AMA conference 2019

I’ve just returned from a thrilling three days up in Newcastle Gateshead for the Arts Marketing Association’s annual conference. It was also the 10th year that I’ve attended the conference.

This year’s theme, ‘Rewire: culture, audiences & you’, helped to remind us not to be complacent and to take time to listen and think before doing.

With a busy schedule of keynotes and breakout sessions, there’s always lots to take away and think about. Some of my highlights this year included:

• Annabel Turpin, CEO and Artistic Director at ARC in Stockton, shared how the team had worked on personas of their audiences to enable them to create marketing materials that are more suited to who their audiences are.
• Claire Eva, Director of 2020 Campaign at Serpentine Galleries, encouraged us to revisit our branding documents and guidelines to (re)think how we can actually make sure we live up to our values.
• Dan Bates, CEO at Sheffield Theatres, shared his experiences of a sabbatical in south east Asia and Australia.
• John Holmes, Director of Marketing & Audience Development at the OAE, talked through the OAE’s journey to having their own box office and CRM system.

During the conference I also spent time catching up with other AMA Member Reps from around the UK, welcoming first-timers and finding out what they were most excited about, and chatting with friends and colleagues from previous years. It’s always so inspiring to find out what other organisations are up to.

During the three days we gathered and tweeted our favourite tips from the keynotes and breakout sessions during the conference. You can download them all here and print out a sheet for your wall (or share your favourites below).

Our first #AMAconf note of 2019… “Never give up” from @RinkooBarpaga, Theatre Maker, Filmmaker & Comedian via @hannah_rfh pic.twitter.com/v5vanPTAvB

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 2 from @richertschnorr from New York Public Library "Get out of the office. Get as close as you can to the people whose lives you are making a difference to." pic.twitter.com/1WXW1PxPok

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

Tip 3 is from artist and producer @DawinderBansal "No one really is hard to reach as long as they believe you really care" via @SairahSays #AMAconf pic.twitter.com/AV7MIyoW4q

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAConf Tip 4 is from @annabelturpin talking about creating audience personas for @arcstockton. "If you understand your current audience then you can better find more people like them, and spot the gaps." pic.twitter.com/6IR5nLpn5W

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 5 is about audience-focused content with @hannahhorton and @Jo_Scho pic.twitter.com/MzyEf19Z0z

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 6 from @traversetheatre on developing audiences through choice. Via @Altogether_ST pic.twitter.com/s8U7YTncmJ

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 7 is a Tassos Stevens quote used by @TallgirlonaBike "The experience of an event begins for its audience when they first hear about it and only finishes when they stop thinking about it." via @Ellie_Griffiths pic.twitter.com/97LRZKGYzJ

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 8 from Phil Douglas ⁦@CuriousArts⁩ talking about sustaining & developing inclusive programmes… LGBTQ+ is for life not just for pride ‘month’ via @Emily_Presents pic.twitter.com/7iUwaC2DTC

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

Final #AMAconf tip of the day from @MelanieEusebe on growth mindsets "Talent can be cultivated through strategic effort, risk-taking, and learning from failures." via @ChocolateFilms pic.twitter.com/UFrl1Aggqt

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

One more to round up the day with @SamScottWood "My takeaways are all personal. Be useful, embrace the uncomfortable, learn new things & remember that comfort is a privilege."#AMAconf pic.twitter.com/GvXqrIsJqg

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 10, 2019

Our first #AMAconf tip of the day comes from @BellanWhite "You are the change and you can make the difference" via @AliaRaffia pic.twitter.com/xGEt6ypukU

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

Tweet: #AMAconf Tip 12 is from @otterclaire talking about @1418NOW “Brand’ is behaviour, not a corporate colour” via @kerennicol pic.twitter.com/qElAF4np6z

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 13 “Stop looking for trees and think about the forest” by @erinkoppel3 kicking off Defining Insights for Leaders via @tessnetwork pic.twitter.com/3h2ANE0T91

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 14 comes from @royalacademy "Editorial content never sells to its audiences. Think like a publisher not like a brand." via @SamScottWood pic.twitter.com/Y71k6B2sT6

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 15 is from @jorgordon calling everyone to “Share responsibility – empower your team to make decisions at every level” via @tessnetwork pic.twitter.com/hakbGqHicY

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 16 @chrisunitt reminding everyone…“Don’t be a hamster” pic.twitter.com/5rPUSsq3fA

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 17 is brought to us by Kieran Chapman from @RoyalOperaHouse on data “If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it” via @Ellie_Griffiths pic.twitter.com/i1L1XuAZ9Q

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 18 “Without meaningful information, pricing, marketing and fundraising is a bit of a wild guess” from @johnkholmes at @theoae pic.twitter.com/RksAcGNTmB

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 19 “Don’t judge social by its ability to sell tickets” by @ChrisUnitt pic.twitter.com/ug8OyMjjdy

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019

#AMAconf Tip 20 to round up the conference is an all important lesson from @lemnsissay “We have to get it wrong to get it right” via @amadigital pic.twitter.com/IGPV9MBznv

— Cog Design (@cog_design) July 11, 2019