Downstage recomendations draft

8/9/2019 Downstage recomendations draft

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R E P O R T A N D M A R K E T I N G P L A N

[Type the document subtitle]

DOWNSTAGE FROM OLD µN¶ GREY TO

YOUNG AND SPUNKY

Barry Jensen ID: 300163577



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E x e c u t i v e S u m m a r y



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Table of Cont ents

1. Executive summary

2. Table of contents

3. Introduction

4. Prioritised key recommendations

5. Findings and discussion (the target market)

6. Target market continued

7. The product & place

8. Product & place continued

9. The pricing

10. The promotion

11. Promotion continued

12. Conclusion

13. References

14. Appendices A



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Introduction

Marketing the arts is about brand, it is about making people know and understand that

you are worth going to see, not just for educational value but for emotional and social

entertainment needs. The performing art is about passion; downstages marketing campaign

needs to reflect youth, professionalism and sociality. The advantage to theatre is that the

people doing it are up close and personal, it¶s not something you can download. This

assignment looks at the Young Pleasure Seekers as a segment and provides findings and

discussion with recommendations. It contains a timeline and budget for promotions.



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Prioritised Key Recommendations

A pricing structure developed to hold YPS closer.

programming at the Downstage Theatre needs to be of high quality, edgy, and

contemporary

Downstage should use a two phase promotion focused to combat or enforce

perceptions.

Using technology such as mobile marketing and ³Twitter´.

Well briefed staff by management.

Refurbish the building appearance.

Having the doors open to make it more inviting.

State where it would be appropriate for customers to park.

Downstage should consider offering a courtesy coach.

Downstage should use customer referrals and ³night out´ packages.



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Findings & Discussion

The target market:

Young pleasure seekers (YPS) defined as: ³sporadic´ audience, (13.5% of wellington) they

are young and primarily living for today, with little opinion on social and political issues, and

an emphasis on hedonic consumption. Evenings out are an important part of their lifestyle.

With members of the group ranging from young teenagers up to the mid-40s, this includes a

lot of students. Pleasure Seekers like advertising; as a result they are open to many mediums

of marketing. Prices are not of particular importance and neither is service or the selection of

the store. (Evans, 2006)This is explained in deeper further detail in APPENDIX A.

YPS reflect many of the characteristics of the much talked about generation X. They are

young and primarily living for today with few opinions on social and political issues and an

emphasis on hedonic consumption. The YPS...is New Zealand¶s version of generation X;

express few opinions regarding social issues and exhibit high levels of materialism and

consumption. They indicate ... that money can buy happiness. Financially; this group ... don¶t

mind using credit cards and being in debt. The print media consumed varied. They watch TV

frequently, radio and music consumption is high mostly in the pop/rock genre. They are

technology savvy and use internet for purchases. They avoid public transport, would rather walk, and usually live in close proximity. They are either single or living with a partner, often

in apartments with some three other income earners, they work full time in clerical or skilled

positions or study. They often attend movies, theatre, and ballet. They like brands and

personal attention in shops and try to be innovative when introducing new brands and

products to their friends. Distinctly more than average they like to share information about

products with friends. (Klaus Weermair, 2004)

These characteristic validate this segment. However perceptual barriers hinder participation.

This leads us to ask why YPS is not present at Downstage. Hence the relationship to audience

strategy is fashioned into diversification under the RAND model as discussed in the group

component of this report.



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Tabl : R and M del (Lect e C ntent 2010)

Table 1 hi hli ht i tant element of the R model It tell us that this segments

barr ier to attending and par tici pating in the ar ts are fundamental perceptual issues. This is

ref lected in the survey done in class as some words used to descr i be Downstage are:

accessi ble, weird, different, lost, mid-range (average), personal, older target market, small,

and has an unappealing outside. Downstage should use promotional mater ial to combat or

enforce these perceptions.



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The Product & Place:

Downstage provides a core product of enter tainment through the actual product of

Theatre. Young pleasure seekers are open to Ar t; thus Theatre will appeal to them. For the

purpose of this repor t the actual product will be the show Wannabe at the Downstage theatre.

R efurbishing the building appearance will modernise the building counter ing the old-fashion

perception thus increasing product conspicuousness.

The programming at the Downstage Theatre needs to be of high quality, edgy, and

contemporary in order to appeal to the YPS

Needs Identif ication Scale

In reference to the image above: YPS of ten use ar t as a social needs satisf ier. They are not

totally concerned with product quality, as stated in Appendi A, and however,for this repor t I

will assume this trait will be altered. For an individual to en joy theatre it needs to be

professionally executed. The product needs to be high in surface value. YPS don¶t embrace

political and social issues so the product cannot assume knowledgein that f ield.

Evenings out are an impor tant par t of their lifestyle so the product must ref lect this inits

timeliness.

The place that the product is offered and displayed needs to be considered in the

augmented product. In reference to the f lowchar t (in Appendix B) the entire exper ience from

information-search to leaving needs to have a synergetic effect towards satisfying that desired

state def icit; which is the difference between actual-state and desired-state.



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When an YPS purchases a beverage from the bar the staff must add positively to the

product; through attitude and possible small talk encouraged about the show by management.

Staff should have a good idea about the shows and be ready to answer question concerning it.

YPS often walk so close proximity of the place is paramount. However as discovered in

the class survey, there are perceptions of the old building that hinder curiosity. Having the

doors open will make it more inviting to walkers.

Downstage is located on the corner of Courtney Place and Kent Terrace, close to the wide

range of restaurants and bars on Courtney place and Cuba Street. Five of these restaurants

offer discounts and special offers for customers who have Downstage tickets. This provides

the opportunity of customer referrals, or ³night out´ tickets.

Downstage doesn¶t currently have a car park, nor do they recommend a parking. Thus a

simple recommendation would be: state where it would be appropriate for customers to park

on all information displays.

YPS are technology savvy. Downstage could take advantage of this using technology

such as mobile marketing and ³Twitter´. It¶s a cheap, effective, and instantaneous enough to

take bookings through.

YouTube is a fantastic opportunity for YPS to trial the product that Downstage offers.

Within this augmented product; the Downstage is considered to be small, advertisement

of its size and inclusive bar will prevent this perception.

Downstage should consider if it¶s financially viable to offer a courtesy coach; as sober

YPS may not mind walking, once intoxicated they may not wish to walk home and this can

be a barrier to attendance.



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The Pricing:

In Appendix C the perception of Downstage¶s augmented product is reflected in price,

customers expect to pay $20. The perceived the quality is slightly higher than average of 3/5.

Downstage needs to lift people¶s perceptions and expectations of price, so that they would

be more willing to pay the average price of $37.00.

Circa is perceived to be of the same quality, but with slightly more mainstream

programming (4/5 compared to 3/5). Its average price is lower at $31.00. This causes a

deficit in perceived value gained between Circa and Downstage; resulting in circa doing

downstages job better than them.

Eventually this leads customers to consider switching. This dimension of price elasticity

depends on the level of product variation, cost of switching, and customer loyalty (Best,

2009). With this in mind Downstage needs to set price in order at least get the switching cost

to be positive, at present, the switching cost for a average ticket is -$6. Downstage should at

least match Circa, or create a pricing structure developed to hold YPS closer as not all YPS

are students.

Downstage must be competitive; it needs to set its price according to its perceived value.



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The Promotions:

Phase I (50% of budget)

y Objective I (a): Create awareness

among 85% of target audience

The f irst stage of the promotion plan is to

build awareness among 85% of the target

audience. This could be achieved by selecting high reach media which the target market

would be exposed to. As stated in the market segment; YPS are high consumers of radio,

television, internet, and magazines. For this phase, R adio, TV (too expensive), and internet

will be most effective. Media release strategy = pulse

y Objective I (b): Create knowledge of the show among 75% of target audience

Promotions should now begin to focus on providing information to the target audience.

Information r ich adver tisement should display the desired message of a quirky new solo show

for young at hear t audiences; this is where the internet and magazines may play a ma jor roll.

The target audience would begin to develop knowledge and expectations that they will later

evaluate the augmented product upon. This is where the perception and positioning of the

product is formed in the consumers mind as attitudes are a learned predisposition with behaviour formed towards the product by all direct exper ience, word-of-mouth, and mass-

media. Its cr itical to remember attitudes are not synonymous with behaviour.(Schiffman,

Bednall, O'Cass, Paladino, Ward, & Kanuk, 2008)Downstage must aim to be perceived as

high quality, professional, social, and place of self-indulgence.

Phase II (remainder of budget)

y Objective II (a): Create positive feelings about the show among 60% of target

audience

To create favourable attitudes and arouse interests, the promotion activities should appeal to

the target market, based on their psychological character istics and enter tainment needs. By

doing so, the audience would begin to promote the show into their evoked set once the

perceptual barr iers are combated through appropr iate messages. This may be in phase II, but

it will be executed and affected throughout the entire marketing campaign. It would be ideal



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for the campaign to go viral here as information is readily available, false perceptions

unlikely, and opinion leaders are beginning to activate.

y Objecti e II (b): Create preference of the show among 45% of target audience

At this stage, emphasis should be placed on specific attributes of the production, which will

differentiate it from the competitors within entertainment. This maybe a chance to develop

demand pull for primary theatre entertainment. Since the production (Wannabe) is targeting

YPS, the information conveyed must be sound, convincing, and casual in order to affect

attitudes and preferences. This point is ideal to include an iconic reference, for example Paul

Henry¶s opinion on the Good Morning show. The key sponsor of Dominion Post is activated

here to mass advertise the theme, prices, times, and location.

y Objecti e II (c): Obtain trial among 25% of target audience

Finally, the concluding goal of this promotion plan is to capture 25% of the audience to buy

the show tickets. However, due to the recent financial crisis, it is likely that some people

would reduce spending on entertainment. Therefore, sale promotions and a more interactive

approach should be adopted to provide increased incentives to purchase.



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Conclusion

Ultimately Downstage needs to develop a strong trusted brand in the YPS audience.

Through precise promotion and synergetic efforts Downstage should be able to claim market

share. The perception of the product, place, price, and promotion is the largest barrier for

YPS. All marketing efforts should be focused toward this area if more YPS are desired. They

can tap into technology to aid them in this process. Sponsorship was not addressed in report,

but it would be vital to look into.



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R E F E R E NCE S

Best, R. J. (2009). Market-Based Management. In Strategies for Growinh Customer Value and Profitability (p.267). London: Pearson Prentice Hall.Evans, L. T. (2006, 01 01). A Consumer Lifestyles Study . Retrieved 04 28, 2010, from New Zealand in the21st Centuary: http://eprints.otago.ac.nz/351/1/Consumer_lifestyles_study.pdf Klaus Weermair, C. M. (2004). The tourism and leisure industry. In C. M. Klaus Weermair, shaping the future (pp. 50-67). New York: The Haworth Hospitality Press.Schiffman, L., Bednall, D., O'Cass, A., Paladino, A., Ward, S., & Kanuk, L. (2008). Consumer Behaviour4th edition. In Consumer Behaviour 4th edition. China: Pearson Prentice Hall.



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APPENDIX A

Pleasure Seekers are a materialistic group who live for the moment. They like life in a big

city and they embrace change. They are not concerned about most political or social issues

but, consistent with their contemporary outlook, they are the one segment that says that New

Zealand should definitely not stop research into genetic modification. Pleasure Seekers

would also like to see a change in the flag but generally their value systems do not appear to

be well developed and they are especially unconcerned with ideas like spirituality, politeness,

tradition, social justice, the environment, obedience and helpfulness. This group are confident

about work and describe themselves as definitely not homebodies.

Evenings out are an important part of their lifestyle.

With regard to the market place, again they appear unconcerned. Prices are not of

particular importance and neither is service or the selection of the store. Also, they do not

emphasise quality in their purchasing but they do express the opinion that New Zealand

products are not high quality. Pleasure Seekers like advertising and do not agree that it

should be restricted to children or that there is too much sex used in advertising to sell

products. Overall, they describe themselves as being incautious shoppers who like to try new

products. They are not careful with money and they appear to be unwilling to save. Not

surprisingly, frugality is not a characteristic of this segment, members of which expresses a

strong liking for credit cards and is also likely to have a range of loans.

Despite their free attitudes towards purchasing and their interest in new products, the

Pleasure Seekers do not seem to own an extensive array of products. MP3 players are one

exception where ownership is high and consistent with the profile described above. Food

habits are dominated by convenience and rather less by health or nutrition.

They do not plan meals and often eat out or consume fast food. They are unconcerned

about issues such as avoiding high cholesterol foods or the prospect of genetically modified

foods. Choc-bars, fizzy drinks and BBQs are a regular part of their diets.Apart from dining out, this group attend arts events and the theatre and play some sports

like squash and tennis. Media habits are very close to the average in all respects, including

TV watching and radio consumption. Among magazines, only Cosmopolitan shows above

average readership.



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The age characteristics of this group appear somewhat wider than in 2000, with members

of the group ranging up to the mid-40s. They also report higher incomes than in the previous

study but, consistent with last time, the segment does include a significant proportion of students and high numbers of people using rental accommodation. Additionally the Pleasure

Seekers indicate the shortest period living in their current town. They appear to be the most

mobile segment, with less community attachment than any other group. (Evans, 2006)

The tourism and leisure industry: shaping the future: By Klaus Weiermair, Christine

Mathies

(Klaus Weermair, 2004)

YPS reflect many of the characteristics of the much talked about generation X. the active

"family values" people have not emerged as a separate group this time, but some of their

identifying characteristics are evident. They are young and primarily living for today with

few opinions on social and political issues and an emphasis on hedonic consumption. The

YPS...is New Zealand¶s version of generation x; express few opinions regarding social issues

and exhibit high levels of materialism and consumption. They indicate that they would be

happier if they could afford more expressing relative agreement that money can buy

happiness. Members of this group are more likely to have purchased something to make them

feel better... financially; this group is more likely to have rent-to-own purchases, don¶t mind

using credit cards. The print media consumed varied. They watch TV frequently, radio and

music consumption is high. They are technology savvy and use internet for purchases. They

avoid public transport as it waists time, and would rather walk as it saves time and because

they usually live close. They are either single or living with a partner, often in apartments

with some three other income earners, they work full time in clerical or skilled positions or

study. They are likely to have listened to pop/rock music than other genres. They often attend

movies, theatre, and ballet. They like brands and personal attention in shops and try to be

innovative when introducing new brands and products to their friends. Distinctly more than

average they like to share information about products with friends.



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Char t1. Levels of a product

The CO E product is NOT the tangi ble, physical product. You can't touch it. That's

because the core product is the BENEFIT of the product that makes it valuable to you

The ACTUAL product is the tangi ble, physical product. You can get some use out of it.

The AUGME TED product is the non-physical par t of the product. It usually consists of

added value, for which you may or may not pay a premium.



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APPENDIX B

Table1. Ar ts enter tainment form recognition

At each of these stages the consumer considers questions and alternatives; the biggest

challenge in theatre in general is to be present within the evoked set. Marketers needs to

create a ³push and pull demand´ for theatre.

Once the consumer chooses Downstage as the supplier, they enter into the following service

f low char t:



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Table 2

find out whats on

find outinformation on

shoes and decideon show

is the informationapplicable to the

audience member

promotionspreperation and

execution

purchase a ticket

is the ticketingsystem asteticly

pleasing is it online

database system

travel to venue

is there transportprovided, is it easy

to locate

is this informationavaliable

database system

arrive at venue

once arrived is thereplace to park etc

someone to taketicket and jacket

staff is friendly andrespectable

enter venue andsocialize

is there area tohang coats,

greating andobvious

information areas

find seat andbeverage/food

is there staff tohelp in this process

are the staff friendlyand effective

watch show

is the show of expected quality

are the actorsproffesional and

prepared

is the stageacceptable and

appropriate

socialise afterward

is there space to doso, as well as a bar

is there enteractionwith the peformers



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APPENDIX C

Circa prices:y Adults$38

y Students, senior citizens and beneficiaries$30

y Friends of Circa (for first two weeks of production only) $28

y Under 25s$20

y Student/Equity stand-by (one hour before the show) $18

y Groups: 6+$32Groups 100+$29

y YHA and BBH card holders (Sunday to Thursday) $20

y Average $31

Downstage prices:

y Full A Reserve: $45

y Full B Reserve: $40

y Concession: $38

y Members: $37

y Students: $25

y Family: $120 (2 Adults, 2 Children)

y Soundstage ± all tickets $35

y Average $37

Bats prices:

y $15 to $20 for waged persons

y $12 to $15 for unwaged persons



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With our survey these are some commonalities:

St. James Circa Downstage BATS

Most commonly

used words to

describe theatre

Classy

High quality

Historical

Established

Mainstream

High quality

Contemporary

Weird

Small

Alternative

Cheap

Students

Most common

rating of

perceived quality

(1=Low, 5=High)

5 3 3 2

Most common

rating of

programming

(1=Contemporary,

5= Mainstream)

5 4 3 1

Most common

estimation of

student ticket

price

$60 $50 $20 $15



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Appendix D: Promotion timeline and Budget

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