I received an email last week from a client who presents touring Broadway shows. The client needed a fast answer about potential prices for a mega-hit show he hopes to add to the schedule next season.
“Can we possibly charge more than $160 for several hundred tickets to every performance?” he asked. “Can a price that high work in our city? Can dynamic pricing get us that far?”
|
 Patron relationships matter more in 2013 because the arts landscape is “more like shifting sand than fertile soil,” said Jill Robinson, President, at the TRG Arts May 7 webinar, Plant Loyalty Now. The higher the portion of patron-centric revenue is, “the more organizations need to focus on, invest in, and partner with patrons to sustain income. The webinar offered strategic tactics around starting campaigns early, building on blockbusters, and patron upgrades at every level engagement.
Did you miss the webinar? Click through and see the slides, or watch the recording.
|
71% New Subscription Net Revenue Increase
Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) had a strong subscription program overall. “The CSO has a very loyal subscriber base—once we bring them into the fold, they stay with us,” Kate Hagen, Marketing Manager, Patron Retention, said. Hagen and her colleagues had created a comprehensive program which had successfully retained both long-term subscribers and those in their first few years at rates well above industry averages.
For example, the CSO created the Surprise and Delight program for first year subscribers, which involved surprising them at their seats with a personal “thank you” from a staff member and a small gift like a CD or drink coupon. In 2011–12, 65% of first time subscribers renewed. (TRG finds that this group typically renews at just 50%.)
|