Use the power of networks to reach more fans and supporters

Extend the reach of your communication at minimal cost by embracing network thinking and designing your content with spreadability in mind. Mark Turrell of Orcasci explains these two groundbreaking concepts and their applicability to the arts world in two short videos.

Summary: The Power of Networks

• Formal and informal networks
• Social media networks
• Everyone lives in multiple networks
• Special networks in the case of artists: fans, boards, donors
• Engage your fans
• Engage the members of your board and advisory board
• The internet makes finding and tapping into networks easier
• Activate networks
• Nurture your networks
• Target key influencers

Summary: How to Make Things Spreadable

• Include the right behavioral hooks
• Make people want to spread things
• Make people feel good about spreading your content
• Ask people to share explicitly
• Share in lots of places
• Humor: make your content fun to share
• ‘Viral’ spread
• Virality might boost awareness, but not action
• Make your content immersive
• Remember to include a call to action
• Design your playbills and programs to help their spread
• Be genuine, interesting, focused on your art
• Make your content easy to share
• Provide ‘click to share’ functionality on social networks

1. Share immersive content (photos and videos)
2. Post artistic insights, invite guest performers to contribute
3. Make it very easy for people to resend and repost your communication
4. Provide polished pre-written emails for your board and advisory board members
5. Prompt readers with an obvious call to action

1. Share immersive content (photos and videos)

   Online channels are ideal for encouraging your fans and customers to spread your message across their networks by sharing it with their friends, family and colleagues. Nothing is more likely to be shared than immersive content. Publishing impactful, possibly humorous photos and short videos, especially behind-the-scenes footage, that you share via Facebook and Twitter (or tools like Facebook Poke and Vine) is therefore a great way to spread the word about your offerings. Don’t forget to include your website’s URL, a tag line and a call to action via a caption. Make sure that you ask people explicitly to share your content with their connections.

2. Post artistic insights, invite guest performers to contribute

   In order to create authentic, insightful and therefore interesting social media posts, stay focused on art and make sure that you provide value to your fans (e.g. by describing your creative process linked to one of your latest works or by reviewing a performance that you attended). Use real artists’ voices instead of relying on content mainly written by other staff. Be sure to include your guest performers in your online communication activities like Facebook and blog posts, tweets, etc. In this way you benefit from a fresh perspective in your posts, and you can also tap directly into new networks outside of your usual fan base and mailing list.

3. Make it very easy for people to resend and repost your communication

   Persuade your connections to spread your message by writing out appropriate content for social media channels for them to copy and paste. For example, in a thank you mail to people who have just attended one of your events, you may write “Below are some suggested tweets and Facebook posts for you to adjust and share….” and include some ready-made messages to save them effort and prompt them to act.

4. Provide polished pre-written emails for your board and advisory board members

   Your board and advisory board members are happy to support you if you make it easy for these important people to help you. Enable them to spread the word about your work across their networks by putting good quality content at their fingertips that is likely to appeal to their connections. Note that neither expecting them to create their own messages nor giving them content of an embarrassingly low quality is going to result in the desired activity on their end. The mails and materials that you ask them to send on to their contacts need to read well, be concise and contain a clear call to action for the recipients. Don’t forget to let your board members know how much you appreciate their support.

5. Prompt readers with an obvious call to action

   In your sales-focused communication you always need to make it very easy for people to make a purchase immediately via a prominent direct link to your order form or by highlighting the necessary contact email and phone number. For those situations where people should review additional information, direct their attention to a link pointing to a relevant page on your website or on a booking site like GoSeeDo.org. This kind of page needs to be focused on your offering, and feature a “buy now” button (or similar) that cannot be overlooked. The explicit button on the page or the equivalent wording and link in your original communication is the holy grail of successful marketing – the clear call to action.