Tips for Improving Business

by Adam Pratt, Arcade Galactic & ArcadeHeroes.com

While this issue is focused on the benefits of operating a card system, I, unfortunately, have to pass on the subject once again. That’s because I’m still “stuck in the past” working with tokens, although I’m sure Hoffman Mint appreciates the continued business! I expect that I’ll switch to cards someday, but that day isn’t here just yet.

But if that leaves you wondering what I’m doing to improve business in my mall arcade, I’ll share a few things in hopes they provide useful insights to operators who might be struggling at their locations.

I’ve heard very inconsistent things about how business has been nationwide this year. We’ve been discussing this since 2020, finding that the ups and downs have come from various changing economic factors. Inflation has been the major concern, and a few surveys have demonstrated year-on-year declines in business for most operators. This year, the concerns have focused chiefly on tariffs.

When it comes to adjusting to macroeconomic challenges, you can either wait for things to get better or work to make things improve for you. In business, I think the latter is the trait for those who find success, so that’s what I aim for.

One of my main concerns has been paying down debt. I am delighted to report that as of this month, I’ve closed out my largest monthly payment, which frees up some capital. I’ll use that to catch up on some repairs (which have begun to pile up over this summer), then work on paying down other standing debts so I can be free of those, too.

While that bill is gone – and I hate to do this – I did take on a little more debt to get a couple of new games. Thankfully, the payments aren’t half of what that larger one was, and I’ll be paying it off quickly by selling a couple of older pieces.

By the time publication hits, I hope to have a Dungeons & Dragons: The Eye of the Tyrant Premium and a Funky Beats air hockey table in place. Unfortunately, neither game was available when I ordered them, and I went the entire summer without the added potential revenue they would have added. Still, I went way too long without an air hockey table after selling my old Air Ride to a local operator.

For those of you thinking I must have started taking crazy pills to buy a new pinball after lambasting the poor performance of pinball in my arcade, let me explain. I jumped on this particular game because operators around the country have told me how it outperforms other pins. When I hear that sort of thing from multiple operators in different places, I take note – there aren’t many pins that seem to manage that. I’m not the only one with a D&D in the area, but if it works the same magic creating the repeat customer play I’ve heard about, I’ll be happy.

Foot Traffic

Games, debt and economic challenges aside, the biggest challenge for every business is getting enough people through the door. Since my arcade is in a mall, much of my business relies on the mall traffic itself. But I can’t simplywait for them to come…I’ve got to actively work to bring people to the mall specifically to play games in my arcade. To do that, I’ve changed some of my marketing strategies.

For context, in social media marketing, you can make two types of posts. The first, “organic,” is essentially “free.” You take a photo, add a message and post it. Paid posts are self-explanatory, but these allow you to target your ads in various ways to get the best bang for your buck.

In the early “wild west” days of social media, if one of your organic posts went viral, you’d be all set! It was fantastic and free – or nearly free – advertising. That can still happen, particularly if you do something creative like a drone facility tour or jump on a new trend early (even better if you created the trend). However, those successes are exceptions to the rule since the focus of social media companies is on getting you to buy or pay for those clicks.

It’s important to note that not all forms of organic marketing are treated equally – some perform better than others. From my observations, short-form videos (TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, etc.) do better than photos. Pay for them, and they’ll “blow up” even more, but it isn’t necessary if you want to market effectively on the cheap.

With any marketing effort, you must distinguish your business from the competition, whether through the games and attractions you offer, special deals, tournaments or other factors. My tournament side has suffered this year, so I’ve recently made strides toward improving that. This includes bringing attention to high scores by rewarding players with patches I had made years ago. I originally made them to work like Boy Scout Merit Badges, but few people participated in that. Now, they make great giveaway items for people who get the top score on a game. In addition to the patch, we take their picture and share it on social media.

I have also decided to add some design elements to tie into the “galactic” name and theme of the arcade. One direction I’m going is to hang constellations from the ceiling is one way I’m going. I also might make a few other interesting “space things” so we feel like we have a true, well-thought-out theme. That will take some time and a little more money to accomplish, but once done, I think it will add a nice vibe to the place.

Adam Pratt is the owner and operator of Arcade Galactic near Salt Lake City, Utah, and also publishes the Arcade Heroes blog site. He can be reached at [email protected].