Aoife Flynnloves music, art, theatre, culture, fashion,
food, the interweb. Consultant Arts marketeer & project manager
www.asquared.ietwitter.com/stranded_aoife
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
What I’ll be focusing on today…
•Some Do’s and Don’ts of online marketing
•Some Do’s and Don'ts of visual arts engagement
•Potential for new engagement using new media
What Good Marketing in the Visual Arts Looks Like
Key Marketing Rules
•Have a Plan – set targets, review progress, Track your appearances online•Converse – online engagement is two way •Customise - allow your visitors to personalise their interaction with you•“Be where your audience expects to find you”
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
• Know your audience demographics
• Understand your audience motivations
• Be targeted in your approach to that audience
• One size does not fit allThe holy grail of marketing is to be
able to make your visitor feel like you are talking directly to them – one to one.
Key Online Marketing Rules
• Have a plan– Even if it’s not a full scale strategy
• Set targets for each event/show/campaign
– Target referrals, increase in traffic, increase fb fans, or new visitors
• Measure your progress– Stats from your own site, facebook,
blog, checkins etc.
• Track your appearances online– Google Alert aka media monitoring
for the web
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
1. Plan, Target, and Track
Golden Rule of Online engagement? Conversations are two-way
• Resist broadcast only approach
Think of Online marketing as a “virtual front desk”
• Welcoming• Informal• Social• Informative
about event and about audience
• Interactive
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
2. Online Marketing: Dialogue v’s Monologue
People want to customise their experience online, and their experience of your organisation. Find ways to let them do this
• User Photographs• Commentability• User Recommendations• Personal Stories• Check-ins
If you do this successfully your visitor will become your best marketeer, and they work for free!
3. Personalised Content
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
• Not everywhere at once– Be strategic in your approach
• Know your audience– Check your main web traffic for
referral links– Ask them! SurveyMonkey, PollDaddy
• Assess your resources– Marketing not just the job of the
Marketing Dept. or interns!
• Select appropriate platforms– Know the rules of engagement for
each– To tweet or not to tweet? 188,000
active irish tweeters (via barryhand.ie)
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
4. “Be where your audience expects to find you” Dr. Ross Parry, Museums and New Media at the University of Leicester
1. Do Have a Page, not a personal profile
2. Claim your page name– www.facebook.com/username
3. Claim your “place” for checkins4. Check your Wikipedia entry5. Don’t “Flood the Stream”
– Time your posts– Check what’s working via insights
6. Do encourage fan interaction– Ask Questions, run competitions, tag
photos
Practical Facebook tips
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
1,8 million irish users (over 15)
Approx. 50% of population have accounts
45% male v’s 55% female
Over 50’s are fastest growing demographic
Key Online Marketing Rules
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
•Have a Plan – set targets, review progress, track
your appearances online
•Converse– online engagement is two way
•Customise– allow your visitors to personalise
their online interaction with you
•“Be where your audience expects to find you”
Encouraging Visual Arts Engagement – Some Quick Do’s and Don’ts
On & Offline…•Don’t have dense press releases/gallery info
– One Size doesn’t fit all
•Do find different ways to communicate to different audiences •Do provide complimentary programming•Don’t assume new online visitors have been to your space before
– Visitors don’t read website like a book, reiterate costs, times, dates
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
Opportunities for Engagement via new media
New Media allows you:•Direct access to your audience; even when they aren’t physically visiting •Ongoing Communication – not just at exhibition timesAllows them: •Enhanced access behind the scenes, •Enhanced access to Artists and their practiceInitiatives:•AskaCurator#•Visitor Photography
Aoife Flynnwww.asquared.ie
Full text and slideswww.asquared.ie/news.html
Thank you!