Business, Marketing, and Life Advice for Play-Based Business Owners

Two of the biggest roadblocks we face as indoor playground owners are funding and sustaining cash flow- right? We need the money to get our business started and we need money to keep our business running.

And one tactic to help overcome either or both of these roadblocks that I feel is pretty underutilized is business sponsorships. 

But what are business sponsorships? Typically, what I mean when I say this is an arrangement where you, the indoor playground owner, receives money (either a...

To celebrate my milestone of reaching 300 Profitable Play Podcast episodes-- I did something a little different.

I dedicated my 300th episode to rounding up some of (what I consider to be) my BEST pieces of advice, that (and here's the catch)-- almost NO ONE takes or implements.

Because I have been doing SO much 1:1 consulting as I prepare to take a break to welcome our third child into the world in a few short weeks, I’ve been noticing a few things.

I’ve been noticing that...

 In the evolving landscape of work and childcare needs, indoor playgrounds have a unique opportunity to diversify their offerings and tap into a growing market need by incorporating co-working services to their facilities.

This blend can not only maximize the use of available space but also attract a broader customer base, including parents and caregivers seeking productive environments while their children play. 

So before we get into the HOW–let’s first discuss...

A couple weeks back I posted a video tour of a play space called The Friendship Fortress that’s not only local to me, but is also near and dear to my heart. 

And this is because one of my long-time  Play Cafe Academy and Play Maker Society members, Timea, is now the co-owner of the space.

If you’re a longtime listener, or if you watched that tour, you may remember that Timea actually opened her own space first called Tumbles Play Cafe, which I also toured and filmed...

  LISTEN To This Content On The Profitable Play Podcast Instead.

Now that it’s the end of June and we are fully in the summer swing of things- it’s happening again.

The summer slowdown in the indoor playground and play cafe industry.

And yes, I realize that for some of you owners– summer is BUSY season especially if you’re in a southern state or country where it’s too HOT to be outside right now.  But for the majority of owners I...

You may have noticed that I’ve been covering some HEAVY topics on the Profitable Play Podcast lately.

We’ve talked about regulating our nervous systems to prevent a lot of the health issues brought about by chronic stress which is unfortunately not uncommon for indoor playground owners. 

We’ve talked about handling conflict with customers and within our own teams, and most recently we’ve talked about navigating divorce as a business owner. So, like I said,...

In this article, we are diving into one of my FAVORITE all-time topics, and that is marketing your business. And to make it EXTRA exciting, we are talking about marketing and more specifically, advertising, in the context of one of my OTHER favorite topics- SAVING MONEY. 

If you’re a regular listener of my Profitable Play Podcast, you’ll know I am a HUGE fan of Facebook and Instagram Ads to grow and scale your indoor playground business in a cost-effective way....

Since we are already nearing the halfway point of 2024, today I want you to ask yourself a couple of questions that I have gotten in the habit of asking MYSELF if I’m feeling a little distracted or unmoored in my work or personal life, because it always brings my goals and perspective back into focus.

And I have gathered these questions over the years from various sources, so while I will try to give credit where it’s due, I truly have no idea where I first heard a few of...

When I first entered the family entertainment and indoor playground industry, the “norm” was for play spaces to just have set open-play hours where customers could come-and-go as they please without reservations. Our open-play hours, for example, typically from 8am-4pm on weekdays and 8am-12pm on Saturdays. During the weekday evenings and weekends we of course did classes, parties– all that good stuff– but here I want to focus JUST on open play hours....

In this article, we are talking about the good, the bad, and the ugly of implementing a TEXTING strategy into your overall marketing plan.

And that line in itself might seem a bit dramatic, but trust me– a texting strategy done well can skyrocket bookings, traffic, and sales for businesses like ours.

NOT implemented well, however, a texting strategy can annoy customers at best, and at worst, cause them to disengage with our business completely– on all channels.

(And...