Ideas

Ask CI: Should I Invest in CTV Advertising?

September 19, 2023

Almost all Americans watch television—around 80% on any given day. But the way audiences are watching has changed. Many now tune in to connected TV (CTV), which streams video content via a connected TV device (think smart TVs, Roku, AppleTV, AmazonFire, etc.). This video content is delivered “over the top” (OTT) instead of via a cable or satellite connection, through streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, and Amazon.

Read More >

Ask CI: How Do I Make the Most of Summer Camp Campaigns?

August 8, 2023

Summer is the season of camps—and we don’t just mean the ones with tents! With schools out in your local communities, summer camps are a golden opportunity for arts organizations to inspire and nurture the next generation of artists, musicians, and performers. But in a digital space as crowded as your favorite beach, it’s not always easy to make a splash with your camp-focused digital campaigns. We’ve got you! 

Read More >

How We Helped Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Streamline Its Digital Strategy

July 31, 2023

When you market a large volume of programs and initiatives, it can be tempting to run as many campaigns as possible—the more ads, the better, right?—but that doesn’t necessarily guarantee an equally significant payoff. When it comes to digital advertising, sometimes less is more. 

Intentionality is key, especially for multifaceted arts organizations with small (but mighty) marketing teams. We worked with Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art to streamline their campaign structure, mitigate audience overlap, and reduce their team’s workload, all while maximizing overall impact.

Read More >

Ask CI: Crafting the Perfect Digital Holiday Campaign

June 29, 2023

It's summertime, and you know what that means: arts marketers have visions of Sugar Plum Fairies dancing in their heads. That’s right: now is the time to plan—and, in many cases, start—your holiday programming campaigns. 

Read More >

Ask CI: Measuring Success Without Purchase Tracking

June 7, 2023

When you think about digital marketing campaigns, return on investment (ROI) likely comes to mind. But what happens when you’re running an attendance or membership campaign, and purchases largely don’t take place online? Museums and similar types of cultural institutions often find themselves in this predicament. 

At CI, we’re obsessed with measurement, and that includes even those scenarios that seem unmeasurable. Enter: proxy metrics. A proxy metric is something you can measure that represents or approximates the value of your intended metric when data is limited. Let’s look at how we use proxy metrics to measure campaign performance for the museums we work with.

Read More >

How We Helped San Francisco Opera Reach New Audiences With Cutting-Edge Tactics

April 27, 2023

Audience development is a crucial task for arts organizations. When growing your pool of prospective ticket buyers, thinking outside the box and utilizing innovative digital strategies is essential.

Read More >

How We Helped The Washington Ballet Surpass its Nutcracker Revenue Goals

February 2, 2023

Holiday productions bring in crucial revenue for performing arts organizations, but selling the same show year after year is no easy feat. 

Read More >

Refresh Your Digital Advertising Mix with a YouTube Focus

May 12, 2022

At CI, we’ve long advocated utilizing YouTube advertising if you have the content to support it. Historically, we saw it as an excellent supplement to other channels, driving strong video views and brand awareness, but not many direct conversions.

But lately, we are seeing a shift, with YouTube also driving some stellar ROIs—sometimes even stronger than what we see reported on display and even Facebook—in addition to remaining a reliable tool for awareness.

Whether you’ve been advertising on YouTube for years or have never taken the plunge, now’s a moment to consider if an increased investment in YouTube could help you achieve your marketing goals.

Read More >

Your Digital Strategy Priorities for 2022 and Beyond

March 9, 2022

The past two years have brought turmoil to us as individuals, digital marketers, and arts supporters. Our industry has faced an incredible amount of uncertainty and financial strain, while the happenings of the world around us have taken an emotional toll on our hearts. And yet, we’ve stuck to it. We’ve persevered. Why? Because we know the power of our industry. We know that the arts have the ability to change the way people see the world and their place in it, and that is undeniably worth it.

The arts help us heal from our history, even beyond the past two years. The arts help us remember the importance of connection and regain inspiration amidst the turmoil. The arts make this world a better place. So, we push—the world needs us to.

As we rebuild and reimagine the possibilities of our extraordinary sector, abundance is ripe to think big and beyond what we’ve been able to before, to disrupt the status quo, and to see new potential in our digital strategies.

Read More >
Author





Market Smarter
Boot Camp 2023: Anchored in Impact

In a time of perpetual change, this two-day conference will help you build a holistic foundation to become a stronger arts marketer, leader, and champion for our industry.

Register Now 


Market Smarter
CI to Eye Podcast

From arts leadership to organizational culture, digital marketing deep dives and cutting edge innovation, CI to Eye is your one-stop shop to help you market smarter.

Listen Up


Market Smarter
Social Content Calendar for Arts Marketers

Create content that’s thumb-stopping, relevant, and thoughtful to connect with audiences—all summer long!

Take Me There


Market Smarter
The Performing Arts Ticket Buyer Media Usage Study

Based on a survey of over 17,000 ticket buyers, this report sheds light on the shifting media consumption and buyer behavior of your core audience, with marketing insights to help you turn data into strategy.

Download the Study