1 audience engagement – a close examination creative trust cci/ontario presenters network december...

1

Audience Engagement – A Close Examination


Creative Trust

CCI/Ontario Presenters Network December 11, 2009

© WolfBrown 2009 All Rights Reserved

2


Outline•“In and Out of the Dark” – Lynne

Conner•Why does engagement really mater?•What does research tell us about how

audiences want to engage?•Framework and Examples: Stages of

Engagement•Adopting an engagement philosophy•Summary: What have we learned?

3


4


5


6


7


The “Sacralization” of the Arts

8


9


Gentlemen will kindly avoid the stamping of feet and pounding of canes.

All applause is best shown by clapping of hands. --The Management

10


What happened? Electricity

11


12


13


fixed chairs and reserved seating

quiet, dark performance environment

standards of etiquette for all classes

14


15


16


MacPhail Center for Music

• New Rehearsal/Performance Space- ‘Perfectly Flexible’- Space can be reshaped for multiple events- Invites two-way experience

Audience

17


What does “audience engagement” mean?

18


To “Engage” - Core Definitional Elements

• Attraction or common cause• Mutuality of intent; commitment or

agreement• Make an investment; take responsibility• Unusually high level of interest, involvement

or participation• An act of risk; accepting liability for an

uncertain outcome• To become interlocked or intertwined

19


Engagement in Arts Experiences

• Engagement is a guiding philosophy in the creation and delivery of arts experiences

• People who subscribe to this philosophy:- Encourage each participant to be a co-creator of meaning- Integrate various learning experiences with the presentation of art- Accept that people have different ways of engaging, and allow

audience members to curate their own learning experience- Accept that not everyone relates to art on an intellectual basis- Embrace many pathways through the art form

20


What’s driving the cultural sector towards “engagement?”

21


A Confluence of Many Forces

• Demand for shorter and more intense experiences- Extract more value from the same investment

• Shift towards more active forms of participation

• Rise of new forms of creative expression• The culture of continuous feedback• The second generation of experience learners• Expectation that leisure experiences can be

customized- e.g., choosing to watch the director’s cut

22


But why does engagement really matter?

Because it magnifies impact.

23


24


25


26


27


28


What does research tell us about how audiences want to engage?

29


Let’s start with two basic questions:

• Generally, how much do you like to prepare in advance for performances by reading, watching or listening to information about the artist or program?

• Generally, how much do you like to debate or critique performances afterwards?

30


Results: Most people are somewhat inclined to engage…. BUT… some really are, and some really aren’t

Source: Six University Presenters (multi-disciplinary sample)

31


‘Talking about it’ is the dominant form of engagement of the six activities tested; likelihood declines with age

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

7.0

18 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65+

Like

lihoo

d of

Doi

ng (1

=Unl

ikel

y, 7

=Lik

ely)

Likelihood of Doing Specific Engagement Activities, by Age Cohort

Seek out information about upcoming artists or programs on the web

Attend pre-performance lectures, masterclasses or symposia, when offered

Participate in hands-on interactive workshops, when offered

Stay after performances to participate in discussions with artists, when offered

React to performances by contributing to online forums or blogs

Tell your friends what you liked or disliked about a performance


32


Who engages in online activities?


33


Some people like to arrive at the theatre with lots of context on the play they are about to see, while others prefer not to know much about what they are going to see, in order to have an open mind and allow for the element of surprise (i.e., a “blank canvas”).

All else being equal, where are you along this continuum? (circle a number)

1 = Much Context, 4 = No Preference, 7 = Blank Canvas

Source: Major theatre company in a large midwestern city

34


Most want at least a bit of context…

8% 19% 24% 22% 13% 9% 4%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Preferred Approach to Pre-Performance Engagement

Much Context 2 3 No Preference 5 6 Blank Canvas

35


Some people enjoy vigorously discussing the meaning or merits of a play immediately after the performance, while others prefer to reflect quietly on their own.

All else being equal, where are you along this continuum? (circle a number)

1 = Reflect Privately, 4 = No Preference, 7 = Discuss Vigorously

36


Most tend to reflect privately; how are you going to reach them?

37


Younger buyers are more likely to be involved in participatory theatre activities, and less likely to rely on reviews

27% 32%

47%

61%73%

83%17% 7%

7%

7%

4%

10%

10%

5%

5%

5%

6%

22%

9%

5%

6%

7%

11%

10%9%

12%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

18-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75+

% o

f A

ge C

ohor

t

PERCENT CITING "FREQUENT" ENGAGEMENT IN THEATRE ACTIVITIES, BY AGE COHORT

Travel to other cities to see theatre

Write, perform in or work on plays or musicals

Read or comment about theatre on blogs

Read plays for own enjoyment

Read critical reviews of theatre productions

38


Factor analysis reveals five overlapping modalities

Readers (94%)

Talkers (86%)

Bloggers(26%)

Listeners(18%)

Actors (12%)

39


A large orchestra on the east coast

• Commissioned a segmentation study• Input variables included:

- Musical tastes: eclectic vs. classical-focused- Knowledge level about classical music- Appetite for new works by living composers- Preferences for different concert formats- Preferences for engagement activities- Motivations for attending- Influence of purchase decision factors

40


A four-segment customer model illustrates the diversity within this audience base

PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA CUSTOMER

SEGMENTATION MODEL (N=1,075)

Old School Connoisseurs

24%

Warhorses23%

Casual Followers28%

Adventurous Intellectuals

25%

41


Six in ten want brief introductions from the stage

PREFERRED CONCERT FORMAT, BY SEGEMNT

5%

66%

10%5%

21%

74%

34%

70%

67%

62%

20% 19%28%

17%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Warhorses Old SchoolConnoisseurs

AdventurousIntellectuals

CasualFollowers

TOTALAUDIENCE

Interpretation-richeducational format

Format with briefintroductions

Traditional format (notalking)

42


Summary

43


What does research tell us?

• Audiences are diverse with respect to engagement- Younger audiences are far more likely than older audiences to engage online,

and tend to prefer more active forms of engagement- Some older audiences long for the arts education experience they had as

children- Some people would actually prefer educational formats

• Lectures and discussions tend to attract people who are already knowledgeable about the art form- How can you engage the ‘big middle’ of the audience?

• Patrons with lower knowledge levels prefer talking from the stage over reading printed program notes

• Need to provide context in layers, so people get take a little or a lot

• Be careful about vocabulary (i.e., level of difficulty)• Eliciting informal conversation outside of our venues may

be a big win

44


A Simple Framework: Stages of Engagement

45


Stages of Engagement

• Pre-performance- It all starts with marketing: messaging about engagement- The purchase: give options - Post-purchase: build anticipation, preparatory activities

• At or during the performance- Interpretive assistance- Participatory activities

• After the Performance & Forever- Structured processing in-venue- Unstructured processing out of the venue- Memory elicitation

• Apart from the Performance- Digital engagement- Audience involvement in art creation

46


Pre-Performance

47


Marketing as an Engagement Process

• The marketing message should signal engagement opportunities

• Send the first engagement message with ticket acknowledgement

• Seamless transition from marketing cycle to engagement cycle- Objective: Heighten anticipation

• Will audiences pay to be engaged? Should engagement cost?

48


Examples of Preparatory Activities:

• In-depth information available through website (pull)

• Audio briefings accessed via website (pull)• Listening to audio recordings at home or in

the car on the way• Distribute ‘season primer’ CDs (SF Opera)• Skills-building programs (ArtSavvy, Dance

101)• Mail or email contextual information to

patrons (push)

49


At or During Performances

50


Examples of at-venue engagement activities:

• Sit in your seat and read the program notes• Pre-performance lectures or “executive

briefings”• Introductory videos (e.g., Appalachian Spring)• Interpretive assistance during performances

- Supertitles (translation or commentary)- Talking from the stage- Interpretive text broadcast to mobile devices

• Visual representations of music• Other format innovations• Real time audience input/feedback

51


Martha Graham Dance Company

• Incorporated supertitles into a touring production of Clytemnestra- Reviewer: “Supertitles help

audiences approach what could, without context, come across as a museum piece; spoken, often humorous introductions to the repertory do the same. It is tempting to dismiss these efforts as heretical, but they seem to engage viewers.

52


Concert Companion

• Embedded interpretation- Concert Companion (“CoCo”), a hand-held PDA

device- Interpretive assistance synchronized with

the music- Users read information in real-time- Tested with Kansas City Symphony, Philadelphia

Orchestra, New York Philharmonic- Greatest resistance was from musicians

Audience

53


National Symphony Orchestra at Wolf TrapAudience Engagement

• Deliver interpretive content during concerts via Twitter- "With this first ever in-time symphonic

Twitter you can have the conductor as your personal guide through Beethoven's most colorful and atmospheric work,” explained Conductor Emil de Cou. “I have designed the tweets to go perfectly with ideas I have about the piece as I conduct it but also some interesting commentary to go along with the sights and sounds of Beethoven's day in the countryside: an adult musical pop-up book written for first timers and concert veterans alike."

54


After Performances

55


Examples of post-performance engagement activities:

• Post-performance discussions with the artist- Attendance has doubled at the Kennedy Center discussions after

dance performances

• Read a critic’s review- But professional criticism has vanished in many markets- Some efforts to replace it (sfcv.org)

• Discussion circles, handouts• Radio call in show• React to the performance in an online forum

- Build an authentic feedback loop with the audience

56


University Musical Society

• Eliciting feedback from audiences- Production of ‘The Elephant Vanishes’ (four

performances)- Needed to quickly generate community

excitement

• Process- Sent an e-mail to attendees on opening night

asking for audience comments

• Outcomes- Received ecstatic emails- Generated 25% of sales after 1st performance- Empowered audience as critics

Audience

57


Forever

58


What happens to the memory of arts experiences?

• Printed programs play a role• Some people remember experiences for a

lifetime- Others sleep through it

• Mondavi Center: handing out ‘artist cards’ to youth

• What can you do to ensure that people remember your experiences?- Send audio files? Image files? Create an online scrapbook?

59


The New Frontier: Engaging Audiences in Creating Artistic Content, and even in Program Planning

60


Examples

• TakeOver09 (York Theatre Royal)- A festival run “by young people, with young people, for everyone”

• Art Institute of Chicago- Panels of representatives of ‘target communities’ (e.g., African

Americans) collaborate with staff to design exhibitions

• Cornerstone Theater- Develops plays around community themes, with extensive

community involvement

61


Hannah Rudman: Organizational Porosity and User Generated Content (video)• Head of U.K.’s ambITion project (digital

engagement)• Video message to “Project Audience”• Rapidly evolving landscape• New forms of co-creation

- “It’s not about giving up control”

• Culture cannot be ‘provided,’ but is generated together- ‘Open source’ artistic direction

• Return of the amateur• For more information about Hannah Rudman, see:

http://consultrudman.wordpress.com/ • See online references at: http://delicious.com/hanrudman/ugc

62


Audience as Co-Author of Meaning

63


Summary

64


What lessons have we learned?

• Engagement occurs when audiences participate actively in designing and interpreting their own experience

• Small organizations have more flexibility to adopt engagement practices

• Sometimes, engagement requires performing in less than ideal circumstances

• New/redesigned physical spaces can enable a higher degree of engagement

• Constituent input (feedback loop) is a key success factor• Drawing a line between audience engagement and

community engagement is unnecessary and ultimately limiting

• We need engage audiences regardless of where they are in their arc of involvement with the art form

• It is difficult to reach alignment around engagement as a philosophy when you have inflexible conceptions of how the art form should be experienced

65


How do arts groups move towards an engagement orientation?

66


Three Levels of Adoption

Departmental

Cross- Functional

Organizational

– Institutionalized at the departmental level– Specific outcomes desired– Core programs are “protected”

– Departments work together and share risk– Tend to be project-based (e.g., residencies)– Supplemental to core programming

– Philosophical alignment at the board level– Artistic leadership is a full partner, and core

programming is an instrument of engagement

– Org. structure serves engagement goals

67


Practice occurs on a continuum from Community Engagement to Audience Engagement; is the distinction necessary?

Audience

Departmental

Organizational

Cross-Functional

Community

68


AudienceCommunity

• In-school concerts

• Residencies

• Youth orchestras

• Customer service

• Interactive technology

• Target marketing

• Stakeholder Input

• Benefits-based programming

• Venue diversification

• Festivals and special programs

• Free performances

• Contextual Programs

• Embedded Interpretation

• Post-Processing

• Education is integral to every production

• Critical dialogue encouraged

• Holistic view of the art form

• Artists are teachers, interpreters

Alignment

• Educational enhancements

What does alignment look like?

69


Successfully engaging your audiences can lead to…

• Increased relevance to existing audiences• Higher retention rates• Broadened awareness and reach in the

community• Higher levels of loyalty and community

ownership• More critical dialogue about the art• More public and private support because of

higher impact• More sensitivity to, and support for, the value of

intrinsic impacts

70


Discussion

1 audience engagement – a close examination creative trust cci/ontario presenters network december...

Documents

audience engagement

close examination engagement

close examination slide

close examination whats

close examination outline

close examination results

stages of engagement

arts slide