My museum has struggled with the same issue for years. Presently, we charge
an additional $2 or $3 for most of our special exhibitions (almost always
one special exhibition at any given time). This gives us the opportunity to
track visitation by different age groups (our price scale is based on age,
i.e. youth, student, adult, senior), but might hinder visitation.
I think any time you raise prices or charge extra you present the visitor
with a difficult choice. Regardless of the cost, they have to be invested in
the subject matter enough to shell out their hard earned money. It becomes a
cost versus benefit choice, and some are going to choose not to pay the
extra money. And it does create a logistical issue for the front end staff.
Our changing gallery is adjacent to one of our permanent galleries, yet the
doors look exactly alike. From the visitors' perspective there's little
reason why one should take a different ticket to get in. We often have
guests walking into the changing gallery completely unaware it requires a
separate charge, only to have our front end staff have to explain. This
creates a barrier and has on a few occasions caused visitors to feel angry.
I think it's a matter of frequency. Do you change prices once a year or once
every other year for a short amount of time, i.e. a really special exhibit?
Or do you change them several times a year (like we do)? The former lessens
the burden on the front end and can create a sense of "buzz" about the
exhibition, or that the exhibition is really special (just be careful not to
disappoint!). The latter can cause confusion. Whatever you choose, change it
as infrequently as possible and create as much consistency with changes as
possible.
Good luck,
George Garner
Director of Exhibitions
Center for History
808 West Washington, South Bend, IN 46601
www.centerforhistory.org // (574) 235-9664
--------
Celebrate Pioneer Month in May at the Center for History by visiting the
exhibition, New Order on the Land, to learn about Pierre Navarre and others
who first settled the St. Joseph River Valley.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jennifer Rothman" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2005 2:27 PM
Subject: pricing for peak visiting times
| I'm curious about successes and/or failures with increasing prices during
peak visit times, i.e. during a blockbuster show, or charging for a special
exhibit. How about increasing prices during these times just on weekends or
on certain days of the week? We are looking at ways to control crowds
without being prohibitive. We don't want to turn people away or alienate
existing audiences. Also, we don't want to create logistical nightmares with
changing prices/expressing that message.
|
| I'd love to hear what your experiences have been.
|
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