1 Arts audience segmentation Findings and implications

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Arts audience segmentationFindings and implications

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Contents

1. Context

2. Introduction to the segmentation

3. Three segments up close

4. Some initial reflections

5. Sharing and using the findings

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1. Context

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Purpose: understanding audiences

• lots of data on arts engagement patterns and attitudes towards the arts from Taking Part survey and the arts debate

• segmentation commissioned to draw out insights on:- arts consumer ‘types’ among English adults – how do people

engage with the arts, and why

- how the arts and the Arts Council currently serve the needs of different audience groups

- which groups might offer the most potential for increasing their arts engagement

- how we can target different groups in terms of policy, arts offers,

programmes of activity, marketing and communications

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2. Introduction to the segmentation

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Data analysis conducted by BMRB (Enlightenment)

Three-stage process:

1. Segment the population using Taking Part data on arts attendance, participation, motivations, barriers, background

2. Statistical fusion of Taking Part and TGI datasets

3. Produce in-depth profiles of each segment – looking at people’s overall lives, including demographics, arts engagement, leisure interests, media profile, web activity, attitudinal data on various aspects of life

- profiling draws on data about people’s actual behaviour and how they describe themselves, not on our assumptions about them

Methodology

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Definition of attendance…

exhibition or collection of art, photography or sculpture,

craft exhibition, video or electronic art event, event connected with books or writing, street arts or circus, carnival, culturally-specific festival, play or drama, other theatre performance such as musicals,

pantomime,

opera or operetta, classical music concert jazz performance, other live music event, ballet, contemporary dance, African people’s dance, South Asian

and Chinese dance, other live dance event

Arts attendance is defined as those who have attended in the past 12 months at least one of the following:

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Arts participation is defined as those who have done in the past 12 months at least one of the following:

… and participation

ballet other dance (not for fitness). sang to an audience or rehearsed for a

performance played a musical instrument to an audience or

rehearsed for a performance played a musical instrument for your own

pleasure written music rehearsed or performed in a play / drama rehearsed or performed in an opera / operetta painting, drawing, printmaking or sculpture photography as an artistic activity (not family

or holiday ‘snaps’)

made films or videos as an artistic activity (not family or holidays)

used a computer to create original artworks or animation

textile crafts such as embroidery, crocheting or knitting

wood crafts such as wood turning, carving or furniture making

other crafts such as calligraphy, pottery or jewellery for yourself

written any stories or plays written any poetry

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Key findings: 13 audience segments

Urban arts eclectic 5%

Occasional engagement

Unengaged

Highly active

participate onlyattend &

may also participate

Traditional culture vultures 4%

Fun, fashion and friends 18%

Mature explorers 11%

Dinner and a show 20%

Bedroom DJs 3%

Family & community focused 11%

Mid-life hobbyists 4%

Retired arts and crafts 3%

Time-poor dreamers 7%

Sofa, pub and the simple life 8%

Older and home-bound 6%

Relaxing on a budget 2%

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3. Three segments up close

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Focus segments



Unengaged

Highly active


many also participate





Bedroom DJs 3%








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1 Fun, fashion and friends



Unengaged

Highly active







Bedroom DJs 3%








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Fun, fashion and friends– about them…

In the early stages of developing their career and/or

starting families. Fairly well qualified and around average

income profile, they have career aspirations and take time to

indulge their interests in fashion, travel and cuisine, as

well as making time for socialising with friends at pubs or over a

meal. They relish seeking out new experiences and are willing

to pay for quality. Despite this self-indulgence, they exhibit

responsibility to the environment reflected in their choice of brands. Although their taste in the arts is confined mainly to the

contemporary it shows signs of widening given their inclination

towards experimentation.

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Fun, fashion and friends – key demographics

• slight skew to younger age groups: two thirds aged 16–44

• two thirds female

• third have children in the household

• mostly white (93%)

• somewhat better educated than average – a third hold degrees

• comfortably off and somewhat above average socio-economic position

• most are currently working, a fifth part-time

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Fun, fashion and friends – current lifestage and attitudinal traits

aspiring

discovery/ experiencing

long hours, time-poor

consumerists

early career

striving for success

full of opportunities

few responsibilities/ obligations/ commitments

will pay for quality

appetite for novelty

conscious about the environment and

ethics

balance between seeking recognition and wanting to fit in

living in the present early adopters of trends

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Fun, fashion and friends – leisure interests

fitness

time to have fun

fashion

travelling – off the beaten track and

city breaks

socialising – pubs, bars, eating out

occasional cultural outings

entertainment and celebrity news – Heat magazine

TV and magazines

online: work, socialising

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Current arts activities and how we might engage with this segment

Arts engagement and attitudes towards the arts

• infrequent attenders at ‘mainstream’ events: musicals/ pantomime, rock/pop concerts, plays, exhibitions

• likely to also take part in some artistic activities: painting or drawing, playing an instrument, textile crafts computer art

• positive attitude towards the arts

• typically encouraged to engage with the arts when young

How might we engage with this segment

• into what they see as contemporary, trendy

• social arts experiences are key

• positioned as fun, as a special occasion/outing

• appetite for novelty and experimentation

• endorsements from peers, media, celebrities

• work constraints – last-minute access to the arts/arts on demand

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2 Dinner and a show



Unengaged

Highly active




Fashion, fun and friends 18%



Bedroom DJs 3%








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Dinner and a show – about them…

They are comfortable with where and what they have acquired

in life. Having worked in higher level jobs and approaching

retirement, they have accumulated sufficient wealth. They

are relaxed with money management, young at heart

and view money as a means of enjoying life – eating,

travelling, making occasional large purchases.

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Dinner and a show – key demographics

• key age group 45–64 (37%)

• no children in household (72%)

• 55% males, 45% females

• comfortably off financially – slightly higher than average income profile, 56% in higher socio-economic groups

• more likely than average to own their own homes (78%)

• average education level

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Dinner and a show – current lifestage and attitudinal traits

can afford to enjoy life

middle-aged, approaching retirement

few responsibilities

accumulated wealth

practical and down to earth

comfortable lifestyle

in-the-know, well-read

work constraints

enjoy the fruit of their work

children grown, some have flown the nest

physically active

some have their first grandchildren

consider themselves less

creative

personal growth and development

enjoying pursuits they know they like

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Dinner and a show – leisure interests

time with partners, friends and some

with grandchildren

eating

enjoying life

watching news and sportday trips with

grandchildren

football, rugby, boxing, golf

holidayswide interests

reading financial, sports and travel

pages

occasional live music events, rock concerts, or plays

and musicals

walking, parks, gardens

Radio 1, 2 and Five Live

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Arts activities and attitudes

• stick to mainstream arts events: live music events (not jazz or classical), theatre, musicals/pantomime

• infrequent attendance

• but 69% say they would like to go more often

• tend not to actively participate in creative activities

• not particularly encouraged to attend and participate when young

How we might engage with this segment

• like ‘approachable’ arts

• avoid positioning as something ‘intellectual’

• position the arts as entertainment, relaxing, sociable

• interest in music

• through grandchildren

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3 Time-poor dreamers



Unengaged

Highly active




Fashion, fun and friends 18%



Bedroom DJs 3%








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Time-poor dreamers – about them…

Time poor and financially stretched, they have few interests outside of providing themselves and their families with the

basics. They have hopes of breaking out of their financial

situation, but are limited by their education. They meet with

frustration and dream of striking it rich. They tend

to be short term in their outlook and are easily swayed by advertising/opinions so despite financial constraints, they are

impulsive shoppers and spend readily on clothing whilst saving on household necessities.

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Time-poor dreamers – key demographics

• skew to younger age groups – 40% aged under 35

• most are currently working, many in a supervisory or semi-routine job

• lower than average educational profile

• income profile a little below average

• a high proportion (42%) have children in the household

• more likely than average to have 2+ children

• higher than average proportion (17%) from Black or minority ethnic backgrounds

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Time-poor dreamers – current lifestage and attitudinal traits

time-poor

living above means

financially stretched

frustrated

live in the present

hassled parents

bargain buyer

dream of striking it rich

limited by education

appearance consciouseasily influenced by

others/advertising

culturally disengaged

impulsive shoppers

limited means

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Time-poor dreamers – leisure interests

shopping – clothing, bargain

household necessities

going out rather than doings things at home

watching TV at home – entertainment, soaps, sports,

game shows

darts, pool

pub with friends

take-away foods

playing the lottery

read tabloids, real-life stories,

gossip,childcare

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Arts activities and attitudes

• unlikely to attend or participate currently

• main cited barrier to engagement is lack of time, alongside lack of interest

• not particularly encouraged to attend or participate when young

How we might engage with this segment

• family-focused, possibly appeal through pester-power

• free of charge

• aspirations to strike it rich/ talent/competition/opportunity

• art packaged as entertainment

• celebrity links

• local

• drop-in – easy to access

• not intimidating

• advertising: TV, celebrity magazines, shopping centres

• brand partnerships: Argos, JJB Sports, Primark, Iceland, Asda/George

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4. Some initial reflections

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Some initial reflections

• current ‘core audiences’ for the arts represent a fairly small (ca 8%) and socio-economically privileged section of society

• public investment has historically benefited this group, and targeted the very socially excluded with specific programmes

• the largest sectors of society, and possibly the biggest areas of opportunity for increasing arts engagement, are the groups of ‘ordinary people’ in the middle

• huge untapped potential for gaining new audiences – but this won’t happen just through promoting more vigorously what is on offer already

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• different groups have different aspirations in terms of their priorities and ambitions in life

• to increase engagement, the arts offer needs to be presented, distributed and promoted in new ways – to resonate with people’s hopes and expectations…

• …and/or the offer itself needs to be changed to fit more closely with people’s interests and lifestyles

• consumer types are not distinguished by artform preference, but by lifestyle and social scene

• a ‘one size fits all’ approach won’t work

• given limited resources, there are big decisions to make with regards to target audience groups

Some initial reflections

33 Low Medium High

Lo

wM

ediu

mH

igh

Level of engagement

Social deprivation

Positioning the segments

Dinner and a show

Retired arts and crafts

Older and home-bound

Time-poor dreamers Relaxing

on a budget

Sofa, pub and the

simple life

Fun, fashion and friends

Mature explorers

Family and community

focused

Mid-life hobbyists

Bedroom DJs

Traditional culture vultures

Urban arts

eclectic

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5. Sharing and using the findings

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Summary profiles are just a tip of the data iceberg…

A vast amount of further data available from Taking Part and TGI surveys on each segment, eg:

• arts engagement – attendance, participation, frequency

• cultural and sport participation, volunteering

• other leisure time activities – eating out, cooking at home, TV, going out to pubs, theme parks, etc

• media consumption – TV, radio, internet, newspapers

• where they shop

• attitudes towards different areas of life – work, family, environment, eating, drinking, finance, etc

• socio-demographic information

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Sharing the data more widely

• summary profiles to be published in mid-July

• currently exploring legal restrictions and practicalities around all other external data sharing

• option to set up a network of data sharing with arts organisations via audience development agencies

• potential geographic modelling

• who is in my local area? Local area breakdown by segments

• where are the ‘Time-poor dreamers’? Estimation of segment distribution by postcode sectors

• analysis of existing audiences (box office postcode data) by segments

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Using the findings

• generate debate about the reach of public investment in the arts – who are we trying to engage and why?

• develop the objectives, content and tone of the Arts Council’s national campaign

• support arts organisations to work together to increase their collective reach

• in the long term inform the Arts Council’s strategy and priorities

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www.artscouncil.org.uk

Further information

• [email protected]


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1 Arts audience segmentation Findings and implications