# Ideas for 2014 home haunt; seeking feedback



## MurrayTX (Nov 4, 2011)

Like most of you, I want to improve the effect of scares in my yardhaunt. The following is where I am at conceptually so far. It is lengthy, but feedback on any one (or all) would be appreciated. Visit my haunt's blog if you need some visuals of what I am working with.

Here are the ideas so far:
1). Reverse the flow. Rather than starting at the side yard, ending in the detached garage, and dumping the guests into the access alley... have an entrance at the housefront part of the alley directing the guests to the first scene in the detached garage.

2). No need to force an all encompassing storyline. I like ghouls and I like demonic-looking murder clowns. If a storyline means I need to keep one of those groups in storage, then it may be best to just have differing major scenes and accept that people don't care about story when they are running through a yardhaunt.

3). Tarps work, but pallets will be better. 2014 will be my first try at solid walls in the indoor part. Too many haunter vids online show how effective solid walls and foreshadowing (by being able to partially see the mini-scene ahead) adds to the effect that a mere yardhaunt is much more... bordering on the semi-pro.

4). The graveyard needs a big upgrade. The family-friendly graveyard suffered from poor lighting, little cohesion, and few people bothering to read the gravestones. For 2014, tombs will be built and the ghost projections and possibly cheap animatronics will be added so that a pre-haunt show is provided for the general public. If a few young kids get scared, they will get over it.

5). Audio definitely works on guests. So an upgrade and customized audio will be featured in 2014

6). The haunt needs dedicated actors. A recruitment drive will need to happen to avoid the actor-related deficiencies of 2013.

7). And this last idea will seem very dated.... but the haunt needs its own FB page. This will coincide with my ads in HauntNation Magazine. http://www.hauntnationmag.com/


----------



## FrightProps (Feb 22, 2011)

I didn't look at the videos yet, but you have some great photos on your site. Honestly, I think one of the biggest promotional tools for haunts is well lit pictures of some of the scares without revealing too much.

As far as creating a Facebook page goes, it's a good idea, but don't rely too heavily on it. I find that it can be sort of difficult to engage people over Twitter and none of the other social media networks come close to the number of users that are on FB/Twitter.

Being as how Facebook will sort of hold your posts hostage in an attempt to try to get money out of you to reach your audience, I strongly recommend that you try to establish an Email list of people who are excited about your haunt and market to them directly.

Haha - and by the way, I love your attitude. If kids get scared, they will indeed get over it.

-Drew


----------



## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

You can have ghouls and demonic clowns in a single story-line, and having a story allows the guest's own imagination fill in the blanks, and builds suspense.
I'm not sure about the entrance and exit strategy, your explanation of the existing property layout is kind of confusing.

I agree, if you are making your haunt to scare people then it's up to THEM to get over it.
As long as they know it will be scary up front, beyond that it's "Let the TOT beware!".

Solid walls are great, but they also have more potential problems than soft walls do. A lot less business actually throw out pallets than they used to. More and more they have a deposit on them to get them returned or reused.

I too think that the FB route is more work than it's worth, besides the issues already mentioned, for the most part, the only ones who look for your haunt are the ones who already know about it, and ideally it's really more about getting fresh blood/money exposed to your haunt than entertaining those who already know about it.

As to the actors, hit your local high schools, community colleges, and drama clubs/live theaters and start enlisting actors now. Offer classes in the particular skills you will need, this lets you keep the people interested, and also works as a filter to get rid of the "fluff" that are just lightly curious. Getting them to help build and learn stuff also gives them a sense of "ownership" and pride in the final production, and makes it more likely that they will show up and actually do the job(s) you need them to.


----------



## wandererrob (Aug 8, 2007)

With regard to point #4, I've learned that few will stop to actually read the gravestones unless a few easily readable gravestones are all there is to the haunt. 

To provide an example, when I started this madness years ago it began because my parents had made up maybe 8 or so cardboard gravestones with goofy epitaphs on them. They'd put them in the front yard and hand out candy. People would read them, get a chuckle and even look forward to them the next year. As I took the reins in high school and added only a few added things, this continued.

Flash forward to my current haunt many years later. It's far more expansive. There's a much larger scene/ambiance at work now and people do not stop to read the epitaphs. I've even tried highlighting some simpler, clearer ones right up front but they don't read them. 

I've come to realize that once you have a while haunt going on, the stones become part of the tapestry of the haunt and are no longer the focal point. I'm not sure there's a way to go back from that short of scaling it all back to force that focus again. At this point, the epitaphs are more for my own amusement. I've since focused on the cemetery as a whole and working in a scare or two. Nobody reads the epitaphs anymore, but the last coup;le of years they've otherwise been much more engaged with the experience.


----------



## BioHazardCustoms (Aug 5, 2009)

I read a study today that conclusively showed that scares from the left side are more effective than scares from the right side. This is because most people are right hand dominant. Something you might want to consider in reversing your flow through.


----------



## FrightProps (Feb 22, 2011)

Whoa - where'd you see that? Link us and we'll build a giant zombie right hand that attacks you from the left.


----------



## BioHazardCustoms (Aug 5, 2009)

FrightProps said:


> Whoa - where'd you see that? Link us and we'll build a giant zombie right hand that attacks you from the left.


Here you go: http://advancedfearmechanics.com/scare-sinister/

SO, when can I expect my giant zombie hand to be delivered? LOL


----------



## FrightProps (Feb 22, 2011)

Ahhh! So it was Mr. Pickel that brought this to light! Fascinating.

According to our creative director, the hand is slated for release in 2021. This is the same year that the giants who live underneath the earth's crust will climb up to conquer the surface once again, so the huge hands should be easier to obtain around that time.


----------



## Mystique1980 (Apr 29, 2014)

To help get the word out you might just include a hastag phrase for people who are taking pictures at your haunt so they can do the social media work for you. Create a Twitter page for your haunt and have a photo op for your guests. It can create more draw the more photos are posted to Twitter and Instagram (or so we found out this last year at our haunt).


----------

