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Some old saws are still really key....build on the high seasons. Don't
stew around trying to get more visitors to come during low seasons. (+10% -
22% are typical averages over time. So plus 10% on your highest attendance
is going to get you a lot more new or repeat visitors than 10% more of low
attendance periods.
----
Lots and lots of the field use well-built, age appropriate, audience
appropriate traveling shows during long, high attendance periods (usually
summers when families are out and about) This business about "appropriate"
is really important to think about...it leads to "titanic" in Southern
California, "bodies" in Arizona and "Dead Sea Scrolls" in
Minnesota....really different audiences reflected by these choices. What
will make your 37 year old mom decision-maker (or whatever your surveys
have demonstrated is the decision-maker) pop in the SUV with a spouse or a
friend and the kids and come on over? (Don't know? Ooo...gosh, time to
start compiling daily stats from admissions. In just a couple years you'll
see your attendance patterns illustrate such certainty that you know
exactly when to spend $ on special shows and "bring 'em back when they want
to come." The exception is spring vacation which wanders around with the
moon.)
----
Shorter high-volume attendance periods like spring vacation or Christmas -
New Years may do just as well with a "special exhibition" that you invent.
Then money spent for equipment, special exhibits, program props, films and
stay with you year after year. It can take years to find the right mix of
"exhibits we already have but that can be themed," just plain fun like "a
holiday parade of kids making XXXX science craft every day at 3:30" and
some other special content like cool films or an inflatable walk-in
snowglobe with a photographer option plus special offerings in the gift
store, holiday cookies in the snack area and/or..... The key is not to
throw ten's of thousands of dollars at special traveling exhibition rental
for jut a a week or two if you know you can't get it + more $$$' for extra
staffing in return.
-----
Helpful? I hope so... We all look for the magic bullet to drive
gazillions to our doors. But I'm impressed that visitor surveys and focus
groups tell us over and over "we come every summer to see the summer show.
We come every Christmas with our out of town guests. We come during
spring vacation if we are not going out of town." Fish where the fish
are....
On Wed, May 29, 2013 at 12:07 PM, Stephanie Nemcsok <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
>
> *****************************************************************************
>
> Hello Lovely Science Centre Folks,
>
> I'm curious about what you're doing at your institutions to create a sense
> of urgency and convince people to take that leap of faith and visit you.
> What have you found works or doesn't work: Large spectacles? Scientist
> celebrities to speak? Holiday-related programming? Gala events? Special
> event weekends? Themed months of programming?
>
> I'm looking for any examples and/or lessons learned from these types of
> large programming events.
>
> Thanks in advance for sharing your time and experience!
>
> All the best,
>
> Stephanie Nemcsok | Public Programmer, Content
>
> TELUS Spark, the new Science Centre
>
> 220 St. George's Drive NE
> Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2E 5T2
>
> C.403.817.6878 | F.403.817.6901
>
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>
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Marilyn Hoyt
110 Sixth Avenue
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914-815-0671*
*
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For information about the Association of Science-Technology Centers and the Informal Science Education Network please visit www.astc.org.
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