Avius, a provider of real-time customer experience solutions, including feedback and customer relationship management systems, has worked with Whipsnade Zoo, part of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), to deploy a strategic, data-led approach for gathering feedback.
Whipsnade Zoo's unique experience combines conservation, education, and entertainment while prioritising satisfaction for its visitors, which can number up to 10,000 a day. Satisfaction is delivered through continuous improvement initiatives and feedback-driven insights.
The attraction partnered with Avius to unlock balanced, real-time insights into visitor sentiment, using Avius feedback kiosks, event surveys, weekly reports and regular analysis to capture feedback and turn it into actionable improvements and investment indication.
Shaping customer experience strategy
While Whipsnade Zoo is well established, visitor expectations and experience standards are continually evolving. The attraction needed to improve visibility into on-the-spot customer satisfaction and to better understand trends across catering, facilities, and the overall visitor experience.
Additionally, it was looking to stay competitive with nearby attractions such as Legoland, Woburn, and the upcoming Universal park, and to improve customer retention and satisfaction.
To achieve these aims, Avius delivered:
- Advanced dashboards. Real-time visibility into guest sentiment, emerging trends, and performance metrics enables data-driven operational decisions and proactive service improvements.
- Creative display concepts. Custom icons and visuals tailored to Whipsnade Zoo’s branding made the surveys more engaging and intuitive, enhancing participation across all age groups.
- Custom auto-reporting. Customised auto-reports were created and scheduled weekly and monthly to deliver insights to each department, including operations, catering, and marketing, and make it easy for teams to respond to feedback quickly.
- Event QR code surveys. Bespoke event surveys for seasonal and special occasions were tracked individually, providing valuable operational context through detailed reporting on location, time of day, and visitor type.
- In-the-moment feedback kiosks. Smiley face review kiosks at exits, high-traffic areas, and key areas allowed guests to share instant feedback while still within the experience, for authentic, in-the-moment insights.
- Strategic consultation. Avius gained an understanding of the Zoo's master plan, budgets, and development priorities through regular face-to-face strategy sessions. It could then advise on best practices for survey design and refine question structures to yield more balanced, unbiased insights.
It reports improved visitor satisfaction, retention, and loyalty; enhanced staff morale, and better alignment between visitor expectations and zoo offerings, such as grab-and-go catering. Additionally, the partnership has led to a clear path for improvement, with a positive customer-experience investment strategy.
The attraction plans to continue its collaboration with Avius to ensure its customer satisfaction platform evolves alongside technologies such as AI-driven insights.
"Working with Avius has been brilliant. I’ve actually worked with them before at another attraction, so they were a company I already knew and trusted," says Chris Webb, head of commercial at Whipsnade Zoo.
"What’s been especially valuable this time is how they’ve worked closely with us to make sure the technology, the terminals, and the surveys are unique to Whipsnade — not just a carbon copy of what you might see elsewhere. That’s really helped us tailor the feedback we collect to what matters most to our visitors.
"Even now, we’re in regular contact with the Avius team — particularly Chris, who supports us day-to-day. It’s great to see how their technology continues to evolve, keeping pace with advances like AI and predictive analytics.
"You can tell they’re thinking ahead, making sure their solutions stay relevant to how customer feedback and data will shape the future. It’s been a genuinely great partnership, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we achieve together in the years to come."
Last month, Avius shared details of its collaboration with the Norton Museum of Art to transform real-time visitor feedback into a powerful tool for audience growth and engagement.
