Lyn Gardner’s blog at Guardian Unlimited made me think about refunds for theatre shows. “Guarantee” is one of the strongest selling words there is. So why are the arts so reluctant to offer one? Do we have such a lack of confidence in our product?
It’s partly because when you're talking about theatre satisfaction is a matter of opinion, partly because arts finances are so tight. I also know there’s a fear that some unscrupulous people would take advantage and ask for a refund even if they enjoyed the show, in effect having their cake and eating it, which is different from someone returning goods to a shop.
Experience from other industries suggests that the vast majority of people don’t try it on and we would make a lot more money in extra ticket sales than we would lose in refunds.
But if we really don’t trust our audience, why not give them a refund if they leave before the end? That’s what I used to do when I was involved in running a theatre. Then again, we’re talking about an industry that generally won’t even give refunds the day after the ticket is purchased!
Lyn Gardner also discusses the apparent problem of cheap tickets intended to encourage new attenders being snapped up by old hands. I'm amazed this is a such an issue these days. Every theatre and ticket agency has a database of customers. Surely you simply say that if you're an existing customer, you don't qualify for an introductory offer. Of course there will be some who go to a different agency or buy through another party just to get the discount but this simple measure would eliminate most of the 'problem'. Have they not heard of database marketing?
