Today is the first business day of 2011. I hope you took some time today (or scheduled for this week) to evaluate your 2010.
I took time today to process the year 2010 for Audience Development Specialists. Now entering my fourth year of business, I am proud of what has been accomplished. When all the components of audience development are in place, the increase of 30-50% in audience and monetary support has been established.
Of course, there is always room for improvement. I have learned a great deal about myself and the current state of the arts world. With these lessons, I am delighted to announce the new direction for Audience Development Specialists.
I firmly believe in audience development and how well it works. In order to bring this message to as many arts people as possible, ADS is changing focus. We will be striving to build an educational, product and project based outlet to help build audiences for artists and arts organizations in general.
So, what does this really mean? This means that there will be more opportunities to learn about audience development and to help more arts people learn to apply audience development. The ADS website will be updated to reflect the new services, products and projects as they come. We are using 2011 as the designing and beginning implementation year. There will be new partnerships and collaborations too!
The main reason for these changes:
“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.” We at ADS want to spread the word about audience development in a way that will be easy for you to understand and for you to implement. Audience development is not about one person doing the work for you, it is about building a team to do the work together. The only way a team will function properly is if everyone on board is knowledgeable about audience development.
Another reason for this change, a more personal reason, is the fact that I enjoy teaching people about audience development. I enjoy seeing people light up with ideas after presenting a workshop, and I love when someone takes the ideas presented and runs with them. The success stories I have heard over the year are heart warming for me. The only way I can exponentially increase these types of successes is to spread the message farther and wider than before.
I have scribbled out my ambitious list for 2011. Have you made your 2011 list? I’m looking forward for each idea, product, project and moment to unfold!
Cheers to happy and loyal audiences,
Shoshana
Shoshana Fanizza
Audience Development Specialists
https://www.buildmyaudience.com
“Never treat your audience as customers, always as partners.”
~James Stewart
Workshops are available!
Does your arts organization or artists group need some new energy? Our workshops can generate enthusiasm for audience development.
Contact us for more information!
Hourly Phone Sessions – Do you have a question about audience development or need feedback or advice on a project or challenge? ADS can help!
Donate to the Audience Development Specialists Grant Fund!
YouTube Gallery – Do you have an amazing way you use YouTube to promote your art? Let ADS know, and you might see your YouTube highlighted on our new gallery!
