Our family entertainment center, Valencia Laser Blast specialized in laser tag.
Its a great game for people of any age. Ideal for birthday parties. Perfect for team parties. Always a huge hit for employees at company outings. And an especially enjoyable game for families, largely because the kids can compete with and often prevail against their parents.
But for players to get the most out of the game, strong family entertainment center customer service is a must.
Laser tag arenas are designed around a theme: could be space opera, a pirate motif, might be a land of ancient castles. Or even set in prehistoric times.
Players wearing glowing electronic vests adorned with chest & back censors attached to a laser gun seek out the other team’s home base, while shooting the vests of any opposing players they see along the way. When censors are tagged (shot) , that player is deactivated (lights turn off) for 5-10 seconds and points are scored for the shooter.
You’re in a maze, moving past obstacles, through dark passageways, sneaking up and down ramps and stairways. Music is booming. Strobe lights are flashing.
Overhead, near corners of the arena lie the home bases. These are large, flashing, colored orbs matching the colors of its team. When shot by the opposing group, they emit a loud explosive sound echoing through the arena. Depending on which team you’re on, it’s good or bad news.
Along the walls, players can spot small flashing targets and tag them for extra points. At Valencia Laser Blast, we were the only arena I knew of, that used mirrors throughout the maze. It was a popular feature that came out of a customer service mindset. It not only allowed players to see behind them but could be utilized for ricochet shots. The deactivated player often had no idea how he was shot. A bunch of our regulars made excellent use of this little contrivance.
Players were surprisingly competitive, even the dads. One time a sneaky party dad put on two vests so when the one on top was tagged and deactivated, he still had a working vest underneath it. When confronted he refused to remove the outer vest and tried to bully our referee. I had to come in and eject him from the game.
Out in the lobby meanwhile, parents and friends could monitor real-time results for each player and team on the overhead scoreboard.
Before a game, players would be called into the briefing room for an explanation of how to play and how to best utilize the arena, plus choose-up sides. We called it a “Briefing”.
I’ve played laser tag at several locations in different parts of the country. And I was often surprised at how little attention was given to the briefing. Sometimes there was no briefing at all. Most would give a perfunctory explanation of the guns. A couple I remember, did mention a few features of the arena but rarely were they thorough. And none attempted to entertain or get you excited about the game itself…I never understood this.
My belief was that a thorough and entertaining briefing should be part of what people paid for. Making it interesting and fun enabled players to be better at the game and have a much more enjoyable experience. For me, It was no-brainer family entertainment center customer service.
We used a slideshow with photos of the arena so players would know what they were looking for and then recognize the various features when they approached them.
All staff at Valencia Laser blast were trained to deliver briefings and referee the games. The goal was to be instructional and entertaining, getting the players engaged and excited. There was also an emphasis on talking directly to and having fun with the birthday kids themselves, or the company party’s business owner or significant players like coaches, teachers, or school officials in the group.
We always spent time on safety issues so there was no bullying or running and certainly no physical contact. It was rare, but when needed, we didn’t hesitate to remove bullies from the game. The referee was also alert to help anyone who needed it and replace any gun that stopped working immediately. These were simple family entertainment center customer service points for us.
Players usually took part in 2-3 games, so we would only do the briefing in the initial game. In subsequent games, if choosing sides was the only thing needed that was all that was done before the game.
Our entire approach was to ensure people had a good time. Everyone who worked at Valencia Laser Blast was on board with that customer service mindset.
Not only were we thanked frequently. But people who were serious about laser tag would drive from all over Southern California to play at Valencia Laser Blast. Yes, we had good equipment and an interesting arena, but they kept coming back because of the family entertainment center customer service.
Rick Grassi
The Little Customer Service Book
A Common Sense Guide to Helping People
Recommended Links:
https://thelittlecustomerservicebook.com/
https://thelittlecustomerservicebook.com/2023/05/21/a-tale-of-hotel-customer-service-in-two-cities
