The quality of your patron database stewardship has massive impact on the success or failure of every campaign and therefore, your revenue and long-term sustainability.
If your patron data is dirty, incomplete, or poorly segmented, building vital patron relationships and loyalty is an uphill struggle. Whatever shape or form your data is currently in, this article is for you. We will lay out a data stewardship process in simple steps to help you turn your data into something actionable.
At the top, we should establish that this process is ongoing. Data cleanliness is a priority for every department at your arts organization and therefore an appropriate amount of time needs to be allocated to its maintenance. Even if your data and processes are solid and orderly, 10-15% of your organizational time should still be allocated to data stewardship. If your data is in “okay” shape but there are some gaps, 15-20% of your organizational time would be appropriate to spend on improving your data. If you are newly building or your data is just plain messy, you should consider allocating 25% or more of your organizational time. Now that you and everyone else on your team has added “data deputy” to their job descriptions, lets get into the process.
1. Capture it.
Rather obviously, the first step toward managing data is having it. With every transaction you should have a reliable way to capture and record patron contact information at the point of sale. Many ticketing venues accomplish this by using customer relationship management software (or CRM). For the purposes of this article we will assume you have one in place, but click here if you’d like to learn more about CRM systems. Even the most sophisticated CRMs can become messy without proper usage from your team. Avoid “stray records” or purchases made as quick sales under a general record or no record at all. Every patron who enters and exits your venue anonymously is a missed opportunity, and when these opportunities are missed in quantity you are losing meaningful revenue. Consider if 10% of your ticket sales are anonymous, even with a conversion rate of 1-2% on your marketing efforts, not being able to ask that 10% of your patrons to subscribe or support you could be an incalculable loss over time.
2. Clean It.
“Clean” data is accurate data. You are maintaining all this data so you can put it into action, but it has to be reliable to work. Messy databases with old, incorrect, or duplicate entries slow you down and cost you money. The key here is consistency, to the point where you may even want to create a detailed “style guide” to train your team members on a standardized way to input data. Things like spacing and punctuation can result in multiple entries for the same patron or cause a list to pull incorrectly. Its important to regularly consolidate and clean your databases for any errors and update addresses or phone contacts whenever possible. The Unites States Postal Service even offers postage discounts for organizations who run their data through the National Change of Address service every 90 days. This is an important step, as 10% of American households move each year, and even more than that among the younger generations in the workforce. Learn More about NCOA benefits here.
3. Organize It.
If you must chop down a tree, its best to take the time to sharpen the axe before you start swinging. The same is true for using large amounts of data, the work is lighter when you have sharpened and organized tools. Proper organization allows you to identify certain patron types and reach them with offers they are most likely to be interested in. Before you can segment your current database, its worth taking the time to consider the types of purchases your patrons make and what types of engagement you are looking to develop. Some common characteristics to make sure your CRM is identifying are year/season of purchase, buyer type (donor, member, single-ticket buyer etc.) and campaign/event. Look for gaps in the data you are collecting currently. What patrons would you like to be able to identify that right now you couldn’t? Then update and organize your CRM to capture that data at every transaction. Think future forward as you identify patron groups and data you want to organize your data collection around. Proper organization will allow your team to quickly understand your patrons’ behaviors and market to them effectively for all your future campaigns.
4. Segment it.
Another word for patron groups is “segments”. Now that you have your data collecting in an organized fashion that’s aligned with your campaign and analysis strategies, you will have a growing database with different ways to divide each customer based on their history with your organization. The only problem is, how do you divide them? There is a bit of a “Goldilocks” scenario in this step, meaning it is possible to have groups that are too big to be effective or too small to be manageable, so you must find your organization’s “just right.” The perfect segment sizes and characteristics vary across organizations and from campaign to campaign. Getting input across all departments will help you determine the segments and messages to create for any given campaign. You may, for example, be preparing for a subscription renewal. Segment one might be first-time subscribers who have never donated, segment two first-time subscribers who have donated, segment three and four could be subscribers who have been through a renewal but either have or have not donated in the past. Those four categories can be divided more granularly by donation size or number of years renewed. The inputs from your marketing, box office, development teams etc. might help you see that really you only need three different messages. One, to first-time subscribers explaining the renewal process, another, to the subscribers who have given major donations and finally, a generalized version to everyone else. You are managing relevance and resources with this step. The groups need to be small enough that the messages are relevant, speaking to your patrons like you know their history, but not so fragmented that it’s a drain on your time and resources. Determine what you are asking them to do and the unique needs certain patron groups may have, this will give you your segments.
5. Use it.
If you have never tried this approach to segmentation and messaging we encourage you pilot it on your next campaign. Share and discuss this article and get additional ideas for your specific campaign with cross-departmental input about what the segments could be and what differences in messaging will truly matter to patrons. With each campaign your clarity about how to optimize the segments and messaging will become clearer. Remember, the better organized your data collection at the point of sale, the faster and more effective future marketing will be for your team. It’s important to not view one individual as the “data person”. In order to maintain clean and useful data, it takes your entire organization valuing and understanding its importance and how it is used to keep your patron relationships growing and your organization resilient.
