Social Networking and Theater Goers--some statistics:

A Survey from Situation Marketing:

Here are a few important points about the survey. We [Situation Marketing] 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.


Thank you for this insightful information--I hope that I have credited you properly.

Decline of Theater Critique--National Crisis?

L.A. theater leaders decry elimination of arts writers and editors
From The Los Angeles Times' Culture Monster blog, 1/18/09
The recent reports of the elimination of theater critic, writer and editor positions at the Los Angeles Daily News, LA Weekly and the Daily Breeze came as a blow to Los Angeles' stage community. Late Thursday, Culture Monster received a letter signed by Gilbert Cates of the Geffen Playhouse, Sheldon Epps of the Pasadena Playhouse and Michael Ritchie of Center Theatre Group -- decrying the decline in voices and calling on the arts community to keep the conversation going. "It may seem somewhat ironic that leaders of arts institutions would come out in favor of further criticism. It would be like fire hydrants getting together to come out in favor of more dogs. But, as artistic leaders who run three of the larger theater organizations in Los Angeles, we've recently become worried. Over the last few months there has been a conspicuous disappearance of arts writers and editors in our local papers. Two more significant layoffs were confirmed this week. It's time for us to speak up." While the artistic directors offer no solutions, their real purpose could serve as a call to the theater community to unite to find ways to draw attention to diverse offerings on L.A.'s many stages and to the city's arts and culture in general. Read the full text of the letter here.

Chicago critics discuss "The Incredible Shrinking Arts Media"
Posted by Time Out Chicago critic Kris Vire on the blog Storefront Rebellion, 1/15/09
Earlier tonight I sat on a panel [of arts journalists] for an audience of arts administrators and PR folks about the challenges being faced by arts coverage in print media, and new directions that the arts orgs can take to reach audiences. We spent a lot of gas talking about online initiatives and social networking. Because let's face it: as I said tonight, Time Out Chicago is slimming down a bit in the new year; the Reader announced this week that it's cutting its print listings way back; the Sun-Times has been moving many reviews to online-only; and the Tribune famously cut down its news hole last year. You just can't expect print coverage as some kind of birthright at this point in time. I was struck by the remarks of a gentleman representing a theater company, who seemed particularly frustrated by the panel's focus on the web. I'm paraphrasing here, but his question was something like, "What do you do when 90% of your audience is not online?" Um...your organization dies? I don't mean to seem glib, and I didn't get to answer this person's question as thoroughly as I'd hoped in the moment. But if you intend on remaining complacent with the audience you already have, and you're not attempting to attract new audiences: You. Will. Die. It's not about feeling like oppressed artists. But we can't do your marketing job for you. As journalists and as critics, I promise we're all trying as hard as we can afford.

Thanks Cott Mail for the daily info...

Mommy is so PROUD:

Check out this article by Amy Wilson in this month's Baby Talk:

Baby Boy-Crazy!
This mom's home and heart were filled with trains and trucks, skinned knees and SpongeBob. Was there room for a girl?

By Amy Wilson, Babytalk

Kampfire brings the world of Web 2.0 to theatre in NYC

If you do not know what Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Blogging are...well then you probably wouldn't be reading this...but you should also contact me to help you promote your next show.

You can not do it without the new and mostly free world of Web 2.0 and Kampfire is determined to make it easy for people to apply these skills to their promotions.

It is 2009...it is Web 2.0.

Are you following me on twitter: @kampfire
Are you my friend on Facebook? Add me: Katie Rosin (with a cute photo of my kids)
You can see my clients YouTube videos if you look to the right...

More to come on this subject as we move forward into Kampfire 2.0

Variety: Broadway critics leave Gotham

WILL THEATER SUFFER???....YES!

Broadway critics leave Gotham
Pundit departure has theater watchers wary
By GORDON COX
More Articles:
Archival stage material goes online
Richards, Frankel team on 'Hair'
No special treatment for stage-to-film efforts
Week 31 lifted by 'Wicked'
Pinter reshaped modern theater
Revivals boosted British stage in '08
In the Gotham legit world, critical mass keeps getting lighter.

A string of departures in the Broadway critics corps, several of them spurred by the attrition of print media in the struggling economy, has left old-school observers questioning the longevity of theater criticism as a journalistic institution.

With the power of print reviews already lessened by the rising prominence of the chorus of Internet voices, legit scribes find themselves in the same boat as film critics, also prey to the fall of print media.

Will theater suffer? The critics certainly think so. But others in the legit community are similarly concerned, fearing media coverage of theater will become increasingly marginalized and business will be hurt in the long run.

Wordle: Kampfire PR

Wordle Bio with the words combined

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All Danny Wants for Christmas is PRESS!

Danny doesn't want a lot for Christmas
there's just one thing that he needs
He doesn't care
about the presents
underneath the Christmas tree

Danny just wants you to review
more than you could ever know
make his wish come true
All Danny wants
for Christmas is you,
uuuuuuuuh, press!

Danny won't even hang his stockings
They're up on the fire place

Santa Clause won't make him happy
to leave a toy on Christmas day
He just wants you
to write a feature or an interview

more than you could ever know
make his wish come true
All Danny wants for Christmas is you
uuuuuuuh, press!

Danny don't ask for much this Christmas
He won't even wish for snow
He just wanna see you sittin'
with a press kit and a glow
He wont mind if you don't like him
all he wants is to perform

Roy Arias Theatre is the place
where you can find the Zero crew
from Dallas to New York
O'Connor waits for you
Baby, baby, All Danny wants for Christmas is you
Uuuuuuuuh, press!

World’s first “social ticketing network” aims for launch in 2009

From Ticketrends.com, 12/3/08

Life might get a little more convenient for season ticket holders, theater patrons, subscribers and concert goers with the announcement of the social ticketing Web site, Ovation.com by Event Innovation. Stephen Gilfus, chairman and CEO of the company and a founder of Washington, D.C.-based Blackboard announced the development of Ovation.com. Ovation is a paperless ticketing solution that gives users a hassle free ticketing experience that combines the features of social networking technologies like a robust ticket management solution and "requests for attendance" along with a free membership card. It reduces the hassle of standing in long queues or wasting time making phone calls to find out who can attend events. The entire process is quick, secure and user-friendly and done within a closed network. While there are paperless ticketing solutions available in the market, they lack the capability required for event attendees to manage multiple ticket management for friends, groups, families and co-workers. "Creating a network that truly meets the needs of concert goers that purchase multiple tickets for their friends, sports fans that manage season tickets, or theater patrons that have tickets across a multitude of events was key to our design," said Gilfus.

Event Innovation has developed a technology platform that integrates easily into existing ticketing and gate access systems. According to the company, the new solution has already attracted the interest of several ticketing partners and the company is looking forward to finalizing its partner integrations prior to a 2009 launch. Some key features of Ovation include free registration for individuals, friends and families. When signing up, the user needs to provide a valid credit card and address to validate their membership and receive a membership card. Members who purchase tickets from major ticket providers will be able to have them electronically deposited into their Ovation.com account. Managing and transferring of tickets to people can all be done conveniently with the click of a button. Another useful feature is that a user can import personal and business contacts from Yahoo, Hotmail, Outlook, Google, Linkedin and other social networks.

A quote from a piece in Daily Variety....Are NY drama critics becoming an endangered species?

Are NY drama critics becoming an endangered species?

From Daily Variety, 12/3/08

The pool of Gotham legit critics got a little shallower Tuesday, as word circulated that longtime critic Jacques le Sourd had been let go at the Journal News. Legiters were abuzz with the news, although no official confirmation came from the Journal News or from parent company Gannett. As print publications buckle under the weight of the current economy, legit critics have witnessed a mass exodus in recent weeks: Michael Sommers of New Jersey's Star-Ledger took a buyout; Eric Grode lost his gig when his paper, the New York Sun, folded; Jeremy McCarter left the theater critic post at New York Magazine for the culture beat at Newsweek; and Clive Barnes, a major figure in performing arts journalism and the longtime critic at the New York Post, died. The New York Drama Critics Circle stands at 18 voting members. Tally is down from 22 members earlier this fall. Le Sourd had been with Gannett for more than 30 years. It's not yet clear how the Journal News plans to cover Broadway in his absence, although many assume the outlet will use reviews from wire services Associated Press or Bloomberg. That's also the plan at the Star Ledger, while the Post has said the paper is on the lookout for a replacement for Barnes. New York Magazine is trying out multiple critics on the legit beat. News of the loss of one more critic escalated concern among legiters who have watched media coverage of the industry continue to shrink over the years.