Creating Cultural Connections, a Strategic Marketing Plan
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Creating Cultural Connections PreparedBarrie for Arts and Culture Strategic Marketing Plan 2012-2014 City of Barrie Department of Culture Prepared for The Department of Culture City of Barrie Prepared by The Resource Management Consulting Group www.rmcg.ca January 2012 The Artists for the Artists of Barrie Let us craft a city – give it all our gifts, stuff of dreams and legends and faces of our people. Let us imagine moorings of light in Venice, boulevards of a reborn Paris, or a harborscape like Stockholm. Does its raw clay sing to you and fill you with ideas, avenues where stars are born, and summer afternoons a sculpture? Would it be as real in winter when snow falls as a blanket with silence to let you dream and its words become a book? Speak volumes for what you love. You are the story of this place, the narrative of every footprint your journeys have yet to map by Bruce Meyer, First Poet Laureate, City of Barrie Creating Cultural Connections Barrie Arts & Culture Strategic Marketing Plan 2011 Contents 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 4 Need for a Strategic Arts and Culture Marketing Plan .......................................................................................... 4 Objectives of the Plan ............................................................................................................................................ 4 How to Use the Plan .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Definitions ............................................................................................................................................................. 5 Development of the Plan ....................................................................................................................................... 6 Input to the Plan .................................................................................................................................................... 7 2 Barrie Arts & Culture Strategic Marketing Plan ............................................................................................. 9 Strategic Vision for Arts and Culture in Barrie ...................................................................................................... 9 Time Frame for the Plan ........................................................................................................................................ 9 Strategic Opportunities Identified through the Planning Process ........................................................................ 9 Recommendations ............................................................................................................................................... 10 Summary of Actions for the Recommendations ................................................................................................. 13 Measuring Success .............................................................................................................................................. 15 Arts Sector Marketing Roles & Responsibilities .................................................................................................. 16 Disseminating the Plan ........................................................................................................................................ 18 Annual Review and Update ................................................................................................................................. 18 3 Recommendations and Detailed Actions ................................................................................................... 20 4 Analysis of Barrie’s Arts & Culture Marketing Situation ............................................................................. 36 Inventory of Barrie’s Arts and Culture offerings ................................................................................................. 36 Market Assessment ............................................................................................................................................. 37 Review of Planning Documents & Research Reports .......................................................................................... 39 Community Comparisons .................................................................................................................................... 39 Product‐Market Match Assessment .................................................................................................................... 40 SWOT Analysis ..................................................................................................................................................... 42 Appendix A ‐ Created in Barrie Executive Summary ............................................................................................... 43 Appendix B ‐ Review of Planning Documents and Research Reports ..................................................................... 48 Appendix C ‐ Barrie Arts & Culture Organizations and Waterfront Events ............................................................. 57 Appendix D ‐ Marketing Initiatives in Simcoe County and Other Selected Communities ...................................... 62 Appendix E ‐ PRIZM C2TM: Geodemographic Segmentation ................................................................................. 69 3 Creating Cultural Connections Barrie Arts & Culture Strategic Marketing Plan 2011 1 Introduction Need for a Strategic Arts and Culture Marketing Plan The Barrie Arts and Culture Strategic Marketing Plan has been prepared as an overall framework for marketing Barrie’s arts and culture products, a need identified in Barrie’s Culture Plan, Building a Creative Future (2006). Although Barrie’s arts sector contributes significantly to the city’s economy and quality of life, marketing this sector has been largely the responsibility of individual artists and organizations. In 2010, the Department of Culture completed a market study of the audience for arts and culture in Barrie and its surrounding region (based on 1,400 interviews of Barrie and regional residents). Created in Barrie: Understanding Barrie’s Arts and Culture Markets documents arts participation and behavior for Barrie and regional residents, and identifies opportunities to grow the market for Barrie arts and culture products (Appendix A). This Strategic Marketing Plan, Creating Cultural Connections, builds on the understanding gained through the research and identifies market opportunities and suggests actions for Barrie’s arts and cultural sector. Implementing the plan will benefit: 1. Barrie’s and the Region’s Residents through increased participation in Barrie’s arts and cultural offerings, cultural enrichment and increased community pride, 2. Barrie’s Arts and Culture Community by increasing audiences and support, developing a more cohesive community and providing new opportunities for more offerings, and 3. The City of Barrie by creating a cultural community identity, enhancing the overall quality of life in the community and recognizing the role of culture as an economic driver. Some of the recommendations will be adopted by the Department of Culture1 as part of its Business Plan; others may be assumed by the Barrie Arts and Cultural Council or by other arts organizations and individuals of the community and region. The DOC has taken on the role of a leader and facilitator, but ultimately the success of the plan will depend on the desire and collaborative actions of the City, stakeholders and individuals to build and market the creative city envisioned in the 2006 Plan for Culture. Objectives of the Plan This Strategic Marketing Plan sets out to maximize the regional market potential of Barrie’s visual, performing, culinary and heritage offerings by: • Complementing the existing strategic directions of arts and culture organizations, as well as stakeholders such as the Economic Development Department, City of Barrie, Georgian College, Tourism Barrie and Downtown Barrie, • Developing recommendations and actions for penetrating the local market over a three‐year time period, 1The City of Barrie Department of Culture (DOC) was formed in 2008 in response to the adoption of the report Building a Creative Future by City Council. The DOC was tasked with responsibilities: oversight of the arts, building infrastructure and developing a Business Plan to support the City’s decision‐making regarding culture. 4 Creating Cultural Connections Barrie Arts & Culture Strategic Marketing Plan 2011 • Identifying criteria for measuring outcomes, and • Recognizing that ultimately, success results from the combined marketing efforts of the City of Barrie, stakeholders, arts and culture organizations and individual artists. How to Use the Plan This plan can be used by all organizations and individuals involved in arts and culture in Barrie and the region. It is hoped that by aligning strategies and actions, the arts and culture community will strengthen existing markets and reach its market potential. Time frame for the plan is approximately 3 years. Because it will be implemented by a number of independent organizations, it should be reviewed annually and updated as actions are implemented and new ideas rise to the surface. Definitions Arts & Culture Culture can be thought of as the