UNIVERSITY OF WINCHESTER
Report by Josh Smith, TJ Cordes, Ethan Bolter & Remigio Ontaneda
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As shown above the age of Abbott’s Ann and the local communities skews middle-aged and older. With more than half the population working age this must be taken into consideration when attempting to increase bookings.
The Hall’s current schedule is a good fit with the above demographics. Weekday mornings and afternoons, which would likely clash with most work schedules, are regularly taken by the nursery school. Having this regular client gives the hall security to explore a variety of events that best fit weekday evenings and weekends. |
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| Competitor Analysis
In comparison to Abbotts Ann’s closest competitor, Monxton & Am port, rates are more economical at Abbotts Ann’s. Monxton & Amport’s hall does offer more chairs (90 chairs to Abbotts Ann’s 75) but facilities are otherwise similar and Monxton & Amport require a £30 fee to use the hall’s alcohol license. Monxton & Am port’s calendar is mostly filled with exercise events, both in the morning when Abbotts Ann is booked and in the evening which could clash with potential exercise events at Abbotts Ann. New Events and Membership The role as consultants required the group to evaluate what currently works for the hall, what could be improved and most of all what could be enhanced to make the most out of such an outstanding place in the community. The team considers Abbotts Ann to benefit from a more structured consistently packed- plan for monthly events. Recurring events provide stability in the calendar and consistent revenue in addition to not requiring constant customer acquisition. After generating several possible ideas for events, listed below, the team has filtered and arrived on the following best options based on the specific needs for the hall: |
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In addition, to consultant ideas we have tabulated the “own ideas” section of the Abbotts Ann survey results.
The residents own ideas were categorized under umbrella terms with each idea .. . that received at least two mentions included as its own category. Although the most common category, fitness & wellbeing, received six mentions the hall does have strong competition in the local area with Monxton & Amport’s fitness centric calendar. Film nights and live sports, although in different formats, both illustrate a strong community desire for watch parties held at the hall. Because of the small size and relative lack of business activity in Abbotts Ann the hall should consider taking a more active approach in increasing bookings. One part of that is to reach out to business’ directly to gauge interest and pitch the hall as a venue for their events. Another is to increase events organised by the hall itself and charge for entry. Either option helps to create demand and by increasing events at the hall a virtuous cycle would be put in motion where new bookers see how busy the hall is and decide they want to hold their event at the hall. Because marketing and putting on an increased number of hall run events would be more expensive it is suggested the hall consider a membership program. This subscription would offer monthly deals on all hall run events for members to get discount rates or unique benefits. The hall could also set up market specific memberships with a mix of the most popular events instead of the full package for those interested in certain items. Thanks to a structured program organised by the Abbotts Ann committee, the hall would only depend on themselves to carry out events. In addition, the membership would lay the foundation for a loyal customer base which the hall can use to cover basic needs, plan and grow. The team views the hall as a place with amazing potential, making a shift from a booking-based venue to a self-organised space where the community comes together and looks forward to. As for suggested events to fill the calendar the team one event that would fit the calendar and meet the desires of survey takers would be airing sport at the hall. Pros
Costs
We believe airing sports would be worthwhile to the hall despite the costs because it is an idea with support from residents that addresses a common problem, lack of access to Sky Sports broadcasts, that fits well with the Hall’s current booking calendar and amenities. Furthermore, the team would like to highlight six potential events that might be the most successful given the hall’s target audience. First off, season events unique to the time of year that will attract the community and create a tradition for the future. Secondly, bingo nights have proven to excel and if they are consistently orchestrated throughout the month, it would become part of the routine for regulars. Next, a tabletop market every month for people to show and sell their products to their own community and bring something new to Abbotts Ann. Moving on, chair yoga is also something to consider, as it encourages fitness in an accessible way to a select part of the community. Furthermore, hosting birthday parties would fit within the hall’s calendar extremely well and could be marketed to the nursery school children. Last, an asthma club where people can come together and catch up. Attracting Volunteers Because of the potential increase in hall run events more volunteers could be needed. Volunteers would be of two different types, those needed to help run hall events and those to help market the hall. If there is an increase in hall bookings that require people to staff the event, such as bingo or sport watch parties, those volunteers will likely come from the Abbotts Ann area. For older residents volunteering at the hall could be pitched as a social opportunity where they get to spend time with their fellow community members. If enough older people cannot be signed up another potential volunteer pool would be sixth form aged school children, for them volunteering could be pitched as a chance to add volunteering experience to their CV’s to increase their chances of university acceptance. To increase the hall’s digital marketing ability the hall could reach out to local sixth forms in the Andover area to set up a work experience program where one or multiple students could be given marketing experience at the hall. Because of the hall’s size this would be a small commitment, likely just a few hours per week, but could provide the student with valuable marketing experience applicable to a career and the hall can better execute marketing itself. Marketing Plan Business Outreach Reaching out to businesses directly will put the hall on the radar of potential clients and if done right is a no-cost way to drive bookings. However, it is intensive as the hall must identify potential businesses that would be perfect for the hall or be able to pitch businesses to persuade them to book the hall. Ideally, business outreach would be done by people with connections to company decision-makers but if “cold” contacting a business that has no connection to the hall it would be good to prepare a short document outlining the pricing, availability, and benefits of the hall to share with prospective bookers. Direct Mail Leaflets Direct mail leaflets mailed to all Abbotts Ann residents is a relatively affordable method of advertising that can reach all residents. Would likely need to find a printer for any leaflet campaigns of more than a couple hundred to print and mail. The advantage of direct mail leaflets is the reach, if every residential address in Abbotts Ann is mailed a leaflet, theoretically, every resident of the town would see the event advertised. However, it is not personalised marketing and thus there can be low engagement rates. Additionally, it is difficult to measure whether direct mail campaigns are successful. For best results the design should be eye-catching, and the information delivered is easy to find. Although the Abbotts Ann Facebook group is an asset the hall should create an account for the hall. Posting in the group from a branded account would convey more authority than from hall organisers, although it would perhaps lose some community feel since those in the group likely know hall organisers personally. A Facebook page also allows the hall to access Facebook’s ad platform, proactively defend against impersonators, and give users another way to reach the hall. Although they can be expensive Meta ads (the advertising platform for Facebook and Instagram), do allow for very specific targeting of accounts, allowing the hall to ensure their ads only reach their target audience. Meta ads also offer lots of data on the platform to analyse the success of each ad. But, for a small hall like Abbotts Ann consideration should definitely be made for the cost, which can be quite high if multiple campaigns are run, and if a Facebook account starts running advertisements the reach and engagement of their organic posts (posts not place into the ad program) often drops dramatically. If posting on Facebook without using ads there could be more effort to highlight activities at the hall, both from independent bookings and hall-run, to drive more customers. Additionally, to potential bookers, the hall doing a good job to promote the activities at the hall will encourage them to book with the hall as they know they are getting a partner in their success rather than just a venue. The running of the Face book could be handled by one of the hall’s current volunteers and perhaps be one of the main activities in the potential student marketing work social media administrator who has lifelong experience with social media while the volunteer would get valuable social media marketing experience. Email Marketing Because the hall has a fairly large email list it should provide at least some email content. Someone who signs up to a mailing list is generally a more engaged consumer who values the hall. These are valuable consumers that must be retained. The hall should consider sending a monthly email previewing the events at the hall for the next month. Writing this email may involve writing a template email beforehand that can then be used for all recurring monthly update emails. By sending news about the hall through email, you are using a direct line to those on the mailing list ensuring that they hear about everything the hall has to offer. Hall Open House Because the hall has been recently renovated there is a great opportunity to show off the hall to potential bookers and those that haven’t attended in a while. The hall should consider throwing one or multiple open house events where Abbotts Ann residents and businesses are invited to come see the new and improved hall. Additionally, the hall could consider hiring a freelance videographer or offering work experience in collaboration with a local university film department to do a video of the new hall to post on the website. By inviting people to come see the hall it gives the board the chance to meet potential bookers and visitors and form deeper relationships with them that could lead to future bookings. The video of the hall, although there would be a cost of hiring a freelance videographer, would be a good investment as it shouts the news of the hall’s renovation to the world and lets potential customers see what the hall looks like, potentially enticing companies to book. Conclusion and Future takeaways The Abbotts Ann Village Hall is more than just a place for hire, it has the potential to be a heartbeat in the community. Even though the nursery school keeps the hall occupied during the day, the evenings and weekends are wide open to create something special. A beautifully renovated space which is more affordable than the nearest competitors, which can be used to bring everyone together. By shifting from an ordinary “rental venue” to a community-led hub, we can ensure the hall stays vibrant and financially stable, but most of all full of life. To make the most out of the hall, this is the main summary of a plan moving forward:
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