Performing arts organizations across Canada are working harder than ever to fill seats. But what performing arts marketing trends are actually delivering results? Where should small teams focus their time to get the biggest return?
To answer these questions, I reached out to venues and presenters across the country, gathering insights on their biggest marketing challenges and successes. The results reveal clear trends—what’s driving audience engagement, what’s falling flat, and where the biggest opportunities lie.
What came through loud and clear? Successful marketing in the arts combines strong digital engagement, community-driven storytelling, and audience-focused content with targeted advertising and direct outreach. Not surpringly, investing in staff, automation, and data-driven decision-making makes a measurable difference.
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- Find out which marketing tactics really work — and which don’t
- Learn more about who responded to the survey
- See which marketing tools are most popular in the perfoming arts sector — and how satisfied presenters are with them
- Discover what kinds of training and support presenters want today
- The path forward: read how I believe performing arts organizations can meet these challenges
In addition to my own email outreach, the invitation to participate also went out through several regional presenter organizations. Many thanks to Manitoba Arts Network (MAN), Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Councils (OSAC), the Atlantic Presenters Association (APA), the Quebec English Language Arts Network (ELAN), the Canadian Association for the Performing Arts (CAPACOA), BC Live, Ontario Presents, and the SPARC Network for their assistance in sending out the survey link!
🤔 “I think we maybe need to reassess why we are doing marketing. There is often a kind of internal desire to make content or campaigns to reach audiences. Sometimes we consider if the ‘broadcast’ model of marketing is getting us further away from our mission.”
🚨“We’ve had countless events this year that were wonderful, engaging performances playing to half a house or less. The sense of lost opportunities for our residents is heartbreaking. For all of our existence in this rural county, we have played to a small, mostly upscale segment of the population and left unaddressed is a large segment of our market that does not value going to a theatre as going to a theatre has never been a part of their life experience. Breaking this barrier, with children but with the adult population as well, will not only improve our performance metrics and thus our ability to bring more and better programs to the region, but it will improve individual lives and the collective life of our community / county. Thus, a campaign to brand the venue and get people in the door who have never come before is also a must do if we are to truly succeed.”
Most performing arts organizations are using a mix of digital, social, and community-focused marketing tactics to reach audiences. Here are the strategies survey respondents reported to be the most effective:
⭐ “Collaborator posts increases visibility and engages new audiences by 44%, high quality video and photography results in more re-shares online, Paid sponsorship ads over social media platforms increases reach and impressions to 88K over the last 90 days.”
⭐ “Getting software that allows us to schedule and send social media posts across platforms has been very helpful.”
⭐ “Our Weekly E-card open rate is quite high as we focus on giving people more behind-the-scenes scoops.”
⭐ “A simple draw box for free tickets has increased our mailing list substantially. Our demographic is predominantly seniors so old-school methods are sometimes best.”
⭐ “We get the most engagement when we create content about community members. Our top four posts of this year are all related to either a staff member or a local artist.”
⭐ “Influencer marketing: inviting them to a special night offering them a free drink and merch. Hiring a videographer to film and edit “man on the street”-style videos to use on socials. Hiring a photographer and tagging those influencers for reshare on socials.”
⭐ “As always, our Facebook and Instagram paid advertising tended to work the best in terms of getting engagement and clicks to our website. We also branched out and did some paid advertising through local websites that cater to news and events”
⭐ “Our website was redesigned and is now very efficient and user-friendly.”
⭐ “We suck at marketing, we just started hiring someone this year, we relied on volunteers before and it did not work out well. We’re hoping it gets better.”
While many performing arts organizations have found success with social media, email marketing, and community-driven strategies, others have struggled to see results with certain tactics. Here’s what respondents identified as ineffective marketing strategies and the challenges they face.
🫤 “We paid for a $500 sponsored post in an online magazine, but the results were not reflected in ticket sales.”
🫤 “We experimented with a billboard which did not get the traction we thought it would. People may have seen it, but it did not translate into sales or increased traffic.”
🫤 “Instagram not terribly effective or accretive to our Facebook efforts. Small rural market.”
🫤 “Our biggest challenge is reaching our audience without any budget to do so. Relying on public posting, the algorithm and repetition is all we’ve got.
🫤 “Our local newspaper stopped printing in 2023, which really changed how we promote our events in the community.”
🫤 “Our audience has a hard time engaging with presenter materials, especially if they don’t clearly showcase what a performance will be about.”
🫤 “We’re doing everything we can within our budget. We need more money to do anything else. So stuck.”
A total of 25 professionals from the performing arts sector participated in the survey. Their roles included:
These respondents represented a mix of venues, presenters, festivals, theatre companies, and other arts organizations from across Canada.
Survey participants came from all over the country, with the highest representation from British Columbia (9) and Nova Scotia (5). Other respondents were from Ontario (2), New Brunswick (2), and one organization each from Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Yukon, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba.
Marketing budgets varied widely among organizations, with nearly half spending less than $12,000 annually:
Marketing teams tend to be small and resource-strapped:
This reinforces a common challenge in the sector—marketing is often one of many responsibilities handled by a small team, limiting the time available for strategy, content creation, and audience development.
🫤 “With only one person managing marketing and communications, the biggest challenges are balancing multiple priorities, maintaining consistent content creation across platforms, maximizing engagement with limited resources, and establishing effective digital strategies and long-term planning.“
We asked respondents about the marketing tools they use and how satisfied they are with them. Here’s what stood out:
🫤 “[I wish I had] a more comprehensive CRM/ticketing system to have a more complete overview of audience management and the stages each segment is at. Currently it feels like marketing, ticketing, and fund development operate separately or with challenges when overlapping.”
Beyond ticketing and email marketing, respondents shared additional tools they rely on, including:
One of the most consistent themes across survey responses was a strong desire for training in digital marketing. Many organizations struggle with:
🙏 “I’d love to find some specific training on marketing in remote communities/communities you are not currently in. We tour to remote communities across the North, and the marketing tactics of cities do not work in those locations. There’s minimal insight available into effective strategies beyond what I’m currently doing.”
I’ll be offering a series of free webinars on these and other topics this year. If you want to be notified when I announce them, please sign up using the form embedded on that page (or shoot me a message using the chat widget on this page and I will add you to the email list). I will also be adding more blog posts and free resources to this site over the coming weeks and months, so watch this space for more! You can also book me for private training online or in person on these and other marketing topics.
Organizations are looking for more cost-effective, trackable, and audience-driven marketing strategies rather than spending money on broad, underperforming platforms. The future of performing arts marketing lies in data-driven decision-making, better storytelling, and highly targeted outreach. As one respondent said: “Our first step is to understand our audience better so we can tailor marketing efforts.”
The challenges facing arts marketers today are real—tight budgets, small teams, shifting audience behaviors, and increasing competition for attention. But the good news is that solutions exist. The key is working smarter, not harder, by focusing on strategic, audience-driven marketing that aligns with current realities.
For many organizations, the challenge isn’t just about reaching people—it’s also convincing them to spend time and money on live performance. Inflation and cost-of-living pressures mean that audiences are more selective with their entertainment dollars. Younger audiences, in particular, often don’t have a built-in habit of attending live events, so asking them to buy a ticket often means asking them to change their behavior.
Given these challenges, arts organizations can’t afford to spread their marketing efforts too thin. The most successful teams are the ones that take a step back to assess what’s working, what’s not, and where their efforts will have the most impact. This is where strategic decision-making comes into play—choosing to invest time and resources into the tactics that actually move the needle and stepping away from ineffective strategies that drain energy without results.
For those with small teams, time is the most valuable resource. That’s why I have created The Encore Growth System to help performing arts organizations attract new audiences, turn them into loyal patrons, and keep them coming back — even when there’s limited time, resources, and budget for marketing.
With small teams and limited budgets, arts organizations don’t have time to waste on marketing that doesn’t convert. That’s why I developed the Encore Growth System—a practical, step-by-step approach to getting results without burning out.
The Encore Growth System is built around three key pillars:
While every performing arts organization needs these three pillars in place to build a robust and resilient marketing system, you shouldn’t try and tackle it all at once. Start by identifying whether your challenge is attracting new audiences, getting them to engage, or keeping them coming back — and then get to work strengthening those marketing systems.
Whether you have a small budget, a small team, or both, smart marketing strategies like the Encore Growth System can help you spend your time wisely, attract the right people, and build stronger connections with your audience.
The landscape is changing—but with the right strategies, performing arts organizations can adapt, grow, and thrive.
Want personalized marketing strategies tailored to your arts organization? Book a free, no-obligation 30-minute strategy session and start selling more tickets today.
