AMA JAM issue 50 by PAUL VATER

> Essential marketing skills

ISSUE 50 | may 2013

DIY evaluation and research Vision quest Benefits-led marketing

> Are we keeping our promise?

> Strength in numbers

> Review and revitalise

Contents

> Essential marketing skills DIY evaluation and research........................... 4 Vision quest ........................................................... 6 Case study: Are we keeping our promise? ....................................................... 8 Benefits-led marketing ................................... 10 Case study: Strength in numbers .............. 10 Case study: Review and revitalise ............. 18 Case study: Make some noise ..................... 20

60 Just a minute

JAM is compiled and edited by Helen Bolt and Cath Hume. JAM is published by the Arts Marketing Association 7a Clifton Court, Cambridge CB1 7BN t 01223 578078 e info@a-m-a.co.uk w www.a-m-a.co.uk Tw @amadigital Designed by Sugarfree t 020 7619 7430 w www.sugarfreedesign.co.uk

Make JAM for the AMA JAM is always on the lookout for new writers with good ideas for case studies and features, especially from some of those smaller organisations out there. If you would like to contribute, please email: helen@a-m-a.co.uk

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JAM is sponsored by

www.a-m-a.co.uk

www.target-live.co.uk

Cover image: Metro Boulot Dodo: FIB Photographer: Phil Crow

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> Regulars Spotlight ................................................................. 3 Middle Pages – CultureHive.co.uk .............. 11 Just a minute ....................................................... 17 Top ten tips: great segmentation .............. 22

JAM is published by

DIY evaluation and research

Vision quest

Make some noise

Great segmentation

JAM is published four times per annum. UK subscription rates £39 per annum Overseas subscription rates £59 per annum 6-month trial membership: receive JAM and benefit from member rates for training events, workshops and conference for just £58 + VAT. e isky@a-m-a.co.uk © Arts Marketing Association, 2013. All rights are reserved and reproduction of any parts is not allowed without the written permission of the publishers. Opinions expressed in JAM are not necessarily those of the AMA and no responsibility is accepted for advertising content. Any material submitted for publication may be edited for reasons of style, content or available space. Meanings will not be altered without permission from the author. ISSN 1474-1172

JAM is available in large print or electronic format. e helen@a-m-a.co.uk t 01223 578078 JAM is available at www.a-m-a.co.uk/jam

> EDITORIAL

We’re fifty!

ell, not quite, but this is the fiftieth issue of the ‘best-loved AMA member service’ and I’d like to thank all those who have contributed case studies, features and examples of good practice over the issues. There’s a lot of fantastic work going on out there and this is the theme for AMA conference 2013 which will share success stories from a range of wonderful people who have significantly changed the game for their organisation – maybe by dramatically raising earned income, reaching new target groups, engaging people on a deeper level or transforming the impact their company has for their communities www.a-m-a.co.uk/AMAconference2013 In this milestone issue of JAM; Marge Ainsley takes over page 4 to look at

how organisations can get stuck into some DIY evaluation and research. Mel Larsen practices some blue-sky thinking and looks at getting to grips with your organisation’s vision on page 6 while Heather Maitland has a change of scene and appears on page 8 looking at how a small organisation evaluates the promises it makes on its mission statement. There is some collaboration happening on page 10 where Penny Mills, Karen Cardy and Jo Johnson write about benefits-led marketing with the London Orchestral Marketing Consortium and it is here that you will find the middle-page pull-out section all about CultureHive (pages 11 to 14). I love Beckie Smith’s ‘Just a minute’ on page 17 and found that we have something in common as one of my first memories of the arts is also

going to the Bristol Hippodrome to see Joseph…although I was blissfully unaware of the possible open roof and danger of birds flying in … Sally Worman from Norden Farm Arts reviews their marketing practice (page 18) and on page 20 Emma Parsons describes the Get it Loud in Libraries project and its impacts. Closing this issue is our very own Chair of the Board Jo Taylor sharing her top ten segmentation tips on page 22 while AMA head of programme Cath Hume kicks us off with Spotlight below. Helen Bolt Marketing Manager, AMA and JAM editor e helen@a-m-a.co.uk tw @amadigital

> SPOTLIGHT

Spotlight on Cath Hume

love learning. While not ideal when you’re 16 years old – my friends’ school reports said they needed to spend less time looking at boys, mine said ‘Cath is a very sensible girl’. It’s working in my favour now. Throughout my career I’ve gravitated towards jobs and organisations that are either about learning or value it highly. During my time as Box Office Manager at the Orange Tree Theatre, I volunteered as the Assistant Director on a number of Theatre in Education (TiE) productions. This led to an MA in Drama and Theatre Education during which, as part of my research, I set up a theatre company that created sensory performances for young

people. As my MA came to an end and I was looking for new opportunities I stumbled upon Smart Audiences, an audience development agency based in the south east. I learnt an enormous amount during my time at Smart Audiences and I have continued to use and update the skills and knowledge I gained during this time in all of my subsequent jobs. Before joining the AMA I was working as a freelancer evaluating national projects such as Museums at Night, lecturing at the University of Surrey and writing audience development plans for a range of cultural organisations. I am delighted that I am now working for an organisation that is all about learning and professional development. The

AMA has exciting times ahead and I am looking forward to working with everyone that engages with what we do – sharing knowledge and developing great development opportunities for the individuals that make up the cultural sector.

Cath Hume Head of Programme, Arts Marketing Association (AMA) e cath@a-m-a.co.uk w www.a-m-a.co.uk JAM 50 > 3

DIY evaluation

and research

Marge Ainsley offers some helpful advice, resources and pointers for those who a) haven’t got budget to buy in research or evaluation support, b) haven’t any in-house experts or c) haven’t a clue where to start! I’m writing this shortly after the Visitor Studies Group1 annual conference where delegates met to share knowledge and ideas on research and evaluation. Many of the seminar sessions focused on idea sharing and toolkits to help with conducting inhouse research and evaluation. A sign of the times perhaps – evidencing, job responsibility changes and a lack of budget for buying in support are probably all contributing factors. Love it or loathe it the need for research and evaluation is more vital than ever. And rightly so I say. It should continually be a holistic, integrated part of what we do. As a freelance practitioner I often find myself talking to colleagues who have already got part through or are at the end of a project and then realise they need to ‘do some evaluation’. It’s frustrating for all involved. Of course, there are organisations out there which have the time and expertise for carrying out research and evaluation in-house. They continuously integrate the resulting learning points into their forward strategy and have the cyclical process pretty well wrapped up. However in my own experience this isn’t the case for everyone. Before I put myself out of a job, I must say that there are numerous benefits for buying in external support. An independent view is often so useful, for example, reducing bias within responses or gaining richer data through use of specialist techniques. But 4 > JAM 50

realistically not all cultural organisations have the budget to appoint external help. I disagree with those who say it should be left to a professional researcher – as long as you’re careful with how you use your data and what you claim. Lack of budget shouldn’t be an excuse for getting some idea of whether you’ve met your project aims. And if that means doing it yourself then just get stuck in. But where do you start? Helpful ten point guide 1) Get on the right track from the start – do your background reading and check available research and evaluation resources for inspiring examples, stepby-step guidance and pitfall tips. Look at guides like these; Evaluation, goodpractice guidance2 and The Guide to Researching Audiences from JISC3 on approaches to evaluation and audience research – useful starting points if nothing else for structure and content of your final report. There are also plenty of transferable toolkits within the cultural sector such as Evaluation toolkit for museum practitioners from Renaissance, East of England www.sharemuseumseast. org.uk/shares/resource_34.pdf whether you’re working in museums, galleries or performing arts. 2) Set up a ‘research champion’ group with representatives from across your organisation. Share your ideas with them, get them to help in data collection or brainstorm how they can best disseminate your findings to their

own departments afterwards. 3) Don’t reinvent the wheel. If it’s a new research project you want to undertake find out if any research has already been published in that area before you start. Check CultureHive – http://culturehive.co.uk/, the new online resource of latest thinking and innovation in cultural marketing and audience development best practice, scan toolkits like Arts Council England’s Audience Insight Family and Community Focused toolkit4, raid sites like Delicious5 or Quora6 using relevant tags (particularly useful intelligence outside the sector) or consult best practice examples on the Guardian Culture Professionals blog.7 4) Set your objectives – what are you trying to find out? If you’re evaluating a project, draw up a framework outlining your intended outputs, outcomes and measures of success. Ask a) what do you really want to find out, b) what is going to be the most appropriate method to get that information and c) when and from whom are you going to get it? Read the above guides and consider does a quantitative or qualitative approach – or a mix – meet your needs? If you’re looking at evaluating participatory projects in particular check Nina Simon’s The Participatory Museum8, or I often adapt methodologies from; www. artemis-services.com/downloads/toolsfor-participatory-evaluation.pdf9.

> FEATURE

FOOTNOTES 1. Visitor Studies Group http://visitors.org.uk 2. Evaluation, goodpractice guidance http://www.hlf.org. uk/HowToApply/ goodpractice/Documents/ Evaluation_Goodpractice_guidance.pdf 3. The Guide to Researching Audiences – Dr Rachel Quirk, Martin Olver, Dr Max Hammond and Dr Claire Davies www.jisc.ac.uk/ media/documents/ themes/eresources/ sca_audiences_guide_v103.pdf

5) With any research and evaluation you need to make sure you’re working ethically – check the Market Research Society’s Code of Conduct10 for guidance. 6) Keep things simple. Make use of technology when collecting your data to keep things efficient. Most of us have used Surveymonkey either as a researcher or completer – and whatever your opinion it can be a quick and easy tool for basic quantitative data capture (bear in mind that paid users get improved design and analysis tools). It’s also mobile optimised. Or try using SMS poll11 (and their free plan) for immediate snapshot quantitative feedback (you could use this in public spaces e.g. during intervals on a screen in the foyer showing ‘live’ audience feedback). If you’ve got a tablet take a look at software such as Quicktap survey12 which allows you to collect data in-situ offline and manipulate it online afterwards (avoiding any time needed for inputting paper surveys). Use tweetdoc13 to record specially hash-tagged tweets in one place. Or if it’s qualitative feedback you’re after give your sample of participants five key questions and film their responses in makeshift video booths/record audio vox pops on your phone – you don’t always need expensive technical equipment.

4. Family and Community focused toolkit www.artscouncil.org. uk/media/uploads/pdf/ Family_Community_ toolkit.pdf 5. Delicious: https:// previous.delicious.com/ 6. Quora: https://www. quora.com/ 7. Guardian Cultural Professionals Network: www.guardian.co.uk/ culture-professionalsnetwork/cultureprofessionals-blog/2013/ feb/07/museumevaluation-sharingaudience-data

8. The Participatory Museum: www. participatorymuseum.org/ chapter1/

12. www.quicktapsurvey. com/

9. Useful tools for engaging young people in participatory evaluation www.artemis-services. com/downloads/tools-forparticipatory-evaluation. pdf

14. Emilia Spitz and Linda Uruchurtu of digital arts marketing consultancy Lume Labs share their thoughts and tips on planning, commissioning and producing your own data charts and infographics: http:// blog.a-m-a.co.uk/2013/01/ infographics-artsmarketing.html

10. Market Research Society – Code of Conduct: www.mrs.org. uk/standards/code_of_ conduct/

13. www.tweetdoc.org/

11. SMSpoll: www.smspoll. net/

7) Analysing your resulting evidence can be daunting if you’re faced with a stack of qualitative feedback or stats you’re not sure what to do with. Have a rifle through the V&A’s excellent evaluation reading list for helpful analysis guides (the list is relevant for non-museum professionals). 8) Keep people interested. Think about how you can approach the research or evaluation creatively. How can you communicate the results to staff? If anyone is a whizz with design you could consider producing infographics14, or if there’s a budding film maker create a video based on your key findings like this example from the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad WE PLAY project evaluation: http:// weplayevaluation.org

And finally ... as promoted by the Visitor Studies Group on their promotional postcards, remember;

Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted. Albert Einstein

9) Are there any aspects of the process that you can turn into a training opportunity for staff – and provide you with additional help at the same time? For example, could you train volunteers in survey fieldwork best practice, or could front of house staff be trained to conduct visitor observation? 10) Gain permission to share any useful findings with the wider sector through CultureHive www.culturehive. co.uk or other channels in your own area. Make sure you put systems in place to embed any learning points into your future strategy.

Marge Ainsley AMRS Freelance Marketing and Research North West AMA Member Rep e marge@margeainsley.co.uk tw @margelicious w margeainsley.co.uk JAM 50 > 5

Vision quest Discover answers through blue sky thinking with Mel Larsen

I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free Michelangelo

Illustration by Sugarfree Design

One of my greatest pleasures is helping individuals, groups and organisations to describe (and attain) the future they really want. I have supported this process of shaping a Vision countless times. A bit like being a midwife of dreams, it’s gratifying to watch a new-born idea mature and manifest years later. A personal or company vision gives you a sense of how things could be. It’s your ideal future, it says what you, or even the world, could become (as opposed to your mission statement which reminds you of your more immediate purpose in terms of who, what, why and where). Einstein famously called the imagination a ‘preview of life’s coming attractions’ which hints at the confidence required to design a great vision. A new Vision can be shared as an image, written as a statement or spoken out loud spontaneously to an audience of thousands. It may also be a private thought. I am a fan of all these methods. It doesn’t really matter how it is brought to life as long as it opens up a new future and is true to the heart and gut of those who own it. 6 > JAM 50

Got something to say? Vision is often to be found hanging out with Innovation, Audacity and Courage. Think of the Google guys or Dr Martin Luther King at the mountain top. Here are some vision statements with fantastically bold attitude:

Reality leaves a lot to the imagination John Lennon I’ve seen so many dull vision statements over the years, it appears that even talented executives, strangely enough, view the vision statement as a necessary evil, or worse, have ceased to be led by inspiration themselves. I used to feel that the idea of having a vision was a bit ‘airy fairy’ and often felt embarrassed talking about Vision statements. I’ve come to realise that a good Vision is a powerful foundation. Far from a fluffy add-on to a funding application, it’s an essential leadership resource. How can you lead anyone to the Promised Land if you can’t see it in your mind’s eye, hear it pounding in your heart and feel it punching your gut? Find your fizz Don’t get me wrong, I am a devotee of aims, objectives, strategies and tactics. I enjoy and revere every part of the planning and implementation process but the Vision stage is the boss glass in the champagne fountain of your organisation. Without it there is no flow or fizz.

Ken Blanchard Companies – to be the number one advocate in the world for human worth in organisations. Oxfam – a just world without poverty. Wikipedia – to provide a free encyclopaedia for every single person on the planet in their own language. Apparently Nike’s vision used to be, Crush Adidas. At least it had passion! Break past the barriers I’ve worked with organisations that were hesitant to state what they really wanted to see happen as a result of their work, but without a bit of heart and soul you are in danger of creating another cookie-cutter statement. There are many common barriers when working on a new Vision. These include: • Vagueness – a Vision by its nature is warm and fuzzy, but we sometimes want to escape committing to something bigger by having no vision at all. • Indecision – we say we can’t decide on which future we want. • Hopelessness – we believe that we can’t have what we really want.

> FEATURE

• Comfort – we don’t want to rock the boat or get out of our comfort zone. • Embarrassment – as I’ve already mentioned, we feel that talking of visions and the like is just plain silly. • Auto-pilot – we slap down some words on a plan and then forget about them. These barriers are largely based on habit or fear. The fear is there for good reason: believing in a shiny new future can leave you open to scorn and ridicule. Creating one requires that you step out of your comfort zone away from your habitual environment and thought-patterns, even if just for a moment. Share the silly stuff Once you have your Vision, then comes the challenging work of keeping it alive not just in yourself but in your team and other partners. A powerful Vision can also be a vulnerable thing: a few months past its earliest inception that bright horizon you got excited about can now seem further away than ever. You need to make time to re-connect with your Vision by (depending on your company culture), discussing it at meetings, digging out the collage you all made together on the away day, playing ‘that’ piece of music, or hearing from a customer how you’ve touched their life. Why would you bother to do all this ‘silly stuff’? Because it works. As the Japanese proverb states; ‘Vision without action is a daydream. Action

without vision is a nightmare’. In my experience, when people and organisations create a real, shared Vision, they say and do amazing things. They work harder and love it, they are more creative and they care more. Your Vision is your secret fuel – it gives you energy and determination when things get tough and if your Vision is big enough, things probably will get tough. A true Vision will be both your constant cheerleader and daily tormentor – enjoy the journey! Top tips on creating a real Vision • Brainstorm your dreams, don’t block anything, • trust yourself, don’t be tempted to be realistic or safe at this stage, • forget the past – forget about all your old mistakes and disappointments for a moment, • say something new about the world or your environment,

• think BIG! Be a bit outrageous or in a year’s time you will be bored, • create it or build on it with your team so they own it, • articulate it in a way that shows passion and daring – think of the bold taglines used in film posters. Do a collage, create a team dance! • make sure it thrills and/or scares you.

Mel Larsen e mellarsen@me.com w mellarsen.com tw @artsambassadors

JAM 50 > 7

Are we keeping our promise? Heather Maitland looks at how a small organisation evaluates the promises it makes in its mission statement

wning a bold vision as Mel Larsen states in the previous article, is vital to inform a mission statement that everyone in your organistion can buy into. Just how audience focused is your organisation’s mission statement? Is it just a list of what you do? Or does it tell people why you do it and what’s in it for them? It’s easy to prove that you are keeping your promises if all you are promising is to put on a certain number of shows, exhibitions or classes. But the things that are measurable often don’t matter much. So, how do you evaluate an audience-focused mission statement? Last year, the team at Lincoln Drill Hall, a 400 seat mixedprogramme arts centre, made a dramatic shift towards becoming audience focused. The new mission statement created by staff and trustees goes like this: We believe Lincoln Drill Hall is the place to go to see events and have experiences that you just can’t find elsewhere – we offer special moments by the bucketful. Our job is to ensure that you have a good time when you’re with us and to encourage you to come back and try something else. We believe that the arts can make people’s lives better and we want to do just that! That’s some promise! So, are they delivering? To find the answer, the team has had to challenge their approach to evaluation just as they are challenging the way they engage with existing and potential audiences. And, with just six full-time members of staff, they were looking for solutions on a shoestring. To them, audience focus means developing a dialogue with audiences so, no more questionnaires. Instead, they focus on real testimony from real people. Facebook fans and Twitter followers are likely to be Drill Hall enthusiasts so they use comments in third-party social media such as TripAdvisor alongside feedback gathered by the Village People, their network of advocates based in villages surrounding Lincoln, to see whether the moments they offer really are special. They have drastically reduced the number of season brochures they mail, restricting them to their most frequent attenders. Their objective is to increase the season brochure’s return on investment so their measure of 8 > JAM 50

effectiveness is how much these customers spend on tickets divided by the total cost of designing, printing and mailing each brochure. The monthly e-newsletter is designed to fill the gap so the team measure its success by the number of subscribers, open and click-through rates, unsubscribe rates and, as far as possible, ticket sales. Its efficiency is measured by the delivery rate and bounce rate. Lincoln Drill Hall uses social media, however, as tools for dialogue. Activity is evaluated using the usual numbers as a broad indication of impact – Facebook likes, Twitter followers, mentions and reach – but just as important are some simple measures of depth of engagement: comments and replies, shares and re-Tweets. Again, simple numbers, particularly the number of unique visitors, give a broad indication of their website’s impact but evaluation mainly focuses on engagement, for example the number of visitors that watch the embedded videos. Their ticketing system enables the team to keep a close eye on whether they are successful in persuading people to come back and try something else. They have compiled a customer relationship ladder and each year monitor how people move between its rungs. This has meant a reevaluation of what loyalty means. A sizeable chunk of the audience has been coming for a decade but buy tickets less often than once a year. These customers talk in terms of loyalty, but this doesn’t translate into frequent attendance. There appear to be different sets of values at work. The team are therefore planning a series of customer circles, each with a different kind of ‘loyal’ audience, to explore where audience and organisation values intersect. This will feed into future individual giving strategies. Last year, customer retention rates increased. But this year difficulties at a neighbouring theatre have led to a huge influx of first-time ticket buyers who look nothing like their existing audiences. The team have lots of questions about where they come from, what they see and whether they come back which can be answered by some straightforward crunching of box office data. But why do they come? And what do they make of an experience that is very different to the conventional plush of their previous theatregoing? It’s time for two more customer circles. Customer circles will give them inspirational insight into what makes a small number of people tick. But they want feedback from as many people as possible so they can

> CASE STUDY

Lincoln Drill Hall audience © Phil Crow

check whether the views of participants in the customer circles are typical – difficult when questionnaires have been banned. Their shoestring solution is brilliant in its simplicity: to use Survey Monkey to invite ticket buyers and emailing list members to help create a word cloud about the Drill Hall by suggesting any five words they feel describe the experiences it offers. They will use the value and impact framework developed by Alan Brown and his colleagues at WolfBrown to help interpret the results. Along with the customer circles, this will tell them how far they deliver on their promise to make people’s lives better. And this is a promise that is particularly important to their key stakeholder, City of Lincoln Council. The Drill Hall team already produce an annual report on social return on investment, evaluating how they contribute to the Council’s social objectives. They measure attendance and footfall, the percentage of households who have bought tickets in the city and the surrounding area, particularly focusing on two deprived wards, the number of local people performing or sharing their creativity in other ways and engagement by young people and by disabled people. This evaluation is straightforward

because the five key aims for fulfilling Lincoln Drill Hall’s social responsibilities are so clearly written. In the current economic climate, though, they want to look more closely at the Drill Hall’s impact on life in Lincoln and its surroundings. In the coming months, they will use Arts Council England’s toolkit to measure their economic impact and work with Design by Distraction to adapt website technology first developed for the public sector to allow local people to share their experiences of life in Lincoln in a fun, quirky way. Respect goes to the team at the Drill Hall for daring to make big promises to the people of Lincoln. And even more respect for having the courage to find out for real if they are delivering on those promises. And all on a shoestring too …

Heather Maitland Consultant and Associate Fellow at the Centre for Cultural Policy Studies, University of Warwick e heather@heathermaitland.co.uk w www.heathermaitland.co.uk JAM 50 > 9

Benefits-led marketing ... with London’s Orchestral Marketing Consortium

ackling such questions as ‘How big is the potential audience for symphony orchestras in London?’, ‘Why don’t audiences come back more often and cross over between venues and orchestras?’, ‘What is the best approach to engage new audiences?’ and the million-dollar question ‘How can we help audiences to see more orchestral music in London?’ brought a group of London orchestras and venues together to form the London Orchestral Marketing Consortium in 2008. By interrogating shared box office data through Snapshot London Performing Arts initiative, and combining their experience and know-how, this group have not only learnt how to work together effectively but have been testing out new collaborative approaches for growing audiences. The first of these was the Music to Remember campaign targeted at infrequent orchestral attenders, and the most recent; their Student Pulse app. Consortium partners recognised that audiences attending on a one-off basis or infrequently made up over 60% of their total attenders on average. Given that these were clearly in the market for orchestral music (having

attended at least once), gaining a better understanding of their needs should reap rewards. Following initial investigations using box office data and adding into the mix findings from the individual organisations’ own ongoing research, a benefits-led pilot marketing campaign was developed to meet those needs. What was clear was that a collaborative approach to such a campaign made sense. The target audiences were neither venue nor orchestra ‘loyal’, and in attracting these attenders the orchestras and venues were not in competition – as they were infrequent. These two factors gave the group the confidence to proceed, and more importantly the evidence to engage (and get sign-off from) CEOs to work together on a public-facing campaign, Music to Remember. Two key areas of need were addressed, which one comes first you can decide. As cultural attenders but not necessarily classical music specialists, lack of knowledge about the music, the artists, or the differences between the orchestras, meant that deciding what to choose could lead to paralysis i.e. not going at all. These are people who

Strength in Numbers: HOW THE LONDON ORCHESTRAL MARKETING CONSORTIUM collaborate for ongoing and shared success

he London Orchestral Marketing Consortium’s most recent collaboration, Student Pulse, grew out of a digital marketing initiative of the London Symphony Orchestra, LSO Pulse. In 2011 the LSO was awarded funding from Arts Council England, the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and Nesta’s Digital R&D Fund for the Arts to develop a new piece of technology for its existing student ticketing scheme. An app was created that combined easy paperless ticketing on the mobile

10 > JAM 50

channel with a loyalty scheme, social sharing functions and geo-location services. During the development process the LSO’s Digital Marketing Manager, Jo Johnson, worked with the University of Salford on a research project that looked into the attendance patterns and motivations of a student audience, one that every arts organisation is keen to nurture as part of their future audiences. During focus groups it was discovered that, like many of the ‘infrequent’ attenders targeted in the Music to Remember campaign, they were not

loyal to one orchestra or venue, and took advantage of several of the London orchestras’ separate student discount schemes. Students told the researchers that what would improve the LSO Pulse would be to have more concerts listed in the app. So we began to think: if we were to collaborate on one joint orchestraand venue-wide student scheme and run it through this one central piece of technology, would we be able to reach more students? Would it actually make attending orchestral concerts easier? Rather than having to keep

> SPECIAL EDITION: INTRODUCING

What is it? CultureHive is a free, online knowledge hub of the latest thinking and innovation in cultural marketing and audience development good practice. Devised by practitioners for practitioners, it provides a wealth of inspiring ideas and instant access to the latest thinking, research, toolkits and case studies.

Who is it for? Whether you’re a CEO, or whether attracting audiences is just part of your job, whether you’ve been in the industry for two months or 20 years, CultureHive is for you. In fact, it’s for anyone in the cultural sector who is working to develop new and existing audiences.

How can you use it? With a comprehensive search function and content sourced from across the UK and beyond, you can find information, gain knowledge and inspiration to reach and engage more audiences, more often, more effectively.

How will it help you? CultureHive will help you: • keep up to date with the latest thinking and trends, • find answers to particular marketing and audience development challenges, • identify tried-and-tested solutions that have worked for other organisations, • learn new techniques for reaching and developing your audiences, • save money and time in accessing a wide range of resources available all in one place, anywhere, anytime.

www.culturehive.co.uk

Northern Ballet and Cleopatra Northern Ballet is renowned for creating inventive narrative ballets and reaching audiences who might not otherwise have access to world-class dance. As the result of a company rebrand and the creation of a new full-length ballet, Cleopatra, Northern Ballet was keen to extend their relationship with an audience beyond an annual theatre visit. Key objectives were to create and grow subscribers to their e-newsletter and develop their national communications through social media platforms. Northern Ballet launched Cleopatra with an integrated campaign to appeal to people’s lifestyles, focusing on three strands: partnerships, online activity and PR. This included working with a new photographer, the creation of an online trailer and ‘making-of’ documentary. Outcomes and learning points Cleopatra was Northern Ballet’s most successful new production and their second most highly attended ballet in London, they exceeded their box office targets by £35,000. Monthly visits to their website almost doubled to 20,700 and they saw an increase of 5,200 e-newsletter subscribers, 1,402 Twitter followers and 1,466 Facebook followers. The Cleopatra trailer received just short of 26,000 views and celebrities tweeting about the London press night reached in excess of 200,000 followers – overnight ticket sales exceeded the cost of the celebrity launch event. Northern Ballet’s investment in photography and film was key to the success of the campaign and by identifying partners that reflected their own brand values they reached a wider, new audience with enhanced third-party endorsement.

Royal Shakespeare Company Re-opened in November 2010, the Royal Shakespeare and Swan Theatres in Stratford-upon-Avon are open all year round to the public. The RSC wanted to use Google Street View photography inside their buildings to create an easyto-use online tour that could introduce audiences to the spaces, give them the opportunity to navigate around the main spaces and enhance their existing Google listing. The RSC was directly approached by a Google-accredited photographer to be the first UK theatre to include Google Street View photography of the inside of their buildings and

auditoriums on their existing Google listings. Users can navigate around the building, in the same way you can navigate a Google Map using the Street View function. The process involved a pre-visit, and then a three-hour session in the building taking the images. The photographer put together the final Street View tour and uploaded it to the existing listings. They have since embedded the Google Street View tours on the RSC website for an easy-to-use online tour. This was a reasonably simple digital project and didn’t break budgets to produce, costing less than £1,000. Outcomes and learning points • Commission a photographer who can work quickly and effectively in your spaces without intruding too much on customers and staff within the building. • Make sure that you are photographing the building at its best – no deliveries, work on stages, having a good set to photograph etc. • Communicate with front of house and technical staff what you are doing and they can be a great help, from propping doors open to explaining to customers when shots are being taken etc. • Commit to ensuring your Google listing is always up to date and relevant to customers. • Make the most of your Google Street View photography by embedding it in relevant parts of your website. Google Street View RSC listing: http://bit.ly/VJwRdK Rooftop Restaurant listing: http://bit.ly/YG7X9K Embedded on RSC website: http://www.rsc.org.uk/visit-us/rst/rst-virtual-tour.aspx

Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums – The Late Shows The Late Shows celebrates the Museums at Night weekends across Newcastle and Gateshead. This is the biggest event in the region’s cultural calendar and their plan was to target a younger Fun, Fashion and Friends (16 – 34 year’s old) demographic to visit a cultural venue they have never been to before, raise the profile of all venues taking part and increase visitors’ sense of pride in the cultural offer of the two cities. All venues were provided with toolkits explaining how

> CULTUREHIVE : CASE STUDIES

they could promote The Late Shows through their existing communication channels. They also worked with taxi firms, NE1 street rangers, city guides, bus drivers and other public services to promote the event to visitors to the cities. A free bus service was provided on both nights to encourage visitors to visit as wide a range of places as possible. Free glow sticks were given out to create a party atmosphere, enable on-street promotion and help visitors identify each other. Outcomes and learning points 30,000 visits were recorded across The Late Shows venues in 2012. 97% of visitors rated the 2012 event as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’ and 83% said the event made them feel more positive about their area. ‘It was fantastic! I didn’t realise there are so many artists that have fantastic skills and creativity in Newcastle’, ‘It was an amazing event … my son said “it was the best night of my life”. Thank you.’ All venues were sent headline survey results and specific feedback was shared with suppliers and partners, e.g. which transport visitors used, so that routes and timetables can be developed for future years.

- m ail 3,297 a Popular Classics leaflet six weeks after the first brochure had landed. Outcomes and learning points The results (excluding subscribers): On average across the new communication approaches taken the total cost was £4,290 and generated £94,043 of income. This was a response rate of 22% giving a return on investment ratio of 20.9:1 (for every £1 spent, £20.90 was generated in return). Ulster Orchestra took a bold, data-driven approach to their marketing communications which improved their marketing effectiveness and overall income position substantially. Their marketing costs were more than halved, response rates more than doubled and income generated was trebled.

Ulster Orchestra Based in Belfast, Ulster Orchestra are the region’s only professional symphony orchestra. Working with Katy Raines (Partner, Indigo Ltd) Ulster Orchestra set about testing whether the same levels of income could be generated for less cost by making more effective use of their communications. Previously the orchestra had been mailing their full season brochure to approximately 300 subscribers and 11,000 previous bookers. Segmentation analysis showed that of the 11,000 previous bookers, it was likely that only 1,000 of these were high frequency and would merit receiving the costly full season brochure. Ulster Orchestra therefore decided to: • mail 300 subscribers the full season brochure (as previously undertaken), • mail the full season brochure to just their 1,000 most frequent bookers, • segment the remaining 10,000 and: - mail 6,197 a ‘mini’ brochure for infrequent bookers covering six months’ worth of events,

See the full breakdown of these case studies at www.culturehive.co.uk

> CULTUREHIVE

CultureHive

will be the first place to support your professional development. Resources will link to Personal Development Plans from your completed Training Needs Analysis (www.a-m-a. co.uk/tna). This means a tailored set of downloadable resources, case studies, toolkits and other relevant resources to help you develop your skills at any stage of your career.

How will it work in the future? CultureHive will continue to grow and develop as a community of knowledge with good practice in marketing and audience development at its heart. The AMA will continue to strive to curate, share and disseminate examples through the hub with your help. CultureHive’s message is simple: a community of knowledge where you can discover and share best practice in cultural marketing.

What the sector thinks: he ability to share information relating to my industry T and area of work will be invaluable – especially content from an organisation as accredited as the AMA. Laura Evans, Theatre Royal, Plymouth As a Communications Assistant, it will be a valuable tool in terms of personal development. Rosie Mackie, Belgrade Theatre

Created and managed by

Given our limited capacity to pay for conferences / training, a free online knowledge bank would be extremely beneficial – particularly to those from small organisations. Michael Duffy, Spitalfields Music It will provide time and resource savings, grow professional knowledge and generate economic benefit in the sector through more effective marketing practice. Sally Goldsmith, Theatre Royal Stratford East It’s very useful to have an authoritative, reliable source of information. Ian Morton Jones, New Art Gallery, Walsall

In partnership with

Funded by Arts Council England’s Audience Focus strategic fund and in partnership with The Audience Agency, this is part of a project to provide a national service to collate, share, train, and implement best practice in arts marketing and audience development.

This is what UK arts marketing has been waiting for. Our sector has long been full of valuable experience and ideas. This brilliant resource brings it all together in one place. Anyone who cares about art and audiences should bookmark it immediately. Mel Larsen, Mel Larsen and Associates

www.culturehive.co.uk

> FEATURE > CASE STUDY

would not be signed-up to individual orchestras’ email lists or Facebook page, nor would they seek out printed brochures and read them cover to cover to make their choices. Lack of knowledge was further compounded by a lack of confidence in attending orchestral concerts. A lack of familiarity with concert halls, or the format of (and expected behaviour at) orchestral concerts – when to clap, can you take drinks in, what happens between pieces? Most of their attendance was most likely to be by recommendation from friends or other independent trusted sources. Music to Remember sought to mitigate these factors. A partnership with Time Out provided a trusted source, and endorsement to help potential audiences navigate the options and make their decisions. An edited list of concerts from the forthcoming season across the venues was offered, to cut down the choices. These concerts were presented as a sub-site of the Time Out website within the classical music section, introduced by the Music Editor. Information was also added about what to expect at a concert. Finally, the concerts were classified as ‘chill

out’, ‘be adventurous’, ‘go on a journey’, ‘feel romantic’, ‘be blown away’ or ‘be uplifted’, designed to match moods, connect on an emotional level and give an insight into the experience offered by different kinds of performances. Copy for each concert was free of jargon, and full details of the venue, orchestra and artists were available for those who wanted them. The site was also populated with images, videos and interviews relating to the concerts. Once chosen, browsers could link through to the online booking for each concert (as this was in the days before Time Out’s ticketing service). As a discrete, time-limited campaign focusing on driving previous infrequent attenders to concerts to the Time Out website via direct postal- and e-mailings, the campaign gave a return of 57p for every £1 spent. In direct mail terms the response rate was higher than the average, with 4% of those contacted visiting the website and 3% of households contacted buying at least one ticket. A quarter of unique visitors to the site also made a return visit. The Music to Remember campaign was developed by Rachel Escott, Director of Client Services at AA, and the

> CASE STUDY

track of several different schemes, prices, incentives and dates, having one listing with one set of loyalty points might actually remove some of the layers of difficulty which put off people attending our concerts. There was also a financial consideration. Collaborating on one student scheme could also mean potential savings for the consortium partners – particularly in the area of student recruitment and marketing. In previous years, every September most of us separately booked stalls at several universities’ Freshers’ Fairs around London and produced banners, flyers and merchandise to market our separate student schemes. The result was always a long line of

orchestras’ stands, with students approaching each and asking ‘What’s the difference between the LSO, the OAE and the LPO?’ Having one scheme would mean we could pool our budgets, buy one stand at each fair, be able to afford many more fairs and therefore reach many more students. We would also only need to produce one set of banners, flyers and merchandise. The London Orchestras Consortium partners were approached by the LSO in late spring 2012. Together with KODIME Ltd, the company who developed the original LSO Pulse app, the consortium worked hard on adapting it to work for several different partners. As well as renaming

the scheme to become Student Pulse, they adapted both the front end and back end technology in order to work for multiple organisations. What was most important was that each partner could retain their own set of data for their own ticket buyers, and ensure that they could still market our concerts in a way that meant each would retain some individual brand and style outside of the main Student Pulse umbrella brand. Although they were collaborating, no-one wanted to lose the notion of who was playing which concert! The database was constructed with ‘Chinese walls’ – initially on sign-up the student would go into one pool of data, to which Student Pulse JAM 50 > 15

> FEATURE

‘It is difficult to find the correct information about classical music on other websites but this website makes it possible to consider a number of options and make a choice without having to spend hours looking for alternatives.’ ‘a little bit more pzazz. not so bland’ Comments from users (through an e-survey) Written by Penny Mills, Consultancy Director (London) The Audience Agency and Jo Johnson and Karen Cardy at the London Symphony Orchestra.

Student Pulse app was devised by Kodime. The London Orchestral Marketing Consortium includes four venues: Barbican Centre, Cadogan Hall, Royal Albert Hall and Southbank Centre, eight orchestras; BBC Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, London Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of the Enlightenment, Philharmonia Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra plus the BBC Proms. The initiative for sharing and comparing audience information, Snapshot London Performing Arts, is currently being developed into a nation-wide audience development programme devised and delivered by The Audience Agency – The Audience Focus programme is funded by Arts Council England. For more information on the programme and how to be involved visit www.theaudienceagency.org

Penny Mills Consultancy Director (London) The Audience Agency e penny.mills@theaudienceagency.org Karen Cardy Marketing Director/LSO St Luke’s Centre Director London Symphony Orchestra e Karen.Cardy@lso.co.uk w www.lso.co.uk Jo Johnson Digital Marketing Manager London Symphony Orchestra e jo.johnson@lso.co.uk w www.lso.co.uk

> CASE STUDY

communicates under the Student Pulse brand (monthly newsletters, Twitter and Facebook). Once the student buys a ticket to a concert, they then enter another data set belonging to that orchestra or venue, which is then allowed to communicate with the student themselves. As they continue to buy tickets to other partners’ concerts, they get added to each partners’ data set. No partner can see who is in whose data set, and the partners cannot see each other’s sales reports. Six months in, Student Pulse is ticking along nicely. As a result of pooling resources for Freshers’ Fairs we were able to attend four times more Fairs than in previous years, spend fewer hours staffing the stands, 16 > JAM 50

and were able to afford advertising in student magazines. The app has achieved high engagement levels with students, with most students buying more than one ticket each (an average of 1.8 tickets bought each). The app has been downloaded nearly 3,000 times, with 2,000 of those having gone on to register in the app and nearly 2,000 tickets sold. The Consortium’s next step is to elect a steering group in order to take forward the app and the scheme – ‘design by committee’ is one of the major challenges of the London Orchestral Marketing Consortium collaborations, and getting the whole group of nine partners together often proves nearly impossible! Things to consider include new developments

in technology (Near Field Communications for payments, for example) and devices (new phones, better screens, faster 4G networks), as well as looking at how we can better market the scheme as a whole and individually. And do we want to expand out the offer from the nine existing partners to other orchestras and venues, and indeed, art forms? Watch this space!

0 6

> Get to know other AMA members

(

Just a minute What is your first memory of the arts? Because the arts are so varied, there are many ‘firsts’ that one can have. But the first time I went to a proper theatre, my grandparents took me to Bristol Hippodrome to see Joseph. Before the show started, my Granddad told me to look up because (although closed at the time) the roof was apparently able to open. To this day I’m not sure if the roof does actually open, but despite the magic that was happening on stage, all I could think about was ‘What happens if a bird flies in?’

How did you get into arts marketing? I can blame two people for this! Paul Sutton from C&T Theatre introduced me to the world of arts administration, as he was my university lecturer for a module called Running a Theatre Company. I’m not sure that it ever occurred to me that there were admin roles in a theatre before that. The reason that I’m in arts marketing is because of Carol Jones from Chapter Arts Centre. She was the lecturer on the Arts Management Post Grad Course at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. She explained how the Marketing Manager’s role is so vital to an organisation’s success, and I just wanted to have a piece of it. After all, what’s the point of a theatre without an audience? (Sorry Carol and Paul if you’re reading this)

What attracted you to the arts sector? I wanted to give people the chance to escape. When I was about two, I remember sitting on the floor in the lounge while my mum played the piano. When she started to play, she was very upset. She played for what seemed like hours. As she played, I slowly saw her pain disappear. When she stopped playing she was happier. Obviously at the age of two, that meant nothing to me, but looking back, I guess it was the starting point for my view that the arts are a door to happiness, and working in marketing means you are encouraging people to access that happiness.

When and why did you join the AMA? I joined the AMA in 2007 with a student membership. I was doing my Post Grad at RWCMD and I was hungry to get started on my career. I wanted to make the most of all the opportunities that were available to me. I wanted to be as connected as I could be, and have as much knowledge about the sector as possible, so that I stood the best chance of getting my first

job. When I told the others on my course that I had signed up, I felt really proud, like I had done the right thing. What is your proudest moment? Get ready for a massive cheese moment – marrying my husband. As I stood at the back of the church with my bridesmaids in front of me and my mum ready to walk me down the aisle, I was aware that I was smiling. But I was smiling a different kind of smile, one that I had never smiled before. My smile almost swallowed my whole head! I think it was because of all the women in the world, my husband had chosen me, and I was so proud. It’s all very well to have successful moments in your career, but you need to have a happy work life balance as well.

And what is your greatest indulgence? I have two. Being at home on a Sunday afternoon with the rain pouring down outside, listening to old-school jazz music with a glass of wine in our hands while we cook an amazing meal for dinner that night. Or, eating Nutella straight from the jar. I can’t decide which I like the best.

Beckie Smith Marketing and Press Manager, The Roses e beckie.smith@rosestheatre.org w www.rosestheatre.org JAM 50 > 17

Review and revitalise Sally Worman embarks on a project of reviewing marketing practice at Norden Farm Centre for the Arts

s it really worth spending time reviewing our practice when we are so busy doing what we do? Is pausing activity to review our practice terrifying, unnecessary navel-gazing or an essential process? What is the impetus behind our decisions to take stock and how do we know where to start? I’ve been Marketing Manager at Norden Farm for nearly four years and, in that time, little has changed with the way we market events. With a marketing team of just two people, an average of 70 live events every season, plus films and classes, the time and money dedicated to each event can sometimes seem limited. When I first started, we confidently testified that the majority of sales came off the back of the seasonal brochure run. The brochure is mailed to 8,000+ addresses on our box office system and then distributed (by myself and Robyn, our Marketing Assistant, on a two-day road trip) to over 200 libraries, tourist information centres, community centres, town halls etc. It is no longer the case that the brochure brings in the bulk of our audiences so I had to wonder, is that

because budget cuts have forced me to reduce the number of people we mail to or is it a change in audience spending habits? Speaking to other venues, it seems likely that it is the latter. So, we can no longer rely on the brochure to generate the majority of sales. At the beginning of every season, I put together a marketing plan which is more or less the same for every event – scheduling press coverage, writing a direct mail, planning a targeted eflyer and researching the best places and events to send flyers to. If this hasn’t changed in the last four years, but audience spending habits have, it is obvious that something needs to be addressed. When I’ve spoken to my colleagues at other venues, we’ve all agreed the same thing – we would love to review our marketing practice but are too busy practicing the practice to spend the time reviewing it! In September 2011, I attended the TMA’s Essentials of Arts Marketing course at Druidstone. This was a chance to immerse myself in the world of arts marketing with like-minded colleagues from venues across the

country and it was reassuring to know that we all shared the same budget and time restrictions. I came away from the course with a notepad full of actions and a head full of inspiring lectures and classes. But eighteen months on, I’ve not been able to rejuvenate our marketing plans as I had hoped. This has been due to a lack of time, and in some parts, a lack of confidence. Should I take time out of the day-to-day tasks to put together a new plan and what are the risks that come with that? What if the new plan doesn’t work? In April 2012, Norden Farm lost its core funding of £140,000 per annum from Arts Council England. One of the actions Jane Corry, our Artistic Director and Chief Executive, took

So we can no longer rely on the brochure to generate the majority of sales. At the beginning of every season, I put together a marketing plan which is more or less the same for every event – scheduling press coverage, writing a direct mail, planning a targeted eflyer and researching the best places and events to send flyers. 18 > JAM 50

> CASE STUDY

outlooks on the use of effectiveness and efficiency. Do we concentrate on effectiveness by dropping the actions that aren’t effective, therefore streamlining what the marketing department does and making it more efficient? Or do we make the marketing department more efficient, which gives us time to ensure all our actions are effective? With Heather, we’ve decided that we need to prioritise the activities which bring the greatest return for the time, effort and money we put in. We’re still very much in the middle of this process. To look at effectiveness, Heather has given our data a health check and it passed with flying colours. The box office staff do a great job collecting data and ensuring it is accurate. The next steps are to analyse our audience – which geographical areas should we be concentrating our efforts in? How has this changed? Where do new audiences come from and where do our core audience live? Then we’ll be looking at the relationship we have with these

audiences. How often do they come? How good are we at retaining audiences? The above data crunching is important but I’m most looking forward to exploring our marketing efficiency. Heather will be helping us look at our website, email campaigns and return on investment of our season brochure and direct mails. The thought of having our marketing practice so scrutinised is a little scary but, ultimately, it’s exciting and should make our organisation more efficient and marketing cost effective for the future.

Sally Worman Marketing Manager, Norden Farm Centre for the Arts e sally.worman@nordenfarm.org JAM 50 > 19

Portrait of Sally Worman by Gav Percy photography www.gavpercy.co.uk

was to increase the number of events, therefore increasing the opportunity to generate income. An obvious result of the funding loss was a cut in the marketing budget. So we are now faced with the daily challenge of marketing more events on a smaller budget. Last year, we applied for an operational development grant from Grants for the Arts and marketing was a key area in the proposal. When we received confirmation of the grant, the first thing I did was get in touch with arts consultant Heather Maitland. I admitted to Heather that our marketing practice hadn’t changed in three and a half years. This was a chance to harness all the theory I had picked up on various courses, and for a professional consultant to help us put it into practice. We decided that the areas we need to look at are effectiveness and efficiency. Are our current marketing strategies effective? Is our marketing plan efficient and does it make best use of resources? When I discussed the proposal with Robyn, we both had different

Make some noise Emma Parsons describes the Get It Loud in Libraries project and its impact on the relationship of young people with libraries

• b uild and develop an infrastructure of volunteering and work experience that allows the project to be developed by young people and for young people across a growing network of libraries.

The aims and objectives of the project were: • To offer young people in the 14–25 age range a pioneering, perceptionaltering library experience through a live programme of gigs and events, • to use the best new rock and pop music to generate new youth audiences while also making it easier for young people to access libraries for books, multi-media, audio-visual and learning services, • to actively support the NEET (young people Not in Education, Employment or Training) agenda in a contemporary way, engaging hard-to-reach groups in deprived communities with youth-led volunteering, educational and social opportunities,

The target audience included 14–25 year-old young people who love music but don’t use libraries, young creative people (often in the NEET agenda) seeking opportunities to develop their skills, students seeking multi-media and music opportunities to support academic achievements and portfolios and young people living outside of the main cities with limited access to the best new emerging music. The process of implementing the activity included: • Identifying six libraries in ‘cold spots’ locations in Lancashire and Yorkshire to develop programme and networks, • delivering and developing a programme of approximately sixteen shows per year across the network with associated learning workshops, • booking artists and creative practitioners for individual gigs and workshops, • developing and delivering a communications and marketing plan with young people, • proactively engaging with other organisations to increase the

et It Loud in Libraries (GILIL) is a nationally recognized, awardwinning project created for culturally aware and hard-to-reach young people which ran in Lancashire Libraries and across the wider UK for six years. The aim of the project was to innovatively engage and develop the low library-using 14–25 years-old age group (and other library non-users) with public libraries through a programme of the best new emerging live music supported by associated creative workshops and training opportunities.

impact, outcomes and profile of the programme and engage wider audiences, • creating youth forums in areas of programme activity to inform future direction and provide development opportunities, • developing a structured learning programme in an accredited framework to maximise training and skills development for young people, • supporting library staff and young people to lead and deliver the programme. The project resulted in the following outcomes, impact and benefits for the audiences and organisations involved: • 1,000s of new young library users becoming engaged across the UK, • there was increased access to great new emerging music, • production of a new youth brand, new youth input in the library and in the city, • young people were given somewhere cool to go to see new bands along with social confidence and status, • enhanced reputation in community allowing increased citizenship for young people and opportunity for pride in community; the reputation of GILIL has precipitated a successful Big Lottery Bid for LCC,

A fast-emerging network of libraries and partners has supported the direction of Get It Loud in Libraries and the key engagement of young people has been central to the project’s success 20 > JAM 50

> CASE STUDY

• e xcellent opportunities for relevant volunteering for young people, • the ability to support corporate aims and objectives through a relevant format, • allowed library staff to develop key skills engaging young people, • excellent marketing and advocacy opportunities for the broader library landscape, • winners of awards – Love Libraries Award 2007 and Local Government Chronicle Award for Innovation 2007/2008, • Project Manager seconded to MLA for six months to develop national pilot for library tours in 2009, • Project Manager asked to join Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s International Network for Emerging Library Innovators group for twoyear development work in 2011. Top tips for other organisations thinking of embarking upon a similar

project: • Stay innovative • Know your product – keep on top of music trends and new artists • Develop a trusting two-way relationship with music business, managers and artists • Be ambitious • Create a holistic approach – ALL library staff committed and engaged • Ensure enough budget is set aside for marketing the project • Leave enough time to evaluate • Let partners help deliver • Ensure development reflects original aims and objectives • Write clear but persuasive monitoring and evaluation reports • Engage young people at all times The approach has allowed an exciting forward-looking project to be developed on sound principles and solid foundations. A fast-

emerging network of libraries and partners has supported the direction of Get It Loud in Libraries and the key engagement of young people has been central to the project’s success. Get It Loud in Libraries has never lost sight of its original aims and objectives and has remained resolute to delivering its defining rationale.

Emma Parsons Arts marketing and management consultant e ejp123@hotmail.com tw @emmajaneparsons w www.getitloudinlibraries.com youtube/getitloudatlancaster JAM 50 > 21

> TOP TEN TIPS

Great segmentation Jo Taylor shares her top ten tips

n an ideal world we would treat everyone as an individual and tailor and promote our offer accordingly. But this is impractical. Treating everyone as a homogenous mass however is ineffective – one size does not fit all. Segmentation provides us with a happy medium. Segmentation is a fantastic way of reaching different people with different messages and can vastly improve how you cater for people. It means you can be strategic about audience growth and development of audience relationships. Get it right and segmentation should provide true market insight that will lead to tangible results in audience development, organisational development and income. 1. Segmentation needs to be practical Segments need to be sufficient in size to make targeting them worthwhile of your effort and they need to be in a position to engage with your offer. Having too many segments will also make managing your strategies tedious. Too few and it won’t give you the granularity you need. Between five and eight segments tends to work best. In order to devise coherent strategies and develop long-term relationships, the segments should also be mutually exclusive – each individual can only sit in one segment. 22 > JAM 50

2. Segments must be discernably different When segmenting your audience (or potential audience) the first thing is to make sure the segments have discernably different needs. If one segment has no distinguishing differences from another or they all respond in a similar way you’ll end up with homogenised strategies, which defeats the point of segmentation. 3. Don’t confuse behavioural clusters with segments Box office holds detailed information on behavioural patterns (performances selected, seat choices, frequency, party size, planning horizons, geography and so on). However this only describes what your segments are currently doing. It can’t tell you why they do these things. People may frequently move cluster but they shouldn’t frequently move segment. To be really effective, segments should be defined by what each seeks to get out of the experience. 4. Use attitudinal segmentation Not all C2DE families share the same needs and motivations, the same applies to ‘young people’ or BAMEs. Using demographics as a basis for a segmentation system makes for simple evaluation but can’t give you everything you need to inform planning. Attitudinal segmentation provides you with deep insight into your audiences. Understanding what drives them, how they want to be made to feel and what motivates their involvement, enables you to identify and effectively target groups of individuals with shared values. This puts you in a position to influence their behaviour and deliver deeply satisfying experiences.

5. Segmentation should lend itself to differentiated strategies and campaigns The same production or exhibition can appeal to a number of different segments for different reasons. One may seek a life of novelty and try something because it is new, fun or unusual. Another may seek to understand the inspiration behind the work, driven by authenticity and a wider artistic context. These two segments will recognise different benefits from the same work. They will respond to different messages via different platforms and be influenced by different factors. Differentiated campaigns with messages optimized to resonate with a particular segment are more effective than a generic message aimed at everyone but speaking strongly to no one. 6. It should lend itself to development of products and services As well as increasing your ability to reach segments, understanding what they want to get out of it puts you in a position to offer the best experience and to shape the audience journey. Front of house ambience, customer service, catering, learning opportunities and merchandise can all be developed to cater for priority segment needs. 7. Remember to consider everyone in your priority segments With limited resources the easy, obvious but potentially disastrous solution is to contact just those who are most active and most

recent. For a time this might work but rinse and repeat this narrow selection process for any length of time and the result will be chronic audience-underdevelopment. Good segmentation goes beyond defining people by their ‘lapsed-ness’ and to understanding why they might engage. You don’t need to target absolutely everybody but you can identify where the greatest potential lies. 8. Great segmentation doesn’t live in the marketing department A segmentation system delivered by marketing to other departments will often fail to become embedded within the organisation. Segmentation needs to involve everyone and belong to everyone. In order to be immediately and intuitively recognisable and credible across departments the segmentation process has to be iterative with everyone involved in identifying them and fleshing them out. This way it will provide a common language for talking about audiences – bridging the understanding of

marketers, programmers, front of house, learning, fundraising, hospitality – putting audiences at the centre of the conversation. 9. Build it into your ongoing research Segmentation, the gift that keeps on giving … whatever research you are conducting or data you are analyzing, building your segments into this means you immediately have a more subtle and granular understanding of the outcomes. Rather than 20% of our audiences think X or do Y, you now know which segments are displaying which behaviours or opinions, giving you further insight into why this may be the case, and how you can respond to the findings. 10. You need to be able to monitor and evaluate your success This should perhaps be my first, not last point. As with all evaluation, it needs to be considered from the get-go. Make sure you’ve got mechanisms in place

to monitor what works best, where the greatest return on investment lies, who is responding, which messages resonate with which audience segments via which platforms. This means you can adjust your strategies and change your messaging as you go. Segment evaluation also helps you prioritise and plan developments based on how well you are currently meeting the needs of your segments – a virtuous circle of improvement.

Jo Taylor Consultant, Morris Hargreaves McIntyre AMA chair e jo.taylor@lateralthinkers.com w www.lateralthinkers.com JAM 50 > 23

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