As expected, Disney, never lacking in topic relevance, has once again gone viral on social platforms. When it comes to marketing, Disney still leads the pack. Whether it’s Disney, which guards everyone’s childlike heart, or Universal Studios, the happy place for adults, or others, theme parks—comprehensive projects that combine culture, entertainment, and exploration—are always a major part of tourism destinations.
The undeniable enthusiasm of visitors for theme parks has led more and more brands to see opportunities and strongly enter the market. Theme parks of all sizes have been springing up across the country, and the competitive landscape is continuously evolving. Marketing, as the first window to connect with visitors, has become a critical focus that all theme parks must "compete" in.
385 Theme Parks, Nearly 60% Achieving Operational Profit
Recently, the Sixth China Theme Park Development Forum, organized by the China Theme Park Research Institute, Wenlv, and Meili Zhonghua Xing, was successfully held in Beijing. At the forum, Lin Huanjie, Director of the China Theme Park Research Institute, released the "2024 China Theme Park Competitiveness Evaluation Report" and pointed out that China, as the world’s second-largest theme park market, still demonstrates significant growth potential.
Among these 86 theme parks, 4 are mega-theme parks: Shanghai Disneyland, Beijing Universal Studios, Zhuhai Chimelong Ocean Kingdom, and Guangzhou Chimelong Paradise. There are 82 large theme parks. Of these, 33 have been open for more than 10 years, with Shenzhen's Splendid China being the oldest, with a history of 35 years.
Crepic: Xiaohongshu
Despite the slowdown in macroeconomic growth, the demand for cultural entertainment and leisure tourism remains strong. In 2023, these 86 theme parks received a total of 130.14 million visitors, achieving cumulative revenue of 30.39 billion yuan. Compared to the previous year, the number of visitors grew by 71.84%, and revenue increased by 97.86%.
Not only have international brands like Disney, Universal Resorts, and Legoland entered, but domestic theme parks such as Chimelong Paradise, Happy Valley, Fantawild, and Haichang Ocean Park have also emerged. China's theme park market is continuously expanding, and the industry as a whole is showing a strong growth trend.
The competition in the theme park market is becoming more diversified. Different tiers of theme parks are building their competitive advantages in regional markets through brand promotion, visitor interaction, and unique entertainment experiences. The growing scale also means that theme parks are making more progress in improving service quality, enriching amusement projects, and strengthening brand development.
From another perspective, while the market potential continues to be unleashed, the competition is intensifying, and theme parks are increasingly feeling a sense of crisis. Although visitor numbers and revenue showed a double recovery in 2023, by October 2024, the overall performance of China’s theme park industry had declined compared to 2023, and secondary spending also showed a downward trend, with a decrease of 10% to 30%.
The success of theme parks is not just about the variety of entertainment facilities; it is closely tied to brand building, cultural communication, IP resources, market penetration, and other factors. All of these elements are deeply connected to the marketing capabilities of a theme park.
A well-designed marketing strategy not only helps build a unique brand image and identity for a theme park, but also ensures it gains a lasting competitive advantage. Jiang Hui, Co-founder of Wenlv and Director of the Commercialization Center of the China Theme Park Research Institute, said during the 6th China Theme Park Development Forum that the high-growth era is over, with traffic dividends gradually fading. We are entering a new phase where brands and consumers are facing an unprecedented challenge.
With the rise of platforms like Weibo, WeChat, Xiaohongshu, Douyin, and Bilibili, users' attention is constantly being divided, and the interaction between content and users has become more measurable. The integration of media channels has created a smooth loop from marketing to purchasing, effectively closing the loop from brand communication to consumer action.
One consensus is that marketing is becoming increasingly difficult. Brands need to occupy scarce centralized media resources while not ignoring fragmented media like Weibo, Xiaohongshu, Douyin, and Bilibili that can directly generate sales. In this context, content capability has become the key.
Content capabilities determine the upper limit of a theme park's brand. In addition to products and services, a brand must offer social value, emotional value, and other derived values to consumers. Good content management can fully activate "physical and mental experiences" and "emotional resonance," allowing content to flow in the communication between the brand and consumers, transforming the brand’s mental image into a consensus within specific consumer groups.
From a platform perspective, "trend power" is increasingly valued, and trends are often hidden within platform content. The ability to leverage these trends has become a basic skill. Theme parks need to stay ahead of the rapidly changing consumer trends.
In addition to immersion, social sharing has become an essential part of theme park experiences for many young people. Platforms like "Flash Image" allow every visitor to have access to a million-dollar photo editor, achieving a high rate of shareable images that can be posted on social platforms at any time.
The fragmentation of media and consumer groups leads to fragmented emotions. Theme park brands need to focus on the specific emotions scattered across different media and hidden in consumer complaints. Behind these emotions, consumers want to be recognized and cared for. This requires brands to observe and discover the attention gateways that can be utilized for the theme park brand and turn them into content touchpoints for their brand."
