Other Side of the Coin

I am the Booking Manager for the Harman Center for the Arts. In my job I have to look at the best ways to fill the theatre during empty times. I have to do what I can to make sure we are giving our clients a fair deal yet make as much profit as possible.

There are some empty times next year that made me think, “What if I put on a show?” So I started to run the numbers. There is a relatively small show that I have worked on a number of times that I had in mind. Well after running the numbers many times I found out that I couldn’t afford to present that show. The risk was just too high. I would have to sell 90% of the house to break even. Producers have different numbers that they think could be their break even point but 90% is not one of them. I could do 60% but I would rather do 50% as my break even point.

Now I have to find ways to make it easier for people to make money here. There has to be a way that I don’t have to cut my profit but can increase the profit of my clients. I have a meeting with marketing and development soon and maybe some brainstorming will help me come up with some ideas.

One idea I have is to open up the program to our clients. Let them sell ads in our programs. We could get a cut of the profit and let them keep some because with out them selling the ad we wouldn’t have the ad sale anyway right?

When you are working with people try to look at things from their side. It could change how you operate and maybe give you some ideas to not only help them but help you.