Arts and Heritage Marketing - Case Study Example

Marketing Plan for the Tate Britain Introduction Marketing strategies for non-profit organisations typically aim at identifying the target consumers and developing a core band of consumers. Since the non-profit sector lies beyond the mainstream business domains, it is imperative to forge unique marketing plans for optimising benefits. These plans may be directed at gaining short-term economic advantages, or may go further into building long-term brand identity for the enterprise. 2. Background Speaking of the non-profit sector and the Tate Britain features prominently in the list of heritage establishments in the field of art in England. Located at the pulsating heart of London, the Tate Britain happens to be an art gallery exhibiting some of the finest collections of British artifacts and paintings. The main gallery, which is a part of the Tate gallery network in Britain, houses several channels that oversee the branding of contemporary art with music. Works of some of the most notable poets, artists and musicians of the present generation, including William Blake, Sonia Boyce, Damien Hirst, Cornelia Parker, Mark Dion, Tracey Emin, Bruce Nauman, and Jeffrey Lewis, are showcased at the gallery. Antique English art and global contemporary art have been put on display in the Gallery with due importance attached to their careful preservation (Tate Britain n. d.). 3. Thesis Questions The first segment of this report is going to provide a SWOT analysis of the internal strengths and weaknesses of the Tate Britain, followed by a close scrutiny of the outside scopes of further development and possible difficulties in functional integrity. The analysis will be made to key out a few target markets to which the products of the Gallery may be sold. The second part of the report will document the marketing action plan by incorporating the basic marketing strategies and relating them to the outcomes of the SWOT analysis. Recommendations for improvement will be made keeping in mind the budgetary constraints of marketing. 4. SWOT Analysis The idea of value-based branding may be looked into for drawing out a prospective marketing strategy for the Tate Gallery. As an art and heritage museum that has been serving the interest of a very select group of art collectors and lovers for a long time, the Tate Gallery essentially has a unique selling proposition only in terms of the intrinsic values of its collections. The concept of cross-cultural branding comes in contention as well as this art house has in its repertoire not just the indigenous British artifacts, but also many works of art from other cultures around Europe. In a way, the strengths of the Tate Gallery in London lie in its cultural grandiose and sophistication rooted in the traditional values of English art. SWOT analysis is a typical marketing tool useful for exploring the business prospects of a given organisation. SWOT is an acronymic term for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (Hsu and Powers 2001:132). Now for a heritage installation like the Tate Gallery, all the four determinants deserve equal emphasis. In the purview of this study, the concerned management should first of all strive to assess the existing resources of the organization to fathom its strengths and weaknesses. 4.1 Strengths 4.1.1 Tourism It may be noted that the location of the Tate Gallery is convenient to foster leisure and heritage tourism. The Gallery itself offers a handful of composite tour packages, exhibition lecture packages and independent visits. Each of these categories is featured with sub-categories catering to the customised requirements of the esteemed guests (Tate Britain n. d.). So the prospect of tourism may be used as an effective internal marketing tool. 4.1.2 Entertainment Entertainment comes along with tourism. Eating and drinking at the Tate Britain seems to be getting better with the inception of the Rex Whistler Restaurant and the Tate Britain Café. These two food courts offer globally accepted standards of food and beverages, with lucrative offers from time to time (Tate Britain n. d.). 4.1.3 Corporate Culture In an age when the counter-cultural movements resulting from the aftermaths of globalisation have been sweeping across the consumer fraternities, it is only logical to think that corporate cultures would play a predominant role in ensuring the operational integrity of heritage organisations. The same has happened to the Tate Britain as well. Corporate events are organised periodically at this venue, with regular showing of daytime and evening entertainment programmes. Corporate culture adds a modern fervour to the heritage setup of the symposium as the aura of classicism blends well with the dynamism of modernity. Gallery 9, the Clore Auditorium, the Manton Foyer, the Sackler Octagon, the Duffield Room, and the Rex Whistler Restaurant represent the crux of corporatism at this heritage venue (Tate Britain n. d.). 4.2 Weaknesses 4.2.1 The Tate Chain The fact that the Tate Britain is a franchise of a larger network of galleries spreading across London, Liverpool and St Ives makes it difficult for the governing authority to introduce common programmes and events schedules. The Tate chain comprises Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. Due to differences in local cultures, it often becomes hectic to run similar events at the same time in all these venues. This weakness is not that apparent for the local visitors, but when the international visitors come to England, it is not a commanding business proposition to operate with a varied schedule for similar events and programmes. 4.2.2 Artists’ Loyalty Organisations engaging in performing and other genres of art often face as much difficulty in retaining their customers as in keeping their performers committed to their long-term missions. Artists who are involved with other art houses are not always available during peak seasons. This poses a major problem in terms of envisaging futuristic objectives. 4.3 Opportunities 4.3.1 Heritage Establishment Unlike the internal strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats represent the external factors for organisational development. As far as the Tate Britain is concerned, its opportunities are embedded in the gallery’s rich and cosmopolitan cultural heritage. Being a colossal landmark renowned for the portrayal of numerous artistic renditions of painting, music, crafts and artifacts from the English and other cultures, the Gallery itself prides for its diversification of aesthetic expressions. The musical shows and regular exhibitions pull in thousands of visitors from all over the world, creating an ambience of esoteric involvement with art. 4.3.2 Commitment to Quality Commitment to quality can never be undermined especially in the context of arts and heritage marketing. There is virtually no end to improvement and the Tate Britain, despite all its existing fortes, can surely make small alterations in its policies to further strengthen its market values. For instance, the present collection accommodates for various artifacts from 1500 A. D. If the authorities can look beyond the timeline and incorporate pieces of art and music from earlier times, it would only help their cause. 4.4 Threats 4.4.1 Loan Policy The existing loan policy for the borrowing of exhibited items presents a perceptible threat for the art house. The loan policy states that only the borrowers from Great Britain are eligible to place requests for loans up to 2-5 years given that they will be using the borrowed materials(s) solely for commercial purposes (Tate n. d.). 4.4.2 Preservation Preserving the invaluable papers, paintings, frames, and sculptures is very important for sustained growth and development of the Tate Britain. 5. Marketing Action Plan The marketing action plan for Tate Britain would now be made on the basis of analytical findings from the SWOT study. Every component of the plan will be related to its corresponding SWOT findings about the external factors. It is evident from the SWOT study that the Tate Britain faces external threats to its operational fronts from two sides: 1) Lack of core audience and lack of procedural methods for developing that core audience 2) Preservation of collections To counter these threats, it is imperative for the authorities concerned to devise innovative ways. First of all, any heritage installation functions in accordance with tacit approval of its target consumers in matters of outreach. A greater outreach implies further expansion of the consumer base. But at the same time, it may also be noted that budget is a concerning issue for the gallery authorities. Resorting to electronic means for the expansion of marketing requires a hefty budgetary allocation, which may not be too feasible in the given context. What the authorities can do is engage more customers by shooting complementary emails containing information on the latest development of the Gallery. Sending newsletters and updated bulletins may be a cost effective move. Secondly, incorporating the four marketing mix consisting of product, place, price and promotion may be of help to the organisation for realising its potential. As for products, it is necessary not to over expose, especially during exhibitions. McLean (1997) argues that marketing goals should be set in a manner that balances the peak seasons with the lean ones. A reserve collection should be kept ready for exhibitions in near future. What this strategy also does is it keeps the audience on tenterhooks about what might be displayed in exhibitions that are to be held in the next few years (209). Subsequently, they tend to come back again to the exhibitions, thus contributing to the economic as well as participatory expectations of the production house. 5.1 Identifying the Target Market Setting proper prices of the tickets for various events helps grabbing the immediate audience. Considering the following of the Tate Britain among teenagers and undergraduate students, it is worth recommending that the authorities would do well to make some sort of students’ concessions in peak seasons. As discussed in the SWOT analysis, the dining tourism is gaining in popularity at the Tate Britain. Hence, it is a good idea to use the popularity of this form of tourism to introduce more than marginal allowances for students. 6. Recommendations and Conclusions Recommendations are being made with due consideration of the fact that the Tate Britain functions in accordance with the British and international legal clauses of heritage marketing. Its policies of organising exhibitions and provisioning for third-party donations are on suo motu basis as of now, which sometimes entails severe organisational hazards on grounds of traceability of the lent materials. It is therefore recommended that the Tate Britain and all its affiliate bodies would benefit more without its existing loan policies. List of References Hsu, C. H. C., and Powers, T. F. (2001) Marketing hospitality. New York: John Wiley and Sons McLean, F. (1997) Marketing the museum. New York: Routledge Tate Britain (n. d.) The home of British art from 1500 to the present day [online] available from [5 February 2010] -- (n. d.) Gallery Tours & Groups [online] available from [5 February 2010] -- (n. d.) Eating & Drinking at Tate Britain [online] available from [5 February 2010] -- (n. d.) Borrowing from the Collection [online] available from [5 February 2010] Read More