terms to know

Reconciliation

Audit reports conducted to reconcile cash and financial performance statements.

BEO

Banquet Event Order - A document that confirms a food/beverage service for a select group of people.

Contracted

Contract that has been signed and returned, usually with a rent deposit.

Avails

Dates that are available for booking.

FOH

Front of House - The area in a facility which the public typically occupies. This area typically includes lobbies, concession stands, public restrooms, ticket office and the seating area.

Box Office Advance

Funds advanced to an event promoter from revenue derived from event ticket sales and paid in advance of the event settlement; the fulfillment of the contract by the event promoter or prior to the conclusion of the event.

Co-Promoted

Generally is a term to describe an event that the facility becomes involved with on at least a partially at-risk basis.

Request for Proposal

Process by which an outline of desired goods or services is responded to by vendors.

Ingress

The act of entering a public assembly facility or other location

Egress

The act of leaving or exiting a public assembly facility or other location.

Confirmed contract

A contract that has been negotiated, agreed to and is awaiting signatures.

Dark

A date without a performance or event and not usually available for book.

settlement

A detailed itemization of ticket sales, production expenses, building rent, box office costs and all other event-related expenses.

production rider

A document detailing an event's specific technical requirements in terms of stage, location and size, sound and lighting equipment, mixer location, catering, etc. and other pertinent information

ticket manifest

A document that is used as evidence to prove the number of tickets printed for an event which hard tickets are preprinted. Also, a statement generated by a computerized ticketing system. Both document the number of seats programmed for a specific event and includes the number of tickets sold, unsold, held, killed and issued as complimentary for a specific event or series of events.

union shop

A facility which has a contract with a union and is able to hire any person without regard to union membership, but said employee must then join the union within a specified period of time and pay dues. This does not apply in Right to Work states.

Cross-bounce coupon

A marketing tool used to increase sales of tickets to an event or retail product by offering a value-added benefit for the customer either in the form of a discount on the price of a ticket to an event or a discount on a retail item at a participating retail outlet or on something offered by some other promotional partner.

Loader

A person that is hired temporarily, often a union employee (Teamsters, IATSE), to unload/load freight to and from a truck or railcar.

Audit Stub

A portion of a ticket created by perforations that are retained by a ticket seller to document that the ticket was sold and at what price.

self-sustaining

A public assembly facility that does not require an operating subsidy from its owner to cover annual operating expenses and is similar to a "break-even operation."

production call

A specified list of required personnel, many of whom may be temporary, that are needed to run the equipment or perform duties during the actual performance.

show call

A specified list of required personnel, many of whom may be temporary, that are needed to run the equipment or perform duties during the actual performance.

Commissiaries

A warehouse or production room for food, beverage and/or merchandise. The term is also used to describe a vending room that supplies products to the hawkers selling in the seats of a venue.

Runner

Also known as Production Assistant, is usually someone familiar with the community who is employed locally by the act or promoter to provide a means of transportation for crew members and to serve as a "go for" for the acquisition of various services and sundry items needed during an event's stay in a facility.

External audit

An audit conducted by an individual or firm that is independent of the company being audited. Auditors typically are called in for an annual audit, after the completion of the company's fiscal year. Their role is to give an opinion of the financial statement's reflection of the status and operations of the company being audited. Based on what they witness during the audit, they will also produce, for management and board use, a management letter.

Internal audit

An independent appraisal of the financial health of a company's operation by its own employees.

ticket broker

An individual or agency reselling tickets in a locale where selling a ticket for more than face value is legal under specified condition.

Break-even operation

Generally refers to a public assembly facility that does not require an operating subsidy from its owner to cover annual operating expenses; operating revenue is sufficient to cover operating expenses. Debt service, capital improvement reserves and taxes are typically excluded as operating expenses.

Personal seating license

Is typically used at the outset to raise funds to help finance a public assembly facility. The buyer essentially "buys" a seat(s) and has the right of first refusal to then buy tickets for all events.

Cost accounting

Method of accounting which emphasizes the determination and the control of costs, particularly the costs of proudction and the final product. It deals with actual costs to be reported on finanacial statements. One of the principle functions is to assemble and interpret cost data, both actual and prospective, for the use of management in controlling current operations and in planning for the future.

Fixed overhead

Ongoing administrative expenses of a business that cannot be assigned to a specific business activity and that tend to stay the same whether sales go up or down, e.g. rent, utilities, telephone, insurance, etc.

Pipe and drape

Pipe material with fabric draped form it to make up side rails and the back wall of a trade show booth or a temporary barrier.

Subsidized Operation

Refers to a facility that has operating expenses greater than the revenue it can generate and which, therefore, requires annual financial assistance (subsidy) from its owner.

Naming rights

Refers to a form of advertising and marketing whereby a business, organization or individual, places its (his/her) name on a favility for a fixed amount of money over a period of years or oten with universities in perpetiuity.

Yellow card

Refers to a union contract agreement for stagehands between show producer and organized labor which applies to traveling, touring shows.

Physical plant

Refers to the equipment commonly associated with the heating, ventilation and air condition (HVAC) system, electrical distribution system, plumbing/sewage system, etc. within a public assembly facility.

Ancillary Revenue Streams

Revenue source in addition to facility charges of rent, labor and equipment to include, but not limited to food/beverage sales, catering commissions, novelty/souvenir sales, parking fees, advertising commissions, ticket/facility surcharges, naming rights fees, sponsorships, etc.

Ancillary Services

Revenue sources available to facility managers by providing basic services such as food and beverage, merchandising and novelty sales, and parking services. Additional services such as equipment rentals, computer cafes, freight handling (drayage), providing box office services to other organizations, event advertising, and automatic teller machines, are just a few additional examples of such revenue generators.

Net operating surplus

Revenue that is generated and retained in excess of the total operating expenses of a facility.

Followspot

Spotlight mounted on a swivel socket in order to produce a sharp movable beam of light which can travel with the subjects on a stage or ice surface as they move from place to place.

Back-of-House

That portion of the facility where public access is not permitted, usually behind the stage, production area and /or other restricted areas such as mechanical rooms, dressing rooms, kitchen, etc. Beyond the physical location this term can be used in conjunction with building functions.

Golden circle

The condition in which the best seats in the house are set-saside and are sold at a significantly higher price. The difference between the golden circle price and the next highest priced ticket is considered a donation. Often used for charity sponsored fund raising events.

Drop count

The number of ticket stubs collected for a single even at the entry point(s) of a facility. If bar coded tickets are used, a report is provided in place of the physical ticket stubs.

Advertising Campaign

The plan for advertising, promotions, and other means by which tickets for events are advertised and promoted in electronic media (radio and TC), in print, over the Internet, via direct mail, or by other means of general and/or direct contact.

event management

The process of planning and disseminating information and communicating pertinent event production requirements to a facility's staff which results in the coordination of activities that leads to the successful production of an event.

Fixed Assets

Those assets of a permanent nature required for the normal conduct of a business, and which will not normally be converted into cash during the ensuing fiscal period. For example, furniture, fixtures, land and buildings are all fixed assets. However, accounts receivable and inventory are not. Sometimes call PLANT.

variable expenses

Those business expenses that usually fluctuate in direct proportion to a level of activity, such as units of production or sales volume.

gross revenue

Total revenue generated before any expenses or taxes are applied or paid.

Deadwood

Unsold tickets that remain in inventory.

Ancillary Revenue

income earned from events other than rent and expense reimbursements