off-stage right

[Note from Jodi:  In May I posted about the amazing internship I was able to design this summer for a brilliant future leader in theatre.  It has been going really well.  Thanks to all of my wonderful friends who have helped out with interviews and perspectives.  As most of you know, I think mentorship is one of the most rewarding and essential things we do as arts administrators!  So, enjoy, Sam’s first guest post.]

Recently, I have been thinking about the use of new social media to attract audiences to theatre. Despite the fact that I am a child of the Millennial Generation, which is supposed to be blinded by the Internet and instant gratification, I have been skeptical from the beginning of using tools like Twitter and Facebook to sell tickets. Does technology really help sell tickets? Or are theatres and shows simply making Twitter accounts and Facebook pages to jump on the bandwagon?

Over the past few weeks, Jodi has sent me on a series of informational interviews. Having the opportunity to speak with very knowledgeable people in the business, I asked all of them their opinion on the new uses of these web 2.0 tools.

Twitter is one form of web 2.0 that constantly intrigues me. Not being a habitual Twitterer myself, I am very curious if Twittering about shows really helps to market that show. For example, some of these shows Twitter out discounts multiple times a day. Is this overload? If someone sees a variation on the same Tweet from a show over and over again, won’t they just start ignoring it? Also, don’t most people who follow a certain show follow it because they have already seen the show and are not necessarily looking to buy tickets again?

I discussed this for a long time with Jennie Greer, the Director of Advancement at New Dramatists. She shared my fear that often these shows are twittering just to twitter. Since everyone else is doing it, it must be effective, right? Yet, she explained to me that many theatres feel the need to keep up with the rest of the world in terms of technology so that they remain relevant.

I also raised the subject with Ken Davenport, an off-Broadway and Broadway producer who is known for his knowledge and use of new media tools. He often uses these tools for user-generated content in his shows, but I was more curious about how he believed these tools should be used for marketing.

He told me that the use of this technology always depends on the show and who the expected audience is going to be. For example, his current show on Broadway, Blithe Spirit, stars Angela Lansbury and the majority of the audience is older. Therefore, he can mostly rely on traditional snail mail to advertise and can guarantee that Angela’s name will sell tickets.

For his shows with younger audiences, however, he has to use new forms of marketing. He told me that he uses Facebook and Twitter for Altar Boyz in particular because younger audience members who like the show will follow it and spread the word to their friends. Unlike other shows, the Alter Boyz Twitter account tells its followers little stories about the characters. Ken believes that many people misuse these tools by overloading people with information about buying tickets. But, when used correctly, he thinks that these new forms of marketing can really help sell a show.

Nella Vera, the new marketing director at the Public, had many interesting insights into the importance of using new technology. I asked her if she really believed that having a state-of-the-art website and a Twitter account helps sell tickets. She explained to me that there is not one specific thing that sells tickets. Yet, if a theatre or a show has an updated, advanced website and reaches out to people using Twitter, it gets people excited about the show. Even if they have already seen the show, they will tell their friends or go on the website and see another show from that theatre. We discussed the concept of the new cultural consumer and how, as a marketing director, she must figure out what an audience wants and then give it to them.

After interviewing several theater professionals about the use of web 2.0 in theatres, I still have not come to a conclusion. Only time will tell if technology really has an impact on not only ticket sales but selling a show or a theatre as a brand. My working theory is that social media tools have a greater efficacy when used sparingly and specifically; building a following rather than appealing to one time audiences with daily ticket discounts.