Haunted Attraction Network

Scott discusses how diversity, in every sense of the word, can improve the creativity and financial success of your haunted attraction.

It's another episode divisible by four and that means we're doing the news and what a news week we have. Has the nation and world begin the process of reopening, haunted attractions and similar locations are starting to open back up as well. As such, we have a lot of news about various attractions opening their doors for the first time in many months.

But it's not just about that. We have some news about less-than-desirable members of our community getting the heave-ho as well as some details on new products that you may want to check out!

All in all, this is one jam-packed news episode!

This Week's Episode Includes:

Intro
COVID-19 Resources
Housekeeping Items
Question of the Week
Wilmington Haunted Hollow Ride Dismisses Nazi Actor
Fear Factory Open for One Night
Disney World Sets Reopen Date
Japanese Theme Parks Open, Including Rules for Haunts
Universal Orlando Reopens
Coachella 2020 Likely to Be Cancelled
Minnesota Theater Plans to Reopen as a Haunt
LEGO Unveils New Haunted Attraction Set
Haunters Against Hate Announces Black Haunters Matter Book
Answering the Weekly Question
Conclusions
All in all, this is one episode you do NOT want to miss!

Like it or not, the haunt industry is almost certainly heading into a period of great turmoil that is likely to be followed by a recession or even a depression. While that means some rough times are ahead, they are also an opportunity to change the way we work and prepare ourselves to grow.

But what changes should we be eying? What adjustments can we make to elevate this whole industry? There are a lot of potential things we should look at, so we chose ten that seemed like ones we could all do right now.

So what are they? Listen (or read the notes below) and find out!

This Week's Episode Includes:

Intro
Housekeeping Items
2 Quick News Items
Intro to the Topic
Stop Consolidation/Save Middle-Class Haunts
Expand to Other Seasons
Expand to Other Markets
Continue International Expansion
Stop Stealing IP
Become Innovation Led
Innovate New Experiences
Make More Money Digitally
Lobbying
Understand What Customers Want
Conclusions
All in all, this is one episode you do NOT want to miss!

When a global crisis happens, like COVID-19 and similar contagious pandemics, haunted attractions and entertainment venues can suffer. Customers can become fearful to attend close-quarter events like concerts and attractions.

State regulations may be different for your event this year and they’ll probably keep changing weekly. You may be feeling a bit uncertain about what this year’s season will actually hold for you.

This doesn’t mean you can’t open up (unless your state says you can’t) or that you can’t provide the best and safest show ever. You’ll just need to do some extra planning and brainstorming this year.

Resources:
https://fearworm.com/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/hauntedhousemarketing/
https://waitwhile.com/
https://hauntpay.com/

Right now is the time of year many haunts are starting to think about actor recruitment, retention and training. It's the time we touch base with our crews, start recruiting replacements and training everyone up.

However, this year presents a special set of challenges. The days of 100+ person cattle calls are gone for right now and there are LOT of new things you need to think about training. So how do you fix this? Well, we know the man who can help the most: Actor manager/trainer extroidonaire Japes Palles.

So, this week we sit down with Japes to talk about the challenges of actor management during these unusual times and hopefully get some things to think about as well as some tips and tricks to make your actors more effective.

This Week's Episode Includes:

Intro
Check Out Our New COVID-19 Page: https://www.hauntweekly.com/covid19
Remembering Mike Krohn "Car Mike"
Understandings and Caveats
Actor Recruiting & Retention
Preparations for Your Actors
Actor Training
Conclusions
All in all, this is one episode you do NOT want to miss!

Note: This episode as beset by some technical issues caused by low bandwidth. As such, there's some breaking, especialy on our audio. Please be patient with us!

This week's Haunt Weekly begins with something of a programming note. Originally, we had planned to have Japes Palles on to talk about actor recruitment and training while working remotely. However, some severe weather struck his area and he was not able to come on.

So, we will have that conversation next week, same time, same channel. In the meantime, we wish Japes the best of luck with the cleanout of his basement. Good luck and please be safe!

So, this week's episode was a bit hurriedly put together but we are talking about an equally important item, namely 10 COVID-19-related things that your haunt should be doing right now.

Yes, it's only May but no matter when your haunt opens, it will be while COVID-19 is still a thing. So, it's best to start preparing right now and here are just a few places you can start.

This Week's Episode Includes:

Intro
Quarantine Resources
Question for the Audience
Intro to the Topic
Setting Up Virtual Queueing/Timed Ticketing
Investing in Hand Sanitizer Stations/PPE For Customers
Eliminating Haunt Contact Points
Disinfection Plan for Remaining Contact Points
Rearranging/Reconfiguring Backstage Areas
Planning on Reducing Actor Count
Marketing and Merchandising
New Business Plan
Writing New Rules for Customers & Actors
Checking in with Actors
Conclusions
All in all, no matter how hastily this episode came together, this is one episode you do NOT want to miss!

Scott chats with his old friend and colleague, Alex Crow, about working together at Howl-O-Scream, his career after Busch Gardens and the future of the seasonal attractions industry. Enjoy their poignant observations and silly stories.

"Remote" brings you into a horror experience without leaving your house. But you'll feel like you're there.

Learn how a"Remote" type of interactive digital experience can be used with your customers.

Each year we always try to add something unique to our Haunted Attractions. Sometimes we need to think outside of the box so that we can prepare for the experiences customers want and crave...they just don't know it yet.

That's where a mobile horror interactive game could bring extra revenue to your haunted house business or any entertainment event.

Think about this. Creating episodic content (emails, texts, videos, etc) for a series of days created around the story of your attraction. Mystery combined with scary. Interactive with Improvision. Then charge for it.

This also builds your brand and keeps your customers interested offseason. And they can interact with your show without leaving their house.

Listen to this podcast to learn how to incorporate immersive horror in your haunt.

Haunters, just like any profession, have a language and jargon all of our own. But for 228 episodes we've been using a lot of the lingo without making any attempt to actually define what any of it means.

This week we are fixing that by going through some of the more common terms and expressions used in the haunt industry and among its members

So, get your jargon hat on as we're opening the book on just some of the key terms haunters (and their customers) use.

This Week's Episode Includes:

Intro
Quarantine Resources for Haunters
Updates From Our Haunt
About the Topic
Haunt Building/Construction Terms
Haunt Acting & Operation Terms
Miscellaneous Terms
Conclusions
All in all, this is one packed episode that you do NOT want to miss!

We ask Bart Butler and Michael Edwards from Terror in the Corn about their preseason preparation, scare acting, timed ticketing, surviving a pandemic, outdoor haunting, and more Haunt stuff!

This was recorded from our LIVE virtual prepared summit. You can find more trainings and master classes at HauntersToolbox.com

Follow Terror in the Corn at https://terrorinthecorn.com/

This was recorded LIVE during HAuNT Connect; register free here: https://www.hauntcon.com/haunt-connect-virtual-event