GraphicoDMG was charged with producing a global online identity and personality for Madame Tussauds. We wanted to give virtual visitors a dynamic online experience that reflected the interactivity of a real-world visit to Madame Tussauds. The digital objectives also included increasing web revenue by raising numbers of tickets sold online, as well as increasing basket values through up-selling and cross-selling with other Merlin Entertainment attractions.
Visually, the brand is symbolised online via a ‘red carpet’ theme. The basic foundation is securely laid with high inclusion of CMS driven content for both the flash and html elements of the sites. This means each attraction can update its site at any moment to reflect what’s going on in the political, news, sports or celebrity world while staying true to the global template. GraphicoDMG has grouped the figures into ‘families’ meaning visitors can delve deeper into a particular group and follow their passions whether they are into Bollywood stars or Royalty, sporting heroes or fashion icons. The figures rotate around a carousel and by clicking on a ‘family’ or a character, more information is delivered including videos, a gallery of images and biographies. Elements of interaction continue to be added. For example, the website can read the tags on pictures in the Flikr Madame Tussauds group and deliver the snaps that visitors have posted of themselves alongside their favourite character, directly into the figure’s web page.
As a result of changing the online user experience and despite the fact that the ticketing engine hasn’t changed, the proportion of sales for the London attraction made online increased by 75% within months. The time that visitors spent on the site increased by more than 30%, suggesting a deeper level of brand interaction. The brand is working towards a consistent global online presence with the .com site and five of the eight attraction sites already live.