Inspired by the findings of the Audience Growth Initiative, marketing and development directors from nine orchestras undertook a follow-up Patron Growth Initiative with Prescott & Associates to tackle the more complex issue of building sustainable support, factoring in both attendance and donations — thus helping orchestras grow total lifetime value. This presentation outlines the findings and recommendations of the yearlong effort that included data mining (on a database of 545,000 concertgoers and donors), qualitative, and quantitative research. This presentation debuted at the League's 2011 National Conference.

This article and video, focused in Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL), are part of a series describing the early work of some of the 25 performing arts organizations participating in The Wallace Foundation’s $64 million Building Audiences for Sustainability initiative. Launched in 2015 in response to concerns about a declining audience base for a number of major art forms, the endeavor seeks to help the organizations strengthen their audience-building efforts, see if this contributes to their financial sustainability, and develop insights from the work for the wider arts field.

“STUDY ON AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT: HOW TO PLACE AUDIENCES AT THE CENTRE OF CULTURAL ORGANISATIONS”

IN MORE DETAIL

Many culture makers have embraced the theme of Audience Development (AD); we all want audiences, preferably large and enthusiastic ones. But how can we demonstrate to our investors that we have taken the task seriously? How do we measure our efforts? This meticulous study undertaken by the European Commission, looks at examples from the diverse European cultural landscape, providing innovative approaches and methods in the area of AD and tools for cultural leaders looking at make a convincing case, within their organisations, for a transition to an audience-centric approach.