AMC Theatres vs. Alamo Drafthouse - User Engagement Teardown

User Engagement Teardown

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User Engagement Teardown

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A Quick Word on Iterable

Iterable is a growth marketing and user engagement platform.

• Segment users, build workflows, automate touchpoints and test strategies at scale without engineering support.

• Everything you see here (and more) can be done with Iterable. You can see other teardowns at: iterable.com/teardown


What is a “User Engagement Teardown?”

We analyze an user engagement over a defined period post-signup.

• We offer constructive evaluation and feedback.

• We cover all types of B2C businesses: e-commerce, marketplaces, media, politics, etc.


Background on AMC and Alamo Drafthouse

AMC Theatres and Alamo Drafthouse are two leading movie theater chains in the U.S.

• AMC Theatres, founded in 1920, is the largest theater chain globally with over 661 U.S. theaters.

• Alamo Drafthouse, founded in 1997, has 25 locations in the U.S., most of which are in Texas.


What We Did

Signed up and received messages over 3 weeks between Feb. — Mar. 2017

We escalated activity over time:• Completed user profiles• Downloaded mobile apps• Abandoned tickets at checkout• Booked tickets with each chain


On to the User Engagement Timeline…

User Engagement Timeline


Mes

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We’ll show you what we (the user) did here…

Message TypeActivity TypeBlast

Transactional

TriggeredDesktop Mobile

SMS

Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity



Transactional


SMS

…and the messages we received here.

Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90



Mes

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sU

ser A

ctiv

ity



Transactional


SMS

…and the messages we received here.Activities and message types are color coded as shown in this key.

Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Now let’s look at AMC Theatres and Alamo Drafthouse’s user engagement.

First, AMC Theatres…

The AMC Theatres User Engagement Timeline


Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount

Completedprofileinfo

Downloadedapp

SignedupforSMS Abandonedticketsatcheckout

Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

One day after creating a new account, we received a welcome email that encouraged us

to download the app, complete our profile and upgrade to premiere status.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

We completed these recommended tasks by downloading the app and completing our

profile the next day.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Once we signed up for SMS in the mobile settings, a welcome text explained we would

receive “6 msgs/mo.”



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

AMC sent a regular stream of blasts to encourage a ticket purchase. Although we did

not specify student status in our profile, the email on day 10 included a coupon for students.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

These blasts, however, did not react to the tickets we abandoned during online checkout.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

After booking movie tickets, we received transactional receipts across email and SMS

within one minute of each other.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Although we logged into the app several times, it was on day 13 that we were asked for permission to send push notifications. No pushes were sent during the research.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Three more blast messages were sent, which included hashtags like #shareAMC

and #cupgrade Coke promotions.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Lastly, after watching a movie, no triggered messages were sent to request a rating or

other form of customer feedback.

Now let’s look at Alamo Drafthouse’s user engagement…

The Alamo Drafthouse User Engagement Timeline


Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Alamo did not trigger any welcome messages after a new user creates an account or downloads & launches the mobile app.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Instead, we received two blast emails, one weekly newsletter and another offering a free

trial to an online cinema.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Like AMC, Alamo Drafthouse did not react to shopping cart abandonment.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

After booking movie tickets, Alamo sent a transactional receipt via email.



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

The last 3 blast emails included two weekly newsletters and a specific promotion to buy tickets to a “Drafthouse Recommends title.”



Mes

sage

sU

ser A

ctiv

ity


Transactional


SMS

Creatednewaccount


Downloadedapp


Days fromstart: 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 90

Bookedmovietickets

Watchedmovie

Like AMC, Alamo also did not send a follow-up message after we watched a movie.

Frequency Takeaways

During the 3 weeks, AMC Theatres and Alamo Drafthouse differed in the frequency of messages per channel.

• AMC: 8 emails, 3 texts• Alamo: 6 emails

Note: neither service sent push notifications during the course of our analysis.


Differing Priorities

Because Alamo Drafthouse actively engages moviegoers with quirky previews and exclusive promotions at the theater, one would expect its marketing to be more engaging than AMC’s.

However, it was clear that both theaters relied on batch and blast:

• AMC sent a single welcome email and then targeted teens & students• Half of Alamo Drafthouse’s messages were its weekly newsletters• Neither company followed up with customers after a movie screening


Now let’s look at the message content…


These are three standard AMC messages.

You’ll notice….


Emphasis on account information (number not

shown for privacy)


Clear calls to action


Multi-channel engagement with QR codes and hashtags


These are three standard Alamo Drafthouse messages.

You’ll notice….


Emphasis on new movies


Text-heavy narrative-style messaging


Links to additional movie information, like trailers and reviews

Content Takeaways

Each company’s content reflects its approach to ticket promotion.

AMC Theatres:

• Entices the user with food & beverage promotions

• Encourages multi-channel engagement

Alamo Drafthouse:

• Puts the movies front and center

• Prefers to communicate with users with narrative-style emails


Recommendations

Both companies could improve their:

• Segmentation: By sending personalized messages based on movie preferences

• Feedback loop: By asking customers for ratings and reviews after watching films

• Mobile engagement: By coordinating messaging across email, push and SMS to increase app usage


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Date post:	23-Jan-2018
Category:	Marketing
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AMC Theatres vs. Alamo Drafthouse - User Engagement Teardown

Marketing