{"id":4263,"date":"2015-10-28T02:00:47","date_gmt":"2015-10-28T06:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/?p=4263"},"modified":"2015-10-26T09:07:49","modified_gmt":"2015-10-26T13:07:49","slug":"making-my-peace-with-sales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/engage\/2015\/10\/making-my-peace-with-sales\/","title":{"rendered":"Making My Peace with Sales"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"CashRegister\"<\/dt>\n
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This is part of a series of blog posts in conjunction with TRG Arts on the interrelationships among marketing, development, fundraising, and community engagement. (Cross-post can be found at Analysis from TRG Arts<\/a>.) The point of the series is that they are all rooted in relationship building and maintenance.<\/em><\/p>\n

Nearly four years ago, shortly after I started Engaging Matters, I published a post (What Is Arts Marketing?<\/a>) in which I outlined a conceptual framework for nonprofit marketing in the arts. While I stand by much of it, it implies a dismissiveness about sales for which I repent. I was too concerned about the potential for a focus on sales to trump nonprofit missions. That\u2019s not the fault of sales; it\u2019s the fault of execution. For many arts organizations, ticket sales\u2013even though they do not cover costs\u2013are vital to sustainability. As part of my atonement, let me reset and attempt a more nuanced definition and placement of sales in the nonprofit arts context.<\/p>\n

A sale is (or should be!) an uncoerced exchange of value between two parties. In the for-profit world, this is some product or service for money. In the nonprofit world, where products or services are often provided without cost, there is no money exchanged at the \u201cpoint of sale.\u201d Third party payers provide the required funds. However, in all cases, another resource is<\/em> exchanged: time. The consumer exchanges her or his time in order to gain access to and receive the service. This awareness is somewhat more relevant in the nonprofit world beyond the arts but does<\/em> apply to free performances and exhibitions. The \u201csales\u201d message needs to convey the value in exchanging that time for what is offered. It must also make a compelling case for paying the opportunity cost: what else<\/em> might the person be doing with that time instead? For pay or not, one sales metric in the arts is \u201cbutts in seats\u201d\/\u201deyes on walls.\u201d When tickets are being sold, the other is, yes, sales revenue.<\/p>\n

So sales, whether body part count or revenue, is important in our field and is the<\/em> essential metric of marketing. Understanding of the exchange nature of sales, especially the exchange of time for product, helps illuminate why marketing messaging, instead of focus on the greatness of the arts organization or its personnel, needs to focus on the satisfaction (my economist friends can insert \u201cutility\u201d there) provided. The case must be made for why someone should choose the arts experience over other options. To do so, we must know\u2013really know\u2013who we are trying to reach. In essence, that means having a relationship with them that can inform our messages.<\/strong> But the details of \u201chow\u201d are far better addressed by others who have experience in doing so.<\/p>\n<\/dt>\n

Engage!<\/dt>\n
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Doug<\/dt>\n
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Photo:\"Attribution\"\"Share<\/a><\/span> Some rights reserved<\/a> by nikoretro<\/a><\/dt>\n<\/dl>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The case must be made for why someone should choose the arts experience over other options. To do so, we must have a relationship with them that can inform our messages. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4262,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Making My Peace with Sales\u2013Selling is rooted in 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