Below are some tips and things to consider when determining the ideal capacity when moving from daily general admission to a timed-entry program.
Past Attendance
First and foremost consider historical attendance trends as a good baseline for your timed entry program. Find several good examples of slow, average, and peak days and pay attention to what percentage of each day’s attendance enters by hour (you will need this information to set your timed entry capacity). Even if you have not used timed entry before you can use transaction timestamps and ticket validation timestamps to approximate how many guests are entering by hour throughout the day.
Social Distancing - 6 feet apart
Knowing your total square footage for visitor-use and the ideal number of visitors that can fit within this space is also key. You probably know your maximum capacity for normal operating conditions; but will this number be the same for re-opening? Likely not. Given the recommended 6ft guideline of space between visitors, you should plan for at least 36 square feet per person. A simple way to calculate your new operating capacity is to take your adjusted visitor square footage and divide it by 36.
Creating a Buffer For No-Shows and Visitors Who Stay Longer
A well-thought-out timed entry program will include considerations for non-shows and visitors who remain in the ticketed space longer than you expect (some visitors will leave early, too). Every organization is different so you might consider testing capacities that are slightly above or slightly below the calculated value you initially planned. And, of course, be ready to adjust on the fly.
Members Only Events
Do something special for your members to thank them for supporting you. Reserve certain time slots for Members Only. This can be a benefit that you offer as a thank you to your patrons for supporting you through this difficult time.
Doing The Math
Step 1: Identify the total square footage within your ticketed space that will be available to visitors when re-opening (Input A)
Step 2: Calculate your Instantaneous Max Capacity (IMC) by dividing your number from Step 1 by 36
Step 3: Distribute your new operating IMC by the expected arrival pattern to determine the optimal timed ticketing hourly allotment for your organization
Example:
Step 4: Now that you have calculated your new instantaneous capacity for re-opening, you can spread this number throughout the day using your historical attendance trends as a baseline and adjust from there.
Example:
