I recently learned about a commission by Steppenwolf Theatre, from Ken Davenport’s blog The Producer’s Perspective. No, not a new play (I’m still waiting for their call about that), but big-league market research that studies “Millenials” – the market segment between ages 15 and 31.
I won’t summarize the report, figuring that those of you involved in marketing for the arts will want to read the whole thing and if not involved in marketing, you probably won’t be interested. That’s not to say you shouldn’t be. The subject of this study is our future audience, as in people who buy tickets and influence cultural attitudes, who have a voice in whether our art forms prosper, putter or perish.
The good news: there is nothing in this report that suggests the performing arts will not appeal to Millenials. The opposite, in fact. Arts organizations just need to be savvy about how they reach out to this younger crowd.
I have a special interest because I spent most of my business career producing large public shows (the non-drama variety) and devoted a lot of money, energy and staff trying to understand the motivations of the generations that came after the boomers. I didn’t worry much about the boomers because being one myself, I trusted my instincts with that cohort.
Steppenwolf, with funding help from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, hired cultural analyst Patricia Martin for this project. Furthermore those good theatre folks in Chicago have made the report available free to all. You can download here. I commend Steppenwolf for undertaking this market research and then generously sharing it.
Even if you have no interest in marketing, you probably know someone in the arts – most likely overworked and underappreciated – who is responsible for getting butts in seats. They’d probably appreciate you telling them about this study. It’s worth their attention.
The good news: there is nothing in this report that suggests the performing arts will not appeal to Millenials. The opposite, in fact. Arts organizations just need to be savvy about how they reach out to this younger crowd.
I have a special interest because I spent most of my business career producing large public shows (the non-drama variety) and devoted a lot of money, energy and staff trying to understand the motivations of the generations that came after the boomers. I didn’t worry much about the boomers because being one myself, I trusted my instincts with that cohort.
Steppenwolf, with funding help from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, hired cultural analyst Patricia Martin for this project. Furthermore those good theatre folks in Chicago have made the report available free to all. You can download here. I commend Steppenwolf for undertaking this market research and then generously sharing it.
Even if you have no interest in marketing, you probably know someone in the arts – most likely overworked and underappreciated – who is responsible for getting butts in seats. They’d probably appreciate you telling them about this study. It’s worth their attention.
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