Imagine walking into your next budget meeting and being asked a simple question:
Where will next year's revenue come from?
Most teams can point to a target. Ticket sales. Donations. Memberships. Subscriptions. But those numbers don't generate themselves. Behind every revenue goal sits a group of people making decisions about whether to attend, return, renew, donate, or engage again.
Which raises a different question: How well do you understand the relationships your revenue depends on?
That's why at TRG Arts we often think about audiences through a different lens: Advocates, Buyers, and Tryers.
Rather than focusing on what people purchased, this framework helps leaders understand how deeply people are connected to the organization and where future revenue is most likely to come from.
Watch this clip from Leading the Way as we introduce Advocates, Buyers and Tryers:
At the base of the pyramid sit Tryers. These are first-time attendees, infrequent visitors, and patrons returning after a long absence. They have demonstrated interest in your organization, but the relationship is still fragile.
At TRG, we often describe Tryers as living between then and now, and now and next. Something motivated them to engage. The more important question is what happens next.
For many organizations, Tryers represent the vast majority of the database (in some cases as much as 90%). They are also the least loyal, most expensive audiences to acquire, and the most likely to lapse if left unattended. A first visit creates potential. A second visit begins creating loyalty.
For arts leaders, this raises an important question: are your teams focused solely on bringing people through the door, or are they equally focused on bringing them back?
WATCH OR LISTEN: Why 75% of First-Time Attendees Never Return (And What to Do About It)
As relationships deepen, audiences move into the next level of the pyramid: Buyers.
Buyers are no longer deciding whether your organization is worth trying. They are deciding that it deserves a growing place in their lives. They attend and return. They buy tickets and become members. They subscribe and make a donation.
At TRG, we often describe this as the magic of "and."
Every additional "and" strengthens the relationship. Every additional "and" increases the likelihood that someone will continue to engage in the future.
This is why Buyers often represent one of the greatest growth opportunities in an organization's database. They have already demonstrated a willingness to say yes. The leadership challenge is creating more reasons for them to do so again.
What would happen if your organization focused as much energy on creating the next "and" as it does on acquiring the next customer?
At the top of the pyramid sit Advocates. These are your strongest, deepest, and most valuable relationships.
Advocates don't simply attend. They invest. They support. They return consistently. They often engage across multiple areas of the organization and, in many cases, contribute philanthropically as well.
What distinguishes Advocates is not a specific transaction. It's commitment.
These are the patrons who have made your organization part of their lives. In a sector facing continued uncertainty, those relationships provide something every organization needs: resilience. They create predictability, strengthen philanthropy, and help build a foundation for sustainable revenue.
For leaders, Advocates represent more than today's revenue. They represent confidence in tomorrow's.
WATCH BACK: Sustaining the Advocates that Sustain You
Every future budget target, fundraising goal, and attendance objective ultimately depends on human behavior. The question is not simply how much revenue was generated last year. The more important question is whether the relationships behind that revenue are becoming stronger or weaker.
Organizations don't become sustainable because they acquire more customers. They become sustainable because relationships grow.
The strongest relationships also generate more value, renew at higher rates, and require less investment to retain. That's why loyalty deserves leadership attention. The question isn't simply how many new patrons entered the database this year. It's how many moved closer to becoming Buyers and Advocates. Because that's where sustainable revenue is built.
Understanding where audiences sit within their relationship with your organization, helps leaders focus on the behaviors that drive long-term revenue, rather than simply measuring the outcomes after the fact.
"Advocates, Buyers, and Tryers" is one of the foundational concepts introduced in Season 3 of Leading the Way.
In Episode 1, Why Your Revenue Problem Might Really Be a Relationship Problem, Jill, Brad, Stephen and Christina explore how audience relationships shape loyalty, sustainability, and long-term revenue growth.
Watch or listen to the full episode and discover how stronger relationships create stronger revenue.