RocketLaunch: Our Five-Step Process to Switch your Ticketing Platform

Now, the rubber hits the road as we port data over, train employees, and get set to “go live” with your brand-new system.

RocketRez provides mission-critical software. We process all your revenue-generating transactions, maintain important data, and are the system that your employees log into in the morning and close at the end of the day. It’s imperative that we get clients up and running without downtime or interruptions and train staff across many functions very quickly.

After a decade of experience handling software migrations for operations across industries such as boat tours, zoos, wildlife parks, aquariums, museums and all kinds of attractions, and businesses ranging from small 10-person operations to mid-market enterprises with multiple locations, we’ve broken down this process into five steps.

Get ready for RocketLaunch.

Step One: Information Gathering

As an all-in-one platform, the breadth of RocketRez capabilities can be overwhelming for operators and their staff to comprehend all at once. That’s why we begin with the information gathering phase, informed by a strong discovery process with the sales team.

An important piece in the handoff from sales to customer success is a laser focus on the pain points they are experiencing with their current provider, noted by each separate department. This is how we focus on building a strong return on investment as you switch platforms. The “lightbulb” moment of how RocketRez will transform your business has happened for the team leading the switch - but will not be experienced by operational staff until we roll out and train employees. The more information we gather, the more problems we can proactively solve in a test environment.

Customers send all their data to our Customer Success department, which aims to understand how their operation truly works. This phase is more art than science. Uncovering critical processes, potential bottlenecks and the nuances of the online and real-life customer journey allows us to paint a vivid picture of how RocketRez looks for a new customer.

Step Two: Build it in the sandbox environment

The sandbox is basically your live software environment on a test basis. Based on our information and data gathering, and lending from our deep expertise in our target segments, we will build out the semi-functional model of RocketRez to be seen and felt by the employees that will be relying on it the most.

Usually there is one person or department who is leading the implementation from the operator’s side. This could be marketing, IT, operations, or executive. It often depends on the overall goal switching systems.

It’s important to identify these goals early on – are you looking to increase revenue, alleviate headaches in your operations tech stack, improve your customer experience, and increase the average spend per customer? It’s often a combination of these things or any others, but usually, there’s one that sticks out above the rest, and the department that owns that outcome usually spearheads the platform migration.

Many operators have capable IT teams, in-house developers, or work with a digital agency that’s used to handling customizations and deployment for software like RocketRez. It becomes a collaborative effort in the sandbox environment to iron out the details that will make it run perfectly when it is pushed live.

The test environment allows the operator and technical teams the opportunity to see it in action and ensure all the functionality meets the requirements before going live.

Step Three: We train the trainers

We provide our product experts to train your key staff so that they can train employees the way they want. We give you the resources and tools, including live Q&A consultations with our product experts and customer success team, which you can record and share as you see fit.

The key part of this stage is to get buy-in from everyone, which is more art than science.

Employees view software changes differently from owners, and some may see it as unnecessary extra work to switch and learn a new system. One aspect of RocketRez that is often cited during a switchover is just how easy it is to learn, proven by our award of “Best Ease of Use software” by Capterra.

We take a great deal of care and pride in ensuring that the interface is as intuitive and user-friendly as possible. Many customers have large groups of seasonal employees who don’t have much time or motivation to become experts in a new system, we want it to feel as comfortable as a smartphone so they can pick it up like a natural with minimal effort.

For longer-tenured or more influential employees, we find it very important to frame the new software as a way to scale their current expertise. Time and time again, we see key employees automate manual pieces of their job through RocketRez, set their sights on higher-value activities, and increase their value to the company – often landing promotions.

We provide the resources to help you paint the picture of the possibilities for the employees who really live and breathe in the RocketRez system, and the way in which it will help them achieve their personal goals.

Step Four: 14-day go live

No matter the level of preparation, it is nerve-wracking when you go live for the first time. It's not unusual in the first week to encounter complexities that no one foresaw and unusual situations that require a system fix.

We consider it imperative to commit to a 14-day period with designated support around the clock. This is not call-center support, but with the members of the team that set up your sandbox and worked with you the whole way through. Any issues that arise are being addressed by someone who knows your operation intimately along with the end goal you're trying to meet.

This sets us apart from our competitors who support implementation through a call center. Phone attendants won’t know what you’re talking about when you call and won’t have the capabilities to make software changes to keep you up and running without interruption. Speed is imperative when ticket sales are at stake.

With many new clients, we will send a team on-site during the ‘go-live’ period to assist in the transition, be there to offer white-glove service and support, and ensure that you get off the ground smoothly.

Our reward is helping you achieve your business goals with innovative res-tech software.

Step Five: Continuous Improvement

We aim to keep every customer we onboard for the long term, so our commitment to continuous improvement is never finished. You will have direct access to our Customer Success staff on an ongoing basis to ensure everything continues running smoothly or help scale the platform as you grow your business or change your offer over time.

Depending on the scale of your operation, you may have a dedicated account manager who will continue to work with you toward your business goals and be the first point of contact as you add more pieces of the RocketRez platform into your daily operations.

Your ticketing and operations platform, much like your business, is a living entity that changes over time as conditions and customer preferences continue to evolve. With the strong foundation of our RocketLaunch process, you can set yourself up for long-term success and experience all the benefits of all-in-one cloud ticketing.

Ready to take your tours and attractions to the next level? Book a demo with us to learn more.