Heard Museum, Desert Botanical Garden, OdySea Aquarium, Palms Casino Resort, Visit Monterey, Blue Man Group and Rentyl Resorts.

Media Contact

Simon Noel, Lane Terralever, 1 6022585263, [email protected]

SOURCE Lane Terralever