Until recently, Martin Barden was dealing with memberships and loyalty programs at the Tate in London. In the past 10 years he has successfully developed various membership programs. At the congress he will tell us about the steps to a successful way to bind our audiences as theater company or orchestra. To be successful in developing an art membership program, you need to slow down and listen. Most important of all, you have to focus on the individual, not the institution, says Martin Barden. www.congrespodiumkunsten.nl
18. Autumn 2011
8
6
5
1
2 3
7
4
HIGH Likelihood to lapse LOW
19. Retention: before and after
Retention by month
100.0
95.0
90.0
2009
%
85.0
2010
80.0
75.0
70.0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2009 83.0 85.6 83.8 88.0 85.4 84.0 86.4 86.8 84.4 79.8 84.4 74.0
2010 84.2 87.9 86.6 90.5 90.1 91.5 89.6 89.7 90.0 86.9 88.6 79.8
Two areas today1: techniques – some of which may be useful to you – based on visual arts but transferable2: two case studies
Not just this barrierDon’t build your offer around your institution. Build it around your customers.This chap does tickets, this one gives out information, this one is membersTurn it inside out.Could we do without those barriers?Stop and think
People who come to art galleries and museums have already said ‘yes’ and are wanting to have a good time.They don’t want to be angry. So help them to be happy.Where do you want to go today?Build on that open opportunity, develop a relationship
Is Membership what your organisation actually needs, is it what your customers want? A sense of participation, belonging, being a stake-holder and advocate, competitive advantage, convenience and economic sense do. EG: football clubOpens up channels so that your members will spend more than they would have done if they’d not been membersThat subscription money is already spent.A Mailing list, priority booking and discounts don’t make a membership schemeIf it’s benevolence…
If your membership is actually about fundraising, then call it a supporters’ circle and get on with fundraising. It’s a very different motivation and requires different approaches and stewardship.The two can combine later on, which I will come back to A successful membership scheme acts as a way to get past a paywall
GET THE OFFER RIGHTThe scheme must contain an attractive offer. It needs to be benefit-led. What do people get at Tate? 20 seconds at the CD booth in HMV.Firstly it’s to develop a core audience and get people back your venue- secondly it is to make money – 0.5m to 6m - , and thirdly to build a group of advocatesDon’t put too much into the scheme.
A LEAFLET WON’T SELL YOUR PRODUCT. PEOPLE WILL. ALL CHANNELS MUST BE ALIGNED –web, phones, on-siteIt’s all about POINT OF SALE. Not just a process. Chanelled ticketing and membership into the same place.Marketing is only effective when backed up with selling. You need active engagement.
ASK – the British are generally rubbish at asking – we think it’s AmericanIt works both ways – better for customer, better for organisation
Identity and qualityService – stick of rock, veins that run through you – living British artistInternal AdvocacyMeet your brand promise. You need the quality of your service to match your customers’ expectations and to keep them loyal. A premium priced subscription scheme needs premium quality service.Who offers the best customer service? Try to be like them.If you tell your members that they are helping the institution, then tell them how they are helping in reality. Tate buys artworkInternal advocacy is just as important as your marketing and communications.Tate works with a living British artist… Why?
Systems will not create or market your product for you, nor will they recruit and retain the right staff. It’s one of the legs on the table, it’s not the tableBut they are one of the cornerstones of your scheme and on-line can provide a powerful selling tool. Social networking will allow you and your members to develop a community and a sense of dialogue.Systems need to enable easy navigation of your offer, to allow self-service, and to capture data on prospects and actual usage.Start from the principal that your customers need to be able to use your system and that it must work fully on-line, not vice versa.
Getting someone to join is just the START – that’s the easy bitDeliver appropriate and consistent messaging.Replay the benefits back to your customers and to drive visits to the venue/s.Social networking will allow you and your members to develop a community and a sense of dialogue. Replace broadcast with conversation and let go a little. But respond.Understand customer motivation. There are a variety of motivations for your customers. Sell the right thing to the right people.Treat them individually and understand that motivations change over time. Without customer loyalty you will not be able to grow your scheme. 100,000 to 1 Member in terms of comms – one conversation, one dialogueIt is as important not to send out the wrong messages.Establishing the right volume of communication is perhaps the most difficult challenge. How much is enough? Does anyone know here?How much is enough? Does anyone know here?
STEP 10: LTVThis is a step-change approach for many people.If you think about each person who comes into contact with your organisation as having a potential lifetime interest to your institution, you will start to change how you behave. By gathering customer intelligence you can respond to,predict and influence your customers’ behaviour. The financial sector calls it Lifetime Value. LTV.Make sure they have a great experience. They will get more, and you will get more.Also think about the impact of someone who has a bad experience. Customer service is not just there for when things go bad.What happens to your brand when they tell 10 of their friends, unsubscribe from your mailing list, choose another venue instead. How much is that worth?Someone just left Tate Members a large legacy because he had a succession of good experiences over a number of years. What would have happened if we’d not answered the phone?
If you wish tomove the engagement from benefit to philanthropy, you need to find appropriate moments to do that.It needs to be experiential, to resonate. This was targeted at the appropriate people.Culmination of the journey – come to the gallery and say yes – where can we go from there