Mix It Up Project Report: Building New Audiences - Multicultural Arts ...

Key Learnings
The key learnings from this important study are:
Mix It Up Research Project 2006
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Centre For Leisure Management Research
• Audience development is about building long-term relationships grounded in a philosophical base that
recognise diversity.
• Audience development needs to be holistic and strategic, engaging all members of the organisation,
from board to administration and artists.
• As Mix It Up is a long-term change program, it needs funding to encourage new audiences and new
ways of thinking.
• Building diverse audiences is not only about organisational change, but also about creating new
repertoire.
• Audience education is an important factor in building new audiences and maintaining them.
• Mix It Up demonstrated the need to move beyond using traditional marketing channels to draw new and
diverse audiences to arts events.
• Objectives of multicultural events need to be clearly stated and communicated to organisational staff. A
natural discrepancy exists between financial and social goals.
• Pricing is an important factor to be considered when targeting new audiences. 45% of people who
attended events for Mix It Up believed improvement was needed to be made in ticket prices.
• A key to establishing and retaining new audiences is through relationship building between arts
providers and communities’ key players.
• Multicultural arts projects can be controlled by the large institutional organisation, collaboratively or by
the community organisation. Where control resides needs to be determined by the nature and scope of
the project and its aims and objectives.
• Organisational flexibility and innovation is important when seeking to develop new audiences.