• Audience Development Specialists
  • Home
  • About
    • FAQ
    • Our People
    • Clients
    • Press
    • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Contact

Audience Development and Steve Jobs

Posted On October 6, 2011 By Shoshana

The news about Steve Jobs passing is all over the internet and on the international news.  He was an innovator of our times.  He was creative and a go getter.  The combination changed our world. One of the articles I found was: The 13 Most Memorable Quotes From Steve Jobs I was intrigued by his… 

Read More→

Bigger arts organizations and audience development

Posted On October 3, 2011 By Shoshana

I have seen two more news stories about symphony orchestras going bankrupt.  What in the world is happening?  We could say this is a case of audiences no longer relating to these bigger organizations and how they function and present their art.  Times are changing and the ways that audiences want to participate and become… 

Read More→

Audience Development Specialists – an open letter

Posted On September 20, 2011 By Shoshana

Lately I have been reading Seth Godin’s blog which is mainly about being honest with yourself so you can run your business more openly and directly (and you will reap the benefits).  At least, this is the message that keeps coming to me each time I read one of his posts. He also is a… 

Read More→

Audience Development and building younger audiences – 9/16 Noon ET #auddev chat

Posted On September 16, 2011 By Shoshana

I invited Connie Rhind Robey an arts marketing consultant in Washington, DC and Amy Higgins who is on the board with San Francisco Opera’s Bravo Club (a group of young professionals) to co-host today’s #auddev chat.  We discussed building younger audiences.  The agenda was set for discussing: Definition of younger audiences – how do you define… 

Read More→

Audience development: to label or not to label that is the question…

Posted On August 26, 2011 By Shoshana

A few days ago this article started some people discussing the use of labels and whether or not categorizing is the way to go if you want to reach a more diverse audience: Novelist Sapphire complains of ‘very real’ racism in the arts http://bit.ly/n8AX9L In this case, the placement of your product, your novel in… 

Read More→

Audience development and arts relevancy

Posted On August 17, 2011 By Shoshana

Every once in a while, I seem to need to ramble about a topic that has popped up in my head with aspirations to be explored more.  Today, I have been thinking about relevancy.  When we think about the products we buy, they need to be relevant to our lives or we will not purchase… 

Read More→

Audience Development, Groupons and other promo platforms: #auddev chat transcript for 7/28 Noon ET

Posted On July 28, 2011 By Shoshana

Today we had another installment of #auddev chat on twitter.  We had the pleasure of having Kara Whittington, who is part of the Marketing team at the San Francisco Symphony, as our guest co-host.  Kara manages the discounts, promotions, advertising and sales, and has a great deal of experience with a variety of different online… 

Read More→

Audience Development for Arts Advocacy or the popcorn & candy top 10 reasons to support the arts

Posted On July 26, 2011 By Shoshana

Last week I found a blog that was resurrected for another round on Twitter: The Top 10 Reasons to Support the Arts (from Arts Watch) This blog post is a good summary of many of the practical reasons why the arts are good for us: 10. True prosperity 9. Stronger communities 8. Health and well-being… 

Read More→

Audience Development and rewarding your valuable patrons

Posted On July 19, 2011 By Shoshana

In terms of good audience development, building relationships with your patrons is key.  However, time and time again I see many artists and arts organizations forget to spend time on and with their most valuable patrons. We seem to be doing business backwards.  We reward our newcomers with discounts and extra attention and the only… 

Read More→

Audience development needed – Van Cliburn proves the arts deserve it!

Posted On July 13, 2011 By Shoshana

I saw another listing of an orchestra filing for Chapter 11 today.  Right now I am hoping and praying that more people will start seeing the value of audience development and do what they can to give it a fair try.  It is sad to see artists and arts organizations in trouble, especially when they… 

Read More→

ADS Founder — Shoshana Fanizza

Search the blog:

Archives

Testimonials

Arizona Women’s Theatre Company (AZWTC)

“I loved the sessions and as I was taking them for my newly elected position, I felt I needed some close mentoring and strict goal setting..She absolutely did listen to our needs and tailored her sessions to fit our little situation. I have bragged about the sessions to other admins in our areas. Some of the instructions were familiar as I had followed her ideas for some time. Most are obtainable over time and will be implemented this coming year as we finish our season. My time with Shoshana at ADS, I would rate it First Class!” —Joy Bingham Strimple, Board President

Tip Jar

Find this valuable?

  • Donation amount
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Blogs We Love:

Purchase Our Books!

The How of Audience Development for the Arts — ebook

Categories:

Advocacy ARTicles Arts Audience Development Fundraising fund raising Idea Database Management Marketing News Podcast Social Media Technology Volunteer Management

Latest Blogs

It’s about the people!
Random Audience Development Thoughts, vol. 6
What can Simone Biles teach arts nonprofits about mental health?
How to heal the arts
Audience Development Specialists
Copyright © 2025 All Rights Reserved
Member of Americans for the Arts