Secret Sauce of Advance Revenue
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This document summarizes the secret sauce of advance event revenue programs as described by Wes Allison and Kendra Wright. They outline 6 key elements: 1) Offering desirable items for sale in advance, 2) Establishing an infrastructure of volunteer teams and leaders, 3) Hosting a kickoff party, 4) Providing ongoing communications, 5) Offering incentives like trips for top sellers, and 6) Tracking sales and incentives with software. They describe how implementing these elements at the Heart O' Texas Fair grew their advance sales program significantly.
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Secret Sauce of Advance Revenue
- 1. The Secret Sauce of Advance Event Revenue Wes Allison Kendra Wright
- 2. PRESENTERS Wes Allison Kendra Wright Extraco Events Center Heart O’ Texas Fair Saffire Events • Serves as President and CEO • Oversee management of Extraco Events Center and Heart O’ Texas Fair & Rodeo • Began building websites in 1995 • Helps events market themselves smarter online
- 3. HISTORY
- 4. EVENT PORTFOLIO Rodeo Austin South Texas State Fair Rodeo Belton/ 4th of July Celebration Brazos Valley Fair Heart O' Texas Fair & Rodeo Amarillo Tri-State Fair Fort Bend County Fair Central Texas State Fair Comal County Fair Okeechobee County Fair Amador County Fair Chowchilla Fair Palomino Fest Lea County Coors Cowboy Club Washington County Fair Texas State Forest Festival American Royal Colorado State Fair Napa County Fair Dodge City Round Up Brazoria County Fair San Angelo Rogers County Fair Greater Baton Rouge State Fair Central States Black Hills Stock Show/Rodeo Los Fresnos Twas the Lights Reno Rodeo Redding Rodeo Northwest Washington Fair Sikeston Rodeo Delaware State Fair Sangamon County Fair East Texas Park of East Texas Laramie County Fair Benton-Franklin Fair OVER Carroll County Fair Pendleton Round-Up Pony Express Days Arizona National Livestock Show Yolo County Fair California Rodeo Salinas Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show Old Sorehead Trade Days Cuero TurkeyFest Fiesta San Antonio Glenn County Fair State Fair of Louisiana Four States Fair Montgomery County Fair Fiesta San Antonio Glenn County Fair State Fair of Louisiana Four States Fair 100 Four States Fair Montgomery County Fair Agricultural Learning Center Grant County Fair North Texas State Fair Rooftop Rodeo West End Fair Crabtree Amusements Trinity Valley Exposition Brackenridge Recreation Complex Kitsap Rodeo Cowpokes Refugio County Fair Rockdale Fair & Rodeo Children’s Center NILE MATE Volusia County Fair Firefighter’s Fair Fayette County Fair Extreme Tix Salvation Army Jerry Jones Education Town Wings Stadium Bradford County Fair Pasco County Fair Greeley Stampede Sweetwater Events Complex iFest Hardee County Fair Angelina Ccounty Fair/Expo Midland Horseshoe Arena Harborside Events Center My River District Taylor County Expo Five State Fair Western Heritage Classic Extraco Events Center Central Washington State Fair CLIENTS!
- 7. WHY DOES SAFFIRE CARE?
- 8. WHY DOES SAFFIRE CARE? – We think this program could work with all sizes of events – Builds relationships across volunteers
- 9. WHY DOES SAFFIRE CARE? We like money!
- 10. WHAT IS IT? – Volunteers sell advance tickets and more – Top salespeople are rewarded with a trip – Bottom line: Self-funding and selfrewarding
- 11. HOW DID IT START? – – – – Originally gave prize of a trip to top volunteer salesperson Discovered that Chamber better rewarded volunteers Turning point was awarding trips to a much higher number of volunteers Bottom line: INSURANCE
- 12. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #1
- 13. #1: THE ITEMS FOR SALE – Important to give enough choices but not too many – Include big and small ticket items – Make sure it feels like a value • “I’m getting something I can’t get anywhere else; it’s exclusive”
- 14. #1: THE ITEMS FOR SALE – Make it for a limited time • Ours starts 5 months prior to the fair • Stops 2 weeks before the fair
- 15. #1: THE ITEMS FOR SALE – Biggest sales items are: • • • • • • General admission to fair General admission to secondary event Family fun packs Sponsorship packages Calf scramble packages Meet and greet with performers
- 16. #1: THE ITEMS FOR SALE – Be open to flexibility year to year • Timeframe • Infrastructure – – Committee structures Rewards sessions • Items
- 17. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #2
- 18. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE Absolute requirements • Chairman is biggest cheerleader • Staff member or super dedicated person to record and manage the program. • Cash • Rewards tracking • Trip planning • Everyone has to sell something
- 19. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE Chairman Vice Chairman Division Leader 1 Division Leader 2 Division Leader 3 Each team has 12-18 members. Division Leader 4 Division Leader 5 Team 1 Team 1 Team 1 Team 1 Team 1 Team 2 Team 2 Team 2 Team 2 Team 2 Team 3 Team 3 Team 3 Team 3 Team 3 Team 4 Team 4 Team 4 Team 4 Team 4
- 20. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE • Setting goals – Set total goal amount – let’s say $100k – Division leader goal is $20k (1/5th total goal) – Team goal is $5k (1/4 total division goal)
- 21. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE How infrastructure was set initially • Fair chooses campaign chair and vice chair – Chair and vice chair is one-year commitment • Campaign chair and vice chair choose 5 division leaders – Division leaders are two-year commitments Later on, top salesmen become leadership
- 22. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE – Captains: • Keep one member • Draft 4 • The rest are randomly chosen by fair – If there is an opening for division leader, team leaders move up based on sales
- 23. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE – Materials include: • Committeeman guide and structure – – – – – – – – – – Letter from fair and chairman Campaign leadership Campaign goals Meeting dates and times Order form Details about items for sale Sponsor list (do not contact) Volunteer sales list (with volunteer contact) Frequently Asked Questions Selling incentives
- 24. #2: THE INFRASTRUCTURE – Materials include: • Leave-behind materials – – – Sales materials Business cards A few other things
- 25. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #3
- 26. #3: THE KICK-OFF PARTY – 4 months before event – Invite current volunteers and a guest – Sponsor involvement • • • • • Held at sponsor location Sponsor can do additional promo Sponsor provides meal Bar with beer Drawing among attendees
- 27. #3: THE KICK-OFF PARTY – Chairman (and HOT Fair) go over program details – Disseminate sales materials • Sales packet • Business cards • Leave behinds
- 28. #3: THE KICK-OFF PARTY
- 29. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #4
- 30. #4: ONGOING COMMUNICATIONS – Meetings every two weeks • Communicate anything new – Division leaders speak • • • • Volunteers turn in money Reward people for hitting sales levels Sponsors involved in these too Keeps people energized – Mega ongoing emails!
- 34. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #5
- 35. #5: THE INCENTIVES • Set the “payback %” as 20% • Gambled at first that not everyone would get trip • Leadership picks destination from inbudget options • Previous trips were cruise, Jamaica, Mexico
- 37. #5: THE INCENTIVES • Trip benefits: – Volunteers get to know each other and fair staff better – They are more efficient volunteers at the fair – They almost become extended “fair staff”
- 38. #5: THE INCENTIVES • Who gets a trip: – Chairman and vice chair (for two) – Division leaders (for one) – If division leaders reach goal, they can get extra trip and 2% incentive – If team leaders reach goal, they get one trip and 2% incentive – There are also levels where you can get merchandise and cash – Individuals must raise $5,400 for trip for one or $6,600 for trip for two
- 39. SECRET SAUCE ELEMENT #6
- 40. #6: THE TRACKING At first, all tracking was in Excel • • • Manually entered in all orders by team Calculated rewards Time-consuming as program grew
- 42. THEN SWITCHED TO TRACKING SOFTWARE Now teamed with a developer to build tracking software o o Still enter orders, but it calculates what is sold and if they get trip Figures division and team totals, as well as incentives
- 43. STARTING SMALL • Determine what is most important to sell – For most, this is gate admissions – Consider packages (e.g., family fun pack) • Develop a way to track revenue and reward volunteers • Find a volunteer to rally troops for the program – Set up a small leadership committee • Make sure you have a way to fulfill tickets
- 44. THANK YOU Questions? • Leave your business card, and we will send: – This presentation – Original spreadsheet – Marketing materials – Free subscription to The Dirt for online marketing tips – Invitation to upcoming Saffire educational webinars