Ninety-Day Plans by Role

Five plans, one per chair, with checkpoints at day thirty, sixty, and ninety.

An annual plan is a map. A ninety-day plan is the next few miles of road. Ninety days is long enough to see a change in the numbers, short enough to hold in your head, and the right size for a first try at the habits in this book. It also fits the shape of the year: four quarters, each with a review. If you finish this chapter and do nothing else, pick your role, read the plan below, and start on Monday. It’s also short enough that a plan that isn’t working can be fixed before much is lost.

Each plan has the same shape. The first thirty days are for setting up: the baseline, the scoreboard, and the one habit that costs nothing. Days thirty-one to sixty are for the main change, run as a test. Days sixty-one to ninety are for repeating what worked, dropping what didn’t, and writing the next quarter’s plan. At each checkpoint you do something, check a number, and decide, in three short columns. The plans are starting points, and you should change them to suit your room. What you should not change is the discipline of a date, a number, and a decision. The checkpoints are where the plan earns its keep. Without them, ninety days drift into a hundred and twenty, and the test that was supposed to end in week eight is still half-running in week fourteen.

You’ll notice that the plans share steps, because the roles share a funnel. That is on purpose. If all five chairs in one room start the same week, the owner’s welcome, the bartender’s content, the teacher’s hand-off, the booker’s calendar, and the musician’s list will reinforce each other, and the monthly meeting becomes a conversation among people who are all trying something. If you work alone, take your own plan and ask a friend to take another, so you have someone to compare notes with. Each plan below is followed by a short table of its checkpoints. Copy the table for your chair, change the dates, and keep it where you’ll see it.

PR TACTIC: The Monday Start

What it is: Pick a start date that is a Monday, write the day-thirty, day-sixty, and day-ninety dates on the calendar, and do the first task that day.

Why it works: A plan with dates gets done, and one with “soon” gets postponed until the busy season is over, which is never.

Try this: Open the calendar, put in the three checkpoint dates, and write the first task for this Monday.

38.1 The Owner’s Ninety Days

Days 1–30: set up. Build the baseline from Chapter 23, using eight comparable weeks of door counts and first-timers, with flagged nights. Start the door tally and the how’d-you-hear card. Run the fifteen-minute Friday from Chapter 34. Write the one-line test sentence from Chapter 4 and share it with staff. Choose your single goal from the funnel and state its baseline. By day thirty you should have the numbers on one page and the habit running. If the baseline shows that the room’s door count is fine but first-timers rarely return, the goal is the second visit. If first-timers are scarce, the goal is discovery, and the first month should also include the monthly check of the website, map listing, and calendar from Chapter 13, since a stranger who can’t find accurate information never becomes a first-timer.

Days 31–60: run one test. Pick the weakest link in the funnel, usually the second visit, and test one change using the Experiment Planner from Chapter 31. A welcome routine is a good first test because it costs little. Write the prediction first. Hold the weekly check and begin the staff debrief. Hold two or three regular conversations from the Listening Protocol in Chapter 33. By day sixty you should have a half-finished test, a few notes in the debrief, and a sense of what guests are saying. Keep the test small and the rest steady. Days thirty-one to sixty are not the time to also change the cover, add a night, and redesign the posters. If something must change for other reasons, write it down on the planner and in the baseline notes.

Days 61–90: decide and plan. Finish the test and make a decision. Compute the cost per new regular for the quarter and the value of a regular from Chapter 32. Fill in the Master Scorecard for the month and review it with the staff. Run your first keep, fix, or kill review on the tactics in play. Draft the next quarter on the Annual Plan on a Page from Chapter 36. By day ninety you have a baseline, a test result, a cost per regular, and a plan, which is more than most rooms ever have. Then take a day off. The first ninety days are the hardest, and the next quarter will go better with a rested owner. If you have a partner or a manager, ask them to keep the checkpoint dates with you, so that one person’s busy week doesn’t quietly push the plan back.

OWNER, NINETY-DAY CHECKPOINTS

• 30. Do: Baseline, door tally, how’d-you-hear cards, Friday check. Check: Baseline and swing written down. Decide: Which funnel link is weakest?
• 60. Do: One test running; debrief; 2–3 conversations. Check: Test counts so far; notes. Decide: Continue, change, or stop the test?
• 90. Do: Finish test; cost per regular; scorecard; keep, fix, kill. Check: Second-visit rate vs swing; margin per night. Decide: Next quarter’s plan and tests.

QUESTIONS PEOPLE ASK

“Can I do two roles’ plans at once?” Yes, if you wear both hats, but run only one test at a time, and keep the checkpoints on the same dates so you review both together.

“What if the test fails?” That’s a result. Write it down, drop or change the idea, and choose the next test for the next ninety days.

“What if the room isn’t on board?” Start with your own chair. A teacher or bartender can run a plan for their own work and share the result. Results are persuasive.

38.2 The Booker’s Ninety Days

Days 1–30: set up. List every act booked in the last year with date, draw, pay, and whether they were asked back. That is your baseline for rebook rate and average draw. Write down the days from first contact to confirmed date for the last ten acts. Create a simple pitch log with columns for who, when, ask, reply, and result. Tidy the one-sheet you send acts about your room: capacity, sound, pay, load-in, and a photo. By day thirty you should know your starting numbers and have a log running. Bookers who don’t have a year of records can start with whatever they have, such as the last three months of the calendar and the settlement sheets, and mark the baseline as rough. The point of the first month is to start the log, not to perfect history. The relationship ledger from Chapter 12 is a useful companion: one line per act, noting deposits and withdrawals, kept alongside the numbers.

Days 31–60: run one test. Test one change to how you reach out or confirm, such as a shorter message with a single clear ask, or a confirmation sheet sent within a day. Alternate two versions across similar acts and compare reply rates, with counts. Meet one act you have never worked with, or one you have lost touch with, and listen to how they describe booking rooms. Check settlement: were all payments on time and without dispute? By day sixty you should have a few weeks of comparison and a better sense of what acts value in a room. A booker’s test can also be about the advance. Sending the one-page deal memo within a day of confirming, for example, and comparing the number of day-of questions and settlement disputes with the months before, is a test that improves the room’s reputation among acts.

Days 61–90: decide and plan. Compare reply rates and days to confirm with the baseline. Check average draw per act against the room’s baseline to guard against rebooking acts that don’t draw. Decide which acts to ask back, which to rest, and which to retire, using the keep, fix, or kill review. Draft the next quarter’s calendar around fixed events. Share the rebook and draw numbers with the owner. By day ninety you have a pitch process that you can measure, and a calendar built on evidence. Ask the owner to look at the booker’s numbers beside the second-visit rate for the same nights. Acts that draw new people who come back are worth more to the room than acts that draw a crowd once. Bring the rebook list to the owner in person, with one sentence on each act, so the decision is made together.

BOOKER, NINETY-DAY CHECKPOINTS

• 30. Do: Year of acts listed; pitch log; one-sheet tidied. Check: Rebook rate, average draw, days to confirm. Decide: Which number to improve first?
• 60. Do: One outreach test; one new act met. Check: Reply rate by version, with counts. Decide: Keep, change, or drop the new message?
• 90. Do: Compare with baseline; guard check; calendar draft. Check: Rebook rate; draw vs baseline; disputes. Decide: Who to ask back, rest, or retire.

38.3 The Musician’s Ninety Days

Days 1–30: set up. Make a list of every room you have played in the past year, with the date, the draw, what you were paid, and whether they asked you back. Build a simple fan list that you own, with a sign-up at every show and a clear promise of what you’ll send. Write your one-line description from Chapter 5 and put it on your page, your one-sheet, and your stage banter. Count your current fan list and the share who engaged in the last ninety days. By day thirty you should know your rooms, your list, and your line. A musician’s list should come with a clear promise, such as “one message a month with our dates,” and a record of when each person signed up. A paper sheet at the merch table works, as long as it’s typed into one place within a day or two and the sheet itself is stored safely or destroyed.

Days 31–60: run one test. Test one change. It could be a new opening to your pitch to rooms, a single sentence on your merch table sign, or a different time to send your list messages. Compare it fairly with the old way, over at least four comparable occasions. Send your first plain, short message to the list and note how many opened, clicked, or replied, remembering that open counts are unreliable. Ask two fans and two room staff what they would tell a friend about you. By day sixty you should have early results and a few quotes. The two fan conversations and two staff conversations are worth as much as the numbers. Fans will say what they tell their friends about you. Staff will say what the band is like to work with. Both shape whether rooms rebook.

Days 61–90: decide and plan. Compute your rebook rate by room, your average draw against each room’s normal, and the active rate of your list. Count what you were paid net of travel and time. Keep the rooms that pay and rebook, fix the pitch to the ones that don’t reply, and let go of those that cost more than they bring. Draft the next quarter’s dates around the best rooms. Share the numbers with a friend who will challenge them. By day ninety you know which rooms and which habits are worth your nights. Write a short note to each room that rebooked you, thanking them by name and mentioning one thing that made the night work. Rooms remember the bands that say thank you. Set a reminder for the three checkpoint dates on your phone, since a touring schedule makes it easy to lose track.

MUSICIAN, NINETY-DAY CHECKPOINTS

• 30. Do: Room list; fan list and sign-ups; one-line description. Check: List size; active share; rooms asking you back. Decide: Which room or habit to test?
• 60. Do: One change tested; first list message; two fan chats. Check: Reply or rebook by version; quotes. Decide: Keep, change, or drop?
• 90. Do: Rebook by room; draw; pay net of costs; list. Check: Pay actually received; list active rate. Decide: Which rooms to chase, keep, or leave.

THE DAY-NINETY REVIEW IN FIVE QUESTIONS

1. What did we set out to change, and what was the number at day one?

2. What is the number now, against its normal swing?

3. What did the test show, with counts?

4. What did people tell us that the numbers didn’t?

5. What will we keep, fix, or drop, and what is the next ninety days’ test?

Write the answers on one page and file it with the plan.

38.4 The Bartender’s Ninety Days

Days 1–30: set up. Start a content log with date, what you posted, reach, sends, and hours spent. Add a how’d-you-hear question at your end of the bar and tally it on a card. Check that every post tells viewers where and when. Check with the owner on what the room is trying to say, using the house-alignment check from Chapter 5. Keep a list of the regulars who have agreed to appear. By day thirty you should know your starting numbers: reach, sends per reach, guests who said they came because of you, and hours spent. The baseline for content is the last month of posts in the log, before the series starts. Without it, a good series and a lucky month look the same. If the log doesn’t exist yet, the first thirty days build it, and the series waits until day thirty-one. Ask two regulars whether they’d be happy to appear before the series begins, and get their agreement in writing for anything used in a paid post.

Days 31–60: run one test. Pick one idea, such as the “meet a regular” clips, and post two a week for four weeks. Compare sends per reach with your earlier posts, and note any guests who mention them. Test two openings on alternate clips. Keep your hours within a ceiling you can sustain, say three a week. Keep writing down what you hear at the rail, in guests’ own words, and pass it to the owner at the debrief. By day sixty you should know whether the idea travels and how much time it takes. Keep track of the hours honestly, including editing and replying to comments. Many bartenders underestimate the hours by half, which makes content look more efficient than it is and leads to burnout later.

Days 61–90: decide and plan. Compute guests per month who came because of the content, the gap between followers and visitors, and your hours. Compare with the baseline. If hours doubled and guests didn’t, cut. If guests grew with steady hours, keep going. Ask the owner whether the clips matched the room, and ask two guests what they would tell a friend. Choose the next quarter’s idea, and rest for a week. By day ninety you know what your content earns per hour, and you can defend it. Then share the result with the owner: guests per content hour, and whether the series fit the room. That conversation often leads to the owner helping with time, equipment, or a shift schedule that makes the work easier. If the idea didn’t travel, pick a different one and run another six weeks before deciding that content isn’t worth your time.

BARTENDER, NINETY-DAY CHECKPOINTS

• 30. Do: Content log; how’d-you-hear question; location on every post. Check: Reach, sends per reach, guests from content, hours. Decide: What is the one idea to test?
• 60. Do: Two clips a week for four weeks; alternate openings. Check: Sends per reach vs baseline; guests who mention clips. Decide: Does the idea travel? Is the time sustainable?
• 90. Do: Guests per month; follower-to-visitor gap; hours. Check: Content value per hour; house alignment. Decide: Keep, fix, or kill the series; plan the next.

38.5 The Dance Teacher’s Ninety Days

Days 1–30: set up. Start a class sheet with names, first lesson date, each lesson attended, and whether they stayed for the floor. Count the share who came to a second lesson and the share who reached the live floor in your last series. Agree the hand-off to the floor with the owner and the host. Write the quick win for the first lesson on a card, the one step every student should leave able to do. By day thirty you should know your second-lesson rate, your floor rate, and who owns each hand-off. A class sheet only needs first names and dates, and it should stay with the teacher or the room according to the agreement from Chapter 13. Don’t collect more than you need, and keep it private, as Chapter 35 explains.

Days 31–60: run one test. Test one change. You might alternate the first-lesson quick win, or run the hand-off on alternate weeks, or add a welcome partner for the first night. Compare second-lesson rates over at least four classes of each. At the midpoint of a series, find the students who are missing or stalled and message them with something warm and useful. Ask three students what nearly stopped them from returning. By day sixty you should see a first signal and have heard a real reason or two. When contacting stalled students, ask permission first, at sign-up, to send one reminder if they miss a class. A warm note, such as “We missed you Tuesday. Next week is the turn we didn’t get to,” brings many people back. A message that sounds like a reprimand drives them away.

Days 61–90: decide and plan. Compute second-lesson rate, floor rate, regulars in the class, and students brought by a friend. Compare each with the baseline and its swing. Keep what lifted a number outside the swing. Invite graduates to the floor by name, and thank the friend-brought students. Share the numbers with the owner, since your second-lesson rate feeds their second-visit rate. Plan the next series with the winning change as standard. By day ninety, your class is a measured part of the funnel. Teachers who work in several rooms can run the same plan in each and compare. The room where the hand-off works best is the one to learn from. Ask the owner to share the room’s second-visit rate for the same weeks, so you can see your class inside the room’s numbers.

DANCE TEACHER, NINETY-DAY CHECKPOINTS

• 30. Do: Class sheet; hand-off agreed; quick win on a card. Check: Second-lesson rate; floor rate. Decide: Which hand-off leaks most?
• 60. Do: One change tested; contact stalled students; three chats. Check: Second-lesson rate by version, with counts. Decide: Keep, change, or drop?
• 90. Do: Floor invitations; thank friends; share with owner. Check: Regulars in class; students brought by a friend. Decide: Next series’ standard and test.

IF YOU FALL BEHIND

At day thirty without a baseline: use what you have and mark it rough. Start the test anyway, but extend it by two weeks.

At day sixty with a half-run test: keep it running until it has four comparable nights on each side, even if that pushes past day ninety.

At day ninety with no decision: write “unproven” and set a date to decide. A late decision is better than none.

If life gets in the way: pause the plan, write the date you paused, and restart with a new day one. Don’t try to catch up on missed weeks.

TRY THIS WEEK

Pick the Monday you’ll start. Write the day-thirty, day-sixty, and day-ninety dates on the calendar. Copy your role’s checkpoint table onto a card, and do the first task in the “Do” column for day thirty before the end of that first week.

THE CHAPTER IN SIX LINES

Start on a Monday with three checkpoint dates on the calendar.

Days 1–30: baseline, scoreboard, and one free habit.

Days 31–60: one fair test with a written prediction.

Days 61–90: decide, compute the money, and plan the next quarter.

Copy the plan for your chair and change the details, not the discipline.

If you fall behind, extend the dates rather than skipping the decision.

CASE STUDY

Ninety Days at a Small Dancehall

Winona owns a small dancehall and follows the owner’s plan. Her baseline cohort of 30 first-timers had 10 return within thirty days, and her past swing runs from 28% to 38%.

Step 1 — Day 30. Baseline rate: 10 ÷ 30 = 33%, inside the swing. She sets the weak link as the second visit.

Step 2 — Day 60. She tests a ninety-second welcome, alternating nights. Welcome nights: 9 returns from 20 first-timers, which is 45%. No-welcome nights: 6 returns from 20, which is 30%. The difference is 15 points, and 9 − 6 = 3 more people from 20 each side. The counts are small, so she labels it a lead.

Step 3 — Day 90. She makes the welcome standard. The next cohort of 36 first-timers has 15 returns: 15 ÷ 36 = about 42%, above the top of the swing. She computes her cost: $0 cash and 10 staff hours. She files the result as “appears to help,” sets a repeat test for the next quarter, and drafts the next plan. All figures are illustrative.

REAL TALK

From the owner’s office:

I told the staff we’d do ninety days and then decide. Everyone could live with that. Nobody said “forever,” and nobody quit on it. At day ninety we sat down and the numbers did most of the talking.

HEADS UP

Ninety-day plans often involve staff time, tests with guests, new email or text lists, promotions, and changes to how staff are paid or scheduled. Asking employees to take on extra duties, tying pay to results, or classing someone as a contractor can raise Texas and federal labor and tax questions. Messaging lists need consent, and alcohol promotions must follow Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission rules (see 16 Texas Administrative Code § 45.103). This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Ask a licensed Texas attorney and a CPA before changing duties, pay, or promotions, and see Chapter 35 and Appendix J.

YOUR NINETY-DAY PLAN

Copy the plan for your chair, then write your own dates, numbers, and decisions. Start on a Monday.

Fill in: Role, Start date, Day 30 / 60 / 90 dates.

Columns to fill in: Day, Do, Number to check, Baseline (swing), Result, Decision. Copy as many rows as you need.

Three checkpoints, one test, one decision each. Write the next quarter’s plan at day ninety.

MEASURE IT

The number: Checkpoint completion: the share of your day-thirty, sixty, and ninety checkpoints that you finished on the date, with a decision written down.

By hand: Write the three dates, then at each date mark done or not done, and whether a decision is written. Example: 3 of 3 done and 3 decisions written is 100%. Also record the main number at each checkpoint against its baseline and swing.

Watch out: Don’t change the plan midway because of one week. Don’t skip the day-ninety review, since that is where the learning happens. Treat small counts as leads.

Go deeper: Chapter 23 (the baseline), Chapter 31 (experiments), Chapter 34 (the review rhythm), and Appendix C (role scorecards).

ROLE BOX

• Owner: Baseline, one test of the welcome or second-visit routine, then the first keep, fix, or kill review.
• Booker: Pitch log, one outreach test, then a rebook decision per act.
• Musician: Room list and fan list, one pitch or message test, then a pay-net review by room.
• Bartender: Content log, one six-week idea, then content value per hour.
• Dance Teacher: Class sheet, one hand-off or quick-win test, then floor and regular numbers.

TALK ABOUT IT

• What is your start date? Who else in the room will start the same day?
• Which of your three checkpoints is most likely to slip, and what will you do about it?
• What result at day ninety would make you glad you started?