For the past few months, we’ve seen an uptake in the number of event attendees. This has caused us to search and secure a newer, larger venue to accommodate the increase in numbers. Most of you may be wondering why we’re charging for our events and it’s to be expected.
Back in June, we posted a response to Joe Thornley’s blog post explaining the reasons why Third Tuesday was charging admission. We still back Joe’s decision as it is a valid one. In June, we faced the same issue as Third Tuesday. We still face it today: the number of “no-shows” is still quite high, sitting somewhere between 40 and 50 percent. This makes it time-consuming and difficult to plan and manage events. We have had to reserve meeting space months in advance, which was challenging at best in a co-working space with numerous tenants.
No-shows are an issue for other reasons as well. We’ve sold out a number of events and had to wait list or turn people away at the registration page. It’s not fair to the attendees and to the community that has supported us over the past year. If someone registers and doesn’t show up, then someone who wants to attend is unable to because of the lack of available space. In the past, we had to ensure that there were enough refreshments on hand for everyone. These purchases were based on the number of registrations, which was often an inaccurate snapshot of the number of people who would be attending our events.
It was Joe Thornley who accurately summed up our feelings when he said:
The simple fact is: If you charge people a small amount, they’ll place a higher value on their commitment to attend.
I’ve always believed this, and it’s a logical solution to reducing the number of no-shows that we’ve been plagued with.
Beginning with our December event, admission to our events will be $10. Students will be exempt from the admission fee.
Of utmost importance to us is that our community remains as vibrant and exciting as it has in the past. It is in the interest of the community, not our organization that we remain this way. Charging for admission will ensure this.
Possibly Related Posts:
If you enjoyed this post, please leave a comment or subscribe to our RSS feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader.
