Remember when you were a kid and you WANTED someone to play 20 questions with? Remember how annoyed our parents got when we just forced them to play 20 questions without any regard to subject matter, location, and timing? There were never any reports to follow those games, either.

Thanks to VenueDataSource (VDS), you can now play 20 questions that could positively impact the future of your venue’s Capital Funding availability. And when you take the survey, there is a free report to follow, too!

The VenueDataSource Capital Funding Survey is a short, 20-question survey that should take less than 10 minutes to complete but make an enormous impact on your venue and others. There also are three $100 American Express Gift Cheques on the line that will be given randomly to three venue managers who complete the survey. Everyone that completes the survey will receive a report of a comprehensive look at the findings for no charge.

That’s right, complete the survey and the collective results will be compiled into a handy report and given to you for FREE. Just by taking the brief survey, you’ve already saved money that could now be slated for capital improvements. Good job you!

The Capital Funding survey is one of the most important documents produced by VDS. Every venue manager knows that financing our venues is a tricky tango between increasing sales and decreasing expenses.

But what about capital expenses? How do you finance major construction, renovation, or other large-scale projects? How do you and your peers pay for capital improvement programs? How many of our peers have a major tenant or vendor investing in our venues as a condition of their contracts with us?

We want to find the answers to those and other capital funds-related questions in this survey.

In mere minutes, you can help the future of venue operations and maybe learn more than a thing or two about where you can turn over a new leaf and find capital dollars.

In this ever-expanding age of technology, we are constantly trying to better our venues, our operations, and our staff. Change, more often than not, costs money. Our surveys are a way of gathering great information, from all over the venue family, quickly, confidentially, and succinctly—and have helped our members save thousands of dollars in annual operating costs. Now we’re working on helping members find thousands of new dollars for capital expenses.

The Capital Funding Survey invitations were sent out February 12-13 to one person per venue. If your venue has not received the invite, contact VenueDataFrank, Frank Ingoglia, at frank.ingoglia@iavm.org. Frank can help with this or any other survey question.

VDS is here to help our members achieve amazing things. Information is empowerment and we rely on you and the other members to keep moving forward and accomplishing our goals.

You can find us on this monthly blog, on Twitter @VenueDataFrank, in weekly newsletters discussing trends, facts and asking poll questions, at the sector conference, and VenueConnect—everywhere you VDS, you’ll find us. No matter where you go—there we are.

(Image: frankieleon/Creative Commons)

Is love still in the air?

Even though Valentine’s Day has passed, we may still have the reminders of those heart-shaped candy boxes lying around. Check to see if the boxes are all or partially recyclable, or consider re-using them for another gift or possible storage. America Recycles Day offers this thought, “That box could live on to ship a care package, carry a birthday cake, or conceal the perfect gift! Recycle boxes this month, and beyond!”

Go to http://americarecyclesday.org/ for more information on this or other recycling tips.

[photo credit: Love Birds Like Chocolates, So I’m Sold via photopin (license)]

IAVM’s get-a-member campaign, iCommit, is under way. We are three months in and have added more than 320 new members. Our goal is to add 600 new members by March 31, 2015. We have five weeks left before the campaign ends, and we are halfway there.

Your support may be rewarded with one of five $500 Apple Gift Cards! So what do you need to do to get your name in the drawing*? Encourage your employees, colleagues, students, and customers who are not connected with IAVM to join!

To ensure you are eligible to win, make sure the new member who joins lists your name in the Application Section titled “Who Recommended IAVM To You?” and enters “iCOMMIT” in the Promotional Code field in the payment method section of the membership applications. By entering the promo code, the $150 one-time initiation fee will be waived.

What’s In It For You?

We are getting very close to a community of 5,000 members. Be a part of history. More members means more collaboration, a bigger and more diverse network for you, and a greater pool of experts to create inspiring and motivating educational sessions at IAVM events. Encourage new ones to join our ranks, the largest non-profit organization serving the needs of the venue management industry. And possibly win a $500 Apple Gift Card (generously provided by Ungerboeck Software Intl.).

If you have questions, please contact me or Summer Beday at 972.906.7441 or membership@iavm.org. We value and appreciate your support of IAVM!

*Drawing – Win one of five-$500 Apple Gift Cards. For each new member that lists your name on their new IAVM membership application, your name will be entered in a drawing. Winners will be announced in April 2015.

(photo credit: SimpleSkye via photopin cc)

The Foundation is proud to announce the Joseph A. Floreano Scholarship + Internship Program recipients for the 2015 Academy for Venue Safety & Security (AVSS) recognizing two deserving individuals who demonstrate leadership, character, community involvement, and the potential to be future leaders in the venue management industry.

“As leaders we know there is a cause and effect from the level of preparation and quality to the results we see. How we choose to invest in people impacts our results,” said Sarah Rogers, IAVM director of development. “The Foundation provided the seed funding for AVSS over 10 years ago, and we couldn’t be more proud to further our investment in the continued development of safety & security for venue professionals.”

The Foundation also offers scholarships + internships to a variety of other IAVM conferences and schools, click here to learn more and to apply. Thanks to the support of committed donors, together we are Building Amazing Futures. Click here to learn more about the Foundation’s annual campaign. Continue Reading →