Considering Communication

When logging on to the Lauderdale House website, I noticed one thing: the horrifying fact that the last update from the House was in November 2009 (Lauderdale House Facebook, 2010). Yes, granted everyone has been extremely busy and I updated the General Manager's calendar with over fifteen tasks to do in one week, but Facebook should definitely be one of them. Perhaps if another mode of communication, say e-mail was used, customers can get live updates? When Saddler's Wells, a theatre in London, implemented an e-mail list, they saw that an overwhelming number of 3000 more people had signed up to receive information (de Kretser, n/a). With this being easily achieved through the launch of the website, Lauderdale House can benefit from word of mouth and individuals passing on e-mails to friends, as the case of Saddler's Wells (de Kretser, n/a). Through e-marketing and informational e-mails, Lauderdale House can also include a simple survey, assisting the organization with continuous feedback and communication. Since only one official quantitative survey has been done in 2009 (Ives, 2010), the organization can utilize its e-mails to participants go gain valuable feedback used to possibly create new strategies or change existing ones. While Facebook should still be updated, individuals might be hesitant to state their opinions of the organization on the the organization's homepage. Thus, e-mails can be used as more of an "anonymous" and "confidential" source for feedback. And with over 400 million users on Facebook (Facebook, 2010), anonymity might not be such a bad thing.

de Kretser, H. n/a. E-mail: Describes how Sadler’s Wells has used direct e-marketing to generate 18% of all box office sales online. [Online] Available at: http://www.a-m-a.org.uk/casestudy.asp?id=32 [Accessed 25 April 2010].

Facebook, 2010. Press Room: Statistics. [Online] Available at: http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics (Accessed 25 April 2010).

Ives, K., 2010. Surveys done by the House. [Discussion] (Personal Communication 25 April, 2010).

Lauderdale House Facebook, 2010. Lauderdale House. [Online] Available at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/London-United-Kingdom/Lauderdale-House/78576823105 (Accessed 25 April 2010).

Getting Some Answers

What seems like ages ago, I posted my project proposal. While the project has been on its way, there were some questions which were meant to generate discussion, and thus provide me with material to analyze Lauderdale House as well as make recommendations. With some help from the staff of the House, the questions can now be answered:

1. What are the desired results of the Lauderdale House?
Upon asking this to the Director and General Manager of the House, it was clear that one could not assume "results" are the final stage, after which striving for something more ceases to exist. The House is constantly faced with challenges, whether its the general upkeep of the House or booking new events (Ives, 2010). However, through the Heritage Lottery Application and the combined efforts of the staff, the optimal "result" is the continuous development of the House and its sustainability, the preservation of its heritage as well as its impact within the community, and hopefully a possible expansions (Nash, 2010).

2. What methods of marketing are being used and implemented?
I have a crystal clear memory of being interviewed by the General Manager, who is responsible for many functions, marketing being one of them, and being told that she is the only one taking on this responsibility. Furthermore, the tactics that she told me seemed more so traditional than avant-garde, yet very fitting for the House. Some marketing activities include direct mail, the House website, a Facebook page, and at times newspaper coverage (Ives, 2010). The House also has hopes that the childhood memories as well as word of mouth leads to bookings for events and weddings, but the official information is still only available online (Dempsey, 2010). The House has also attempted direct distribution and has handed out pamphlets for kids shows after school to children and parents (Ives, 2010).

3. How have those strategies affected the achievement of the desired results?
Currently, the marketing strategies have contributed to an increase in the turnover of the House and with the presence of the General Manager, events have substantially increased in the last ten years (Ives, 2010). With the expansion of its marketing activities to include a blog, twitter, and e-mail marketing, the House can reach a greater number of people and possibly contribute to a greater level of communication (Ives, 2010). With more attendants and more publicity, the potential for bookings and events rises and therefore marketing can have a positive effect on the House. However, the House has to always consider the feasibility of its planned activities as well as the resources which are available. For example, they cannot afford to advertise in major newspapers and therefore that can hinder the potential for attendants (Nash, 2010).

4. What other marketing strategies can be used to achieve the desired results?
One of the major sources of income is hiring the House (Dempsey, 2010). Through the launch of the new website, the House hopes for the information for hiring to become more accessible, more visible, and therefore create a greater potential for bookings (Ives, 2010). The possible partnerships with other organizations to advertise events in the House can create better publicity. For example, Lauderdale House uses websites designated for the arts community to advertise events, which is free and creates visibility. However, this is again a challenge due to the resources available (Ives, 2010). With the launch of the new website, an e-mail list can be created and blogs updated to create more of an online community for the House (Ives, 2010). These factors are both feasible and can contribute to the desired results of the House.

Well, there you have it! Straight from the source of Lauderdale House, paraphrased for the blog and any new ideas for the organization are always welcome!

Dempsey, N., 2010. Discussion with the Bookings Manager. [Discussion] (Personal Communication, 19 April 2010).

Ives, K., 2010. Discussion with the General Manage. [Discussion] (Personal Communication 19 April 2010).

Nash, C., 2010. Discussion with Director. [Discussion] (Personal Communication 19 April 2010).

Marketing on a Shoestring

I read a very interesting case study about the Tate Britain in London. As some may know, the Tate Britain, which more so focused on a variety of art, is affiliated with the Tate Modern, which is more focused on modern art (Tate, 2010). The Tate Britain was in the process of re-branding when the Tate Modern was opening and unfortunately lost much of its audience to the other museum. Furthermore, it was not attracting as young of a crowd as it would have liked to (Gompertz, 2004). To publicize an event which was aimed more so towards youth, the Tate Britain designated a £150 for leaflets to be handed out by volunteers in busy and populated areas, small cards to be distributed to businesses, universities and cafes, and also had the money to place a small ad in TimeOut (Gompertz, 2004). Through this, the Tate Britain increased its attendance by 3000 over the next two years, which included 80% of people who had never been to the museum before (Gompertz, 2004). This story was remarkable to me. Here, we have Tate Britain, a well known London based museum who designated what can very well be a small amount of money and the results speak for themselves! Lauderdale House has numeours volunteers which can contribute to this type of publicity. This can be a new marketing strategy for the House, one that is simple but goes beyond mailings and a website. By carrying out this small campaign, the organization can also track its attendance, and if the figures show improvement, the strategy can be implemented to coincide with major events at the House. This form of simple publicity might be just what the House needs to increase visibility and attendance. Thank you, Tate Britain, for the tip!

Gompertz. W., 2004. Developing audiences at Tate: Projects that have developed new audiences at Tate. [Online] Available at: http://www.a-m-a.org.uk/casestudy.asp?id=55 [Accessed 22 April 2010].

Tate Britain, 2010. Tate Britain. [Online] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/britain/ (Accessed 12 April 2010)

Tate Modern, 2010. Tate Modern. [Online] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/ (Accessed 12 April 2010).

Lending a Hand

Lauderdale House has been fortunate enough to receive a great amount of interest from volunteers. With only a handful of full time staff, all the help possible is needed. Currently there are a total of about twenty volunteers at the House (Ives, 2010). According to the director, they contribute enough time to be equivalent to about eight full time staff (Nash, 2010). From general duties of stuffing envelopes or monitoring the gallery to working directly with the general director, the volunteers have become a necessary tool in the maintaining the development of the House. Blackadder (2005) emphasizes the support role of volunteers in an organization, and with city-wide centers which advertise volunteer opportunities, such as Camden (Volunteer Center Camden, 2010) and Westminster (Volunteer Center Westminster, 2010), there is a lot of support to be given. The House is unique in its approach to volunteering in that it does not set strict prerequisites for those having an interest in helping. Their volunteers range from ages 20 to 90, speaking a multitude of languages and coming from diverse backgrounds (Heritage Lottery Application, 2010). While it may be difficult to sometimes find a volunteer on a specific day with a specific skill set needed, the House gives them the recognition they deserve in the Lauderdale House Annual Report (2009) along side the full time staff of the House. This recognition, suggests Blackadder (2005) is essential because just like Friends, or those who donate money to an organization, volunteers dedicate time and provide a service that cannot be duplicated.

Blackadder, L., 2005. Influential Friends. Journal of Arts Marketing. 19: p. 6-7.

Ives, K., 2010. Discussion about volunteers in the House. [Discussion] (Personal Communication, 5 April 2010).

Nash, C., 2010. Discussion about volunteers in the House. [Discussion] (Personal Communication, 5 April 2010).

Heritage Lottery Fund, 2010. Lauderdale House Heritage Lottery Fund Application, 2010. London: Lauderdale House.

Lauderdale House Annual Report, 2009. Lauderdale House Annual Report 2008/2009. London: Lauderdale House.

Volunteer Center Camden, 2010. Volunteer Center Camden. [Online] Available at: http://www.volunteercentrecamden.org.uk/ [Accessed 6 April 2010].

Volunteer Center Westminster, 2010. Volunteer Center Westminster. [Online] Available at: http://www.volunteer.co.uk/
[Accessed 6 April 2010].