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Wed, January 21, 2009
Over the past quarter, we ran a survey online that aimed to dive deeper into theatergoers’ behavior and preferences online. While there is a lot of information we took from the research, I pulled out two specific focuses of the research that I think many of you would find interesting. The first bit of information surrounds social networking and usage by website and age group. In short, is it just younger audiences connecting through social networks and which social network do they actually prefer – MySpace or Facebook? The second bit of information is on text messaging usage by age group. The real issue we were trying to understand here was do older audiences feel comfortable text messaging.
Before I share the data, here are a few important points about the survey. We had a little over 1,250 surveys completed in full. We offered no incentive for those to complete it and it ran across a variety of Broadway show websites along with email lists to past ticket buyers. The surveys were completed in October through December of 2008.
Onward with the information…
Social Networking Usage of Theatergoers
The first bit of research I wanted to share was some information we learned on the social networking front. Social networking, particularly Facebook, is a very hot topic right now and will continue to be over the next year. So, we wanted to dive in and see what actual ticket buyers are doing in the social networking space.
When we asked the 1,250 folks, “Are you part of a social networking website such as MySpace or Facebook?”, 45.3% answered “Yes” while 54.7% said “No.” Interesting, huh? Well, let’s make it a lot more interesting by looking at the age breakdown by usage.
Social Networking Usage by Age
18-24 years old (95.3%)
25-34 years old (71.1%)
35-44 years old (48%)
45-54 years old (30.5%)
55-64 years old (21%)
So, before I continue, let’s keep in mind that these percentages are most likely higher than the ‘average person’ because these people are completing the survey online (meaning they are more online savvy to begin with). With that being said, these numbers pretty much paint a direct correlation by age and usage of social networks. No major surprise to me here – but, the big question you must ask yourself is if the usage percents are high enough to justify you using investing in participating in the social nets in a way that justifies the expense. When I say expense, I mean the time, commitment and actual costs that are required to have a meaningful presence.
Finally, one more bit of research that I think you’ll find interesting on this topic. When asked which social network that they used, a whopping 83.4% said Facebook with MySpace coming in a far second at 37.6%. There was nothing even close after that and we listed at least another ten so-called popular social networking platforms.
Beware of the hype surrounding social networking – it’s the Wild West right now as there are a lot of false promises and, quite frankly, ‘scare tactics’ that your brand needs to be on Facebook. The reality is, your marketing plan and goals will determine that – not hype. Know “the what” you are getting into first and fully understand “the why” before jumping in – I’ve seen it backfire in a bad way if you don’t.
Text Messaging Usage of Theatergoers
You know my stance on mobile marketing, so I couldn’t possibly offer up some research that didn’t include data on mobile marketing. When asked, “Other than making phone calls, which of the following do you use your cell phone for?” take a look at the % of respondents by age that say they use their phone for text messaging.
Text Messaging Usage By Age
18-24 years old (92.3%)
25-34 years old (84.9%)
35-44 years old (81.3%)
45-54 years old (69.5%)
55-64 years old (52.4%)
So, it’s not just kids text messaging. The bigger question here is which mobile marketing concept/application makes the most sense for which age group. I have my hunches here based on campaign performance we’ve been seeing as of late, but want to do more research to try and support those hunches.
I hope you found this helpful. There was a lot of other interesting information we have from the survey which we will be talking about in client meetings over the coming weeks. We will have (what I think will be) even more interesting data to share next quarter as we expand our research efforts. If there are specific issues or research you would like to see from us, please don’t hesitate to send me a note. Your feedback is helpful.
Thu, February 28, 2008
This past month we were involved in the launch of a new program on Broadway aimed to target students with our friends at Columbia University and Telecharge. The idea was simple. Shows want to reach younger audiences. Universities want to offer their students discount access to Broadway shows. Students want access to discount tickets that helps fit their schedules and their budget. They want to be able to buy online and in advance. Well, in this new program all of these stars aligned. Columbia University students can now log on to the school's intranet and have access to order tickets from a range of shows on Broadway.
In just three weeks after a soft launch, approximately 400 tickets were sold to Columbia University students. At first glance, not huge numbers. But, when you consider that this is only for Columbia students and it’s only three weeks old… then, this all of sudden looks great.
Now, imagine a 25% growth in the program over the course of the year and imagine if five more universities join on to the program – we are potentially looking at 1,000+ tickets weekly sold to college students for Broadway shows. Ok, this is ambitious… but the initial sales figures we are seeing makes me believe that this is an achievable goal if we (the industry) want to make it a reality.
This is not a money maker in the short-term for anyone really but long-term, you have to believe it’s building new audiences for both theatre and live entertainment.
I’ll keep you posted over the coming months on the progress of the program. It’s just so great to see the goodwill among so many people in the industry… from the ticketing/technology customization that was done to the producers of so many great shows offering specially student priced tickets… all of which was put together so quickly.
It’s nice to see a plan come together and gives me great optimism moving forward on supporting this initiative. I’ll take any optimism I can get. :)
Wed, February 27, 2008
With the value of the dollar plummeting and with international audiences pouring in to the US, how and where we talk to international audiences is becoming more and more of a critical issue. With that said, we welcome Facebook’s new venture into helping this cause.
Facebook has just introduced a version of the site for Spanish-language speakers (2.8 million active users live in Latin America or Spain), which will serve as the first of several languages beyond English speaking that will be included in the Facebook community. According to the story, “Sixty percent of Facebook's roughly 64 million users live outside of the United States. Britain alone has 8 million active Facebook users. Canada is third most active with 7 million users and Turkey has surged to become the fourth most active Facebook nation and its biggest non-English market. Rounding out the top ten Facebook markets are Australia, France, Sweden, Norway, Columbia, and South Africa.”
This doesn’t necessarily mean to go ‘advertise’ on Facebook – it means you should try and find ways how this may help you connect with your audiences through this channel in a meaningful way. This means exploring the idea of creating a community with dialogue along with content and connections to your brand that consumers can actually relate to. Have actors communicate with fans in-language, post content in-language – each production should evaluate and try and see what their audience wants.
No matter what you do - don’t hard-sell in a social network (would you hard-sell your friends?).
For entertainment marketers trying to target international tourists, there are still many obstacles that need to be addressed – particularly, adopting the ticketing systems to be translated into different languages and to better integrate with international currencies – but, it’s clear that it’s a ‘MUST DO’ for the live entertainment industry to try and figure out.
Read On
Tue, January 02, 2007
Yes, mobile marketing is on the rise. But, according to a new study, “while Americans are big spenders when it comes to entertainment content and services for consumer electronics such as the Xbox, Apple's iPod, personal computers and high definition TVs, they show less enthusiasm for purchasing entertainment services created for their wireless mobile devices. According to the survey, 47 percent of respondents in the key demographic age group of 18 to 24 year-olds complained that mobile data services are 'too expensive.'”
On the flip side of the equation, text messaging in particular is on the rise. According to the article, “close to half of survey respondents indicate that they sent or received at least one SMS message in 3Q '06. According to the study, SMS subscription plans have already surpassed the 50% mark, and American consumers spend an average of $3.70 per month for data services.”
Click here.
Tue, October 17, 2006
There has been a lot of talk on Broadway about embracing MySpace, Facebook and other social networking channels as a way to market shows. Before you consider launching your next campaign, consider this research:
Those who have profiles on MySpace.com and Friendster.com are generally aged 25 and older (68 and 71 percent, respectively). Xanga.com has garnered the attention of young adults, as 20 percent of its users are between 12 and 17 years of age, 20 percent being roughly twice as high as that age group's representation of internet users. Facebook.com also draws a younger audience, as it began as a college social networking site. More than one-third of visitors to Facebook.com are 18 and 24 years old, roughly three times the representation of that age group of internet users.
As for MySpace in particular, the report says the following:
"An analysis of MySpace.com visitors has shown that the site is now more popular among older internet users as the site experiences dramatic visitor growth. Teens aged 12 to 17, who accounted for 24.7 percent of the MySpace audience in August of last year, account for less than half of that percentage today. Conversely, internet users between the ages of 35-54 now represent a surprising 40.6 percent of the MySpace visitor base, an 8.2 percent increase just in the past year."
Please note that when they say "MySpace visitors," they are referring to those that visit the actual website - not necessarily those that actively contribute. There is a big difference between the two.
Click here to read more
Sat, October 14, 2006
So, your theatrical production wants to hit younger skewing demographics? How to do so is not the easiest question to answer as I can ramble on for hours about this topic. What's more interesting and productive to talk about is defining the segments of the younger demographics that you are actively trying to reach.
We recently came across a great article focusing on a market segment labeled the "brand sirens." In short, "brand sirens" are being defined as "opinionated and media-savvy consumers between the ages of 13 and 34 that have a profound effect on marketing through their ability to influence friends and family via word-of-mouth, viral video, and applications such as instant messaging and blogs."
Yes, they are a small group of consumers but according to a new study, their power on purchasing decisions is certainly strong as the report states this market influences upwards of $600 billion annually in consumer spending.
Here's what you need to know about this target market.
- 82 percent indicated that they talk about brands with their friends; 87 percent enjoy sharing information about brands; 85 percent appreciate brands that keep their promises; and more than half (54 percent) wish they could find brands to stick with. In addition, 70 percent of those surveyed send e-mails to friends about products and services, and 77 percent post reviews and product feedback online.
- While "Brand Sirens" are skeptical about corporations and marketing, they can also serve as a marketer's strongest advocate via blogs, word-of-mouth, social networks, and other largely consumer-generated new media platforms.
- "Brand Sirens" are watching more TV than marketers might realize: Some 73 percent said they watched TV in real-time within the last day; 85 percent watched in real-time within the last week; and 39 percent reported turning to TV advertising to get more information about their interests.
Thanks Media Post for the lead.
Click here to read more.
Thu, July 27, 2006
Integration in the delivery of your marketing message is key when trying to reach a younger audience. According to the "2006 Media Consumption" survey, college students and recent graduates are more likely to respond to ads they see on multiple media platforms.
According to the findings, "students are 40 percent more likely to respond to an ad with a humorous message. Fact-based messages are preferred by 28 percent of respondents, and 22 percent like to be entertained by advertising. Campaigns spanning more than one medium are 50 percent more likely to get a response from college students and recent grads. This group spends more time online, but the Web doesn't cancel out consumption of traditional media such as broadcast TV and print. Forty-three percent of college students spend 10 or more hours on the Internet each week. Seventeen percent of students spend 10 or more hours per week watching TV. Six percent listen to the radio, one percent read magazines and one percent read newspapers."
Click here to read more
Fri, July 21, 2006
Google! That's right, according to a new study that interviewed 1,200 females 16-25 years old, Google was chosen as their favorite site. Coming in at #2 on the list was Facebook.com. Check out the complete list below. No big surprises.
More stats are available here.
Thu, July 13, 2006
According a new study, a majority of readers of college newspapers prefer contextual text links over standard ad units. The study doesn't address which ads actually perform better but it's clear that younger audiences are savvy on the types of advertising they are being hit with.
Click here to read more.
Wed, July 12, 2006
Over the past year, we've presented the case of "why" and "how" to use MySpace.com as part of your overall marketing plan. Well, we now have some news that you should be clearly aware of before creating a MySpace for your next show. At any point in time, MySpace can delete your account without warning. We've had this happen twice over the past two months to two different accounts. One account was named after one of the characters of the show while the other was set-up to represent an entire production.
We spoke to our advertising contact at MySpace.com and he could do nothing to fix the situation. In short, if we had paid for an ad campaign on MySpace for the accounts that had been deleted, this wouldn't have been an issue. Just an FYI, campaigns don't come cheap on MySpace and aren't exactly a fit for the typical theatregoer.
The days of using MySpace as a commercial vehicle at no cost may rapidly be coming to an end.
If you have a MySpace now that you set-up for no cost, please beware that you could wake-up one morning and see it gone with the following email in your inbox from MySpace. It's important to stress that if they want to remove your MySpace account, you receive no warning - simply an email saying it's been deleted and that it can't be reinstated.
Hello,
MySpace has deleted your profile because we received a credible complaint of your violation of the MySpace Terms of Services.
Prohibited activity includes, but is not limited to:
-Any automated use of the system, such as using scripts and/or bots to add friends, send messages, etc.
-For band and filmmaker profiles, MySpace prohibits sexually suggestive imagery or any other unfair, misleading or deceptive content intended to draw traffic to the profile.
-MySpace also investigates credible complaints of copyright/trademark infringement and will delete any materials that infringe upon the intellectual property rights of third parties.
For a more thorough list of prohibited content/activity, please refer to the MySpace Terms of Service located at the bottom of MySpace.com.
If we delete your account, it cannot be reinstated.
Thank you,
MySpace.com
Fri, June 30, 2006
Ok, ownership of MP3 players is at an all-time high. I guess this is a sorta a no-brainer. When would it have been higher? (sometimes I can't believe people get paid to write these research studies).
ANYWAY, maybe you will take some out of this story. Here is what you need to know:
- One in five Americans over the age of 12 now owns a portable digital music device, and one in 20 of those quizzed said they possessed more than one.
- Ownership of MP3 players has doubled since 2003.
- Younger consumers are driving the recent growth, with 54% of US teens now owning an MP3 player.
- They are more popular amongst men: 24% of male respondents said they owned a player, compared to just 16% of females.
According to Matt Kleinschmit from the group that conducted the research, "while this phenomenon may have initially centred on music, younger MP3 player owners are clearly interested in a wide variety of broader content options for their device."
Thank you BBC.
Click here to read more.
Tue, April 18, 2006
Yes, we've all heard of MySpace by now and many productions already have one. But, it's not just having a MySpace set-up that encompasses a social networking marketing strategy. Nor, is running an online banner advertising campaign on MySpace (or other social networking sites) the answer to engaging the powers of social networking.
It's much more than that.
Social networking involves engaging online users. It involves opening and entering online communities with like-minded people or those that would most likely want to learn more about your brand. It involves giving users unique, viral content and giving them a reason to return.
In short, like any successful community, you need to give in order to receive. This could be a blog from cast members, behind-the-scenes video, audio snippets, live chat with fans, etc. The key is to keep it new and fresh.
Simply creating a MySpace and not having a maintenance strategy is not only a waste of time - but, can actually hurt your brand by looking stale and boring. Remember, in the MySpace world, both good and bad comments can flow freely.
Is MySpace right for everyone? NO. It certainly skews a bit younger which is not the typical Broadway theater going audience. But, for productions actively seeking to engage a younger audience, MySpace could be an essential component of your online strategy.
Here is a list of best practices from Clickz writer Mark Kingdon that you should consider before jumping into the MySpace world.
- Know your brand. Take stock before you jump in. Social networks are built by users who post profiles, connect with one another, and communicate actively.
- Get ready for a wild ride. When you jump into a social network, you jump into a community in which individuals produce the content and are largely uncensored.
- Respect the community. It's a club and you don't really belong. Most social networks aren't about advertising or commerce per se.
- Don't advertise. Connect and engage instead. Sure, you'll see banner ads on social networking sites, but that's not a particularly powerful way to leverage the network's strength.
- The network effect is real... and fast. Use it, or get out of its way.
Click here to learn more about social networking and creating the right MySpace strategy.
Wed, March 22, 2006
How do we attract younger audiences to attend theatre?
A new report sheds some very interesting light on this topic and introduces us to the 13-18 year old SuperConnector.
Take a look at what the a report by GenWorld suggests:
"Globally, teens aged 13-18 are very concerned about the world and their own future. These concerns have made them self activists, creative, and highly adaptable to emerging technologies.
Fifty-six percent of these teens are SuperConnectors according to the GenWorld study. This group has an active lifestyle and uses multiple means of connectivity at any given time. Connectivity tools at this generation's disposal include such lean-forward mechanisms as cell phones, text messaging, the Internet, e-mail, instant messaging and search engines. Even when they're taking part of lean-back media, the group finds new levels of engagement."
In short, it's a difficult task to hit this market through advertising especially on a typical Broadway budget.
Click here to read more about the very critical market that will emerge as the theatre audience of tomorrow.
Sun, February 26, 2006
Last week, we wrote an article on a new threat for the long-term success of MySpace and other social networking channels. That threat was sexual predators.
A few days ago, we received the following article from MediaPost.com.
"SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE MYSPACE MIGHT soon get a "safety czar," according to The Wall Street Journal . News Corp., which purchased the popular site last year, is also considering other measures--like blocking search terms that sexual predators might use to find youngsters--according to the Journal . The moves come as the site has been plagued by reports that sexual predators troll the site looking for underage victims."
Just wanted to keep you all posted on this as MySpace is quickly emerging as a major player in reaching younger audiences.
Thank you MediaPost for this lead.
Wed, February 15, 2006
In many circles, Myspace is considered hotter than Google. Some measurements actually show MySpace getting more eyeballs than Google. With its tremendous growth in popularity has come a threat that it is struggling to deal with. That threat is dealing with sexual predators who are seeking out youth online in the anonymous world of MySpace.
Both Dateline and CBS recently ran stories on the threat and major advertisers are noticing. If the ad dollars dry up from major advertisers, we would expect some changes to the MySpace world which could potentially change the marketing opportunities.
Click here to read more.
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