A generous lead gift means the Georgia Aquarium need not rely too heavily on fundraising

By Abny Santicola

We rely very heavily on our Web site. At one point, more than 80 percent of people that were coming to the aquarium bought their tickets online before they came. We utilize an advanced reservation system, so people choose the date and the time they want to come in and they get a ticket specifically for that entry time through our Web site before they visit. It allows them to not have to wait in line; if it’s busy or cold or rainy, they know that at 1 o’clock on the 15th they can come right in. It allows us to better manage the number of people in the building at any one time, and it also allows us to manage our expectations for staff for what the capacity for that day is going to be.