Keynote Speaker and former Blue Angels Pilot John Foley is pictured with Paciolan Founder Jane Kleinberger
REPORTING FROM NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. — With its beautiful Southern California weather, session after session packed with great information, and over 650 like-minded peers from all corners of North America, how could one not be #gladtobehere?
The hashtag-ready expression first introduced by former Blue Angels pilot John Foley during his opening keynote speech at PACnet ’14 became a unifying theme among box office professionals, business partners and new recruits who came to the Newport Beach Marriott for Paciolan’s 31st annual gathering of users.
Foley opened the conference with a thrilling multimedia presentation describing his three years as lead pilot of America’s high performance aerial team, telling the audience, “What we do is not dangerous, it's inherently unforgiving.”
It was a message of increased relevance for those in attendance, striking a chord with box office and ticketing professionals struggling to find new ways to connect their core product with new generations of ticket buyers and entertainment consumers. At this year’s PACnet conference, there were more solutions than ever to help organizations better connect with their customers and find new ways to generate leads and sell tickets.
As founder Jane Kleinberger noted, Paciolan is now so much more than a ticketing service provider. The company is in the business of customer relationship management, using technology to create a 360-degree view of their customers. Organizations like the Ottawa Senators are now taking that a step further, using automated email marketing to individualize targeted messaging for each consumer, resulting in record season-ticket sales and 33 regular season sellouts.
Part of that relationship is also understanding that customer engagement is no longer confined to one medium, and that consumers are increasingly turning to mobile and social media to engage with their favorite brands. Through their partnership with Google Wildfire, Paciolan customers are finding new ways to leverage the power of social media and create content and posts that connect with their audience.
It’s not just about selling tickets. Paciolan helps its clients communicate and survey their customers, drive additional revenues through StubHub and secondary sites, and reward customers with loyalty programs. Through its partnership with Global Spectrum Presents, Paciolan is increasingly helping clients secure new concerts and special events. And the power of PACnet is that each new service and offering is tested and presented by fellow Paciolan users to an audience of peers.
PACnet is a community of learning and innovation, designed to help clients better understand their customers. It’s a place full of new ideas on how to engage, entice and excite consumers. And after three days of packed panels and informational sessions, it’s easy to see why this year’s catchphrase was often repeated by those in attendance. Just about everyone seemed #gladtobehere.