If not now, when? Five timely tips for arts organisations dealing with coronavirus
Covid-19 is likely to put all of our relationships to the test. This includes our love of the local businesses we previously took for granted; local coffee shops, bakeries and eateries.
But also our theatres, museums, galleries and heritage sites.
Whilst it’s incumbent on us as a public to do our bit to ensure they survive this unprecedented period, it’s incumbent on organisations to offer the innovation, systems and processes for us to do so. So how?
#1 Emphasise local community love
As we’re forced to retreat to our homes, it is giving me a chance to reflect on what my local community means to me. Where I live is part of what defines me. And I feel compelled to support my local community by giving back what I can.
How can arts organisations tap into this compulsion? They need to remind me that, like my local coffee shop, they rely on my business. But they also need to remind me that what they do with my money is crucial to the fabric of the community I love.
Consider: social media fundraising campaigns, distributed on local community group pages, emphasising the mutual benefit of the organisation to our local community.
#2 Act now on Mother’s Day!
It’s Mother’s Day in the UK on Sunday. (Don’t worry, you still have time.) My mum is a key reason I work in the arts; and a love of live performance is crucial to our strong bond.
Now that she can’t leave the house to enjoy the art she loves, and whilst live streaming is a wonderfully inventive solution, there will still be an inevitable loss. But, more so, my mum is worried that the arts venue she and her friends are so rightly proud of in her home city of Chester – Storyhouse – could be impacted. So, I have just made a donation to Storyhouse as a Mother’s Day gift (please don’t tell her).
Consider: Many organisations will have a Mother’s Day e-shot distributed, or lined up to go. This could be to encourage donations or gift voucher purchases. But given current circumstances, might the message be changed? Again, does it emphasise the role of the organisation in our local community fabric? And is this message reiterated on the donations page of the website?
#3 Remind us why we need you when encouraging non-refunds
Many innovative organisations (and their supporters) are encouraging ticket buyers not to ask for refunds on cancelled shows and exhibitions. The message is everything here. How personalised you can make this ask – can you adjust your copy to reflect the personal values of your audience segments?
Consider: As audiences it is easy for us to think arts organisations, especially large organisations, are bulletproof. We need to know you are vulnerable. Supporting the arts needs to feel as urgent as it truly is. Now isn’t the time for coy messaging.
#4 Act now on Membership renewal
A risk that will soon come into sharp focus, especially with the new financial year looming, is membership attrition. Now is the time to act. Members can’t visit, so can’t get the primary transactional benefits you’re offering. If you’ve established an emotional connection with members, then they are less likely to feel like this is a contract that is being unfulfilled, and more likely to see you as an organisation at risk.
Consider: Bringing forward membership renewal asks, emphasising the impact of their membership fee on your organisation’s short and long-term sustainability.
#5 Act now on marketing list building
As a public, we’re likely to spend more time in front of multiple screens than ever. This is not the time to row back on investing in building online marketing lists – quite the opposite.
Consider: Consider online campaigns that remind us of the impact of your organisation on our collective mental wellbeing.
There is a wicked irony that a virus forcing us apart seems to also be uniting us as a species. The arts will be as, if not more, impacted as any industry. But we must all see the opportunities in the threats.