This is a claim that many FECs make.  What makes your parties special and unique?  This is one of the most important days of your kids’ year.  As a parent, you want to make it the best party ever.  As a parent myself, I understand the importance of this day.  You really want your child to feel special, and there is a certain competitive nature to birthday parties at school.  “Well, Jill’s parents rented a suite at a hotel, and there was a juggler, ponies, etc.  What are we going to do for MY birthday, MOM?” 

There is a lot of pressure on both the kids and the parents to create an above-and-beyond experience.  What are we doing in the entertainment industry to help parents ease that pressure?  Have you educated your staff on what these parents are feeling in terms of pressure and expectations when they are booking these parties?  Many younger staff members who do not have children are unaware of how these parents are feeling or how to react to their feelings and guests.

Selling the Experience, Not Just the Attractions

From what I’ve noticed, the experience we provide comes from our staff more than the actual attractions.  Several years back, at an IAAPA seminar, I remember someone discussing the analogy of if there were 2 FEC’s next to each other and one had all the latest, greatest games, equipment, and attractions, yet a boring or subpar staff and the second FEC had older and fewer attractions but an engaging staff, many people would likely visit the first FEC.

Still, many more would visit and return to the second FEC.  That return visit is enormous.  As a smaller player in the entertainment industry, FECs heavily rely on repeat visits in most markets.  I think many forget that we aren’t selling our attractions.  We are selling an experience, and it’s our people who make the experience.  So, what can we do to enhance the experience with parties?  Party Games!!!

The Power of Party Games: Engaging Staff and Happy Parents

I know what some of you are thinking…” ugh, these kids want their game cards and don’t want to play a stupid party game.”  I know you think that because I used to think that, and I had seen that look in my staff’s eyes when I told them to play a game with the kids.  I thought that was true until one night when my friend Sheryl Bindelglass of Sheryl Golf, Inc. visited my center and helped me out.  She showed me a game called “Stuff It,” where kids (and adults) stuff balloons up oversized shirts that 2 of the kids wear.  I thought that no kid would want to play this game.  Sheryl caught this family as they were checking out at Redemption.  She asked them if they wanted to play a quick game. 

At first, they were pretty disinterested.  The parents looked exhausted and tapped out, and the kids just wanted their prizes.  But in Sheryl’s way, she convinced them to play.  Once they started playing, the kids and staff got into the game, but what was more notable was the change in the parents’ expressions.  They not only began to smile and enjoy watching this fiasco of balloons, but they also wanted to get pictures of it. 

I required my staff to play games with the kids every day after that day.  The sillier, the better.  Stuff It is still one of my favorite games to this day.  There are many other fun games out there for all different age groups.  We like an app called Heads Up, which is a type of charades game.  There is another game called Cookie Face, where kids try to move a cookie from their forehead to their mouth without using their hands.  There are tons of places that you can get game ideas from.  There is the internet, of course.  You can find many Minute-to-Win-It-style games and other quick, yet fun and engaging, games. 

The Magic of Flexibility: Creating Personalized Experiences

Ensure your staff has a diverse arsenal of games and is flexible enough to change directions quickly. I have yet to see anyone run a party the same way, so one of the critical qualities of a great party host is reading the customers and being flexible with their schedule and plans to create an experience that caters to the guests, not to an arbitrary program. 

Once, I had a new party host, and we had decided before the party arrived that we would play the Cookie Face game.  When the birthday boy showed up, we saw he was disabled, and his face was physically deformed.  This would have been a better game for this party, so we changed direction on a dime and played a different game.  We were prepared, and we did this so seamlessly that the family and kids didn’t even notice. 

Going Above and Beyond: Unique Activities to Make Your Party Stand Out

What else can you do to make your parties stand out?  We gave each party kid a special shirt with our logo on it for a while.  While many places do this, we took it to the next level by turning it into an activity.  We created a tie-dye station at our entrance, and it was an activity that both the party host and the guest of honor would participate in while waiting for the arrival of other guests.  We gave them a white shirt with our logo and found a spray-on tie-dye so that any kid could do it without a big mess. 

At the end of the party, their shirt was ready. It was always given to them when the bill came.  I loved seeing those shirts all over town; the kids loved making them.  Many people asked to create a shirt. However, we decided to reserve this as a special activity for children who have booked a party with us.  By doing this, we encouraged more booked parties and fewer walk-in parties.  I also kept a stack of pre-encoded cards with me and would give out free game cards if I saw a kid wearing a birthday shirt in the wild.   

We also built a large birthday wheel with a platform. The kids loved spinning the wheel, so we used this time to sing a little birthday chant to them. If you are new to the business, remember that the “Happy Birthday” song is copyrighted. You will need to create a different song for these occasions. We also put the wheel out where everyone could see and join our celebration. 

Candy Bar Bar: An Interactive Activity and Upsell

There are tons of great ideas that you can find on Pinterest or even at trade shows in networking with other owners and operators.  Another great idea is a Candy Bar Bar.  Yes, that’s not a typo.  Set up a cart with various types of candy, and each child receives a small bag to fill with their preferred candy.  This is an interactive activity for kids and a great upsell opportunity.  Candy is cheap, and kids love it.  It’s a great idea as an alternative to the traditional gift bag filled with items the kids don’t want.     

Creative Ideas to Wow Your Guests: Pizza Cones and Punch Piñatas

Other ideas I’ve seen include Make Your Own Pizza Cones as an activity and meal or a punch piñata as a fun activity/upsell.  The piñata is excellent as it has many different holes that the kids can punch their hands through the tissue to get a prize, but there is no swinging a dangerous stick. And everyone gets a turn, and everyone gets prizes.

Creating Lasting Memories: The Key to Repeat Business

Many creative ways exist to make your parties stand out and help parents give their kids the best party ever.  You need to think outside the box, conduct thorough research and planning, and ensure you have the best-trained staff that is flexible, prepared, and can communicate effectively, as this will make a greater difference in how parents and kids perceive the party than any other factor in your center.  Remember, even if you don’t have the greatest, newest attractions, your guests will return….or they won’t, based on the experience that your staff provides.

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