Haunt Weekly

With the one year anniversary out of the way, we can return to the business of putting out a weekly podcast and we have a doozy of an episode this week as we jump into the wild, exciting world of PARKING!Ok, maybe it's not the most exciting topic but it's one that came up after an event we attended was ruined (in part) by crappy parking (and one terrible bathroom experience). We've watched as nearly every haunt we've been to struggled with this issue. Parking is our first impression and with so many haunts doing it poorly, it's amazing customers feel safe leaving their cars or walking to the haunt itself.So, we're turning our attention to the fields and lots that are adjascent to our haunts and seeing if we can find ways to make haunt parking better and, with it, improve the entire haunt experience!This week's episode includes: Conference RemindersNews About the Mysterious Mansion in GatlinburgNews About New York Haunter Killed Rescuing Animals from a FireThe Reason for the

HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!That's right, we've now been doing this crazy podcast for a full year and what better way to celebrate it than by doing what we do best: The News.Unfortunately, it's kind of a sad news episode as we wrap up the haunt season news and cover some of the happenings from November. There are injuries and alleged assaults, but we also have some happy news as we discuss some proposals (including one that went comically awry) and a haunt-themed wedding.So pull up a stool, bend ear to a fool and let's get going on this week's episode!This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersHaunt Visitor Hit by SUVActor Accused of Assault, Faced TrialHaunt Employee Charged with Disorderly ConductBacardi Creates Haunted Attraction for PromotionHome Haunt to Open Year AroundModesto Home Haunt Closed Before OpeningHaunt Offers Behind the Scenes Tours After SeasonActor's Wedding Proposal Goes AwryTwo Other Actors Get Married on HalloweenAll of this and much, much more ma

This week on Haunt Weekly, we are reflecting a bit. The season is over, the haunts are closed, cleanup has started and we're taking a bit of a breather to look back on the season that was.For us, that means remembering the haunts we went to and thinking about the trends and changes that we noticed this year.Bear in mind, we can only speak to our region (about 100 miles around New Orleans) but we have a lot of thoughts about marketing and haunt trends in our area. Some of these trends we have covered more thoroughly in previous episodes, including Artisanal Haunts and Interactive Haunts, but some of the other trends we noticed have hardly been mentioned at all. Also, if you want full reviews of all the haunts we mention, we have video reviews on our Garbage Horror YouTube channel. You can see those here. On that note, saddle up and let's get reflective as we look back at the 2016 haunt season!This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersAbout our Season WrapupReflections on Marketing and Web

As the season winds down we turn our attention to one of the more bizarre but yet common traditions in our industry: Blackout or flashlight nights.The idea is fairly straightforward, take a haunt that has had countless hours of time and attention to detail put into it and then turn off the lights (within reason) and have the customers experience it anew.The business sense of this tradition is easy to see. It's a great way to extend the season, encourage repeat customers and it all comes at little to no costs. But are they really the best experience for customers?We break down these and other questions on this episode of Haunt Weekly!This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersThe Tradition of Blackout NightsWhy Haunts Do ThemConcerns About Blackout NightsTips and Suggestions For ThemOur General Thoughts on ThemAll of that makes this one episode you do not want to miss... unless you are afraid of the dark! Get in Touch and Follow Us!Facebook: @HauntWeeklyTwitter: @HauntWeeklyYouTube: @HauntWeekl

As we wrap up the 2016 haunt season, we're taking a moment to reflect on one of our favorite trends that we saw in our area: Interactive haunts.While there's a lot of overlap between interactive and artisanal haunts, mainstream haunts are also getting in on the interactive trend, with Rise opening up one locally this season.Part haunted attraction and part escape room, interactive haunts may be just what some haunters are looking for, especially if they want to maximize their space and their actors. However, be warned, there are serious limitations that come with operating this style of haunt.So we'll dive into what interactive haunts are as well as their benefits and drawbacks on this episode of Haunt Weekly!This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersA Look at the Current Typical Haunt ExperienceThe History of Interactive HauntingWhat Are Interactive HauntsAdvantages of Interactive HauntsDisadvantages of Interactive HauntsConclusionsAll in all, this looks like a trend set to really

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!Hope that your season has been going well and that both the screams and the dollars are flowing well this year. It's certainly been a busy one for us and we've been very fortunate to not only have a great run so far with our small haunt, but to also have been able to visit 10 other haunts in the region.Still, we have a podcast to do and, as luck would have it, we're doing the news this week! However, I have to admit that this one is a bit of a downer as news media tends not to cover when everything goes well at a haunt. So, if you don't want a bit of a downer for your Halloween day, don't listen to this right now and, instead watch (or re-watch) the David S. Pumpkins sketch from SNL. Not only is it a good laugh, but it's a master class in distract and startle.But more on David S. Pumpkins later. In the meantime, we have a lot of news to go through.This week's Episode Includes:Conference RemindersHaunted House Featuring Scenes from Pulse Nightclub Shooting Can

There's been a growing trend across the country, one that's only recently reached our neck of the woods, of small "artisanal" haunts popping up every Halloween season. Whether they're run by artist spaces, theater groups or circus performers, these haunts are built by non-haunters, are smaller, cheaper and have shorter runs than larger, mainstream attractions.However, these spaces can be very important for the industry. The lower risk environment allows them to experiment and try things larger haunts can't. They can also provide new experiences and draw new people into haunted attractions.But these haunts also come risks. Fire code and safety issues seem to be legion and many push the boundaries of what is a haunted attraction, possibly impacting audience expectations.So, in this episode we take a deep dive into these artisanal haunts and even explain why I can now spell "artisanal" right on every try.This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersDefining Artisa

This week on Haunt Weekly, we're bringing back Japes Palles on the show to finish up his conversation about actors with a discussion about actor management. It's a crucial topic for a haunt of any size but doubly so for larger haunts.So how do you herd the cats on a haunted attraction? How do you make sure that the actors are doing their job? Most importantly, how does a small management team run dozens or hundreds of actors? Japes has the answers to those questions and many, many more!In addition to the interview, we also go over some of the news this week, including getting Japes' opinion on the "broken nose" incident in Minneapolis that has stirred controversy nationally as well as a discussion of opening weekend challenges at Hell's Gate.This week's episode includes: Revisiting the Incident in MinneapolisDiscussing the Challenges at Hell's GateHaunt HierarchyDefining RolesSetting ExpectationsContinuing Support Through the SeasonAssessing ActorsActor CommunicationAll

This week on Haunt Weekly, we're taking a look back at our season so far. With our Halloween season about halfway over, we decided to take a look back at the season so far and reminisce about the 8 haunts we've visited and what haunters can learn from them.To be clear, these aren't full reviews as we post those on Garbage Horror. Instead, we intended these to be summaries and some possible takeaways for haunters.So far it's been an excellent season and, though it's still got halfway to go, we're really excited about the rest of it and are equally excited to share the first half with you!This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersBrief Coverage of the News Story From MinneapolisThe Mortuary Haunted HouseRise13th Gate / Necropolis 13Fright TrailChamber of HorrorsHouse of ShockLafitte Fire DepartmentSo take a trip down our recent memory lane and, maybe, glean a few lessons for your own haunted attraction! Get in Touch and Follow Us!Facebook: @HauntWeeklyTwitter: @HauntWee

We're pretty sure most people have figured out what the focus of this week's episode is. It's about the FearVR story and, to be frank, we don't have any good answers here. Still, we talk at great length about the story and how our industry made international news. But that's not to say that there isn't other news to cover. We have a similar story from Home Depot and a potentially offensive prop there, Five Nights at Freddy's has a new haunted attraction and several other haunts are opening their doors this year following years of struggle.But as many haunts open, we want to offer our thoughts and condolences to those impacted by flooding in Iowa, including the good people at Panic Park in Cedar Falls. We hope you are able to return next year and really scare the pants off of everyone.This Week's Episode Includes:Conference RemindersHalloween Haunt: Knott's Berry Farm shuts down Fear VR attraction Home Depot pulls Scary Peeper Creeper from stores in Canada after c

When it comes to actors, every haunt wants to know three things: Where to find them, how to train them and why they stay or leave.Japes Palles may not be able to help much with the first item, but he has 14 years of experience with the other two. This includes finding their strengths, finding the best role for them and, most importantly, keeping them happy so they stay through the season and come back for the next.In this interview, we sit down with Japes and we talk all about training actors, finding the right role for them and helping them grow to fulfill their potential. We go over some of his key rules for making a scare work, including what to scream at customers, and the shocking truth about most haunt actors: That they aren't actors.Japes is also kind enough to share a story from his time as an actor that he never tells his students (because it violates his own rules). AllThis week's episode includes: Background on JapesBasics on Training ActorsWhat to Look for in ActorsHow to Find the Right

It's that most wonderful time of the year, the time where haunts are opening up and we get to go to a few of our own! That, however, means buying tickets and, for a lot of the haunts, that means buying tickets online. Unfortunately though, buying tickets online isn't aways the smoothest experience it can be. In an ecommerce era, we are an industry that often leaves their online ticket sales as an afterthought.So, in this episode, we provide some alternatives that make it easier to get set up with online ticketing and not only improve your customers' experience but, hopefully, make a lot more money in doing so.This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersThings We Have About Online TicketingWhy Haunts Should Want to Encourage Online OrderingOptions for Online TicketingHow to Make the Online Ordering Process a Good OneConclusionsIn this episode we discuss multiple providers including Haunt Pay, Fear Ticket, Ticket Leap, Interactive Ticketing, Flavorus, Tickera, Ticket Tailor and Event Es

This week on Haunt Weekly we are revisiting our Women in Haunting series but this one is a bit different. Our interviewee this week e is local to us and had a very negative experience with her attempt to enter into the haunt industry.While her experience is certainly not every woman's, as we've learned from the other interviews, but hers is unfortunately common and it's an experience that keeps many women out of the industry.So, in this episode we'll be sitting down with "Cricket" (who asked us not to give out her real name) and going through her experiences with the industry and what she thinks can be done to make it more welcoming to women everywhere.Also, in this podcast, we promised we would provide the link to the test site. You can access the site by clicking this link. Please bear in mind that this is very much a work in progress and there are a lot of bugs that are obvious. Still, you can see the general direction we are looking at going but also remember that could chang

Yes indeed, it's another episode that's divisible by four and that means it's time again to do the news!It's a bit of a downer this go around as we have stories of one major haunted attraction that will be shuttering its doors in the new year and another popular one that won't even get to open this season. However, we do balance it out with news of one attraction that's opening after a long slog and yet another that's being funded, in part, by its local government.All in all, this is a busy news show this week so kick back and relax as we go through the news.This Week's Episode includes:Conference RemindersDisney's California Adventure Park to Close Tower of TerrorHaunted Web of Horrors (Memphis, TN) Will Not Open This Year'Doomocracy' to Be a Free, Political-Themed Haunt in New YorkHellsGate in Lockport, IL to OpenUniversal Adding VR Haunted House to Halloween Horror NightsBoston-Area 'Haunted' Mansion to Become Haunted AttractionWoman Sexually

To pay? Or not to pay? That is the question.As haunts across the nation begin to recruit actors the question about pay will inevitably arise as actors and owners alike will try to decide what they want and what is best for them.The truth is this: There are haunts that go both approaches very successfully. However, it's important to choose the approach that works best for your haunt and then build your haunt accordingly.Bear in mind, we're not discussing the ethics of unpaid haunt actors in this podcast. That may be a different topic though. Instead, we're just looking at the practical elements of the decision and choosing what may be the right approach for your haunt.This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersAdvantages of Paid ActorsDisadvantages of Paid ActorsAdvantages of Unpaid ActorsDisadvantages of Unpaid ActorsWhich to Choose?How Much to Pay if You PayAlternative ApproachesAll in all, this is a controversial decision that will have a major impact on your haunt... Get in Touch

This week on Haunt Weekly, we are returning to the subject of women in haunting and have a great conversation with Neena Collins of the Scareatorium in Columbus, OH. Neena's story is, in many ways, not the typical one for a haunter. Though she was brought into haunting by dating a haunter, one who would later become her husband, she said she wouldn't have likely dated him if he knew where he worked.Still, it's good thing for everyone, including the haunt industry, that she didn't know at the time as she's now a 15-year veteran with a great haunt to call her own.So what has her experience been with haunting? What can haunts do to attract more women into the industry? We ask these questions and many more of Neena!Thank you Neena for a great conversation and if you are a woman in haunting and want to be featured on a future episode. Drop us a message on Facebook and let us know!Finally, in more tragic news, as residents of southeast Louisiana have been impacted by a truly historic floodi

We run one haunt, we've acted in several and we've been through countless. The vast, vast majority of our haunt experience has been completely safe, wonderful and fun.This is not about those experiences.There have been a few times that the horror of the haunt got a little bit too real. Whether it was unsafe props, overly aggressive actors or just poorly-thought out construction, there have been moments we were genuinely worried about our safety when either working in or going through a haunted attraction.So join us for this trip down memory lane as we go through some of the biggest real-life horrors we've seen in our years of haunting and either recoil at the horror or, at the very least, get some lessons about what not to do in your haunt.This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersTales from Two Haunts we Visited as CustomersOne Haunt that Actually Injured Me as a CustomerA Haunt that was Unsafe for Its Actors (But Corrected Itself)A Scare at the Haunt We RunSteps We Take to Be More

Yes folks it's another episode divisible by four and that means it is time to do the news!We ended the show a little bit early this week. misestimating the amount of time we needed to talk about each of the stories. However, it's still a VERY busy time for the industry as we're learning about new haunts opening up and what attractions to expect at some of the big events.This week we also have a trio of movie-related news as we have information about Ghostbusters, Freddy v. Jason and Suicide Squad haunted attractions as well as tons of other haunts preparing to throw open their doors.So kick back and enjoy a slightly shorter episode this week as we cover the news and it's all pretty much good news this time around!This Episode Includes:Conference RemindersNew Haunt to Open up in Deactivated WarshipOcean City Gets a New Year-Around HauntGhostbusters Gets the Haunt Treatment, Just Not in the U.S.Universal Announced Freddy v. Jason AttractionSix Flags Announces Suicide Squad AttractionFright D

This week on Haunt Weekly, we are putting my degree to some use and talking about guerrilla marketing. Guerrilla marketing is one of the most popular topics not just at haunted attraction conventions, but all small business conventions. However, most businesses that attempt it fail miserably because, while they love the "low cost" part of it, they are a bit short on the creative aspect.So we decided to spend the hour talking about not just what guerrilla marketing is but giving some of our favorite examples as they relate to haunted houses. This week's episode includes:Conference RemindersDefining Guerrilla MarketingWhat Guerrilla Marketing is NotGuerrilla Marketing IdeasSome General Marketing TipsAll of that and much more in this episode of Haunt Weekly!Get in Touch and Follow Us!Facebook: @HauntWeeklyTwitter: @HauntWeeklyYouTube: @HauntWeeklyEmail: info@hauntweekly.com

This week on Haunt Weekly, we're doing something a little bit different. As we've discussed in some of the recent episodes, we're wanting to start a series on women in haunting where we discuss the experiences and challenges women face in the haunt industry while keeping an eye on how to make our industry more inclusive to all.This week, we're sitting down with Holly Crisler of Literally, a Haunted House at the Culbertson Mansion, a haunted attraction in Albany, Indiana. Holly's story starts out with her joining a "boy's club" of a haunt and watching as her haunt, as well as those around her, became more diverse. It's also a story of talent being recognized and starting out as an actor before moving into larger roles before taking over an entire attraction.Holly's story is definitely an inspiration and one that more people need to hear. So thank you Holly for being on (and putting up with us mangling your last name twice). Your story is a great one!On that not