As a result of feedback from previous conferences and its members, the AMA recognised the need for specific training in marketing for visual arts organisations and the opportunity for them to network with each other. With this in mind it held This Way Up in Sheffield last October, the second of in a series of seminars dedicated to marketing the visual arts.
The day was divided into various breakout sessions during which case studies were presented, and culminated in the presentation of the Museum and Galleries Month Access Awards sponsored by Tickets.com.
Breakouts included a talk on how the Barbican Gallery underwent a rebranding exercise, only to be overtaken by the venue’s complete rebranding less than a year later, and a thought- provoking ‘Tour of Europe’ discussing the opportunities for marketing the visual arts within Europe, and the difficulties when working across national boundaries and within different cultural paradigms.
I would love to be able to pursue the idea that ‘taking a sabbatical year and working within an alternative cultural organisations e.g. in America could open my eyes to more innovative ways of working’, but sadly I – and I think most of the organisations present - need to concentrate limited resources on day to day marketing without the luxury of the time and money to allow this to happen.
The day’s strongest lesson for me was how relatively under-developed many visual arts organisations still are in marketing strategy and technique compared to the vast majority of performing arts organisations; the idea of producing posters, print and advertising using a single image to reinforce the message in a campaign seemed to come as a genuine surprise to many of the people assembled. Luckily, venues in the South West are rather more clued up and are working on some genuinely groundbreaking initiatives.
Overall this seminar was a brave step in the right direction, but the feeling was undoubtedly that there is still along way to go.
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