Yesterday closed my first full season as Marketing Director at my day job. So I figured I should officially let folks know how I did and the lessons I learned along the way.
First the stats:
Single Ticket/Group Sales: 13% over projected goal.
Much of this was driven by the success of Caroline, or Change, but I think most of the shows in our season did fairly well. In all we had the best year for single tix/groups since the 01/02 season.
Subscriptions: 8% below projected goal.
F*ckin' subscriptions. :) We are not immune to the national trend against subscribing. It's impacting theatre, dance, pretty much any art that relied heavily on such things.
It is a major problem and if a viable (but perhaps risky) alternative isn't put on the table soon . . . it's going to be trouble.
I'm working on it.
Expenses: 4% below projection
I think coming in with more revenue then expected while spending less is always the ideal situation and we were able to pull it off here. Most of the savings came from shifting money away from print ads and into things like online ads, street marketing and different forms of email advertising.
Lesson Learned:
1. Organizational culture matters - When I first got the job, almost 18 months ago, most of my work revolved around changing the culture in the department. I needed people that worked fast and were confident in their (already very impressive) abilities.
I also needed them to have some faith that eventually a few of my dumb ass ideas would pan out. It took time but I think we all got to the place where we work differently then we did before.
If I hadn't worked on those cultural changes first, none of the other outcomes would have happened.
People need to enjoy their work.
People need to feel like they have a chance to accomplish their goals.
Without those things, you don't have much.
2. It's still worth it - I'm not going to lie, it was a roller coaster of a season. But when it all comes together, when the art and the audience link up and you can see the emotional impact you are having on them, it is an incredible feeling. But . . .
3. It's going to be harder then ever - I work at a fairly established, fairly resourced place and it was a rough road for us. For many groups less advantaged then us the next season is going to be pretty wild.
You can make it.
Be smart.
Make informed choices.
Be sure you are working with the right people, i.e. people with the skills and temperment to work in a challenging economic climate.
Do your best work artistically. It's the best chance you have of coming out of this thing in one piece. Remember, a lot of arts org had the best year in a while in the midst of the recession. You can be one of them.
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