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11 Ways Promoting the Arts Can Help Your Business

August 9, 2016 By David Leonhardt 30 Comments

In traditional media, the arts get lumped in with entertainment. Sports, which are just as much entertainment as movies or music, have their own section. Yet the arts are more popular than sports.

You might have been fooled into thinking otherwise, perhaps because sports fans are louder. There are over 30 sports specialty TV channels in the United States alone. No such list exists for the arts.

Solo Performer-Promoting the Arts

But the arts are getting their own video service called Cennarium, which is like Netflix. The service broadcasts recordings of live performances.

Based on data collected by Statistics Canada, the video service should be successful; people spend twice as much money on live performances as they do on live sporting events.

Small businesses love to sponsor their local Little League teams, as well as local soccer, football and basketball teams.

But promoting the arts is also good for your business. Click To Tweet

Here are 11 ways you can get started supporting artists in your community.

Table of Contents

    • 1. Sponsor an Event or Organization.
    • 2. Invite Art into Your Place of Business.
    • 3. Run a Workshop.
    • 4. Hire Performers for Employee Events.
    • 5. Make Signs.
    • 6. Offer to Promote a Performance.
    • 7. Provide a Freebie to the Organization.
    • 8. Provide a Freebie to Patrons.
    • 9. Encourage Your Staff to Participate.
    • 10. Buy Tickets to the Show.
    • 11. Combine Your Efforts.
  • The Takeaway
      • David Leonhardt
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1. Sponsor an Event or Organization.

Perhaps the most obvious way to promote your company through the arts is to sponsor an event or an organization. By “sponsor,” I mean write a check. Give generously and negotiate for maximum exposure. Some of the ways to get exposure would be:

  • A thank you or sponsor message spoken by the MC at the start of the show
  • Your company logo on the signage
  • Your company logo prominently on the program
  • Your company name added to the theatre or the troupe itself
  • Your company name added to the website
  • A personal meeting with the actors, singers or dancers to cement your relationship

These are just some of the ways to get exposure in exchange for writing a check. Some theatres have specific sponsorship programs already defined. Here’s a good example. My daughters both sing at the local arts high school. THGM Writing Services, my company, regularly buys space in their programs.

2. Invite Art into Your Place of Business.

A creative way to support local arts is to invite it into your place of business. Some restaurants decorate their walls with the works of local painters or photographers. Patrons can ask to buy the paintings right off the wall. You’ll build a more loyal customer base by supporting the arts in this way.

You might have to get a little more creative when it comes to the performing arts. If your place is big enough, you might invite entertainers to set up a ticket booth during the lunch hour with short performances in the lobby. People could leave donations, just as they would for buskers, or they could buy tickets to the shows if they really like what they see.

3. Run a Workshop.

Many companies offer lunch-and-learns for their employees. These sessions often involve personal development specialists, financial planners, or skills developers. Why should it not involve artists? Your employees can learn how to paint, try their hands at an impromptu choir, or learn to act out a scene from an upcoming play.

Small businesses can even team up to put on lunch-and-learns. Doing so gives you the added bonus of building better relationships with other businesses in the area. Everyone needs allies.

4. Hire Performers for Employee Events.

If you plan to have an employee event, such as a Christmas party, why not hire a local band or theatre troupe to provide entertainment?

5. Make Signs.

If there is an arts organization that could use signage, offer to supply it for them. Not only will you get your logo added but you will also remove one of their headaches.

6. Offer to Promote a Performance.

If you have a means of reaching a broad audience, why not offer to promote an artist’s next performance? You could so if you have:

  • a strong FaceBook or Twitter following
  • a regular newsletter to customers
  • a blog on your website
  • a lot of foot traffic through your store
  • regular mailings or flyer distribution

Remember that the people who comprise your customer base will appreciate you communicating with them about charity and cultural events they would enjoy. Considering their interests in this way makes you appear more trustworthy than a company that reaches out only to take money.

7. Provide a Freebie to the Organization.

Writing a check is not the only way to sponsor an organization. You can provide services as well. You could supply snacks to the orchestra or the dancers. You could provide the costumes. You could provide the plumbing, painting, carpentry or whatever other service a theatre might need.

8. Provide a Freebie to Patrons.

Do you have something free to provide to theatre patrons? Perhaps everyone who buys a season pass gets a ridiculously huge discount on your product. Or everybody showing up at a performance gets something free on the way out the door.

Take a good look at your products or services and see what you could offer. Your offer needs to be worthwhile, though. It can’t be an offer like, “Bring your ticket to Chudley’s Bar and Grill after the show for a free drink.” It can’t be the typical 25% off coupon either.

9. Encourage Your Staff to Participate.

Many arts organizations need volunteers to help on show nights or when preparing a set. Your staff can help, and many of them will find serving to be quite fulfilling.

10. Buy Tickets to the Show.

What a great way to reward staff or schmooze clients. As Sarah Morton writes, “Hospitality benefits like free tickets, VIP areas and gala dinners also provide an opportunity for you to thank key clients, schmooze potential clients and even reward staff throughout the year.” Any theatre troupe would value a customer that regularly buys a block of 10, 20 or 50 tickets.

11. Combine Your Efforts.

You don’t have to try only one of the above ideas. You’ll be most effective by supporting an arts organization in multiple ways. But what is even better is if you can somehow integrate your support for the arts with your support for charity. For instance, you could offer to buy an extra ticket to a show for every employee who raises more than $100 for the local food bank.

The Takeaway

The key takeaway is that it is worth promoting the arts locally and that you can find creative ways to do so. Don’t wait for the artists to come to you. Pick an activity that will resonate with your target market, define what you want to get out of the relationship, and decide how you would like to get involved.

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David Leonhardt

David Leonhardt's "day job" is to run The Happy Guy Marketing, which offers ghostwriting of books and screenplays and such, as well as website promotion, such as content marketing and social media marketing. He blogs about self-help topics, including happiness, fitness and nutrition.
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Filed Under: Small Business Advice Tagged With: business promotion, promoting the arts, small business, small business advice, the arts

Comments

  1. Anna C. says

    January 29, 2020 at 6:56 pm

    Thank you for sharing your ideas. This is very helpful especially to those who are art lovers as well as people who are fond of promoting the arts.
    Anna C. would love you to read ..11 Top Reasons You Should Be Self Publishing On Kindle To Make Money OnlineMy Profile

    Reply
  2. wahida phillips says

    December 21, 2018 at 4:52 am

    Thank you for this article, certainly given me food for thought. We will look into sponsoring a local event.

    Reply
  3. Riazzu says

    December 9, 2018 at 6:06 am

    Really great ideas. I’m so amazed that these ‘art’ really has a progressive future.
    A nice step by step blog post.

    Reply
    • David Leonhardt says

      December 11, 2018 at 7:07 pm

      Art is amazing. In fact, students who take art do better in math, science, languages…so it shouldn’t be surprising that businesses also do better with art. 🙂

      Reply
  4. Robert says

    September 1, 2017 at 3:14 am

    Hey David,
    Really great ideas here. I love the concept of delivering or offering you time/resources for free, like point #5 to make signs.
    I know if someone done that for me, I would definitely give more attention their way.

    Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  5. Max Lambert says

    August 11, 2017 at 12:13 am

    Hey David. Very good article I am reading. Especially the “Flyer” concept. It is the most comprehensive and effective way for a business promotion that covers targeted audience.

    Reply
  6. Aegean Zhang says

    June 13, 2017 at 2:21 am

    Flyer distribution is really very effective, considerable and valuable advertising activity. Thanks David Leonhardt for this kind of awareness.
    Aegean Zhang would love you to read ..5 Promotional Channels for Real Estate Agents Looking for New ListingsMy Profile

    Reply
  7. Maicon says

    May 1, 2017 at 8:56 pm

    One way to get good results is a range of companies get together and sponsor events by merging the well-known artists with other equally well-known charity event promotions that would attract much more publicity.

    Reply
  8. Selene says

    April 3, 2017 at 2:30 pm

    Awesome post! Art is certainly very important, and there are so many different mediums you can explore. Bringing art into your place of business can bring a more pleasant overall presence.

    Reply
  9. pranay says

    March 23, 2017 at 7:03 am

    Great defined articles. All marketing ways are really cool but it is amazing that “Flyer Distribution” is still helpful and result obtains ways for promoting any business. I think people should go for flyer distribution activity with internet marketing activities.

    Reply
  10. Pranay says

    March 23, 2017 at 6:57 am

    Great defined article. All marketing ways are really cool but it is amazing that “flyer distribution” is still helpful and result obtains ways for promoting any business. I think people should go for flyer distribution activity with internet marketing activities.
    Pranay would love you to read ..Generate More Sales Leads with Attractive FlyersMy Profile

    Reply
  11. Gurinder P Gaba says

    March 14, 2017 at 7:09 am

    Great article on business marketing. That’s true, online marketing is not enough to do. There is something we have to do explore for our business promotion. Like “Flyer Distribution”.

    Reply
  12. Gurinder P Gaba says

    February 28, 2017 at 5:41 am

    Very nice article for business promotion. All I can say that as working in flyer distribution industry, we have distributed thousands of flyers and it really helpful for any start-ups, SME businesses, blue chip organizations, self employed and individuals.
    Gurinder P Gaba would love you to read ..How Letterbox Distribution can positively affect Your BusinessMy Profile

    Reply
    • Gail Gardner says

      February 28, 2017 at 1:14 pm

      Welcome, Gurinder,

      Fliers can really work even today with so much online. Having something physical to remind you can get people to act. And it is nice sometimes to have all the information handy so you can pin it to your bulletin board or use a magnet to stick it on the refrigerator or a metal bookcase near your desk.
      Gail Gardner would love you to read ..5 Reasons Why Animated Explainer Videos Could Boost Your Social Media CampaignsMy Profile

      Reply
      • Akaash says

        May 2, 2017 at 2:43 am

        Well said Gail. As I am working with a flyer company. I have seen truly effective results in terms of business sales. It really works well.
        Akaash would love you to read ..Look Around You and Get Inspired to Design Awesome LeafletsMy Profile

        Reply
  13. Ankita says

    February 26, 2017 at 10:59 pm

    Every Time A great and Informative post.Thanks David leonhard you are really a great minded prsn you always came here with new ideas.
    Again thanks to David Leonhard

    Reply
  14. John says

    February 3, 2017 at 12:30 pm

    Hi David, All Thank you for Valuable Information. I Like the Post and All the Information You provided. You touched every aspects deeply. Great Efforts. Keep it up.
    John would love you to read ..51 Flower Quotes and Slogans with Beautiful ImagesMy Profile

    Reply
  15. Joshi says

    February 3, 2017 at 12:27 pm

    Hi David, First Of All Thank you for Valuable Information. I totally agree that Promotion Plays Important Role in Todays World and You narrated Each and Every Point deeply. Great Efforts. Keep Providing Valuable Information.
    Joshi would love you to read ..Aadhar Card Complaint and Inquiry with Phone Number | Aadhaar Info. PortalMy Profile

    Reply
  16. zoyoyayep says

    January 23, 2017 at 5:16 am

    Great way you shared your arts for business purpose. Thanks for this excellent post. Many things I learnt from this.

    Reply
  17. Dhruv Patel says

    October 18, 2016 at 1:58 am

    Very useful post. Thank you so much for sharing useful information..will bookmark this and share to others….really impressed….
    Dhruv Patel would love you to read ..EPF Forms: Download Employees Provident Fund Forms OnlineMy Profile

    Reply
  18. Murad A. Jetha says

    August 16, 2016 at 7:24 am

    Thanks for the ideas its very useful for the websites now we can promote our websites easily on social media platform….

    Reply
  19. Jahanzaib Hashmi says

    August 13, 2016 at 10:54 am

    i think these arts are very unique and intresting to promote youself as a business man
    it,s helps you to increase your ability
    thanks for shearinng ,,,keep informing
    Jahanzaib Hashmi would love you to read ..Hello world!My Profile

    Reply
  20. George says

    August 13, 2016 at 1:58 am

    Promoting local arts is imperative in community development. Entrepreneurs can help artists promote their works and events and get more exposure from this events.
    George would love you to read ..TIME MANAGEMENT IN BPO COMPANIESMy Profile

    Reply
  21. Ravi Chahar says

    August 12, 2016 at 4:20 pm

    Hey David,

    It’s good to know about the art and the promotion which can help you to grow your business. It seems that people can organize a contest to give the tickets to the winner.

    It’s a kind of a good idea to see the more engagement on your blog.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Have a great day.
    ~Ravi

    Reply
    • David Leonhardt says

      August 12, 2016 at 10:12 pm

      Hi Ravi.

      Contests with tickets are always popular, You can tie the contest to some goal you want from your employees, or you can make it available to the public to attract more people to your store.
      David Leonhardt would love you to read ..Top 10 most common business grammar errorsMy Profile

      Reply
  22. Dev Patel says

    August 12, 2016 at 10:42 am

    Hello,
    Just amazing 11 tips for promoting the arts. Among them few of them i don”t know so thanx for sharing new and valuable information.
    Dev Patel would love you to read ..TNEB Bill Status: How to Check TANGEDCO Bill Status OnlineMy Profile

    Reply
  23. Kristine Roosevolt says

    August 10, 2016 at 9:43 am

    Art is undoubtedly a very important part of our life. It is hard to think of a life that doesn’t have art in it. A business also needs to have art in it. Promoting business using art was unknown to me but now I am surely going to add it in every way possible.
    Kristine Roosevolt would love you to read ..Interesting Halloween Pumpkin Ideas you can try for the Wonderful CelebrationsMy Profile

    Reply
  24. Jeric Danao says

    August 10, 2016 at 8:38 am

    I’m so amazed that these ‘art’ really has a progressive future. I even see pole dancers also upgrade certain ‘steel poles’ as for their innovation when it comes to these art – specifically for dancing purposes. Such a nice read 🙂
    Jeric Danao would love you to read ..Everything You Need to Know About Stainless SteelMy Profile

    Reply
  25. Taufeeq Umar says

    August 10, 2016 at 6:31 am

    Its really amazing way to promote business with promoting arts. Great blog post with so much helpful information. Thank you very much for writing here for us.

    Reply
  26. Golam Qauser says

    August 10, 2016 at 4:11 am

    Hi David Leonhardt, You step by step post – Promoting the Arts Can Help Your Business gonna help me a lot. I learn some different from this post.

    Reply

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