I was in a discussion with another arts marketer (typical for me), and one comment that came out of the conversation keeps coming back to me. It was said that they rarely looked to the arts for innovative business practices, and in particular arts marketing examples.
For an industry that is supposed to be the forefront of creation, this seems pretty backwards to me. I have mentioned before the need for us to be our artistic selves when it comes to innovation for our arts businesses, and for audience development in particular. I still find it completely ironic that the inspiration for us is not us! I am all for being aware of what is happening outside of our industry to get a different perspective, yet when I do research on particular best practices, it’s a little bit of a let down when the arts are not fully represented.
One last thought to complete this particular comment – we need to document better so we can learn and teach others. There are some innovators in our industry. However, many of these experiments are not documented to the point that they can be shared with full results. There is no data backing up the new programs so all of us can learn from the example. In order to be inspiring for ourselves and others, it is good to document every step of the way, including the final outcomes. Form complete case studies!
To put a positive spin on these observations, I hope to see more experimenting soon in terms of arts management, marketing and audience development with full documentation. Let’s become an example of creativity for ourselves and others!
I hope you have a Thriving Thursday, and thank you for your consideration.
Cheers to happy and loyal audiences,
Shoshana
Shoshana Fanizza
Chief Audience Builder
i’ve been following your posts for sometime now and toda is the first time i’ve been aware of you as an arts marketer… or maybe i have and in my dyslexic bubble have not remembered this.
in my own small way i try to develop audiences by trying approaches that are slightly risky relative to mainstream norms. in planning to do this comes a feeling of great risk which often leas to compromise within the group.
a recent experience has somewhat knocked me sideways. i have access to funds to allow me to travel and meet with another group. the group we contacted cited business interests as a reason to with hold seeing us. i agree with your documentation comment, however in reality is this pratical for those making the strives and progession in innovation?
Thanks for stopping by, Andrew. I was an arts marketer before I became an audience development advocate. ;O)
I’m glad to hear you are taking some risks, even if some of these risks may not be well received. I think you are running into the “competition mentality.” People are afraid to open up and share because they feel there are only so many good ideas to go around. This limited thinking, limits us and our industry. Keep at it, and I bet the right person/group will want to meet with you and make great things happen.
Yes, I’m the eternal optimist here, but it is a good way to live and create.