Marketing Strategies & Applications

Jenny Thompson Project, Part 6: Final Project

December 19, 2014 AAD 730-201: Marketing Strategies &

Application for Arts Organizations

Sofia Negron

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Current Marketing Campaign Analysis.........................................................................................................................3 Email Campaign............................................................................................................................................................5 Holiday/Yearend Advertisement Campaign ................................................................................................................7 Social Media Campaign................................................................................................................................................9 Press Release Campaign.............................................................................................................................................13 Personal Selling Campaign.........................................................................................................................................16 Crisis Plan Campaign..................................................................................................................................................17 Alternative Strategies Campaign................................................................................................................................19 Marketing Campaign Conclusions..............................................................................................................................22 Bibliography ...............................................................................................................................................................23

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CURRENT MARKETING CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

Reflection & Intentions: The suggestions made regarding my RIOULT Market Review and through our collective brainstorming call for me and the organization to now fold in the data noted from the just completed FY14 year, which marked the company's 20th Anniversary. The inclusion of these recent data will allow for better evaluation and a more realistic marketing campaign. In addition, this data will provide evidence on how the early planning stages of RIOULT's studio project and the FY14 year-long 20th Anniversary marketing hook have (or have not) affected the company's marketing efforts and influenced its institutional branding. The following marketing strategies and applications capitalize on RIOULT’s two greatest strengths when it comes to revenue and audience - single ticket buyers and educational activities/family audiences. These strengths, if properly used in RIOULT's marketing, can assist the company in tapping into its less engaged secondary markets in a meaningful, lucrative, and effective way. Meanwhile, a prime focus reiterated in the marketing recommendations is RIOULT's NYC home base. The company, strategically speaking, needs to expand its local NYC audience to support its long-term plan of acquiring a NYC dance studio space. If RIOULT wants to be the next go-to spot for NYC dance classes and training, the professionalism, discipline, and classic dance tradition it upholds need to be seamlessly integrated into its locally-focused communication message. Targets for RIOULT's Marketing Message

Single ticket buying audiences

Arts education and the family audiences it fosters

Local NYC community

Rosalie O'Connor

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Areas in Need of Improvement: A huge area of concern comes in RIOULT's stagnancy at the broad marketing goals level. Clear, SMART objectives need to be identified from those goals and distributed for the staff to track ongoing organizational success, progress, and/or failure. SMART Objectives

Increase RIOULT's young audience by 5%by the May 2015 Season via a year-long social media campaign offering unique engagement opportunities, online engagement with the company, and discount perks throughout the year.

While the company's online presence, including its website and social media use, have improved significantly throughout FY14, they now must be catered to really capture this arguably younger online audience and bring them to some action. (Keep in mind that RIOULT's current audience consists of mostly middle aged to senior, middle to upper class individuals). For instance, a social media campaign offering discounted tickets to this younger audience base or a fun platform for them to interact with the company (ask the dancers questions, submit a mini-survey or their contact information to be entered into a raffle, see the dancers in rehearsal, etc.) could be beneficial. Using online tools as passive advertising platforms is to any organization's disadvantage and can certainly be recreated into a SMART objectives.

Expand RIOULT's local, single ticket buying audience base by upping NYC performances to at least 5/year, in addition to the annual NY Season. The company mindset must shift from one that exists sporadically on the stage to one that is also here for/among the NYC community on a reliable and consistent basis. Creating programming that supports this mindset will establish a constant local presence and marketing opportunities. Once the time comes for RIOULT's studio space to open, of course there will be some need for "blanket" marketing. However, these immediate and objective-based efforts to build secondary and potential markets within the NYC area will give that blanket advertising a much greater impact.

Ensure 2-3 of the annual, local performances are either free or low-cost to provide viable opportunities for family audiences and new audiences. As RIOULT's mission will expand with the acquisition of its own NYC studio space, community outreach and education programming are fruitful areas in developing its institutional branding. RIOULT needs a way to allow the many children and families it works with through its in-school programming to continue their interaction with the company. Furthermore, these performance opportunities will beget marketing opportunities; advertising flyers could be sent home with each student, for instance, and the company's name would be promoted more readily throughout NYC at various local venues.

Jenny Thompson

Jenny Thompson

Jenny Thompson

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EMAIL CAMPAIGN

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Strategy Importance: This cost-effective mode of communication is an excellent way to reach audiences and target those who want/should receive different information. This means email lists must be monitored and updated regularly to ensure RIOULT is respecting its audience's wishing and getting the information to the right people. Additionally, email campaigns allow for integrated media (photos, videos, hyperlinks, direct means of purchasing/donating, etc.), quick correspondence, and tracking capabilities. Design: The above email campaign design centers on one, local performance event in January 22, 2015. The one-night-only performance is also affordable with tickets priced at $12 for general admission and $7 for students/seniors. On this special evening the dance company will perform three of choreographer Pascal Rioult’s dance works - each set to the commissioned score of a contemporary composer. As the performance will take place at the Manhattan School of Music, the student musicians will perform the music live throughout the evening offering audiences the increasingly rare occurrence of dance to live music. This digital message is a save the date – notifying recipients of the event and important facts along with the main call to action to purchase tickets. The calendar event template communicates this message and keeps the body of the email as short and sweet as possible – logo, one image, the pertinent facts, and the call to action: the ticket link highlighted in a pop of green color. This email campaign would be sent to specifically RIOULT’s ticket buyer audience base, and possibly other NYC-centric lists (assuming any crossover email addresses would not receive more than one email). This is crucial to promote one (hopefully of 5 as identified as a potential objective) of the company’s few local performances during the 2014-2015 season. The hope is these individuals would mark their calendars and even purchase tickets in advance. This campaign could be followed up by another in a couple weeks perhaps featuring a ticket discount code or a video of choreographer Pascal and one of the composers commenting on their collaborative process in creating the dance and music.

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HOLIDAY/YEAREND ADVERTISEMENT CAMPAIGN

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Strategy Importance: The starkness and simplicity of paid advertisements allows RIOULT to make the most of its designs across various mediums, capturing attention through clarity and repeat messaging. For the above design, such repeat messaging during the November-January holiday season would be very helpful. The ad could be found in a magazine or enlarged for use as a subway advertisement, or even integrated into an email campaign with embedded links to RIOULT's website and online donation page. Design: This promotional advertisement above focuses on RIOULT's year-end appeal, using its children's programming as a hook. As the company has no specific, public holiday programming, this type of advertisement could serve as a new and creative means for the organization to publicize its annual appeal outside of its typical direct mail approach. To ensure the design and publishing is cost effective, it will be printed in black and white when needed. However, the inclusion of the red pop of color seen in the design to the right gives it a touch of holiday spirit and may be more appropriate depending on the outlet. Design-wise, the logo remains consistent with RIOULT's branding and the clean sans serif font and aire of prestige in the image and design reflect the company's classic, and sophisticated reputation. The New York references throughout the design (the logo's inclusion of "New York," "NYC children," the address without needing the state and zip) are intentional as this ad would be best placed in a local newspaper or magazine - for instance, in The New York Times, The New Yorker, or Time Out New York. Two of RIOULT's central marketing goals are to expand its secondary markets, including its arts education audience, and its local institutional branding in preparation for its studio project. This ad is a means of tying these goals together. The sense of the holiday and giving spirit is played up by framing dance as a gift and affirming the intended success planned for the new year - with which the public can actively become a part. The call to action is noted throughout - the reference and positive implication of the phrase, "Thanks to you," the request to give which is visually emphasized with the black banner, and, at the bottom, the three methods of contact are available for an individual to act and make that contribution.

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SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN

SOCIAL MEDIA SITES

Total Reach Reach Efforts

Year Started

Use Frequency

Type of Use Responsibility/ Access

Facebook - Company

941 fans (See Impact Overview & Fan Demographic Data on Figures 1 & 2)

Likes 225 pages

2008 daily Most frequently used for social media marketing (updates, news, images, video, ticket discount offers, dancer highlights, sharing of press, advertising programming)

Marketing Mgr. , 2 facebook-using staff have admin access (myself included)

Facebook - Pascal Rioult

2,328 friends Likes 358 pages

2008 daily Shares all posts from RIOULT company facebook page, amplifying the reach.

Marketing Mgr.

Twitter 442 followers Following 192

2009 monthly Audience comments, online press, updates & reminders

Marketing Mgr.

YouTube 140 subscribers 72,378 total views

2008 regularly More frequent use for private video listing for grants and presenters, promo videos and repertory excerpts uploaded once edited.

Marketing Mgr.

Instagram 314 followers Following 36

2013 1x/month Images (Season promotion, in-studio)

Marketing Mgr.

LinkedIn 203 Followers 26 Connections

2014 4x/year Not very active use; ensures RIOULT has a company page

Marketing Mgr.

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Strategy Importance: RIOULT's social media marketing is improving, but it is definitely behind the curve. This is in part due to late acceptance of social media as an active tool and also the fact that only one staff member charged with the duty of maintaining the company's online presence amongst a full job description encompassing all marketing activities. Because there is no direct focus on social media as an independent campaign device, RIOULT's ticket sales and attendance figures have yet to be greatly impacted by social media. What has been a benefit, however, is RIOULT's increased presence, at least helping to widen the company's institutional branding. While this is a marketing goal for RIOULT, the company cannot plateau here and needs to translate that visibility into those ticket sales.

Recommendations

Change the organizational attitude; appreciate social media as an its own, capable marketing tool. For instance, typical discounts offered correlate with those sent out in e-blasts; rarely are special facebook or twitter discounts offered.

Use social media as a two-way platform. Currently RIOULT posts, shares, and updates but its social media content is largely informational; fans and followers need to be invited into the conversation, offered points of digital engagement, and feel as though they are being heard by RIOULT.

Expand company-wide use. All dancers and staff, as RIOULT employees, should be encouraged to more actively assist in company promotion online. The Chairman's Council and Board should be requested to do the same as well as their social media networks could presumably introduce a new sector of networks.

Ensure social media use is not reserved for solely facebook. While facebook is the company's most active social media site, there is no reason why content should not be shared across other platforms to reach their audiences - a posted photo can be connected to Instagram, an added YouTube video can offer a sneak peak to twitter followers, etc.

Increase staff support. If social media remains one "task" on a long list of important marketing responsibilities , it will not have the proper dedication to thrive. To counter this problem in a cost-effective way, a social media intern can be brought on to offer fresh insight and suggestions to revamp efforts.

Welcome other social media sites into the social media campaign.

o Vine - video sharing site. RIOULT has plenty of video footage that could be shared in a fun, fresh way on this site. From little performance clips, to rehearsals, teaching kids, silly occurrences while on tour, etc., the potential for vine content is there and could give the company more personality for its social media fans to experience. Because vine videos can be integrated into twitter and on websites, RIOULT could easily correlate content between all three mediums.

o Google+ - digital networking site. Introducing RIOULT to Google Plus would allow for relationship building and benefits between other organizations/individuals via its promotion and sharing capabilities. Comments and hashtag use are also integral to content posted, creating an opportunity for feedback and organization. Not only is this an effective way to connect with potential audiences, it would be extremely beneficial for RIOULT internally - data and documents could be shared remotely and Google hangouts mean easy video conference, etc.

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Figure 1: Facebook Page Impact Overview (9/30/2014-10/06/14)

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Figure 2: Facebook Fans Demographic Snapshot

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PRESS RELEASE CAMPAIGN

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 7, 2014 Press Contact: Jenny Thompson, 212-555-1111, jenny.thompson@uky.edu Photos available upon request.

RIOULT Dance NY Announces First Cabaret-Style New York Season

May 13-16, 2015

NEW YORK, NY - RIOULT Dance NY, a leading American modern dance company with a classic sensibility, celebrates its 2015 New York Season in a new format, at a new venue, offering its audiences an entirely new look at modern dance. RIOULT invites audiences to travel uptown to the edgy 42 West in The OUT NYC Hotel (514 W. 42nd St.) to enjoy dinner, drinks, and the world premiere of Rioult's Piaf Suite, set to the music of Edith Piaf. Completing the cabaret-inspired experience, performances will feature musicians from Manhattan School of Music and the outstanding vocals of Martha Wainwright. Performances will occur May 13-16, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.; tickets start at $25 and are available at Ticket Central or via 212-555-5555.

Noted by The Huffington Post as “captivating” and “intensely musical,” RIOULT will bring audiences the increasingly rare occurrence of dance to live music in the evening-length performance of Piaf Suite. The cabaret setting makes for a "night out on the town," in true NYC fashion. The dance - to occur around, before, and behind the table-seated audience - will be interspersed with vocal interludes, chronicling the life of France's widely regarded singer.

For the last 20 years RIOULT has graced many of the city's notable proscenium stages; this year's exciting Season performance at 42 West is not to miss. In addition, RIOULT's 2015 Gala will take place on Wed., May 13. For more information and tickets, call 212-555-1111 or email gala@rioult.org.

***** RIOULT Dance NY: Founded in 1994, RIOULT fast became an established name in modern dance with a reputation for bringing the sensual, articulate, and musical dance works of Pascal Rioult to audiences worldwide. The 12-dancer company, based in NYC, is led Choreographer Pascal Rioult and Associate Artistic Director Joyce Herring, both former principal dancers for Martha Graham. With an established repertoire of over 40 dances that expands each year, RIOULT presents an annual New York Season and tours internationally. In addition, in-school its year-round arts education and community outreach are integral to the company's mission, introducing students and families to the art of modern dance. www.rioult.org

Basil Childers

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Supporters of RIOULT Dance NY's 2015 NY Season include: Shana Alexander Charitable Foundation; The Atlantic Philanthropies Employee Designated Gift Fund; Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation; Exploring the Arts; Fund for New Works, a Kenneth French Legacy; Gordon & Harriet Greenfield Foundation; The Geoffrey C. Hughes Foundation; Harkness Foundation for Dance; Jana Foundation; Kendall-Parker Associates LLC; LaGuardia Performing Arts Center; National Endowment for the Arts; New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo & the New York State Legislature; The Shubert Foundation; Sidley Austin LLP; and TAG Creative.

42 West: A new 14,000 square foot multimedia, multipurpose events and performance space, 42 West is adjacent to The OUT NYC and KTCHN Restaurant located at 514 W. 42nd Street. The venue comes equipped with a state of the art sound and lighting system that can be used for private and corporate events, live musical performances, screenings, gallery exhibits, off-Broadway theatrical productions, dance, and cabaret. www.42westny.com Manhattan School of Music: MSM is deeply committed to excellence in education, performance, and creative activity; to the humanity of the School’s environment; and to the cultural enrichment of the larger community. A premiere international conservatory, MSM empowers highly talented students to realize their potential. We take full advantage of NYC’s abundant learning and performance opportunities, preparing our students as performers, composers and teachers, and imaginative, effective contributors to the arts and society. www.msmnyc.edu

Pascal Rioult: A former track and field athlete in France, Mr. Rioult came to the U.S. on a fellowship from the French Ministry of Culture to study modern dance in 1981, performing with the companies of May O’Donnell and Paul Sanasardo. After being invited to join the Martha Graham Dance Company, he interpreted many of her repertory's most prestigious roles as a principal dancer, and in 1990, Ms. Graham created the central role (Death Figure) in her ballet "Eye of the Goddess" for him. Mr. Rioult performed opposite Mikhail Baryshnikov and Joyce Herring in "El Penitente" and was featured in two television specials filmed at the Paris Opera. Since starting his own company, RIOULT Dance NY in 1994, Mr. Rioult has dedicated his energies to developing his own choreographic style and nurturing a robust ensemble of dancers. Of his work, Black Diamond, Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times wrote, “…he has met the challenge of comparison with George Balanchine.”

Martha Wainwright: Born in Montreal to parents of Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, Martha Wainwright was engulfed in a sea of music from childbirth. After studying drama at Montreal's Concordia University she began composing her own material and performing in clubs and coffeehouses around Montreal. In 1997, she debuted with a cassette entitled "Ground Floor." She also began touring with her brother Rufus Wainwright as a backing vocalist and musician. Moving to New York, Wainwright took part in a stage musical called Largo, released a self-titled EP, and then a four-song EP, "Factory" in 2002. In Feb. 2005, Wainwright released another EP, followed by the eponymous "Martha" in April ; her second full-length effort arrived in spring 2008. A year later, Wainwright released "Sans Fusils, Ni Souliers, A Paris," a 15-song collection of live Edith Piaf covers. In 2012, Wainwright returned with her third studio-album, Come Home to Mama, produced by Cibo Matto's Yuka Honda and featuring guest artists Wilco guitarist Nels Cline and Dirty Three drummer Jim White.

RIOULT Dance NY 2015 New York Season A cabaret evening presenting the world premiere of Pascal Rioult's "Piaf Suite" with live music. May 13-16, 2015, daily at 7:30 p.m. 42 West: 514 W. 42nd St. (b/w 10th & 11th Ave.), NYC Tickets start at $25 ($50 on May 13 Gala night): Ticket Central: 212-555-5555, www.ticketcentral.com

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Strategy: Press releases and press kits are essential in communicating the most notable information to the press - and then, hopefully, the public - in a clear, compelling, and professional manner. While press kits should present a wealth of information about the organization and/or a specific show or event, press releases are time sensitive. Their advance disbursement to press lists increases the chances of coverage, and keeps the company's name visible. Design: The above press release announces RIOULT's upcoming NY Season, featuring a new work, a new venue, and a call for new audiences. Key facts are noted right away in the first paragraph, with details bolded to draw further attention. Following the three paragraph release, answering the who, what, where, when, why, and how, helpful information. For this release company, artist, collaborator, and venue bios are included, as is a small snapshot of the performance information. While some may not need or bother to use this information, it provides convenience for those press interested in more detail.

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PERSONAL SELLING CAMPAIGN

Strategy Importance: The integration of formal personal selling techniques will broaden RIOULT's local reputation and interaction within the arts community. This is crucial to remain relevant and will feed the marketing goal of expanding institutional branding as its plans to organizationally expand unfold. Once it secures its own studio space, RIOULT will need a much larger base of people willing to support it, participate, and even work for it. This personal selling exposure will additionally create positive word of mouth and may increase ticket sales to its NYC performances and annual season. Recommendations

Speeches o RIOULT Annual Gala Benefit: this

speech about the company is heard by its high level donors and their networks. Identify a unique RIOULT-related individual to contribute to or give this speech each year with a specific angle (rather than solely generic).

o Pascal Rioult's Participation in Arts Community: Coordinate Rioult's participation as a guest speaker on one Dance/NYC panel discussion a year and at one APAP conference seminar.

o Staff-Wide Effort: Ensure every RIOULT staff member and dancer has a business card to share as they meet others within the field and serve as a "face" for RIOULT- i.e. while attending workshops, volunteering for another arts organization, taking a dance class.

Volunteering o Ticket Donations: set a ticket donation goal for RIOULT's NY Season and actively offer these free

tickets to local auctions, school raffles, fundraisers, etc. o Volunteer for Others: select at least one good-cause for RIOULT to participate in as an

organization (dancers, staff, Board) annually. i.e. the AIDS Walk New York. o Cultivate RIOULT's Volunteers: treat internal volunteers as part of the RIOULT family, offer an

annual special gathering, when possible offer more project ownership or experience they desire to have to help meet their personal goals, offer special volunteer "perks" after or as part of their assistance.

Incentive Program o Fund for New Works: this exclusive group of high level donors who support the creation of

Pascal Rioult's new dance works should receive at least one special incentive event a year to cultivate their pledges and even encourage increased pledges. A unique in-studio dinner event with a sneak preview of the newest dance work could be an option or a cocktail reception where these donors may meet and mingle with RIOULT's dancers, choreographer and any other collaborators involved in the new work, etc.

Chris George

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CRISIS PLAN CAMPAIGN

Description: To be properly prepared for any of the below, hypothesized crises, RIOULT needs to have a written and accessible crisis plan in place. Flexibility and a willingness to change will be key for the 21-year-old organization fighting to maintain competitive status and a positive reputation. One face of the organization should be determined to keep role responsibilities, not to mention the messages, consistent. This person (most likely the Executive Director) will be the first contacted in the event a crisis hits, a potential crisis seems inevitable, or controversy of any kind ensues. In reality, the following potential crises should be acknowledged and worked against on an ongoing basis to prevent their occurrence. For instance, efforts (fair salaries/raises, credit and appreciation given when due, etc.) can be made to encourage employee retention long-term. Or, a strategic plan may outline more than one route for a long-term goal with plans A, B, and C so that there are fallback options in place should unforeseeable events occur. A third example is catering program offerings to the new neighborhood the company anticipates moving to in order to develop a following, community ties, and brand awareness in advance of the move. Not taking the time to make these efforts on an ongoing, preparatory basis will make the turnaround from any crisis all the more difficult to bounce back from. Potential Crises & Recommendations

Organizational struggle while juggling operations, a capital campaign, and organizational restructuring. To handle this, the organization will need to welcome outside input (consultants, new staff, new leadership, etc.) and be 100% transparent about the issues faced and the plans to rectify them to regain organizational camaraderie and strength. Here, openness and asking for assistance in a respectful "help us help ourselves" kind of way can not only guide the organization back to health, but may increase its public image as an organization willing to change and acknowledge its areas in need of improvement.

Increased dancer/staff/Board turnover. This is inevitable potential for any organization, but certainly becomes an increasing threat as large organizational changes are taking place - such as RIOULT's Studio Project. If this occurs, it should be viewed and publicly spun as an opportunity to welcome the new - fresh ideas, new practices and skill sets, and a promise for an exciting future.

Lacking student base in the newly opened studio to earn necessary earned income. Get creative! Step outside the norm of what "other" dance studios do and offer innovative ways for kids to engage with dance, take a trial class, or earn financial benefits by bringing a friend. Risks should be taken to improve the programming and interest in it, rather than simply looking to continue the same efforts and seeking funding to subsidize the gap - this won't work long-term.

Relocation for new studio means a new community demographic to be cultivated from the ground up. The whole organization from staff to volunteers to Board members to dancers should be out walking, talking, and visiting the local community. The marketing budget may need an emergency boost to allow for timely, necessary advertisements and promotional opportunities that will speak to that community. Meanwhile, incorporate creative and free ways to get RIOULT's former audience out to a new borough to engage with RIOULT and the growing new patron base.

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Loss of remaining, large institutional funders for operational support. Focus should be immediately placed on diversification of contributed income. Individuals, crowd funding, or potential partnerships with other organizations are varied ways to supplement and even grow the contributed income base, lessening the blow of this crisis. The cutting of programming should be avoided as the organization exists for this very reason. The use of the press to assist in publicizing the organization's current need could help build new donors or discover new funders

Public controversy or bad publicity instigated by external factors/individuals. A public response on the organization's behalf should be quick, professional, and transparent. In addition, a private conversation may be necessary to smooth the waters. All affiliated with the organization should be made aware of the organization's response and public assertion about the issue at hand so there is a united front in place.

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ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES CAMPAIGN

TYPE FRQUENCY EXPOSURE SALES

Sales Promotions E-blast discount offers (2 for 1,

10%, 15%, 25% off) 1x/month, 6 months prior

to NY Season 6,826 subscribers

FY14 300 tickets - $11,898

Social Media Only discounts 2x prior to NY Season

3,711 friends & followers total

FY14 Average 3 clicks - 3 discounted tickets?

Contact info to enter raffle to win 2 free tickets

1x/year at local studio 500 dancers indirectly,

2 directly $0

Free ticket for volunteers offered year-round, dependent on # of

volunteers 10 volunteers $0

Donate pair of tickets to local auctions

Approx. 4-5 dependent on # of solicitations

3,000 people indirectly, 10 directly

$0

Group Sales Solicited 1x/year with one

follow up 137 groups FY14 69 tickets - $2,251

Collaborations Composer Collaborations

(commission new music for a new dance)

3x in RIOULT history (2011-2013)

Brings in music audience, some cross-

genre marketing

No tracking (eligible for 3-grants for this purpose

- $40,000 in FY13)

Orchestra/Musician Collaborations

1x/year on tour or locally

Brings in music audience, engages local

musicians in the community

No tracking (eligible for 1 grant for this purpose -

$6,000 in FY13)

Sponsorships Corporate sponsorships for NY

Season and Gala 4 requests/yr - 0% success

rate in last 5 years 0 $0

Affinity Marketing

NYC Dance PR Agent Contracted year-round FY14 - 3 listings, 9

previews, 7 reviews $0

Email List Shares (with local dance companies & venues)

12 promotions for other orgs in RIOULT e-blasts year-round & vice versa

12 organization's full email lists (close to

100,000 patrons total) No tracking

Viral Marketing None N/A N/A $0

Traditional Guerilla Tactics NY Season Postcards Mailed 1x/year 10,000 patrons No tracking

Kids Classes & Camp Fliers Distributed 3x/year 50 local dance studios,

family organizations

FY14 - 15-20 students/program -

$18,000

Intensive Posters Mailed 2x/year 200 universities with

dance programs nationwide

FY14 - 48 university dance students some full

tuition, many offered scholarships - $15,250

Unconventional Guerilla Tactics None N/A N/A $0

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Strategy Importance: RIOULT will greatly benefit from embracing the new, more creative, and technology-based modes of marketing to expand its alternative strategies. Not only is this necessary to reach new audiences, but will also keep the company up to date in its efforts in comparison to its competition (especially locally) who have already embraced such strategies. Currently the company's marketing focus is on sales promotion offerings for its annual NY Seasons. Sales-wise these promotions lead to extra earned income and others help expand the company's branding. Though more outdated, RIOULT's traditional guerilla marketing tactics (posters, fliers, postcards) continue to do a reliable job of promotion to its current audience base. It's lack of success in obtaining sponsorships and inconsistency in its collaborations are weak areas that could be improved, as is the tracking of different techniques' success rates in terms of sales, clicks, or numbers reached. The implementation of the below recommendations can help take RIOULT's marketing efforts and visibility to the next level. In a world where the new and the immediate and the digital are put on a pedestal, the company can and should find creative ways to promote its preservation of tradition and the real-life experience. Increased collaboration, broader sponsorship approach, and new affinity marketing strategies will be cost effective and present new avenues to introduce the company to other, related, and new audiences. RIOULT's first steps towards viral and unconventional guerilla marketing will position the company in a fresh, contemporary light, perhaps making some appreciate it in a new way while engaging others (most likely younger) who have never heard of RIOULT nor would have looked twice at a traditional ad. These outcomes will grow RIOULT's audience base and up its institutional branding locally. Recommendations

Collaborate more! Whether in RIOULT programming or its marketing or performances, RIOULT's collaborative efforts remain finite and incredibly intermittent despite the large, new audiences reached each time and branding benefits from audience crossover.

o There are venues in the city with whom RIOULT could collaborate (like it did with CUNY during its five borough tour) as well as other dance or art organizations.

o Recent collaborations with composers and musicians could be capitalized on with future engagements to maintain the relationship and new audiences reached.

Create new sponsorship opportunities. As the NY Season is the focus of much of RIOULT's marketing and sponsorships have been nonexistent in recent years, the company should explore ways to gain sponsors for other offerings.

o Perhaps sponsors (individuals and institutions)would be more interested in RIOULT's in-school DanceREACH program, scholarships for children to take dance classes or pre-professionals to train at RIOULT's intensives, or our international tours.

Embrace other affinity marketing options. This is a great area for RIOULT to be more creative. With dozens of dance companies throughout NYC, there could be a multitude of ways for RIOULT to join with a few others as a group and tap into the niche local dance audience, while also sharing their audience with others.

o One example could be a purchased membership card that awards the audience member attendance at any one performance of each company involved each year.

o Secondly, the companies could join together to present a festival of dance - sharing expenses and box office - to attract a greater audience over a longer period of time.

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Integrate viral marketing. As RIOULT's social media marketing efforts expand, and following the launch of its new user-friendly website, the company is well-positioned to try a viral marketing campaign.

o It could be something as simple as a link ("Click here to enter the 2015 raffle to see the stellar RIOULT Dance NY with up to 9 of your friends for free!") that requests an email address with the option to include your friend's email addresses to participate. Such a link could be put anywhere and everyone - on social media, the website, in the signature of any @rioult.org emails, etc. The more unique the offer, the more viral-ready it may become.

o In addition there may be great opportunities to involve RIOULT's dancers in viral marketing efforts.

Integrate unconventional guerilla marketing tactics. This calls for RIOULT to think outside the box and do something it has never done before.

o The company could consider a site specific work that is premiered flash mob style in a busy area of NYC with the dancers in RIOULT-logo wear and a section where many join in - the staff, Board, students from the kids programs, and an assortment of volunteer NYC dancers.

o A more random, non-dance route could be taken perhaps in a video ad or commercial emphasizing the company's commitment to the classic as still-relevant and still-fun by making the content contrast tradition and unbelievably ridiculous avant-garde. The content could be focused on daily interactions, decisions, and the people of NYC - making it relatable to the company's local audience - suddenly emerging as an ad for a dance company who still thinks it's ok not to bring X, Y, or Z (crazy, horrifying, and bizarre) to the stage.

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MARKETING CAMPAIGN CONCLUSIONS

RIOULT needs to expand its audience base to increase its patron, donor, and ticket-buying base. This Marketing Strategies & Applications Plan calls for a specific focus on the local community and communication with/for its single ticket buyers and secondary market of arts education participants and family audiences. With these intentions behind each marketing strategy, RIOULT can begin to improve its visibility and engagement within the very community in which it hopes to establish a future dance school. Each campaign effort should be introduced with, or as part of, a more specific, time sensitive, and measurable SMART objective. Something as simple as advertising the company's annual appeal campaign publically and locally, as opposed to restricting communication to solely a finite patron base, can automatically widen the company's visibility. The local focus and additional programming to engage arts education audiences will both promote short and long-term success. Short-term, revenues for local performances and the NY Season will increase as more ticket buyers at different price points join the audience base. Long-term, the influx of RIOULT's secondary markets with its primary market mean a greater support base to rely on once the studio project is underway. There are so many dynamic means for RIOULT to diversify its current marketing campaign, bringing its efforts and results into the 21st century. A large aspect of this comes in further expansion of its social media, email, and alternative strategies by combining creative ideas with digital exposure. The continuation of its already-existing strategies such as press release distribution and notification of its annual appeal can be reinvigorated as well. To broaden marketing efforts beyond the responsibility of the marketing department/staff, the entire organization can and should be informed about crisis plans of action and their important role when it comes to personal selling. New Strategies

Personal Selling: increase the local, positive word-of-mouth.

Crisis Plan: create preparedness and instill organizational accountability.

Alternative Strategies: stray from the traditional marketing realm and use technology and creativity to the company's advantage.

Strategy Expansion

Email Campaign: strive for consistency among message presentation to various audience groups, as opposed to one umbrella email campaign per event/notice.

Advertisements: make versatile ads for various mediums and think outside the box for content.

Social Media: better engage with the online, younger audience.

Press Releases: stress advanced/timely releases that create a sense of urgency and excitement.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

All Things IP. "7 Triggers of Business Crisis." April 30, 2014. http://allthingsip.com/2014/04/30/7-triggers-of- business-crisis-2-is-technology-per-tony-robbins/. Intiman Theatre Festival. "Plays - Events." Accessed December 18, 2014. http://www.intiman.org/plays- events/stu-for-silverton-a-new-musical/. Manhattan School of Music. "Box Office." Accessed December 4, 2014. http://www.msmnyc.edu/ Concertgoer/Box-Office. Montpetit, Christopher. "Marketing Strategies & Applications for Arts Organizations." Course Unit Content, online, Lexington, KY, August 2014. Moving Arts Projects. "About." Accessed December 18, 2014. http://movingartsprojects.org/. The New York Times. "Home." Accessed December 18, 2014. http://www.nytimes.com/. Online Image Arcade. "Examiner Logo." Accessed December 18, 2014. http://imgarcade.com/1/examiner- logo/. RIOULT. "RIOULT Gallery." Accessed December 4, 2014. http://www.rioult.org/gallery/. Thompson, Jenny. "RIOULT Dance New York Market Research Review." AAD 630-201 Final Project, University of Kentucky, 2014.