The Sporting Life: Wow factor missing at Wonders of Wildlife

Brent Lawrence is copy editor and columnist for the Springfield Business Journal.

It's disappointing to see the Wonders of Wildlife museum floundering. After a much-hyped start, the museum has been adrift, seemingly taking on water with every wave.

But to this native Springfieldian, it never seemed to be the right fit for us. Paying $11.25 for adults and $7.25 for kids was just too expensive for a family. Sure, a family of four might go once a year for $37, but that's not enough to keep a $52 million facility open.

WOW's problems go way beyond the price, however.

I live about 2 1/2 miles north of Springfield just off State Highway H. On my way to and from work, I see deer, turkey, woodchucks, geese, ducks, raccoons and various other wild critters. That's more mammals than I'd see at the museum. Other than otters, bobcats, bats, fish and reptiles, the museum gives me little else to see.

I think the same goes for most people in the area. Springfield doesn't have a bunch of inner-city kids who haven't even seen a cow, much less wild animals.

WOW's location right next to Bass Pro Shops seems to be kind of a redundancy. Who goes to Bass Pro? People who love hunting, fishing, camping and hiking the outdoors. And what do they get to see while doing their outdoor activities? Fish, animals and Mother Nature.

A museum with a few animals certainly isn't enough to attract those outdoor enthusiasts. That's why they do things in the outdoors to be a part of nature.

If anything, Bass Pro is a detractor from WOW. Lets see, I can pay $11.25 (now reduced to $8.95 for Greene, Christian and Webster county residents) to tour the museum, or I can walk around Bass Pro Shops for free and essentially see the same bunch of stuffed animals and fish in the multiple aquariums.

OK, I'm not here to just point out problems. Here's some possible solutions.

The museum is heading in the right direction by lowering prices and giving discounts to local residents. The museum has a new family pricing plan, giving metro Springfield families admission for $24.95.

If I were to put a price on it, $7 for adults seems to match the value I get out of the museum.

Dickerson Park Zoo is $5 for adults and $3 for kids. While it's not a world-class zoo (but it is getting better), I'm still willing to spend $16 on any given day to take the kids there. WOW, if priced right, could become the same type of outing.

Cycle various animals through the museum. Once you've seen the otters, bobcats and beavers, there's not many other live mammals. Bringing in some deer and other animals would pique my interest.

Kids, kids and more kids. If the museum would have kid-related events at the facility, it would develop a greater buzz around the building. And where's there kids, there's parents. A casting contest in the parking lot would bring the kids out.

When the museum takes animals to schools, the officials also should carry free museum tickets for the kids. What parent can say no to a child who is excited about going somewhere with a free ticket. This type of ground-up marketing would follow the plan employed by Southwest Missouri State University's Lady Bears.

Give away tickets and they will come (and bring their parents).

Somebody like Brad Eldridge would be a perfect match with the museum. Eldridge, executive director of the Greater Springfield Area Sports Commission, was in charge of promotions for the Springfield-Ozark Mountain Ducks when the unaffiliated, minor-league baseball team came to the area. Talk about a tough sell, yet Eldridge was able to pull it off.

Businesses and the community both got involved through Eldridge's shrewd marketing plans.

Whoever takes the reins at WOW needs to have an understanding of the local market (we're not Chicago or Denver) and have an innovative way of marketing.

Simply believing that placing a big building with a bunch of animals stuffed or otherwise next to a major tourist attraction will lead to success is wrong.

"Build it and they will come" only works for fictional baseball fields in Iowa.