Get More Groups

How To Get More Group & Adult Event Revenue

Start by believing that groups and adult programming are … and always have been, the key to long term FEC and amusement business success.

Here’s what you should be doing.

Become “Conscientiously Competent”

Here’s what that looks like:

• Recognize what makes your group events uniquely different and better.

• Identify your youth and adult group offerings and event capabilities based on your facilities and attractions—focusing on what is most popular in the market and most profitable.

• Create group and adult event packaging, pricing, and tiered food-and-beverage offerings.

• Develop sales collateral—posts, videos, emails, and letters—to properly communicate, market, and sell your group programming.

• Build a client persona to clearly identify your primary group customers:

  • Past group business

  • Companies currently hosting events off-site somewhere.

  • Those who like you and most likely to spend money with you

• Set up a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) sales system.

• Build and/or refresh your database—the more detail, the better.

• Purchase or research local lists of businesses and community organizations within your market radius that fit your demographic and customer persona.

• Scrub those lists, adding customized information, notes, feedback, and personal needs.

• Collect ongoing data at entry and all events through kiosks, waivers, game cards, ticket forms, Wi-Fi access, and contests.

• Hold outside salespeople accountable for information entered into the CRM.

• Communicate with your primary client database often. Continuously sift and sort with the goal of building relationships and moving contacts down the sales funnel.

• Host sampler open houses to provide first-hand experiences for HR managers, event planners, chamber of commerce members, youth group organizers, and past event contacts.

• Use direct mail, email, phone calls, digital signage, and both electronic and printed event sales folders.

• Utilize social media (website, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube) to tell the story of your unique venue and clearly communicate why groups should choose you.

• Send personalized gifts, exclusive offers, or prizes to primary contacts—reinforcing a message that helps them remember you.

Move Away from “Unconsciously Competent”

Here’s what they do:

• Continue to rely on inbound sales calls after the first year.

• Rely on outdated or obsolete group packages.

• Send mass emails or Facebook posts to promote the latest seasonal program.

• Hire an outside salesperson and expect them to “sell” without providing tools, systems, or training.

• Hire someone to cold-call and expect immediate results.

• Produce a one-time flyer that mostly sits in the center.

• Use mass telemarketing to companies with no established interest, no clear sales process, and no accountability for follow-up.

Run away from “Consciously or Unconsciously Incompetent”

Here’s what they do:

• Wait for the phone to ring.

• Hold no one accountable.

• Offer outdated or stale group and event packaging and pricing.

• Produce a flyer once and use it forever—regardless of relevance.

• Never get around to updating information on the website.

• Send a couple of mass email blasts each year.

• Post occasionally on Facebook.

• Hope bookings come in.

• Make excuses why group programming “doesn’t work” or “never has.”

“Where do you fall?