Prior to the Internet, , an increasing number of Americans are cancelling their cable subscriptions and relying more on the Internet for video entertainment.
With the decrease in cable subscriptions and budgets, community media stations need to find new ways to earn revenue. Adding engaging functionality to their website can help stations earn money with additional revenue streams. Working with community media stations since 2011, we have seen the most increase in profits with these three functionalities:
- Equipment and Facility Scheduling
This feature provides the community with an easy way to reserve equipment or facilities, and can be extended to allow commercial companies the ability to rent video equipment and services more affordably. While many stations already provide this service, most do not have an efficient way of allowing user to schedule rentals. Users are more inclined to rent equipment or the facility if they can browse the products and services available for their desired dates/times online in real time and easily make a reservation online. It’s not just reservation functionality that makes a difference, but the user interface and its integration with stations’ web sites.
Check out BCAM TV’s Equipment and Facility scheduling feature developed by Polar Design!
- E-Commerce
E-commerce provides community media centers the ability to earn some extra revenue through sale of DVDs and other products. Even if your station’s website has VOD capabilities, many viewers still enjoy the convenience of having a tangible DVD to watch videos on their own television, or to share with family, employers, universities or others. Additionally, many e-commerce solutions can be used to sell t-shirts, mugs, and other promotional items, as well as sponsorships and big ticket items that might be donated by local business to generate revenue for the center.
HCAT’s website features a DVD store allowing users to search for and order DVDs.
- Class Registration
Class registration features allows stations to list the classes they offer for students and community members, along with dates, times, and descriptions. Listings classes online improves web site SEO and engagement, and allows those classes to be located by members of the public who are not yet members of your center
NewTV’s website allows its staff to easily add classes for users to register and pay for on their website!
As suggested by the blog title, these are the top three revenue generating ideas, but there are many more that Polar Design can implement which could provide substantial impact and return on investment depending on your particular media center’s situation.
Polar Designs offers an affordable online solution for community media stations called the Community Media Platform – learn more about it here!
