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The Smaller Markets & Venues virtual seminar
series will be broadcast May 19, from 11 am CST to 12:30 pm CST. What a
great opportunity to host a chapter meeting with your in-house staff to
discuss issues germane to smaller markets and venues!
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David B. Ross, CFE
IAAM President |
To be the manager of a small facility or
work in a small market is to live in a constant dichotomy. The managers are
in a constant push/pull environment. Their facilities are small, yet they
are large in the communities in which they live. Small facilities and small
markets make up the majority of venues in the world. Not surprisingly, it is
the same way for the International Association of Assembly Managers. The
managers of small facilities and markets continue to toil away like small
businesses in the shadows of the larger corporate giants. Day after day,
they continue to provide services for their communities as well as this
association.
Not every facility can be the Madison Square Garden or the Georgia World
Congress Center, or host events like the finals of NCAA basketball or NFL
football, or even host the most popular concerts of the season. Small
facilities just don’t have the capacity or market size to compete in that
realm. Professional managers operating in small facilities or small markets
can, however, make a difference in the pride of the community and the
quality of life that each citizen enjoys by providing their own level of
quality entertainment and events.
To be successful in a small market or facility, the manager has to be
resourceful in guiding its employees. The manager doesn’t have the luxury of
hosting a few specific types of events. They have to scrutinize every
financial opportunity and be creative in hosting a variety of events from
the parking lots to the concourse hallways.
You don’t have to look beyond the recent Performing Arts Facility
Administrators Seminar (PAFAS) in Denver to find a good example of small
facilities producing a large benefit to the community. Local host, Rodney
Smith; Performing Arts Chair, Paul Beard; DAL Steve Martin; and an
enthusiastically passionate Performing Arts committee demonstrated the value
that small facilities can have in a community.
Denver is a major league city with a major league stadium, arena and
convention center. Not to mention, of course, their world class Red Rocks
amphitheatre. They also have an extraordinary performing arts complex that
contains the Ellie Caulkins Opera House and the Helen Bonfils Theatre
Complex. In terms of capacity, the latter facilities are “small facilities”
but in terms of community cultural arts, they are quite large.
The facilities were the impetus for drawing 240 facility managers and vendor
representatives to Denver for four days in February. The event represented
significant business for the local economy. Audiences for similar meetings
along with various performances scheduled throughout the year are
responsible for creating similar economic activity in Denver.
An opera house and performing arts theatre address quality of life issues
for their community. The manager of the facility, through programming,
marketing, administration and maintenance, make a difference in the success
of the facility and a city’s image.
Facilities like the Show Me Center with a 7,000-seat capacity is a
relatively small facility in comparison to Brad Mayne’s American Airlines
Center in Dallas and Lee Zeidman’s Staples Center in Los Angeles. But the
impact that the Show Me Center has on a community like Cape Girardeau,
Missouri cannot be overlooked. Our facility is no different in importance to
our community than Viking Hall Civic Center is to Bristol, Tennessee or the
Taco Bell Arena is to Boise, Idaho.
The expectations for a small market facility are to provide an economic
benefit for its citizens and operate large within the community. The manager
is expected to secure quality entertainment that will appeal to enough
people to ensure profitability. In many instances where the facility cannot
sustain success solely on ticket sales, the manager has to be adept at fund
raising to keep the lights on and the events rolling in.
Being creative and hosting a variety of events is crucial for every small
hall/market manager. Consumer shows to local sporting events to meeting room
banquets and wedding receptions are examples of the variety of events that
have to be solicited to keep the lights on throughout the year. In doing so,
the facility has constant interaction with community members and becomes
ingrained into the lives of people who live there.
When the events and activity are added up at the end of the year, the
results show what kind of catalyst the manager and the facility has been for
stimulating economic activity in the community. Additionally, the successful
facility manager has provided a safe and clean facility for the public to
attend, while supplying expertise in planning, organizing and managing
crowds as well as event marketing and promotional support for the community.
Running a successful facility, large or small, is a tall order for any
manager to accomplish by themselves. That’s why it is important to maintain
your relationships within IAAM .There are other managers who share your
market size and facility characteristics as well as your love and passion
for the business of public assembly management. Whether you work in a small
or large facility, find a way to participate in IAAM programs during the
year and share your information with others, discuss problems and find
solutions to your own conundrums. The communication you share with your
peers will make a difference in how you manage your facility in the future.
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David B.
Ross, CFE
IAAM President
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