Research + Insights
Understanding your customer is key to successful marketing. In the last 10 years, I have explored how customers engage with companies through marketing strategies based on customer insights. I reached a marketing milestone when I worked with the consulting firm WolfBrown on an Audience Research Collaborative (ARC), a user research study with the Hewlett Foundation. We planned, developed, and managed over 47 market research plans for a group of stakeholder organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
We met with the organizations and establish research goals to explore their engagement and retention challenges. Research plans were customized for each stakeholder and included one or more qualitative or quantitative data collection methods; print and online surveys, interviews, and focus groups.
The data findings were analyzed and we produced final summary reports with recommendations for each company. The companies used the insights data to launch new programs and events, address and target their audiences’ interests, and explore marketing tools to manage their business. In less than a year after the study audience growth for the majority of organizations increased by 20-40%. Many of these companies went on to launch new marketing and communications initiatives, and streamline staff workflow with new marketing tools and software.
Featured organizations in the study included the San Francisco Ballet, Stern Grove Festival, Berkeley Rep, The Contemporary Jewish Museum, Yerba Buena Garden Festival, Alonzo Lines Ballet, Joe Goode Performance Group, East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, and Z Space.
ARC At A Glance
57 grantees applied for the study program
47 grantees were accepted and enrolled into the program
41 grantees completed a 12 to 18-month program of support
ARC grantees by discipline: 8 dance organizations, 2 film/media organizations, 8 multi-disciplinary organizations (presenters and producers), 16 music organizations, 12 theatre companies, 1 visual arts
Over 250,000 audience members were asked to complete a survey, and over 50,000 did so
6 grantees conducted general surveys of ticket buyers, members, or program participants
Two organizations conducted follow-up focus group research
60 people attended two webinars between February and August 2015
76 people attended three field trips between March and October 2015
31 people attended one-day workshop on qualitative methods, which included live in-depth interview and focus group demonstrations
90 people attended the first ARC Convening in June 2014
66 people attended the final ARC Convening in November 2015
Average cost of consultant support per grantee was approx. $10,000
Average hard cost of data collection per grantee was $2,400 (printing, postage, data entry, etc.)