Audience development
Is your organisation struggling to attract new visitors? Do you see the same faces at every event that you deliver? Are you wondering how to reach the diverse communities on your doorstep? You're not alone. In a competitive landscape, effective audience development is the lifeblood of any thriving arts and culture organisation.
This guide provides practical, step-by-step advice to help you build a robust audience development strategy. We'll move beyond guesswork, showing you how to use insight and clear planning to forge a genuine connection with the people you want to reach. This is about building lasting relationships that ensure your organisation's relevance and resilience for years to come.
What is an audience development plan?
An audience development plan is a strategic document that outlines how you will grow and diversify the group of people who engage with organisations and/or projects. It’s a roadmap that moves from understanding who you currently reach to identifying who you want to reach and detailing the specific actions you'll take to make this happen.
Step 1: The foundation of your strategy
Before you can look outwards, you must look inwards. A clear understanding of your own organisation is the foundation for any audience development work. Without this, your audience development activity will lack focus and authenticity.
Define your organisational 'why'
What is your core purpose? Why does your organisation exist? What change do you want to see in the world? This is the heart of your brand. A pithy articulation of this should inform every decision your organisation takes, from programming to the welcome visitors receive.
Understand your current audience
Who is currently walking through your doors? It’s time to gather some insight.
Quantitative data: Look at ticket sales, postcode data, website analytics and social media demographics. Make the best use of publicly-available data sets, from local authorities or tourism bodies. Are your visitors local? What is their age range?
Qualitative data: Talk to people. Run short surveys, hold informal focus groups and listen to feedback. What do visitors love? What could be better? What motivates them to try something new?
This top-line audit should reveal not just who you are reaching, but more importantly, who you aren't. This gap is your opportunity.
Step 2: who are you trying to reach? Mapping your future audience
With a clear sense of your identity and current audience, you can now define who you want to engage next. This requires a targeted approach, moving beyond vague notions of "the general public."
Beyond demographics: creating audience personas
Develop detailed profiles of your target audience segments. Give them names and backstories. For example, instead of "millennials," create "Chloe, the 29-year-old graphic designer who lives locally, is looking for unique weekend experiences, and follows cultural influencers on Instagram." This helps you understand audiences’ motivations, barriers and communication preferences.
Community and stakeholder engagement
Effective audience development is often rooted in strong local placemaking. Your future audience is already out there, in community groups, local businesses and schools.
Follow these steps for effective stakeholder engagement:
Map your community: Identify key groups, leaders and organisations in your area. Who are the connectors and influencers? Who do you know already and who do you need to meet?
Listen first: Approach these groups with a desire to learn. What do they want from their local cultural scene? What are the barriers preventing them from visiting you?
Co-create: Explore opportunities for a partnership that can build a relationship with a new audience. Could you co-host an event? Offer a workshop? True connection is built on mutual value, it’s not a one-way transaction.
Build trust: This takes time (and it can be tricky!) Be consistent, reliable and transparent in your approach and why you are reaching out.
Step 3: building the bridge: your action plan for connection
Now you know who you are and who you want to reach. The next step is to create a plan that connects the two. This is where strategy turns into action.
Your action plan should detail the specific tactics you'll use to reach your target personas. This often involves a mix of programming, marketing, and communication.
Programming: Does your offer align with the interests of your target audience? You might need to experiment with new event formats, themes or artists.
Pricing and ticketing: Are your prices a barrier? Could you offer targeted discounts, bundles or a 'pay what you can' scheme?
Marketing and communication: How will you tell your story? Tailor your message and channel to each persona. Chloe the graphic designer might respond to a targeted Instagram ad, while a local community group might be better reached through a printed flyer at a community centre or a face-to-face conversation.
The welcome: What happens when new audiences arrive? Is your venue accessible and welcoming to all? The visitor experience is your most powerful marketing tool.
Step 4: measuring success: evaluation and iteration
Audience development is not a 'set it and forget it' task. It’s a cycle of planning, doing and learning. Robust evaluation is what allows you to refine your approach over time, ensuring your efforts are having the desired impact.
Set clear, measurable goals. Instead of "increase visitor numbers," aim for "increase first-time visitors from our three target postcodes by 15% in the next six months." Track your progress, gather feedback and don't be afraid to adapt your plan of action. This commitment to learning and adaptation requires strong leadership and is a cornerstone of effective change management.