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2018: General Discussion

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TakeYourMedicine said:
One thing's for sure, Merlin's own KPI surveys are out of touch!
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It’s disgusting how they manipulate those tablets, not just at Towers but any Merlin site with tablets.

They are setup to refuse negative feedback until a set time, they often refuse to give the option to leave actual comments which means if someone is having a negative visit it goes undetected as someone who’s just wasted a few mins getting through the questions to be greeted with a “thank you” at the end rather than “any comments” isn’t very likely to join the queue to complain just to be robbed off.
 
I've often thought they should use those "happy or not" buttons at the turnstyles on the way out to get quick feedback:

happyornot.jpg

I don't think those KPI tablets they use at the moment give representative feedback. It takes a few minutes to go through and fill it out properly, and I imagine most people start to fill it out but then get fed up and walk away.

I would be interested to hear what the abandonment rate is but I suspect they don't even collect that info and just discard any incomplete feedback submissions. This means you're only collecting feedback for a very select group of people with time to kill, either those very happy or very upset.
 
Alsty said:
I've often thought they should use those "happy or not" buttons at the turnstyles on the way out to get quick feedback:

happyornot.jpg

I don't think those KPI tablets they use at the moment give representative feedback. It takes a few minutes to go through and fill it out properly, and I imagine most people start to fill it out but then get fed up and walk away.

I would be interested to hear what the abandonment rate is but I suspect they don't even collect that info and just discard any incomplete feedback submissions. This means you're only collecting feedback for a very select group of people with time to kill, either those very happy or very upset.
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This is a very good point. There have been times where I've wanted to fill out a KPI form on the tablet but have given up because they just go on and on. Or something they just don't make sense, the one in the Spa the other week asked if you had children with you, then even if you said no it forced you to answer a question regarding the children that you did not have. So that was abandoned.

I suppose the downside to the happy or not button things is that they can be easily abused or pressed randomly.
 
Rob said:
This is a very good point. There have been times where I've wanted to fill out a KPI form on the tablet but have given up because they just go on and on. Or something they just don't make sense, the one in the Spa the other week asked if you had children with you, then even if you said no it forced you to answer a question regarding the children that you did not have. So that was abandoned.

I suppose the downside to the happy or not button things is that they can be easily abused or pressed randomly.
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That’s true about the abuse but then it could be linked to needing to scan a ticket / pass which then could be used to get in touch with you about your response.

Of course the turnstiles wouldn’t be the right place for a verification response as it could create a bigger queue to get out
 
It's clear the obvious consensus is that the survey does not matter as it will be interpreted however they choose, be it through algorithms, human bias, whatever, and is simply there to give guests the illusion of choice. I agree with everyone skeptical of this :)
GaryH said:
Would be so good if they spent a bit of money to bring back Air and actually introduced the theming that was originally planned for the ride. You dont need any of this VR gimmicky stuff when swooping over lakes and waterfalls
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If Tussauds under Charterhouse weren't willing to spend the extra cash that Wardley wanted to create a Steampunk themed Air, then I highly doubt Merlin would put the money in for it. Granted so few changes were made to 'reimagine' the ride in to Galactica, that it is possible that it could quite cheaply revert to what it was like before.

From 'VR is here to stay' and 'VR is the future' in 2016 to:
47204915_2069477979742126_3897323993782288384_n.jpg

Make your mind up!
 
I get the impression Nick Varney is very out of touch with his own company's practices and culture. Either that, or he just says one thing publicly and does another behind the scenes.

It's not like Merlin started out a shining knight of themed experiences and only lost quality when it grew – the stories are always the same since their beginnings, taking over the Dungeons. Everything about what their priorities were, how they treat their contractors or competition, and lead everything by a marketing strategy that only really cares about short term.

People admire Nick for his big success in the business, but all their growth only ever come from buying existing successes and stripping them down. Was it really much more than being in the right place at the right time, and getting along well with those with the financial backing to buy out others?

Of course it shouldnt be forgotten that Nick Varney contributed so much to repositioning Alton Towers in its best days, but what are his personal priorities? He is the one who has sought such a large public structure bent on global market dominance at the cost of value and guest experience anyway. He's now changed the industry in the UK pretty irreversibly.
 
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Upper management at Merlin take guest feedback very seriously. Trip Advisor in particular is a big deal.

It's how they react to negative feedback where they're slacking... Usually because they have to spend money to make improvements.
 
I'm surprised if they do take TripAdvisor seriously. Every review gets a standard copy and paste response. Most reviews mention poor housekeeping but nothing has changed.

I'd love it if they actually had a feedback page on their website with the complaints from guests and what they have done to address them.
 
It amazes me how they need visitor feedback when they know full well that the decisions that are made beforehand wouldn't be liked.

SRQ gone
Staggered openings
More emphasis on FT...

You like?
 
I think the existing feedback tablets are most certainly flawed; at their current length the only people that are going to bother completing them are going to be on extreme opposite ends of the spectrum. Either completely ecstatic about their day out, or had a terrible day and want to vent. Or are enthusiasts. I certainly don't think they capture the opinion of the everyday guest.
 
You only have to look at the past results to see this “win” isn’t real

2015 - Warwick castle won the equivalent award with the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter just “highly commended”

And 2017
Best Family Theme Park
WINNER: Universal Studios Florida
Runner up: Dreamland Margate

Best UK Day Out For Families
WINNER: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter
Runner up: Natural History Museum
 
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