Marketing orientation and arts organisations: the case for business sponsorship

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the implications of a greater marketing orientation among arts organisations and its impact on funding through sponsorship.Design/methodology/approachUtilising a qualitative methodology, the study employs case studies for the purpose of formulating tentative and emergent knowledge.FindingsThe case study observations reveal the adoption of a marketing orientation across the sample and most significantly for the purposes of securing and consolidating sponsorship relationships. But contrary to popular academic theory this is managed without significant threat to artistic integrity or adaptation of theatrical productions.Research limitations/implicationsData were derived from a purposive but limited sample. The advantages of a qualitative method in producing rich data is well established, however a longitudinal study would facilitate the understanding of the temporal shifts in arts sponsorships and counter the limits of the cross‐sectional nature of the study.Practical implicationsThe study reveals a managerial capacity for arts organisations to attract sponsorship through customer orientation without the need to compromise its artistic and social goals.Originality/valueA central concern to the increasing significance of business and private funding for the survival of arts organisations is the impact this has on the producers ability to remain faithful to the artistic integrity of their productions. This longstanding academic debate now has predominance in arts marketing management and the issues addressed in this paper serve to address this shift in emphasis.

Marketing expense and financial performance in arts and cultural organizations

“…The results indicate that a 10% increase in total marketing expense is associated with a 0.81% increase in total revenue. This finding is consistent with previous studies suggesting that marketing improves performance in nonprofit organizations (Gainer & Padanyi, ; Levine & Zahradnik, ; Thomas et al, ). Our hypotheses 2 and 3 are also supported.…”

“…In an effort to understand effectiveness of marketing activities on increasing commercial revenues, some studies have examined the influence of marketing activities on ticket sales and induction of sponsorships in arts and cultural nonprofit organizations. Arnold and Tapp () find that marketing efforts increase ticket sales in arts organizations, and Thomas, Pervan, and Nuttall () show that marketing‐oriented nonprofit organizations can attract more business sponsorships without sacrificing their artistic and social goals. Frey and Meier () also discovered that museums with a market‐oriented management style, by catering to visitor interests, generate higher commercial revenue than those without it.…”

Understanding the decision‐making processes for arts sponsorship

“…So, although Thomas, et al . (, p. 740) note that ‘ a sponsor's understanding and appreciation of the level of sponsorship congruency available from their relationship with the arts organization is … pivotal to a successful partnership’, it is argued here that this understanding and appreciation of the congruency may in some cases be more of a judgement based on informed intuition. This leads to the final propositions: Proposition (a) More philanthropically oriented companies are likely to make arts sponsorship decisions relying heavily on the intuition of a senior‐level manager.…”

From Sponsorship to Partnership in Arts and Business Relations

“…In the face of the shortcomings in public funding, there has been a progressive expectation that arts institutions will operate more efficiently and incorporate more marketoriented management (McGuigan 2004, 41-50;Thomas et al 2009). Market orientation does not mean to render arts organizations subordinate to free market rules, but rather to motivate them to understand the needs of their audiences and imply the idea of "trust, commitment and shared beliefs and objectives" in relationships with their business partners (Thomas et al 2009, 740).…”