Arts Organizations and Digital Technologies: Findings from a 2012 Pew Research Center Survey Kristen Purcell, Ph.D. Associate Director, Research Pew Internet Project Social Media Week Washington, DC February 22, 2013

Conducted by the Pew Research Center – our mission is to provide high quality, objective data to thought leaders and policymakers Between May 30 and July 20, 2012, Pew Internet conducted an online survey of a non-probability national (U.S.) sample of arts organizations 1,258 arts organizations took the survey, representing a wide range of disciplines, organizational functions, budgets, etc. Art museums comprised 9% of the final sample (performing groups made up the largest portion of the final sample at 22%) Presentation slides and full report are available at pewinternet.org About the Survey

85% of US adults use the internet 2/3 have broadband at home 84% have a cell phone, including 45% who have a smartphone 24% have a tablet computer 19% have an e-reader 2/3 of adult cell phone users are wireless internet users 69% of online adults use social networking sites, 16% use Twitter Mobile is the needle, social is the thread Setting the Stage: US Adult Internet Use in 2013

95% of year-olds use the internet 77% have a cell phone, including 23% who have a smartphone 31% of year-olds have a smartphone 75% of teens text and the median number of texts sent daily is 60 (100 for girls ages 14-17) In July 2011, 80% of online teens used SNS, 14% used Twitter Setting the Stage: US Teen Internet Use in 2013 Mobile is the needle, social is the thread

Information is Woven Into Our Lives Mobile is the needle, Social Networks are the thread Social Networks… Surround us with information through our many connections Bring us information from multiple, varied sources Provide instant feedback, meaning and context Allow us to shape and create information ourselves and easily amplify others’ messages Mobile… Moves information with us Makes information accessible ANYTIME and ANYWHERE Puts information at our fingertips, literally Magnifies the demand for timely, actionable information Makes information location-sensitive

How your patrons reflect these mobile/social trends… 74% of adult smartphone owners use their phone to get directions, recommendations or other information based on their present location 21% use their phone to get coupons or deals to use at local businesses 2011 data

Patrons develop personal connections via SNS with public figures and entities… 2011 data

In the 12 months prior to the survey…. 44% of adults had attended a live music, dance or theater performance – it was 77% among those who follow a music/dance/theatrical group or venue on SNS 35% of adults had visited a museum – it was 82% among those who follow a museum on SNS 35% of adults had attended an arts, craft or music festival – it was 55% among those who follow individual artists, musicians or performers on SNS 29% of adults had visited an art gallery, show or exhibit – it was 82% among those who follow an art gallery or other visual arts organization on SNS …and those personal connections can help you find and engage with “Superfans” 2011 data

So, how are arts organizations capitalizing on these trends?

Generally increasing their online presence % of arts orgs who say the internet is very or somewhat important for… Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Arts Organizations Survey. Conducted between May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1, % host a website 86% have increased the number of online events and exhibits they host over the past several years 97% have a social media presence 69% have individual employees with professional social media profiles they use in their capacity as a representative of the organization

Major functions served by arts orgs’ websites Audience Interaction 90% let patrons share their content via , SNS and Twitter 81% let users comment publicly on the site 28% host online discussion groups 22% host webinars Multi-Media Content 94% post photos on their website 81% post or stream video 57% post or stream audio 50% maintain a blog 20% present online exhibits Promotion 86% accept donations online 74% maintain an online calendar 72% sell tickets online 47% sell merchandise online 34% make info available through RSS feeds 31% offer discounts through services such as Groupon or LivingSocial

The social media platforms arts organizations use… Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Arts Organizations Survey. Conducted between May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1, % of these orgs have a profile or page on a social media site 69% also have individual employees with professional social media profiles they use as representatives of the organization 56% of the orgs that use social media have a profile on 4-9 different social media sites 10% of the orgs that use social media are active on 10+ platforms Arts Orgs’ Use of Social Media

How often organizations post content on social media… Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Arts Organizations Survey. Conducted between May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1,131. How Other uses of social media… 82% use social media to engage with audience members prior to, during, or following an event 77% use social media to monitor what is being said about their organization 65% use social media to learn more about their audience 52% use social media to get feedback from the public or “crowdsource” an idea 45% of arts orgs using social media post daily

Do arts orgs see a payoff from social media? Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Arts Organizations Survey. Conducted between May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1, % say it’s had a major impact on boosting org’s public profile 53% see major impact on engagement with public 48% see major impact on increasing traffic to website 45% see major impact on event promotion/attendance 41% see major impact on audience building and stakeholder engagement 27% see major impact on audience engagement w/content Just 13% see major impact on professional collaboration, or on fundraising

Not everyone is on board the social media train Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project Arts Orgs Survey. Conducted May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1,117.

Funding and Staffing Social Media Efforts Staffing 76% of social media-using orgs have full-time paid staff tending the sites 29% use part-time staff 16% use volunteers 8% use paid contractors Altogether, 13% use a combination of full-time and part-time staffers to manage social media Just 27% have a staff member whose position is dedicated to social media management 73% use staff to oversee social media who also have other responsibilities Funding and Development 49% of these orgs have sought funding specifically to expand their organization’s use of the internet or other technologies, such as apps and social media 36% have conducted research to learn more about how their audiences use technologies

Social media, the good…. “We solicited ideas for how to name our "signature cocktail" at an upcoming benefit, based on the theme of the benefit. Facebook fans wrote in with lots of ideas, we picked our top favorites, and then released a poll so fans could vote on the name we ended up using. It generated awareness of the event (which was a record success) and allowed those who might not have been able to attend the event a way to engage with the party.” “When SB1079 passed in Arizona, our organization (who specializes in Mexican music and dance), in the matter of days, was able to write, record and make a video of a song that directly addressed the issue. The video was posted on YouTube and got hundreds of hits in the matter of days. It was a way for us to execute our mission to a large audience in a short amount of time.” “After seeing that a patron has checked into our venue or has been talking about how good our show was, we thank them publicly and invite them back. This gives us the ability to create a personal interaction with them and create a connection that encourages them to come back. Sometimes our actors will join in when they see us thanking a patron, and send a personal thanks from the cast. “ “We were the subject of comments concerning funding and donations from a local political organization and our patrons responded in full with comments, examples and telling our story in a stronger and better way than even our staff would have been able to do. We were proud that we did not have to, in any way, defend our value to the community, our audience did this for us.”

….and the bad “Any time you engage in social media, you open yourself up to negative feedback. An example of this would be announcing our summer concert series, and having someone not like one of the many guest artists we bring in. However, for every negative comment, there is usually someone with a different opinion.” “Because we do a lot of work in rural areas, with senior citizens, and low income areas, social media only works for a portion of our audience. Getting everyone informed of a last minute change or spontaneous program simultaneously is tricky without overlooking certain portions of the population. A heavy reliance on social media, though convenient, can exclude many people.” “We provide grants and an organization who was unhappy about not receiving a grant posted some negative stuff on Twitter. While we responded and kept it professional, it did put negative comments out there associated with our profile, potentially damaging our brand.” “Before we put policies in place, one of our employees, who was a great social media user, kind of merged his own identity on Facebook with that of our organization. Therefore, when he also would party and post about it – it became an area of discipline. And he didn't understand the need for separating these things out, keeping his personal life off of our public profile. That was several years ago.”

Broader impacts on the arts world… Perceived positive impacts of technology on the arts Based on your experiences and those of your organization, do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. Conducted May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1,207.

Broader impacts on the arts world… Perceived negative impacts of technology on the arts Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. Conducted between May 30-July 20, N for respondents who answered this question=1,207.

What does the future hold? “As the realism of participatory digital entertainment (video games, etc.) and the immersion ability of non-participatory digital entertainment (3D movies, etc.) increases, it threatens the elements that make the live arts unique--the sense of immediacy, immersion, and personal interaction with the art. We've long hung fast to the belief that there's nothing like a live experience, but digital entertainment is getting closer and closer to replicating that experience, and live theatre will struggle to compete with the former's convenience and cost.” “Our chief concern for the literary arts is the increasing "validity" of self-publication among reviewers, readers, and writers. Online publishing and book sales through Amazon (for example) contribute to this problem. If there are no gatekeepers, it will become even more difficult to draw attention to works of genuinely high quality.” “Digital technologies allows for students and artists all over the world to be inspired by one another. In some ways this is fantastic, in other ways, this breaks down the cultural differences that is so beautiful about having multiple countries involved in an art form.” “Access will be good for educational purposes and to increase awareness of the arts especially historical material in performance of all types. However, issues of copyright and payment for that material, such as in apps and in streaming or downloading, are murky and hard to navigate for artists themselves as to value and fairness of payments to the artist for original content. “

Kristen Purcell Associate Director for Research, Pew Internet ***Cover and background image is street art in Norway by Skurktur*** THANK YOU!! Data and report available at: pewinternet.org