PIVOT: Reversing audience decline through customer-centric innovation: Recent Episodes
Ruth Hartt
The arts sector has an audience problem. Classical music audiences have declined by nearly 50% since 1997. And that was before COVID-19. If the great acceleration theory proves true, we stand to lose another 40+% of our audiences in short order. Something’s got to change, and fast. It's time for arts marketing and programming that centers the customer.
The arts sector has relied on product-centric marketing for decades. This might have worked before the internet, but our world has changed profoundly in our lifetime. In today’s digital, global, customer-controlled world, the product-centric approach has become, at best, ineffective, and, at worst, a total turnoff.
If you want the kind of change that will actually move the needle, stop driving away potential patrons with egocentric marketing that ignores them, and start centering the customer.
It’s a pivot that has allowed countless industries—for-profit and non-profit—to unlock impressive growth.
One of the biggest hurdles arts leaders face right now is driving organizational change. And one of the most crucial elements required for successfully driving change is a shared sense of urgency around the need for change.
In this episode I share stats from 40 years of NEA surveys that may help you in your crusade to start shifting the way you do things at your arts organization.
To download the slide deck on audience trends from 1982-2022, go to https://www.cultureforhire.com/1982For more information on the upcoming course, go to http://www.cultureforhire.com/course
The New Bedford Symphony Orchestra, led by Dave Prentiss and Terry Wolkowicz, has been on a remarkable journey powered by a profoundly customer-centric approach.
The orchestra's deep commitment to forging connections through innovative educational programming and meaningful outreach has helped them double their budget over the last 8 years—while also increasing their concert offerings by 60%.
Most notably, this approach also led to a 23% increase in attendance for their first post-pandemic season.
If you need practical strategies for increasing engagement, forging connections, fostering a sense of belonging, and expanding the reach of your arts organization, you won't want to miss this conversation.
An award-winning choreographer, professional dancer, producer, teaching artist and speaker, Dominic Moore-Dunson believes that the future of the arts sector depends on arts organizations becoming community organizations.
He says arts organizations that survive will be the ones that utilize their art to speak to the challenges and celebrations of their neighbors.
Join me for an inspiring conversation about the benefits of music on public health—and using your art as a vehicle for building relationships with your community.
I’ll be chatting with Juilliard-trained pianist and board-certified music therapist Renate Rohlfing, who is passionate about creating projects that use musical and creative resources to solve challenges, process grief, enhance connections and empower communities affected by violence.
We’ll focus in on her current project, Tell Your Story: A Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra Project. You'll definitely walk away inspired by Renate's work.
Join me for an inspiring conversation about rebuilding audiences and growing relevance with Holly Mulcahy, arts innovator and violinist extraordinaire.
Holly is creating impact in the world through her art by centering the customer and the community—so you can bet she was at the top of my list for podcast guests in 2023.
Concertmaster, soloist, and founder of Arts Capacity—a nonprofit that brings the healing power of music to prison inmates—Holly is tirelessly building bridges into the world of classical music, and I know you'll be inspired by her thinking.
You've heard me say this over and over: To reclaim its relevance and rebuild its audiences, the arts sector must pivot to an approach that centers the customer.
If you've been wondering, "But what does this actually look like in real life?" this episode is for you.
It's a hot-off-the-press brand pivot, culminating in a complete website overhaul, that will show you how to start the shift from traditional egocentric arts marketing to the more effective customer-centric approach.
In this episode you'll hear fromEmily Isaacson, founder of Portland's Classical Uprising, about how her org is rethinking what classical music concerts should be in 2022, with a tenacious focus on community and approachability. We'll be exploring these ideas through the lens of Priya Parker's The Art of Gathering.
Classical Uprising's mission statement says it best:
ENLIVENING, STRENGTHENING, AND CONNECTING COMMUNITIES BY CREATING IMMERSIVE CLASSICAL MUSIC EXPERIENCES FOR EVERYONE We believe that classical music enriches lives, inspires souls, and strengthens communities. At the same time, we recognize that traditional concerts may have limited appeal to 21st-century audiences. For some, a traditional concert may feel like an ordeal: put life on hold (kids not welcome), sit quietly in a cathedral-like symphony hall (no chatting, refreshment, or dancing), and observe mysterious rules of etiquette (don’t you dare clap between movements!).
Classical Uprising offers a bold rethinking of the classical music experience through immersive events, performances, and educational programs. Formed in 2020 as a merger between Oratorio Chorale and Portland Bach Experience, Classical Uprising is a 501(c)3 nonprofit committed to community development, creative expression, inclusivity, lifelong learning, and artistic excellence.
We chose the name “Classical Uprising” because we believe that classical music must rise up, challenge current norms, and re-envision where, how, and for whom we are making music. Now, with the fight against systemic racism at the forefront, classical music must fully embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our goal is a holistic approach to classical music that enlivens, strengthens, and connects communities.
In this episode you'll hear from Bourby Webster, founder of the Perth Symphony Orchestra, on how the PSO has redefined their purpose and reinvented the audience experience. The result? The PSO has rapidly become one of the largest arts organizations in Western Australia, regularly performing to capacity audiences. Bourby is one of the most innovative arts leaders I've encountered; you'll definitely walk away inspired.
This is the first in a series of conversations looking at the classical music sector through the lens of Priya Parker's manifesto, The Art of Gathering.
