Historic sites typically offer a single established price for admission, with discounts based on age, group size (e.g., ten or more), and affiliation (e.g., auto club, student, military). In order to maximize income and manage attendance (e.g., reduce crowding, increase quiet months), I’ve noticed a few entreprenuerial sites have adjusted their prices based on time (either by season or day of the week), a technique that’s often used by other venues, such as hotels and theaters.
The latest version comes from the Tenement Museum, which is offering three different pricing strategies (and a visitor benefit):
- Midwinter Sale: $5 off the regular ticket price on any Museum tour, Monday – Friday, from January 12 to February 20, 2009. When purchasing tickets use code WINTER, whether you buy tickets online or at the Visitors Center.
- Afternoon Discount: $5 off any tour, Monday-Wednesday after 4 pm. Use code AFTERNOON online or at the Visitors Center. This is an ongoing promotion.
- Lower East Side Resident Discount: Residents who live in zip code 10002 receive $5 off any tour on Wednesdays. Use code RC10002 online or in-person. Must show valid ID when picking up tickets. This is an ongoing promotion.
- Wednesday Shoppers Discount: Wednesday visitors also hold a ticket to discounts at selected shops in the Lower East Side through our Tenement Wednesdays program.
It may be a bit ambitious for a small site to tackle a variety of promotional programs with different prices, but you may want to evaluate your existing price structure to see if it could improve your income or attendance by making changes based on time or season (it seems to work for hotels and theaters, why not give it a try?).
