For cultural institutions that earn commissions on catered events, there has definitely been a change in earned income due to the pandemic. Many organizations have seen a dramatic uptick in weddings, especially if they have large, outdoor spaces to offer. If weddings were never the bulk of your business or you don’t have ample outdoor space, you might be suffering from a severe decrease in rental income and catering commissions.
As corporate business slowly starts to return to cultural institutions, the groups are likely to start small. How can organizations compensate for decreased commissions? Here are five ways cultural institutions can increase revenue to make up for the temporary loss. Most of these tricks are in the form of “upgrades,” which are incremental fees organizations can charge to improve the guest experience.
- Museum Access
For groups that have events after hours, museum access can be offered for a fee. Many corporate groups would love to offer their guests an upgraded experience like this, as it gives their attendees a built-in activity and spawns conversation. Opening an entire museum for one small group might not be financially feasible for every client; consider offering several options like opening one specific exhibition or maybe just one wing. For groups that have events during operating hours, free museum access is a great added value to the existing rental fees, and the choice upgrade here would be private tours to make the public experience seem exclusive.
- Private Tours
Corporate planners love to offer activities for their guests, even if it’s just a “brain break” from an all-day meeting. Tours can be highly profitable, especially if your tours are run by volunteer docents. Of course, tours can be a wonderful upgrade for evening events with groups paying fees to open the galleries AND for the tours. If your organization only offers tours with volunteer docents, you might want to consider a program that pays docents per tour for corporate and private groups so you can be 100% sure to accommodate all requests. Some groups might not want a formal tour and offering an option that allows for “roving docents” to be on hand in the galleries to answer questions is also a great upgrade idea. This allows clients even greater flexibility as it relates to their add on options; both financially and programmatically. Tours and interactive experiences are not just for museums, zoos, botanical gardens and aquariums! Theaters and performing arts centers all have something interesting to discuss, from history to technical capabilities. Everyone loves a “behind the scenes” tour and every organization has something to tout!
- Additional Time
You can offer additional setup or event time by charging hourly fees. Maybe you normally charge a pro-rated fee for services like this. In order to make it more attractive, you can try reducing the hourly fee, and perhaps more groups will take advantage of the offer. If your organization simply does not offer additional time for any reason, maybe you want to consider offering it at least on a temporary basis to earn additional income during this time.
- Unique Activities
Corporate planners often bring in outside contractors like photo booths, mixology classes, team building activities, and portrait artists for parties. Many museums and other types of cultural institutions have creative, enterprising people on staff willing to assist with activities like these, especially if they can earn some extra money. This may be outside your institution’s regular pay policy, but it might be a win-win-win, if your organization can offer some unique experiences, while increasing earned income and giving employees some additional hourly or project pay. Art making and other activities usually reserved for kids can be adapted for adults, and don’t be shy about including your catering contractor in the mix – pun intended! For a fee, the caterer could offer activities like mixology, hors d’oeuvre making or cookie decorating, increasing sales, therefore commissions coming to you! Many zoos and aquariums offer special encounters, and now is the time to push those upsells and maybe even create some new ones, like a butterfly release for weddings.
- Tie it Up in a Bow!
It’s always nice to give a parting gift following an experiential event, and the shop can help! Most shop managers would be happy to put together some options for the planners to choose from, for either select guests or for the whole group, including bulk discounts when possible. Create a one-of-a-kind package that includes a thematic gift from the shop along with a sweet treat from the café, and voila – a custom made gift that can only be found at your organization! And don’t be afraid to offer deep discounts on branded merchandise that might not otherwise have sold!
Corporate planners will be wowed if your organization can offer these types of options for their groups, making their jobs easier while increasing earned income for you! The word is sure to spread to other planners and DMC’s that your organization can offer such a unique one-stop shop.