Parking: June 2010 - 13

Third, it’s safe to say the public has been desensitized to unbundling and has adopted a somewhat cynical but accepting attitude toward this kind of marketing. We tolerate it in buying a car, being urged to pay for extras like “rustproofing” and “warranties” e.g. “Sure, you can buy a car without rustproofing—if you live in Death Valley, and it’s possible that your car was expertly assembled by those disgruntled and soon-to-be-laid off auto workers—but do you really want to take that chance yourself and with your loved ones, if for example, it rains, or your accelerator pedal… uhmmm… sticks?” Even grocery stores have gotten into the act. In some discount grocery stores, “everyday low prices” are maintained by offering such niceties as plastic bags for sale. You can be “green” and remember your reusable bag, but if you forget— no worries, mate, you can always buy a bag for your groceries. Of course, you don’t have to buy one; you can juggle your gallon of milk, dozen eggs, and loaf of bread in one hand as you reach for your car keys with the other. Perhaps the reason this marketing ploy “works” is because most of us have an intuitive sense of what’s “fair.” Fair for us, that is. As consumers, though we might gripe, we generally don’t mind paying for what we “use” IF we know about it upfront AND we’re not paying for someone else’s free ride. Also, an important customer service dictum is, “Don’t issue ultimatums; offer alternatives.” In the parking and transportation (P&T) world, separation of “parking products” becomes the first step in unbundling and generating new revenues. That process begins by recognizing that certain aspects of the parking and transportation experience are reasons customers select a particular P&T service with. Once we understand why customers choose us we can begin to construct new highways to revenue growth. Take, for example, “location.” While the concept of “reserved” and “non-reserved’ parking has been around for years, some locations now charge

a premium for a reserved parking space closer to the exit (fewer turns in the deck and a shorter wait to get in or out). Other facilities now offer to convert any space in the garage to a reserved space, say near a particular elevator, stairway, or pedestrian exit. These spaces might be closest to the patron’s office or place of business. Or, how about “convenience?” In some shopping malls where parking is otherwise “free” (i.e., included in the price of whatever you buy and therefore invisible to you), the front sections of the lot are gated off for paid access only. At some arenas and stadiums, valet parking is now being offered as a companion service—for an extra charge of course—as an alternative to the tailgating and long distance hiking that is typical for such events. And then there’s “safety.” The area right around a security guard’s station might command a premium. Or a separate, limited access “nested” area might feature a roving customer service vehicle that offers an extra measure of security and service—for an extra fee, you understand. Consider “usage.” There might be customers who, for example, might work part-time in your area and/or work split or off rush hour shifts. Monthly contract parking may not be effective for those parkers working three days per week; an Early Bird program is of no use to the patron who works the 3–11 shift. Daily transient rates are just too expensive for these parkers, so they don’t use your facilities; they park down the street or take public transportation. Technology offers an answer to the usage challenge. Many, if not most, modern parking access and revenue control systems offer the ability to track access card usage, calculate a special transient rate for that usage and bill a credit card. Some facilities already tag charges for such card usage to a price point rate that falls somewhere between a monthly rate, pro-rated to the day, and the daily transient rate. A program like this allows access to a new group of parkers who might not otherwise park in your facility.
www.npapark.org PArkINg June 2010

Parking: June 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Parking: June 2010