Vennersys, the integrated ticketing, retail and visitor management company, has worked with Blenheim Palace, a world heritage site in Oxfordshire, UK, for more than 17 years. Its VenposCloud system enables the attraction to offer a seamless admissions process to its visitors. This solution also provides data and actionable insights and makes operations run more smoothly.
The attraction, which includes the baroque-style Blenheim Palace, landscaped parkland and stunning formal gardens, welcomes one million visitors every year and is home to the 12th Duke of Marlborough. It is also the birthplace of Winston Churchill.
As the business has grown and adapted over the last 17 years, Vennersys has supported its journey at every step, helping it to access the data it needs to make informed decisions, grow smarter, and enhance the guest experience.
Developing the system to meet Blenheim Palace’s needs
“We installed our first Venpos system in January 2006,” says Dominic Hare, Blenheim Palace’s CEO. “I was finance director then and it was the first system we put in. We did a tender process, and Vennersys were strong winners. We set up the system with the build from scratch because with no ticketing system, and no CRM in place at that point, everything was a from-scratch build and that’s a system we have run with, now coming up to our 17th anniversary. It’s evolved dramatically in that time.
“We and the system have developed in parallel for 17 years and it’s been a really really strong relationship.”
Paul Harding, managing director of Vennersys, adds:
“We’ve worked extremely closely with Blenheim Palace. What we’ve actually done is we’ve taken an on-premises server system to a fully-fledged cloud-based system, utilising Amazon Web services.”
He explains that the relationship has evolved as the Vennersys team has worked to solve problems and set up a solution that works for the future of the attraction, using AI and making the most of the data that it gathers. Blenheim Palace has now started using machine learning to provide predictions on visitor football, thanks to the data provided through the Vennersys system.
Maximising opportunities
To safeguard the future of the World Heritage Site, Blenheim Palace registered as a charity in 2016. Since then, Gift Aid donations has become a top priority, in order to finance crucial restoration and conservation initiatives. Gift Aid is worth an additional £1 million, meaning it is an important revenue stream for the attraction.
“Vennersys has provided us with the tools and the capability, and works with us very closely to maximise our Gift Aid opportunity, both online and on-site,” says David Green, head of innovation at Blenheim Palace.
“As our business adapted because of the pandemic, a high proportion of visitors now book online in advance. Now, this is a really good opportunity because it means that the transactions can all happen online and we can maximise our Gift Aid because the Gift Aid conversion is much better during an online process.
“When our guests arrive at Blenheim, they can start enjoying their day. We take out the transactions, we take out anything that doesn’t add value to the customer experience, and this ultimately leads to a higher net promoter score and more word-of-mouth recommendations.”
Last month, Vennersys announced that it has partnered with Cheshire-based family attraction and Guinness World Record holder, The Ice Cream Farm. Implementing the VenposCloud system here will simplify site-wide management under a single system, boost visitor traffic, and improve customer satisfaction.
