Customer expectations and competition are pushing parking operators to evolve and invest heavily in digital business transformation. The customer path to purchase is no longer linear. Instead, their journey has many touchpoints, both online and offline. A key challenge that operators face is ensuring the overall parking experience is seamless, from booking a parking space online through to the final exit from the car park.

Digital car park technology provides parking operators several key customer touchpoints which can be leveraged to create a tailored and seamless parking experience. After successfully converting offline customers to online, digital signage can then integrate with customer data to display content relevant to a specific customer or even guide them to their pre-booked parking space.

Critical to this is the conversion of offline customers to online customers. Implementing a digital car park technology strategy allows operators to gather and analyse customer data such as payment methods and the frequency and duration of visits. With a digital platform, operators can utilise this data to tailor the customer experience, communications and promotions, in turn improving customer loyalty and increasing revenue.

But how do you convert traditionally offline customers to online?

The Secure Parking digital journey
Over the past five years Secure Parking has transformed from a traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ business to a business with a successful digital strategy in place. With over 600 car park sites throughout Australia and New Zealand, Secure Parking has a range of parking products designed specifically to suit each customer’s unique parking habits.

The introduction of online booking has generated a brand-new audience who had previously not considered using a car park. However, with the success of their newfound digital audience it has proven to be challenging in converting traditional offline customers to the online platform.

Secure Parking has partnered with CV Media & Signage for the past two years to digitally transform their offline experience through digital car park technology. Secure Parking can now reach their customers through multiple digital signage touchpoints including LED displays, variable rate boards and CV’s customised APM displays.

Andrew Sapir, Corporate Marketing Manager of Secure Parking said, “by having effective digital signage throughout our car parks, we can communicate messages to customers that haven’t considered booking parking online.”

Launched in July this year, ‘Smart Cookie’ was Secure Parking’s first national digital signage campaign. Sapir said, “When converting a customer from offline to online it’s important to keep messaging simple. We had a good story to tell within the car park, especially to drive-up customers who encountered parking costs that were higher than expected. Smart Cookie was a visually appealing image that created attention. Combining this image with a simple and relevant message provides these customers with a better solution the next time they need to park.”

“It’s early days but initial feedback from customers has been positive. Everyone loves a Smart Cookie!”

As featured on Parking Australia.