Think digital marketing can only be harnessed by large ticket selling organizations? Think again!
Capacity Interactive launched a partnership in late 2014 with The Art League, a bustling visual arts organization in Alexandria, Virginia. The Art League wanted to utilize digital marketing campaigns to achieve their annual goal of filling 10,000+ seats in their fine art classes, workshops, and summer camps. These registrations contribute 80% of The Art League’s income each year, so we knew we had our work cut out for us.
Prior to our work together, the organization spent most of its media budgets placing advertisements in regional print publications, trade publications, radio, and online websites/publications. However, by 2015, 85% of all class participants were registering online, which meant the organization was not meeting its constituents where they actually were.
The Art League was poised to embrace a digital revolution.
Our strategy was simple and clear—couple relevant and compelling content with a succinct targeting strategy to maximize every dollar spent. We focused on behavioral targeting, as opposed to contextual targeting to either encourage students to return for another class or register for the first time.
The first Facebook campaign we ran together drove over $10,000 in revenue and a 600% ROI. This was all the evidence The Art League needed to embrace digital marketing to its fullest potential.
Our partnership grew and our work together translated to a 7% increase in class registrations year over year. This was achieved through a commitment to creating compelling content, permission-based lead collection, and smart digital targeting. In fact, our most recent campaign work together drove returns on investment of over 1,300% on each channel that we advertised on.
Visual arts organizations face different challenges than their performing arts cohorts. But for both, relevant and compelling content coupled with a succinct targeting strategy is a recipe for success—whether you’re a small visual arts organization or a large performing arts center.
Photo courtesy of The Art League