Introducing The Party Center Speaks Podcast!

We have some BIG and exciting news for you today!

We've officially joined the podcasting world! Check out our brand NEW podcast, Party Center Speaks! 

As many of you may already know, we’re passionate about creating great content for the family entertainment industry. So, we decided that it was time to continue bringing you great tips, advice, and ideas...in a different format!

Introducing The Party Center Speaks Podcast!

On this first episode, I thought it’d be great for us to talk about 2023. It’s right around the corner! Of course, we know that many of you already have plans set, but check out this episode for more tips on things you might want to consider to start 2023 off with a bang!

Episode 1: Introducing Party Center Speaks

You can also check out the video of this episode on YouTube!

Read our transcript below:

Hello and welcome to the Party Center Speaks Podcast!

My name is Laura Cañellas and I am the Marketing Manager here at Party Center Software. 

As many of you may already know, we’re passionate about creating great content for the family entertainment industry. We create eBooks, host webinars, and post to our blog 3 times per week on different topics related to how you can grow your party business. We also have the PCS Academy that’s available to anyone and everyone interested in growing their business or learning more about our software.

But the only thing we haven’t tried yet is — you guessed it — podcasting! 

Our goal for the Party Center Speaks podcast is twofold. One, we want to continue bringing you great tips, advice, and ideas in a different format. We understand that not everyone may have time to watch a webinar or read an eBook. Instead, you’ll be able to listen to some of our great webinars on your way to work by hopping onto your preferred podcast app. We’ll also have different series on this podcast on topics like operations, sales, marketing, and others.

Our second goal with Party Center Speaks is to highlight our team and provide them with a platform to share their knowledge. You’re probably already familiar with the marketing team here at PCS, but we have many team members that work hard to provide you with the best possible product and experience. We want to give them a chance to shine and share. 

We hope that you’re just as excited as we are and if you have any feedback, such as topics you’d like us to discuss on the podcast, please email marketing@partycentersoftware.com. 

On this first episode, I thought it’d be great for us to talk about 2023. It’s right around the corner! Of course, we know that many of you already have plans set, but let’s talk about some of the things you may want to consider going into the new year. 

First, what is your long-term goal for your business? Do you want to pass it down to the next generation? Will you want to sell one day? Do you just want to make it a profitable venture or maybe open up a second or third location one day? 

Whatever your goal is, write it down and ask yourself what it’s going to take to get there. 

Then, it’s time to create short-term, action-oriented goals based on that long-term vision. What are your revenue goals? Or, operational goals? Do you need to come up with more profitable party packages? Do you need to hire more staff? Do you need to invest into a new tool that’ll help you automate parts of your business? 

Think about what will help you run your business most effectively. 

Next, you’ll want to document all of this in one place, and set some sort of a timeline for achieving said goals. This will help you stay accountable and also get your team acquainted with your vision. 

We always recommend, especially if you’re a brand new FEC, to start a playbook. Maybe you’ve heard this term before if you’re a football fan, and if so, it’s a place that holds all of a team’s strategies & plays, right? 

Company playbooks are the same thing. This is a living, breathing document that should function party as a manual for staff, but should also exist for staff to add their best practices into the mix. You want your top performers to train the rest, so why not have them add their secrets into the playbook? And of course, if you’re the boss, you’ll want this to be the place where you share your vision with the rest of the team. 

We actually have a great resource on this, so I highly recommend hopping into the PCS Academy to make an account or log in. Go to bit.ly/pcsacademy, it’s all lowercase. Once you’re in the portal, head to the business growth library and download your copy of the Building a Playbook for Your FEC. 

Some other things you may want to consider is hosting some fun events at the top of the year to engage your customers. What can you do to keep the bookings going after the holidays?

We have another great resource on this called the Monthly Events Calendar, but just to throw some fun ideas your way, you can do something simple in January like a food & fun event. Offer up a combo deal that includes timed facility play or a limited credit on arcade games with food at a discounted price.

You can also do a parent’s night out if you’re able. When the holiday season is over, parents will be looking for a night out where they can relax and enjoy themselves after a stressful and extremely busy couple of months. Invite local vendors into your facility to set up shop and host a fair. You can also invite a local masseuse and other spa professionals to provide a relaxing experience to the parents while their kids play. 

Lastly, an important thing to consider here is to also make sure your marketing campaigns are ready for the new year. What’s the point of hosting these great events if they aren’t marketed properly? 

Your website might be due for a refresh. It is a business asset, after all. Do you have a “Book Now” button easily available on your home page? Does it link to your online booking? Do you have great pictures of folks having fun at your facility on your site? 

All of this is super important. Party bookers want to see themselves in those pictures. They also want the info they’re looking for about your facility — FAST!

If you need some help in this area, we actually offer website design services so feel free to contact us. 

Next, you’ll want to consider social media and email marketing, of course. Do your emails need a refresh? Maybe it’s time to host a fun contest, or revisit how you promote your facility online? 

There are lots of tips I can share in this area, since that’s what we do best at PCS. But, to keep it simple, first invest into an automation tool that’ll help you plan ahead, schedule posts, schedule emails, etc. This really goes along way, especially if you don’t have a marketing person to focus on this yet. Next, come up with a content plan. What holidays or events do you have coming up this year? What promos will you offer? Create a marketing plan or schedule based on that. 

I hope the tips shared today were helpful. We’re really looking forward to working on this podcast and creating more new episodes for you, so if you have any topics you’d like us to discuss, be sure to email marketing@partycentersoftware.com.

This podcast is a weekly podcast, so you can expect new episodes every Thursday. 

Party Center Speaks is powered by Party Center Software. We are a facility management tool that helps family entertainment centers and event venues book more parties and manage their facilities. We also offer marketing services, such as custom website design and marketing automations to help you expand your reach and grow traffic. 

If you’d like to know more about us, head over to partycentersoftware.com and be sure to give us a follow @partycentersoftware on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn and @partycentersoft on Twitter!

Until next time, thanks for listening! 

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