Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Student tickets

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Posted by Kristin Wahlund (Member # 922) on 07-17-2003, 12:22 AM:

We have student prices that are a $1.50 less than our regular evening prices. And wouldnt it be logical to have a studnet ID ready to show the cashier? And wouldnt it also be a good idea to ASK for that student ticket?
Well none of this regularly happens, I believe of the 200 student tickets I sold this evening only 4 people had IDs ready and asked for the student price. it just rediculous. It makes the lines so long because they sit there usually after I rang up the other ticket price and dig for an ID. We have so many refunds because of this and it makes the lines much longer. It would also make sense that the people who are STUDENTS get the student tickets. Not 5 People with one student ID. I know that I am a student and that is really nice to have that pricing, but its such a pain! Does anyone else have to deal with this student crap, or have an opinion?

Posted by Steven Pickles (Member # 785) on 07-17-2003, 01:00 AM:

Living in a college town next to a university of over 45,000 students we sell more student tickets everday than any other. Logically, it would make sense to bring your ID with you but sometimes you just forget or don't think you'll end up somewhere where it is required. We do not check student IDs anymore and that is good for two reasons. The first is that the students who do not have their ID or cannot find it do not waste everyone's time trying to buy tickets. Secondly, it is easier than making it a big deal. Most of our patrons are student anyways. It is based on the honor system and I'm sure some people abuse it but overall it is for the best.

Posted by Dino Panagiotopoulos (Member # 1579) on 07-17-2003, 01:25 AM:

Being in the same situation as Steven (Windsor has a major university and college in town), we never really enforced a strict Student ID rule, mainly because 99% of the kids that come in are students here in town. The ones you really have to watch out are the people that are in their late twenties, maybe even thirties that are students somewhere. Those are the ones that always have their student IDs ready to show because they are the least believable ones. Now with our new pricing system that went into effect, we eliminated our student/youth category and it is now just Youth that goes to 17, and anything above that is Adult pricing. We dont have to worry about this problem anymore though.

If you want to be really picky I guess you could refuse to honor the student price if they cannot prove that they are students. If same applies to persons with disabilities (Blind, hard of hearing, etc who used to watch a show for free with proper ID like CNIB cards and such) then why shouldnt others have to adhere to those rules.

Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 07-17-2003, 03:04 AM:

We have a junior college in town. The AMC (GCC) theatre does not offer any student discount. Regal has a program whereby tickets can be purchased in advance at the matinee price plus a 50 cent per ticket "service charge". The college has to order them in advance in blocks of 25 or 50.

Being the only locally-owned 1st run house in the area... and fairly close to the college, we went full-out for those guys. I had Moviead print up special tickets for them, gave them a good rate and hand-delivered them to the people who distribute them.

The problem? The college pays for the tickets, then gives them out free to the students. The attitude and behavioral problems I dealt with from just this one group totally reinforced why I dropped 5$ carloads at my drive-in... The customer generally respects your product, effort and environs in direct proportion to his investment in said product. Give it away... no respect. Charge going rates and the respect goes up dramatically.

More often than not, the students were rude, obnoxious, and smuggled in all sorts of messy crap that we had to chisel off the floors (I've come to really hate sunflower seeds). It was real unfortunate, but right now I wouldn't offer an discount to students any sooner than I'd bring back the carload pricing at the drive-in.

Fortunately for us, the student population is a small fraction of the movie-going public here.

Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 07-17-2003, 05:39 AM:

When I was in college, I worked at an art-house theatre that was across the street from the campus. The student price was $1 less than the regular price (I think it was $5 for students and $6 for everyone else in 1999). Since 99% of our customers were either students or over 65, it was never really an issue. We asked for IDs, but pretty much anyone who looked like a student would get the discount. Most of the employees were students, anyway, so many of them recognized their friends and didn't need to see their IDs.

Posted by Kristin Wahlund (Member # 922) on 07-17-2003, 02:02 PM:

I live in the middle of suburbia, its like having 50 cities all smashed together. you never knwo whos a student and whos not. its difficult to judge who is a student and who is not. And lately it has become more of a pain than a help to have the student tickets. We have had the student price for over a year now and people still havent learned to have their IDs or anything, its just annoying. The issue for us is that we ask for photo IDs because we were asked to by the management. If they have a school issued ID we would gladly give them a studnet tcket or if it is painfully obvious they are a student, mostly we just request for college IDs. I guess I would liek to see smarter customers, but thats asking a lot.

Posted by Rachel Gilardi (Member # 1016) on 07-17-2003, 03:57 PM:

It's like senior citizens, a lot of times they don't ask either. You just don't always think about it.

Posted by Nicholas Roznovsky (Member # 861) on 07-17-2003, 06:35 PM:

I haven't really ever understood extending student rates to those who are younger than college age. Whereas college students are often trying to pinch pennies, high school and middle school students would often go to their local theater regardless of price, just because it's the thing to do. Why cut out all of those adult admissions from age 13-18 so you can have all of the problems of wrangling over saving a dollar with them?

Two of our locations are offering student discounts right now - one just to those with valid college IDs and the other to any student with an ID. The one restricting itself to just college students has not had a single problem, whereas the other has problems almost daily with parents not bringing their kids IDs and then refusing to pay the adult admission. The policy requiring an ID is clearly posted not once, but TWICE in the box office window, yet these problems still persist.

Unless you're competing with someone else down the road offering student discounts, it's just not worth it.

Posted by Evans A Criswell (Member # 381) on 07-17-2003, 10:24 PM:

I am 34 and since I'm a Ph.D. student and have a UAH ID, I use the student discounts at the Regal and Carmike theatres in Huntsville. I always have my ID ready to take out of my wallet if they ask. I typically just have the edge of it sticking out with the UAH logo on it and only pull it all the way out if they ask. I've never had a problem getting the student discount, although occasionally I forget to ask for it. I would not push the issue if refused the student discount, but I say if it is there, heck, use it if you're a student.

The theatres in Decatur (20-25 miles away) do not have student discounts. Of course, here in Huntsville, there is the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) and Alabama A&M University. Carmike did not originally have student discounts at the Carmike 10 here in Huntsville, but they started doing it a year or two ago. The Regal theatres have always had student pricing here in Huntsville as did Cobb when they had the theatres.

Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-18-2003, 01:00 AM:

quote:
And wouldnt it be logical to have a studnet ID ready to show the cashier?

I loved the scene in "Blazing Saddles", where Hedy Lamarr (Harvey Korman) tried to get into the Chinese Theatre by showing some card and saying, "Student?" You hear the cashier reply, "You gotta be kidding!"
[Big Grin]

Posted by Mike Spaeth (Member # 524) on 07-18-2003, 01:26 AM:

I dislike Student Tickets ... most of the places in the country it's not available ... but in some markets (generally those dominated by AMC) ... you have to have one to be competetive ...

Who causes 90% of your problems in a theater? Students ....

THEN WHY ARE YOU GIVING THEM A DISCOUNT TO BE IN YOUR BUILDING?

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 07-18-2003, 02:32 AM:

Yes, the pricing matrix is backwards. It ought to be:

Adults $5.00
Students $8.00
Children $10.00
Babies $20.00
Crying babies $50.00

Posted by Evans A Criswell (Member # 381) on 07-18-2003, 09:22 AM:

Students causing trouble? I don't think college students are the ones causing the most disturbances in theatres! Here in Huntsville, it's the teenagers (high school students aged 15-18) and pre-teens (that 12-14 age group)! I rarely see any older college-aged people causing any problems.

However, I do agree with charging more for young children and babies that are too young to watch a movie without crying, whining, or talking.

Posted by Robert E. Allen (Member # 1351) on 07-18-2003, 04:56 PM:

I have found a way to eleminate that type of problem with my admission prices on my upcoming project: all seats the same price for all age groups.

Posted by Tom Fermanian (Member # 1094) on 07-18-2003, 06:30 PM:

Some markets in Canada have a ONE PRICE ALL THE TIME!
Say it was $9.50 adult $7.00 junior 13-17-years $5.00 12 & under & 65 & over, these markets went to A $8.00 general price for everyone, no cards no early matinée bargains nothing but one price! Arguments at first ,then smoooth sailing ever since. [beer]

Posted by Michael Brown (Member # 890) on 07-18-2003, 07:26 PM:

quote:
Students causing trouble? I don't think college students are the ones causing the most disturbances in theatres! Here in Huntsville, it's the teenagers (high school students aged 15-18) and pre-teens (that 12-14 age group)! I rarely see any older college-aged people causing any problems.

With what I see in this country, I'd agree with Evans. It's the school children that cause problems not students.

Posted by R. Andrew Diercks (Member # 1725) on 07-20-2003, 06:39 PM:

quote:
The customer generally respects your product, effort and environs in direct proportion to his investment in said product. Give it away... no respect. Charge going rates and the respect goes up dramatically

I would agree with this. The paying college age students seem to be fine. When I had college shows and they only paid $1 at the door and we billed the college the difference, we had drunks, pukers, noise and constant smuggling. BTW sunflower seeds suck, but chew spit is 20 times worse.

Posted by Daryl C. W. O'Shea (Member # 1303) on 07-21-2003, 02:12 AM:

We recently went to $6.75 all seats at most of our theatres. Very few complaints (especially since most of the theatres were $9.75 for general admissions) and generally less confusion with the dimmest of the dimmest box office staff.

Of course we couldn't keep it simple, so we discount senior admission by $1.00, just for fun and to piss 64 year olds off. [Smile]

Posted by Kristin Wahlund (Member # 922) on 07-22-2003, 03:52 PM:

the way our student tickets work is that a child is ages 3-11 and so 12 through college age (witha college ID) is a student. so its just a big mess. And i always get the response "well.. dont I look like a student?" grraah. customers are crazy.

Posted by Michael Gonzalez (Member # 593) on 07-22-2003, 04:50 PM:

Kristin. The problem, as described by your first post, is that the "policy" is not being properly enforced by your box office personnel. The reason why the customers have not learned to carry their student IDs with them is because they continue to recieve the discount without them. If you are checking for IDs but the person who is working the ticket machine next to you or the person who was selling tickets eariler, isn't, then naturally the customers are not going to bring them. It is up to your bad manager (as was put in another thread) to make sure that ALL box office people are enforcing said policy. THEN the customers will find out that if they don't bring the ID they wont get the discount. Trust me then they will finally learn.

Posted by Kristin Wahlund (Member # 922) on 07-25-2003, 01:25 AM:

But they get so "pissy" when you say they can't without an ID and really it is only a dollar and fifty cents this ONE time they wont have their ID. But then they complan about me or another cashier and they get it anyway. I man it really is a lose lose situation for us.

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 07-26-2003, 02:03 AM:

You can't please anyone no matter what.

If you give student discounts, then people complain there's no military discount. If you do both, no one has their ID. (They think they can show up with a camoflauge shirt and get a discount.) Or if they have an ID, it's expired, or there's no way to tell.

Then there are the senior citizens. If they say "one for x-movie" and you ring up a regular ticket, they get mad because they are a senior and want a discount. If you give them the discount without asking, they get mad because they're "not that old yet!!!" And don't even THINK about asking for an ID for a senior discount because they "don't have to show you nothing!"

And if you charge the same price for all seats, all shows, everyone gets mad because you don't offer some type of discount for whatever they are. I explained to this lady once that, "It's not that we don't give a discount for children, it's that we don't charge any more for the adult prices!"

She left, sufficiently confused. [evil]

=TMP=