What if Steve Jobs & Disney designed indoor play centres?

What if your budget was limitless, who would you ask to design your indoor play centre?

Well, if your family fortunes survey asked 100 people, most people would likely agree that Steve Jobs (Apple / Pixar) and the Disney team would "probably design the best play experiences in the world".

Alas, we don't have a magic wand (or an infinite budget) but this article about the redesign (more re-imagining) of Disney stores might give you a few clues and ideas as to what your design dream team might come up with:

"Disney Stores, which the media giant is considering rebranding Imagination Park, will become more akin to cozy entertainment hubs. The chain’s traditional approach of displaying row after row of toys and apparel geared to Disney franchises will be given a high-tech makeover and incorporated into a new array of recreational activities. The goal is to make children clamor to visit the stores and stay longer, perhaps bolstering sales as a result."

"Cozy entertainment hubs"; what an opportunity that can be replicated by entrepreneurs starting and operating soft play centres; ironically, the main concern of Disney executives "was that the concept was so lavish that parents would try to use the stores as day care centers," what a great problem to have!

We have talked frequently in blogs and our starting a play centre seminars about key trends that represent significant opportunities for play centre operators:

- The potential of social media in play centres to connect people and grow revenues

- Soft play centres becoming a third place, a family entertainment hub and meeting place within the community

- Designing indoor play experiences that engage all senses and move beyond reliance on soft play equipment that primarily provides a physical play experience

Disney seems to agree and with typical flair, they are bringing a new level of design thinking from which we can learn:

"Theaters will allow children to watch film clips of their own selection, participate in karaoke contests or chat live with Disney Channel stars via satellite. Computer chips embedded in packaging will activate hidden features. Walk by a “magic mirror” while holding a Princess tiara, for instance, and Cinderella might appear and say something to you.

It’s your birthday? With the push of a button, eight 13-foot-tall Lucite trees will crackle with video-projected fireworks and sound. There will be a scent component; if a clip from Disney’s coming “A Christmas Carol” is playing in the theater, the whole store might suddenly be made to smell like a Christmas tree."

These ideas are not only inspirational in terms of play / experience design, it is also exciting that the decreasing cost of technology means that play providers can replicate these features at reasonable cost; we are now only limited by convention and imagination.

Finally, if you are developing a business plan for your soft play area, may I suggest you ask, "how can I learn from Disney and complement the traditional sources of income for play centres (entrance, food, parties)"?

- Can I develop my own brand and characters to sell merchandise or would it be better to work with a recognised brand such as Disney?

- Why not sell toys (via a cooperative website or association with a local toy shop)?

- Why not allow parents to book holidays whilst their children play (another opportunity to use Twitter / social media in your play centre)?

- What if I started a book club and established an affiliate scheme with Amazon or a children's book store?

I have been asking these questions since it became clear that play centres could be at the centre of the combined "on-line / off-line" era. I am still not sure why so few people are taking the initiative; if Steve Jobs or Disney were sitting alongside you, what would they be asking?

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

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Now we all have the power; "Yes sir/madam, of course"

Leading and working in transparent times is challenging and even scary to some; however, this same risk offers untold possibilities as we discussed in "Twitter in Play".

Each day, we encourage soft play suppliers and other organisations to open their business to social media and in the words of Seth Godin, lead with their glass jaw.

Once again, Seth has written a concise insightful note for leaders in transparent times who are worrying and planning rather than doing, listening and evolving; an excerpt:

When your staff sees how much power you've given random consumers, they'll freak. And then, magically, they'll start treating customers differently, because maybe, just maybe, this customer is the one who's going to use the power. Suddenly, the answer to, "do you know who I am!!" is, "yes sire, forgive me."

Social media and transparency, jump in and see what happens.

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

Follow us at Twitter.com/shareandcompare or (Un)subscribe to our Blog by e-mailing us.

Why is play not all aflutter about Twitter?

Depending on who you believe, Twitter is either:

1. “A real-time short messaging service that works over multiple networks and devices”

Twitter

2. “A playground for imbeciles, skeevy marketers, D-list celebrity half-wits, and pathetic attention seekers.”

Daniel Lyons, Newsweek

3. “A tool for connecting people with people and people with information; a tool that at its highest manifestation can change lives and empower people to change the world”

Gareth Lymer, ShareAndComparePlay.com

Whatever your thoughts, you have likely heard about Twitter (we have been presenting on Social Marketing in play for almost twelve months) but as of yet, the play industry has yet to embrace Twitter or Social Marketing to reach anywhere near its potential.

Let’s go back to basics and remove the distraction of technology and hype.

Organisations exist to create products, services and experiences so valued by people that they are willing to exchange their time, effort and money to benefit.

In the case of Play, we are asking parents to trust that we are creating and providing valuable experiences for the most precious of people who cannot fully articulate their thoughts and needs whilst the impact of the experience may not be felt for many years.

As the indoor play centres we design, build and operate impact children for the rest of their lives, is it not our responsibility to figure out new ways to create value; to observe and listen to customers, sharing information and collaborating to invest in the play experiences of the future?

Today, technology enables us to listen and observe children and parents, to gather, analyse and utilise information so that we can better provide transformational (play) experiences and yet we choose to ignore the opportunity; why?

There are a woefully small number of soft play suppliers (three to my knowledge; as it happens, the same three suppliers that have embraced our website / transparency) and a relatively small number of play operators that use Social Media to exchange information with (prospective) customers and the broader community.

Furthermore, those organisations that use Twitter et al waste the valuable attention of their customers by talking solely about their business. This is like being the guy at a party who continually talks about himself rather than genuinely being interested in others.

Just because you are being ignorant using Twitter rather than in person, doesn’t make those that just talk about themselves any less of an ass.

In terms of opportunity, the potential of Social Media in play is infinite. To get the ball rolling, here are three simple opportunities where Twitter and / or Facebook can be used by play centres:

• This prototype toy for kids sends Tweets to parents to say what the child has been playing with. Why can’t we use a similar principle to gather information as to what children use and like on indoor play equipment (so we can track which events they like rather than us guessing)? Why can’t we communicate this to parents on a big screen so they can “see” what their child is doing?

• Weather often equals a busy play centre and yet it is difficult to predict either. Why not incentivise customers to use Twitter to let you know if and when they will be visiting so that you can adjust staffing accordingly? A better service for customers and more profit for play centres.

• Why not establish a social network around your play centre so that parents can exchange information on parenting and then meet at your play centre when they like; if you can facilitate new connections, you will win (and so will your customers)

Whether you believe Twitter is for “imbeciles…/…half-wits”, has the potential to change the world or somewhere in between, in coming weeks we hope to persuade of the potential of social media to provide additional value to customers of play providers / suppliers and significantly grow the value of the play industry.

In the meantime, can we persuade you to take the first step of visiting Twitter and registering your name? 5 minutes could change your life, or at least, your business.

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

Follow us at Twitter.com/shareandcompare or (Un)subscribe to our Blog by e-mailing us.

How to lose an argument online...the socialisation of soft play

Since January, we have been encouraging the indoor play industry from soft play suppliers to play centre operators to collectively explore and discuss the future of play; only through intelligent and creative exploration can we grow the industry and share the positive impact of "activity without purpose".

As developers and enthusiastic users of web technology, we believe in the potential of online communities to discuss important topics and collaborate in developing insightful solutions, our aim is to facilitate these discussions as broadly as possible.

To some, the socialisation of information is uncomfortable but we are beginning to see the embracing of this change with people using and contributing information more freely. In the last few days, I read this blog by Seth Godin discussing how to lose an argument online and how to make the social web work for you.

As one of the most popular bloggers on the web, this guy knows what works and this is what he says:

"Earn a reputation. Have a conversation. Ask questions. Describe possible outcomes of a point of view. Make connections. Give the other person the benefit of the doubt. Align objectives then describe a better outcome. Show up. Smile."

Simple, but effective.

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

Follow us at Twitter.com/shareandcompare or (Un)subscribe to our Blog by e-mailing us

Asda's Carrot Cam and what it means for Indoor Play

Asda recently announced plans to become a more “transparent” organisation “run by the consumer for the consumer,” (http://tinyurl.com/yc532er.) Excitingly, this announcement begins to convey the potential for Empowered Consumers on the way in which Organisations operate.

Although “Transparency” and Consumer Reviews influencing Purchasing (and other) Activities are still in their infancy, they gain momentum with each contribution; the impact will be felt from Governments through to Soft Play Equipment, Indoor Play Centres and Weddings where Share & Compare provide people with a platform for their voice.

Regardless of the size of the organisation, I accept that the Transparency Movement represents untold potential coupled with immeasurable risk. Traditionally, organisations don’t expose their Value-Chain and internal processes to comment but Social Media has changed the game and I see limited alternatives. Unless you are Apple http://www.apple.com/uk/ your Value-Chain will soon be fully exposed and Engagement combined with considerable Added Value is the only way to thrive; Opaqueness is only an option for a select few.

As Asda seem to have decided, when people have a voice and make decisions based on reviews and Social Media / their Social Network, the best (only) response is to open your organisation for inspection and comment, to genuinely listen to customers (both satisfied and not) and become part of the conversation where appropriate .

Although Asda has perhaps started small with a Webcam that may cause drowsiness, "the ambition is to reach a point where customers can trace the journey of every Asda product: from farm to fork or warehouse to wardrobe," said (Andy) Bond, CEO of Asda; what staggering potential this has for the future Consumer – Organisation relationship!

The great news about a Company like Asda adopting Social Media to embrace Transparency is that it nudges the needle for all industries. At Share & Compare, we are excited by the possibilities of mass dialogue and personal feedback driving constant improvement and collaborative innovation; we believe the resulting scenario may determine future Organisational and Individual success.

The impact will be profound but to keep it simple, here a few things to consider if you operate an Indoor Play Centre (or any other business):

- Are there any parts of your business that you wouldn’t want a newspaper or TV station to see? If so, change them NOW!

- What are the core values of your organisation and how do these impact the operation of your business? (Note how Asda intend to install a Transparent wall to enable visibility to areas normally closed off; would a transparent wall to your Kitchen convey a message of Cleanliness / Hygiene?)

- Which parts of your business / play centre do you need to keep Confidential? (even in a Transparent world, you may still choose to protect some Intellectual Property)

- What is your Marketing strategy and what role does Social Media / Transparency play in achieving business objectives?

- What stories do you / does your organisation have to tell that will engage or inform and audience?

- What websites / social media tools are people using to comment on your organisation and Market; are you listening and participating?

- What role can your staff play in Social Media strategy (will you allow them to contribute)?

- How can you listen to the ideas and thoughts of your customers and use this as a modern day suggestion box to drive innovation?

Regardless of the size or type of your business, the rewards go far beyond those briefly outlined above; start today and learn as you go, it is not as scary as it seems.

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

Follow us at Twitter.com/shareandcompare or (Un)subscribe to our Blog by e-mailing us at contact@shareandcompareplay.com