"How can I sell tickets using Twitter?"

Have you ever heard someone ask: "How can I sell tickets using Twitter?" or "I have a lot of Facebook fans but very few seem to buy tickets to my events. I don't think Facebook works for me."

I have puzzled over such statements; I couldn't understand why anyone would measure these social media platforms by their capacity to achieve direct sales  --- whether of tickets or widgets or gadgets.

In my mind, social media were, well, social.

Social means relationships. Social means conversation - mostly consumer to consumer, but also consumer to brand. Social means mutual respect. Social might mean recommendation. Social can mean someone buys something based - at least in part - on a social network interaction. But it all starts with authentic relationships, it's like being friends in the so-called real world.

Off I went looking for organizations using social media in exemplary ways, especially in the performing arts presenting field. This experiment is part of the Value of Presenting Study we have been working on.

The experiment: Interview by Twitter 
The topic: The use of social media and online technology in your performing arts organization.
The interviewees: Two arts presenters (read the transcripts here: Shell Theatre and the National Arts Centre) who use social media in exemplary ways and an agent who does, too.

Key findings:
1. Social media are about building relationships
2. There are other ways to sell tickets
3. Audiences engaged: mostly the 30 to 55 year-old crowd rather than "young people", even though one interviewees said they find Facebook and txt works with a Students Rush tickets program;
4. Hone your authentic voice
5. Experiment to see what works for your organization

It's fun to experiment with trying to help more people see what the strategic potential of social media in the performing arts presenting sector could be, by doing. In this case, it's not in direct sales measured by revenue, but in building relationships measured by quality of relationships, engagement and championship of the brand. It is not an old-style transactional relationship, but one that is mutually enriching, extends beyond attendance, and requires new, timely interactions. And they are a lot more public.

The importance of voice is a fascinating topic in the concise world of social networks. (As these interviews show, short texts can be extremely good at making clear points and sharing salient information.) Voice is a key brand attribute that requires honing and calibration.

I think the adoption of social media shifts an organization's brand into a new realm. As such, an evaluation  of  what an organization stands for and how it is and behaves in its world (in short an evaluation of market relevance), may well be an essential step toward embracing such contemporary marketing methods.

See my earlier post on Social web strategy for the performing arts.

Economics of fear reloaded

Back in early 2009 I was struck by the incessant credit crisis coverage that had been going on since Lehman's Brothers collapse in 2007, and before then if you had been paying attention to the sub-prime mortgage asset-backed securities issue. I thought it had to have impact on how people would behave in terms of consumption choices.

Economics of Fear and Sustainable buying practices

Now it's late 2011, and we have just come through 5+ years of unending credit crisis, recessions and now debt crisis news coverage.

The coverage of "the markets" - those mysterious beyond-human-beings-making-decisions markets - is like a game show or maybe an endless cricket game, just a lot faster:  like hockey where the spectator never quite "sees" the puck but can infer it from the players motions.

The headlines are unhelpful at best to illuminate the issues - headlines are there to "sell papers", or in online vernacular "secure eyeballs." (It's good to remember the motivations each industry has in its activities.)

Yesterday's news of German Bond Auction not selling out is a prime example of disinformation moving faster than light (Neutrino pun intended): How many in the public who consume headlines know what a bond auction is, how it works and who the usual buyers are? If you read beyond the headlines you might learn a few other facts:

They come from the bottom of a Wall Street Journal article headlined: "German Bond Sale Spurs Worries"

• "Germany had never tried to sell a 10-year bond that paid only 2% interest, and the historically low yields appeared to depress appetite among the traditional circle of buyers."
• "Germany sold 3.644 billion Euros at 1.98% average interest."
• "Germany traditionally auctions bonds, rather than operating a syndicate of primary dealers to place them with investors. The Finanzagentur, the government's issuing agent, then gradually feeds the bonds it doesn't sell into the secondary market. This system means that there is no pressure on banks to bid for the bonds or risk their relationship with the sovereign. Moreover, banks across the Continent are trying to reduce their holdings of sovereign bonds, or at least not take on extra exposure, Mr. Krautzberger said."
• Take a moment to check out the interactive feature in the article that shows how German bond yields have declined recently ...

No doubt it sounds like the Finanzagentur miscalculated and underestimated the political sentiments and headlines that could follow if they did not sell out and the concerns they might raise.

Bringing it home I have two questions for you: How much are the headlines affecting news-spectators decision making about their own debt, credit, income, savings and spending? And what is your organization's strategy to adapt as consumer behaviours keep shifting ever more online/mobile which has shifted traditional power away from brands and toward consumers and the platforms they use?

Strategic move lies at heart of value innovation

In Blue Ocean Strategy W. ChanKim and Renee Mauborgne posit that, "the strategic move, and not the company or the industry, is the right unit of analysis for explaining the creation of blue oceans and sustained high performance." They then define a strategic move as "a set of managerial actions and decisions involved in making a major market-creating business offering."

I have started an exploration in the performing arts on this blog this month. I have begun to contemplate the landscape, or as they say the "strategy canvas",  to learn about the skills, expertise, assets of the performing arts that can be leveraged to create new wide-open spaces for high performance. And to explore what elements might need to be added or increased in order to create a new kind of success.

I see my blog traffic has been increasing, so I invite you to become an active participant in this exploration.: comment, add, improve!

(FD: While I do research, strategy and marketing work for organizations in the performing arts and in other sectors, I do not have a client on this broader aspiration at present. I do believe now, in obviously uncertain times, is the right time to contemplate the big questions.)

In the face of uncertainty what's your strategy?

The economic, financial, political and social pressures playing out the world over (Arab Spring, summer and fall, EU sovereign debt, US Congress debt failure) do not mean we all disappear from the face of the earth any time soon.

These massive disruptions simply have become normal.

You do not need to act globally to feel the effects of uncertainty on your business. This is the time for organizations and individuals to re-evaluate their specific situations and build new contingencies, develop new strategies, uncover opportunities for value innovation. Your capacity to analyze, understand and adapt will shape your outcomes.

This is the time for the kind of iterative 360 degree research and strategy process I use in my practice, and others use in theirs. It is by examining internal and external factors and helping people evaluate various dimensions rigorously that together we can shape a powerful direction forward. More than hope it provides pathways for decisive action, grounded in fact and using built-in measures to recognize when course corrections may be necessary.

A few questions
Are your customers particularly stressed due to the financial market turmoil? Which customer segments are more affected and how?

If you are in the B2B sector, are you aware of your business customers current concerns and how you can enhance their opportunities?

As a for-profit or not-for-profit corporation how are you taking account of changes in your environment, in your customer base, among stakeholders? Have you re-examined the assumptions in your 1-, 3- or 5-year business plans, yet?

Are you part of an industry / a sector that has been struggling already to maintain a resilient customer base? Have you accounted for and created strategic responses to the alternatives challenging your products or services in the market today? Have you examined how your products and services are essential - or hard to replace - to your customers? 

How are you perceived in your community? How have you been managing your brand in order to create value and trust? How are you evaluating your impact on your community? 

How have you responded to the massive changes in consumer behaviour due to the internet and now mobile technology? How have you leveraged the new opportunities that come with online and mobile communications and what are the next opportunities?

These are a few of the questions worth considering. It's in part the impetus for the series of thought pieces I have been sharing on value innovation in the performing arts, a sector I care deeply about. The process is the same no matter the sector.

NAC musicians ‘gave up their clothes for their instruments’

Awesome!

That was the Ottawa Citizen headline on the story about a NAC Orchestra Atlantic tour concert in Charlottetown, PEI. CBC radio covered the story repeatedly through the day, even giving top of the news billing.

I wonder, if the Newfoundland ferry had not broken down, stranding instruments and performance clothes, how many Canadians would have been exposed to the NAC Orchestra even being on tour?

This concert sounded like an awesome experience for an appreciative audience. Looking at the performance images on Facebook of energized, passionate musicians in normal clothes, I can't help but think what a great brand builder this could be: The people's orchestra.

In any case, congratulations to the musicians, administrators and managers who handled this logistics adventure with such aplomb and got the media story of the tour in the process.

Competitive factors: Live Performing Arts

The approach to competition and how we understand competitive factors is key to creating uncontested new market spaces. Conventionally, competition is understood to be within a sector: an airline competes against other airlines, a circus competes against other circuses, a hotel chain against other hotels. Each organization tries to differentiate itself in its market space, to build a recognized brand, to establish a value position that avoids lowest price competition. Competitive benchmarking is done against similar organizations, from tracking market share to share of wallet to brand mapping and intent-to-purchase studies.

Importantly, blue oceans - uncontested market spaces - are not found by benchmarking inside that competitive set.

Rather, they are about a leap in value for the customer and the organization. Value innovation. It's not merely about creating value, often incremental, or about pioneering innovation, often on the bleeding edge where others may well reap the greatest rewards. It is a differently grounded strategic mindset that aligns innovation and value.

Competitive factors for the performing arts
Imagine: You are a not-for-profit venue with a 250-seat theatre in Toronto that presents new work and existing work in new ways. How about if you are a commercial 1,200-seat theatre with long runs of well-known shows? Does one compete against the other in a meaningful way?

Imagine: You rent a community hall in rural Saskatchewan and present music acts a few times a year. Or you are an independent (no label behind you) musician with your tracks for sale online, an active YouTube and/or Vimeo channel and you are working the house concert and club circuit to build your fan base? Where does your competition come from?

I've heard references to there being a  "market glut" in the performing arts in Canada. No doubt, there are a lot more theatres, companies and artists making a living - or some of their living - by creating, producing and presenting performing arts. Yet, as long as attendance at performing arts events remains the top indicator for future attendance, I propose that this sector is not a zero sum industry where the ticket purchase is simply shifted from one theatre or one performer to another.

Rather, I propose that many significant competitive factors come from outside the performing arts sector where people can reap similar benefits through a wide variety of activities. Here is a thought piece that considers some of these competitors:

Outside COMPETITORS	Benefits for customer	Performing arts corresponding offer to customers
Movie theatres	Great stories, star-powered, escape to the movies, big sound, big screen, pop culture, celebrity culture	Great stories, live action, connections with live stars, star power, be an insider, behind the scenes, participate in creating the experience
Home entertainment	High quality in comfort of your own home and sound system. Anytime entertainment and discovery.	Live action, social connection, common experience, participation, discover new worlds and ideas
Museums	Hands-on discovery and exploration. We bring the world to you. Learn about who you are and where you come from.	“Times and Life”: Discover your world anew through music; soundscapes of our history, tell stories about who we are and what makes us so
Professional sports	Action, tribal connection, heroes, victory, competition	Get the inside track on peak performance. Access to artists. Backstage tours. Process of creating winning performances. Community connection.
Spas	Pamper yourself. Wellness, stress reduction, spiritual connection, body connection	Come home to the Symphony. Escape to the Symphony. Refresh your mind, body and spirit at your Symphony.
Cosmetic treatment	Improve self-image, de-stress, personal fulfillment, anti-aging	Come as you are – and be changed forever by the music, the show, the experience.
Restaurants	Friends. Food. Social. In crowd.	Socialize. Social capital. See and be seen. Entertain your friends at the symphony. Community making. Mix food, drink and entertainment
Video games, Xbox, PS, Wii	Participate. Action. Play. Social. Relax.	Feel it live. Real-world magic. Participatory arts experiences. Community building.

By no means is this table complete or even "correct". It simply hopes to spark different ways to consider competition.

Today, we also have to content with the fact that a common answer to "if you had a free evening tonight what would you do" has become "sleep."