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Big Things for Theatres with Big Lists
I recently received an e-mail starting with “Are you out of your
mind?” I had to think about it for a moment which probably gave them
affirmation to their question but continued to read on to find out why they
even had to ask.
The e-mail took issue with our publishing a “Last Word” by Arthur
Middleton Hughes in our January, 2008, edition of DramaBiz Magazine.
Mr. Hughes, a database guru, wrote a compelling and rational argument for
data sharing that covered the benefits of commingling databases. His position
succinctly described the benefits in terms of audience development, resource
management and general cost savings and urged theatres to consider collaborating
on a single shared database. Our e-mail correspondent thought us quite out
of our minds for suggesting that theatres share this all-too-valuable asset.
Well, it turns out we’re in good company.
In cities, regions, and states across the country, arts groups have gone a
little mad over a collaborative arts database sharing project entitled “Big
List.” We reported about the San Francisco Bay Area going online with
their Big List in our last issue’s Drama News Bites, but they are just
the most recent to do big things with their databases following groups in
Orange County, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Boston, and the state of New Jersey.
I spoke to Clay Lord, Theatre Bay Area’s marketing and advertising manager,
and he confirmed that 69 organizations went live with the Big List as of May
1 in the San Francisco Bay Area. That number exceeded their expectations,
and Clay told me that aside from the obvious benefits of list management,
participating organizations were also able to get research, buying habits
and demographics from their commingled lists. This cooperative effort really
played to their collective strengths and helped them be smarter and more efficient
marketers.
Funded through a grant from the Wallace Foundation, participating theatres
can reap the benefits of commingled direct marketing lists and added demographics
for between $500 - 600 per year, with additional costs per list pull averaging
about $225 each.
I talked to Tom Holm, V. P. of Enertex Marketing, the engine behind the nationwide
Big List projects, to better understand how the commingled databases work
and pose the questions I’m sure our are-you-crazy e-mailer would have
wanted to ask.
Tom put to rest many of the fears some theatres may have in commingling their
patron names, particularly the notion of “letting-your-competitors-have-your-list”
which I’m sure was at the forefront of our e-mailer’s mind as he
pointed out how valuable an asset their list had become. It was also very
clear that the Big List was not used for fundraising and that a third-party
mail house handled the lists pulled from the Big List unless otherwise previously
agreed to by the Big List user group. Tom also noted that there is a high
percentage of overlap (two-thirds of the merged list appeared on two or more
lists in the San Francisco Bay Area Big List) which would indicate a cultural
promiscuity among patrons. So, are those patrons you are so fiercely protective
of showing the same loyalty by only frequenting your theatre? Apparently not.
The list logistics aside, what I heard from Clay and Tom are the possibilities
and the potential these groups have in audience development. We all have our
lists, but how would you promote your show differently if you knew your patrons’
ages, income, household status, or education? What if you could tell which
types of shows they preferred? Would this knowledge help you market smarter?
As individual organizations, the Big List has energized arts groups to take
advantage of their collective strengths rather than focus on individual initiatives.
Clay and Tom note that it has been an eye-opening experience for participants
in all-sized organizations and creates an ongoing dialog on what it means
to market the arts in their community.
Although the Big List may not be for everyone, you are best to contact Tom
Holm of Enertex Marketing (www.enertexmarketing.com) to see what opportunities
are available in your area. It is a BIG idea with far reaching opportunities
that can help grow our patron bases and attract new audiences.
Giving you the “theatre” business,
Julie Peterson
Publisher
julie@dramabiz.com
P.S. Got a BIG idea to share? We’d love to hear about it. Send your ideas
to me at julie@dramabiz.com.
