ARTS MARKETING & PR

Specialist Public Relations (SPR)

Contents
Definitions and categorising the arts Factors affecting the arts Arts and the creative industries Concepts of culture high vs popular Relationships, loyalty and audiences Role of public relations in the arts strategies and tactics

Examples

The Lowry wide variety of arts http://www.thelowry.com/ Film and museums http://www.londonfilmmuseum.com/ Music http://www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk/festivals/jaz z-and-blues-festival

What makes the arts different?

Who are the target publics? What do people want or need from the arts? Is this different from a product or service? If so, how? What are the key elements you need to focus on when promoting an art form?

Definition

Arts marketing is an integrated management process which sees mutually satisfying exchange relationships with customers as the route to achieving organisational and artistic objectives
(Hill et al 2003: 1)

Arts growth - Glastonbury

1970 - started 19th September - the day after Jimi Hendrix died. Ran over a 2 days. Acts included Marc Bolan. Attendance: 1,500. Price: 1 including free milk from the farm.

2010

7 main stages, hundreds of acts including Scissor Sisters, Muse, Dizzee Rascal, Stevie Wonder. Attendance 135,000. 37,500 passes (for crew, performers, stewards, traders)

Arts growth Festivals

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

http://www.edfringe.com/

Largest arts festival in the world August - 3 weeks in Scotlands capital city. Started 1947 with 8 theatre groups now 2,400 shows Theatre, comedy, dance, physical theatre, musicals, operas, music, exhibitions and events. Thousands of performers, multitude of stages all over Edinburgh, from big names to unknown artists Millions of visitors Also hosts International Film Festival, Jazz Festival, and Book Festival http://www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk/festivals/jazz-and-bluesfestival

Museums/galleries - 1billion

Museums and galleries generate 1bn for UK economy (BBC 2010) Overseas visitors to the UK's major museums and galleries boosted the nation's economy by 1bn in 2009 Of about 30 million visits made to the UK last year, over a third included a trip to a leading cultural institution French tourists paid the most visits to museums, while holidaymakers from the US favoured art galleries.
BIGGEST VISITORS TO THE UK'S GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS United States - 1.52m visits France - 1.42m visits Germany - 1.13m visits The Spain - 0.92m visits National Italy - 0.69m visits Gallery

Source: VisitBritain

The arts...

The arts play a powerful role in society Overall growth within the arts, leisure and entertainment sectors is a worldwide trend and there is an increasing need for public relations and marketing communications experts to understand the dynamics of this increasingly fragmented and competitive environment.
Beresford and Fawkes (2006: 598)

Categorising the arts (McCarthy 2001)

Performing
Theatre Dance (ballet, modern, folk etc) Music (symphony, jazz, popular etc) Opera

Visual

Painting Sculpture Crafts (ceramics, weaving etc)

Literary

Media

Installation art Film (narrative, documentary, avante garde etc) Digital

Fiction Poetry Novels, plays, poems

Diversity of arts & cultural areas

Performing arts, visual arts, craft, fashion Media, film, TV, video Museums, artefacts, archives, design Libraries, literature, writing, publishing, Heritage, architecture, archaeology Sports events, facilities, sports developments Parks, recreation, wildlife habitats, countryside recreation Tourism, festivals and attractions Informal leisure pursuits
(www.culture.gov.uk)

Entertainment

Covers film, broadcast TV, print and publishing, television (satellite, cable, digital, terrestrial), books and magazines, music, video and games e.g. TV massive changes to the industry, 24-hour news and culture, expansion of viewer choice via hundreds of channels, access to global media via internet, downloading e.g. Film art house, commercial cinema, film production, film distribution. Key aim of public relations and marketing is to generate interest in the film to ensure audiences attend the movie in the first week of its release also growing recognition word of mouth is a powerful endorsement tool to maintain audience figures

Factors affecting the arts...

Socio-cultural factors
leisure trends - growth of tourism and the service sector, success of commercial leisure industries age, gender and ethnicity ageing population and longer active lives for retired people; more working women family time precious; multicultural society all provide challenges and opportunities for arts organisations

Technology
1990s key development - introduction of computerised ticketing systems and customer databases track audiences and target with direct mail integrated systems that are customer centred new technology e.g. websites powerful tool - shop window and delivery platform, online booking, auditorium views to aid choice social media (email, text, Facebook, Twitter etc) new ways to target audiences and start a two-way dialogue, generate word of mouth, create a buzz

Factors affecting the arts...

Political environment
For arts, exists at 3 levels local, national and international. Local authorities help support subsidised arts, key stakeholders in local arts part of local civic identity. Nationally arts worth promoting for social value aids social inclusion, brings economic benefits, encourages active participation wellbeing.

Economy
Strong commercial sector in London, large subsidized sector regionally. Arts closely allied to larger industries broadcast media, publishing and recording, sport and leisure, tourism Recession & cuts e.g. Oct 2010 Arts Council England (ACE) which distributes money to hundreds of arts venues, theatre groups and galleries - will have its budget cut by 30% from a government grant of 449m to 349m by 2014. UK Film Council also being axed despite success of investment in The Kings Speech.

Arts & creative industries

Arts also part of the the creative industries 13 creative industries (CI) sectors: advertising, architecture, art and antiques markets, computer and video games, crafts, design, designer fashion, film and video, music, performing arts, publishing, software, television and radio (DCMS 2008). Those industries which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property.
(Department for Culture, Media and Sport - DCMS)

Creative industries in the UK

UK has the largest creative sector in the EU The size of the creative industries is comparable to the financial services sector. They now make up 7.3% of the economy, and are growing at 5% per year (almost twice the rate of the rest of the economy)... the creative economy employs 1.8 million people. Rt Hon Tessa Jowell, MP (DCMS
2007:6).

creative economy sees high growth & consumer spending. British, Americans and Japanese spend more on entertainment than on clothing or healthcare. creative economy grew four times faster than manufacturing in OECD countries during 1990s (Howkins 2001).

Creative industries in the North West

North West a key region for arts & creative industries Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008. Arts Council England (2008) invested 72m in NW BBC relocation of 1,500 jobs to Salford Quays, 2011
North West is estimated to contain the second largest sector of digital and creative industries in Europe with more than 321,000 people working within these areas
(Englandnorthwest, 2010).

Marketing the arts

Arts organisations produce cultural goods and compete with each other for consumers attention (Kotler 1975) Arts marketing & public relations should start with the product and find customers for it, than react to market demand Role - match artists creations and interpretations with an appropriate audience (Mokwa et al 1980) Aim bring people into contact with the artist (Diggle 1984) BUT - limits marketing and public relations to little more than selling tactical process for finding audiences for existing work. More realistic public relations needs to balance organisation and customers needs, address a wide range of stakeholders, and create and maintain long-term relationships. Needs strategic planning approach.

PR's role in the arts

Task of communications professional working in arts, entertainments, leisure and popular culture is to understand: the creative product the aspirations of the creative producers customers desires and expectations from the arts experience.

Arts public relations and marketing should put the artist and the cultural product at the forefront of planning, unlike conventional marketing which focuses on the consumer

Concepts of culture

Culture is about a shared experience which uses symbols to express different values Culture is the social production and reproduction of sense, meaning and consciousness (OSullivan et al. 1994) Many interpretations of culture, dependent on the viewpoint of different theorists e.g. culture reflecting power divisions within societies, the use of semiotics, postmodernism.

Distinction between High Art vs Popular Art

Developed in Europe and US in 19th century High art internal vision of the artist. Artistic product has a unique and personal meaning. Artist not thinking of the consumer purchase. Art is for contemplation and enlightenment e.g. Opera, sculpture Popular culture focus placed on consumer and meaning is determined by how they consume the cultural product. Desires and needs of consumers are paramount. If consumers change what they want, the producer will give them a new popular cultural product. Art is for entertainment and use e.g. music hall or X-Factor This changed with the rise of popular culture and the mass market, led by mass media mass produced art e.g. reproduced music and works of art, filmed theatrical performances

Cultural consumers

Today breakdown in distinction between high and popular culture easy availability of all types of culture. Freedom to enjoy variety of cultural experiences, create own meaning. Wider access free museums, subsidised tickets for young people, access a cultural buffet from across the world via internet Emergence of the cultural consumer - result of the current generation not being socialised to view high art as inherently more valuable than popular culture travel, communications, technology etc expose people to wider cultural traditions and influences Cultural consumers want to engage with all types of art high and popular, and want both western and foreign cultural experiences

Marketing in the Arts

Range of arts marketing lit suggests over-emphasis on promotional tactics (Hill et al., 2003) to sell the show

Differences in PR and marketing approaches for arts: transactional marketing short timescale focus single ticket purchase, product features, little emphasis on audience service, limited audience commitment & contact, quality is concern of production. relationship marketing - long timescale focus about audience retention, product benefits, high audience service emphasis, high audience commitment & contact, quality is concern of all (Christopher, Payne & Ballantyne 1991)

Long-term relationships & loyalty

Marketing approach will influence the type of public relations practised purely promotional tactics or building relationships? Relationship marketing is needed to build audience loyalty to increase frequency of attendance (Rentschler et al. 2002). Public relations aim build long-term relationships and audience loyalty Loyalty - a feeling of attachment to or affection for a companys people, products, or services and outcome of a relationship built on shared values, trust and commitment.

Role of PR identify range of audiences and publics first

One key difference for arts PR - target publics

Input publics who supply the resources e.g. playwrights, composers, artists Internal publics who convert the resources into useful services or offers (performances) e.g. performers, staff, board of directors, volunteers Intermediate publics who communicate these services e.g. PR agencies, advertising agencies, critics Consuming publics who consume the activities e.g. audiences, media
(Kotler and Scheff 1997)

Simple stakeholder map

Management and staff Arts Industry Board of directors Artistic directors, composers and choreographers Corporate sponsors Performers

Businesses

Media

Arts organisation

Volunteers

Trade unions Competition Govt agencies and interest groups Friends General audience

Funders individual donors; private, public and corporate funding

Beresford and Fawkes (2006: 607)

Role of PR in the arts & creative industries

to understand, translate and capture audiences for the creative professionals working in these areas create long-term relationships to increase attendance focus on promoting the arts experience employ full range of public relations tools understand niche promotional channels - conventional media & specialist journalists/media e.g. Aesthetica increasing cross-over between leisure, arts and entertainment PR e.g. artists are celebrities, celebrities endorse a range of products from perfume to insurance to add glamour, sports stars support artistic ventures etc. challenge for PR practitioner - keep up to date with new and fashionable trends in artistically focused industries

PR strategies for arts organisations

Media relations steady output of information and stories drip-drip-drip approach to maximise media attention before and after production and public performance Target print, broadcast, radio and internet media possibly over long term e.g. 2-3 year campaign for film Online websites, fansites, ongoing communication with consumers/fans e.g. via e-newsletters, concert updates, ticket promotions, competitions Branding - PR as part of the brand strategy and development e.g. to position a brand in the arts sector, work with celebrity brands and brand personalities Events announcements, press conferences, previews, awards ceremonies, special appearances
Beresford and Fawkes (2006)

Arts PR example: The Oscars

The Academy Award (Oscar) - recognizes excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers. most prominent award ceremonies in the world, televised live in more than 200 countries studios spend millions of dollars and hire publicists specifically to promote films during the Oscar Season gain huge positive exposure and prestige but accusations that the Academy Awards are influenced more by marketing than quality American viewers 2011: 37.63 million

"the greatest promotion scheme that any industry ever devised for itself."

References

Beresford, S. and Fawkes, J. (2006) Arts, leisure and entertainment public relations in Tench, R. and Yeomans, L. (eds) Exploring Public Relations. Pearson Education: Essex. pp.598-617. Christopher, M., Payne, A., and Ballantyne, D. (1991) Relationship Marketing. Bringing Quality, Customer Service and Marketing Together, Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford. Cooper, P. And Tower, R. (1992). Inside the consumer mind: consumer attitudes to the arts. Journal of the Market Research Society. Vol. 34. No. 4. Pp299-311 DCMS (2007). Staying ahead: the economic performance of the UK's creative industries. Department for Culture, Media and Sport PP1041 June 2007. Available at: www.culture.gov.uk/reference_library/publications Accessed 15 June 2008. DCMS (2008) Creative Industries. Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Available at: www.culture.gov.uk Accessed 15 June 2008 Diggle, K. (1984). Guide to Arts Marketing. Rhinegold. Englandsnorthwest (2010) Your Business in Englands Northwest. Available from http://www.englandsnorthwest.com/ Accessed 13th March 2010 Hill, L., OSullivan, C. and OSullivan, T. (2003). Creative Arts Marketing. Second edition. Butterworth-Heinneman: Oxford Howkins, J, (2001). Money for new rope. Independent on Sunday, 10 June, 11-16. Kolb, B.M. (2005). Marketing for Cultural Organisations. 2nd edition. Thomson Learning: Ireland. Kotler, P. (1975) Marketing Management: analysis, planning and control. 3rd ed. Prentice Hall: London. Kotler, P. and Scheff, J. (1997). Standing room only: strategies for marketing the performing arts. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press

Mokwa, M.P., Dawson, W.M. And Prieve, E.A. (1980) Marketing the Arts. Praeger: New York
Rentschler, R., Radbourne, J., Carr, R. and Rickard J. (2002). Relationship marketing, audience retention and performing arts organisation viability. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, Vol. 7 No. 2 pp.118130.