Business Partnerships with Community Arts

The Courtyard Centre for the Arts

Herefordshire

One Development Manager’s perspective on creating, maintaining and developing mutually beneficial

business partnerships in community arts

Melanie Denning

Our mission …

‘To promote creativity across all genres of the Arts, as an important element in the

lives of the whole community.’

Some of the ways we do this ...Community theatre

Children’s shows & workshops ...

Dance perfomance & participation

And how we do it...

Arts work with older people ...

Our family pantomime ...

Top quality comedians ...

Rolling programme of visual arts

A thriving Youth Theatre

£ £ A bit of maths £ £ £

Subsidy cuts + recession + inflation + increase in community/outreach work

= sharp rise in need for development income

Luckily, we development managers LIKE a challenge, don’t we!

Our income sources (based on 2011-12)

52%

21%

3%

2.5%

20%

2%

Earned (all ticket sales, hires etc)Subsidies (Council/ACE) Trusts/Foundations incomeBusiness supportTrading income (Cafe Bar etc)Individual giving

Development income comes from: Business Club

Sponsorship

Advertising

Individual giving (incl. membership schemes)

Fundraising events

Trusts & Foundations

Myself & Liz at our Panto press launch

Our Business Club

Four levels of supportCore benefitsAdditional BenefitsCurrent membership

Running a Business Club The good... Predictable regular income to support core costs Ready-made business support network, opens new doors Spin off benefits and income: sponsorship, advertising, room

hire, pro bono advice

... the bad... Time management: constant juggling to support existing clients against

time to source new members Over-delivery may lead to perceived devaluation of benefits Two-way partnership is crucial – the business must engage with venue

proactively in order to maximise benefits

...and the unforseen positives

Advocacy – members develop a clear understanding of what you’re trying to achieve through community arts and become strong advocates of all we do, in turn, attracting new businesses to us

Audience development – our scheme includes a staff discount scheme so we are encouraging ticket purchasers, some of whom are first-time attendees.

A word about contra marketing

Why businesses work with us … Access to audiences – they can see the value of direct marketing to our

excellent visitor footfall (250,000 approx, pa)

Being seen to support (CSR) – underpins the whole relationship ie they are supporting a vibrant and busy venue that undertakes a wide range of community & education work

Well matched sponsorships – our varied programming supports different business needs eg Bulmers and Hereford Cathedral School

Advertising works – captive, targeted audiences for quality products eg show programmes, Friends magazine, Café Bar plasma screen

Corporate grapevine – they’ve heard about Business Club, its staff discount scheme or other tangible direct marketing benefits

Businesses are buying into this ...

... but actually want these!

How to get business supportDrink lots of cheap wine and talk enthusiastically to complete

strangers ie keep networking!Be first in the queue as regards new opportunitiesMake a strong case for support ... be passionateDo your research to find common groundBe creative with your proposalsShow interest in the business and its prioritiesMatch business needs to what you can offerFind ‘arts’ champions within the business & encourage them to be

your advocateOnce you’ve got business support, work hard to keep the client

engaged eg PR and new ideasIt’s all about relationships (get to know people/how they tick)

What motivates me …?

Two last thoughts ...Donors don’t give to institutions... they invest in ideas and people in whom they believe. GT Smith

We should never forget that no fundraising effort ever succeeds unless one person asks another person for money! Andrew D Parker Jnr

Thanks for listening...

Any questions?