The basics of "customer service" include patience, attentiveness, knowledge, responsiveness, and consistency. So, here's a simply beautiful example of one company's practice that far exceeds those basics - courtesy of a friend who discovered this letter in her hotel room at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, DC: Hello my name is Lichi & I am your room Stylist (A.K.A. Housekeeper). While you are here in Washington, D.C., I hope you get … [Read more...]
What have you LEARNED from 2017?
No doubt you have worked hard. You have challenged your creativity, stretched every penny, and exhausted every option. Good job! So, in these last two weeks of this year, how about taking a moment to ask yourself: "What have I, and what has our organization, learned from this year? What will we do differently in 2018, as a result." To start the new year on the right foot, here's a little holiday gift you can give yourself right now: … [Read more...]
Assessment, Resilience & Consensus
Happy New (Fiscal) Year to those who celebrate! So, how will you work differently going forward? Here are 3 questions to help you get started: What have you learned from the year just concluded? An exercise: draw a line down the center of a single sheet of paper and headline one column "What Went Wrong" and the other "What Went Right." Start writing and don't stop until you have a total of (at least) 50 items from the season … [Read more...]
On “Artivism” – a conversation with Amy Hunter
I met Amy Hunter in St. Louis in October 2014, less than 3 months after the shooting of Michael Brown in nearby Ferguson. At the time, she served as Director of Racial Justice for the YWCA of Metro St. Louis. Today, she serves Children’s Hospital in St. Louis Missouri as the Manager of Diversity and Inclusion. The St. Louis Regional Arts Council paired us to lead a frank conversation among leaders of the region’s major arts & cultural … [Read more...]
SWOT + What?
The SWOT analysis is a well-known and highly valuable tool for strategic planning. Strengths - What do we do better than others? Weaknesses - What could we improve (or what should we avoid)? Opportunities - What new ideas deserve to be explored? Threats - What challenges may interfere with our plans? To understand what's "internal" to our organizations, we study the assessment of our own strengths & weaknesses. The … [Read more...]
75 Days to Decide: Is Your Organization Part of the Solution – or Part of the Problem
In her Jumper blog, Diane Ragsdale delivers a stirring message for the dawn of the Trump Presidential era that deserves to be shared and contemplated with the staff, management and Board of every arts & cultural organization: "...those working in nonprofit professional cultural organizations across the US—we in the so-called Creative Class—are, without a doubt, among those who did not understand our country, its culture, or its values. If we … [Read more...]
Nominations for Audience Development Innovation
No Good Deed Goes UNPUBLISHED. That's my motto - and why I ask: Have you seen an example of an arts organization doing something REMARKABLE in the pursuit of audience development - something especially CREATIVE, AMBITIOUS and/or EFFECTIVE? If so, would you jot me a quick note and tell me about it? Reach me at: MLehrman@audienceavenue.com. A new year demands NEW examples and FRESH perspectives. No need to write a long & … [Read more...]
Chatting with Playwright Rich Orloff… on Relevance.
What is the value of relevance? As an arts marketer, I believe that relevance is the mandatory price of admission to an audience's attention. That which is irrelevant is routinely ignored or discarded. And for artists and arts organizations, relevance is the essential fuel of viability - the spark that ignites recognition, appreciation, attendance, support, discussion and opportunities for advancement. Nobody aspires to irrelevance. But … [Read more...]
How Relevant is My Arts Organization? Take this Self-Test!
Arts administrators worry. We worry about cash flow. We worry about achieving and sustaining consensus. We worry about attracting and retaining quality staff team. We worry about logistics. We worry about outstanding grant applications and whether last year's donors will continue their support this year. We worry about deadlines and opening nights. We worry about why ticket sales are underperforming budget expectations. We worry about … [Read more...]
A Small Detail, A Big Idea & Why You Should Care
Let's marvel at a small detail that reveals a big idea... Here's the opening sentence of a just-received press release from the City of Mesa (AZ)... Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SC, “Santander Consumer USA”), a consumer finance company focused on vehicle finance, third-party servicing and delivering superior service to more than 2.5 million customers across the full credit spectrum, announced it will expand its operations to … [Read more...]