The Mobile Orchestra:Engaging Audiences on the Go

Illinois Council of Orchestras2013 Conference

David DombroskyChief Marketing OfficerInstantEncore.com

Mobile technology is NOT the future.It’s the PRESENT.

There are currently 6.8 Billion mobile subscriptions worldwide.

That’s equal to 96% of the world’s population. SOURCE: International Telecommunications

Union

As of June 2013, there were 345.2 million wireless subscriber connections

in the U.S.

That’s a penetration rate of 110% SOURCE: Mobithinking

SOURCE: ComScore

•Nearly 40% of all Internet traffic comes from mobile devices. (source: ComScore)

•25% of US mobile internet users never or infrequently open websites on desktop or laptop computers. (source: Mobithinking)

•2013 reports from mass email service providers show that 50-61% of emails are opened on smartphones or tablets.(sources: Movable Ink and Experian)

If you were waiting for a “tipping point,” it’s already happened.

SOURCE: Pew Research Center

SOURCE: Pew Research Center

"Tablets are one of the most rapidly adopted consumer technologies in history and are poised to fundamentally disrupt the way people engage with the digital world both on-the-go and perhaps most notably, in the home."

Mark Donovan, Senior VP of Mobile, comScore

• Tablets have been on the market for 3 years

• Over 60 million tablet owners in the United States

• Nearly 25% of U.S. smartphone users also use a tablet computer.

Tablet Computers

By 2015, more than one in three US internet users will have a tablet device.

In May 2013, Musical America published a special report on mobile marketing in the performing arts.

Download it for free at:http://bit.ly/14blFUX

Group of Minds – Longitudinal Study of Arts Patrons & Mobile Usage

• First survey in 2009

• Second survey in 2012

• Distributed to 45,000 arts patrons

• 4.3% response rate

We can’t afford to engage with mobile.

You most likely already participate in “mobilized” environments.

NOT TRUE.

Social Media Tools are “Mobilized”

Other “Mobilized” Online Tools

QR Codes•QR = “quick

response”•Bar codes can

be linked to content

•QR Code readers are free

•Generators are also free. Ex: Scan.me

Directing QR Codes to Your Standard WebsiteFAIL

Best Practices for QR Codes•Give the end

user a mobile-friendly experience

•Have a clear call to action

•Use a code generator with analytics

Three Questions:

1. How many visitors are coming to your website each month via mobile devices?

2. Is your website mobile-optimized?3. How many monthly visitors need

to be coming to your website via mobile devices before you actively pursue providing them with an optimized experience?

65% of U.S. smartphone users EXPECT a website to be as easy to use on their phones as it is on their computers.

For smartphone users who encounter a website that is NOT optimized for mobile devices, the bounce rate is 81%. Source: w

www.ourmobileplanet.com

Mobile Websites

Websites intended to be opened on a mobile device within an Internet browser

Accessible from all types of mobile devices

Designed for touch screen navigation

Require access to the Internet (3G, WiFi, etc.)

http://www.mobiready.com/

Tips for Making Your Website Mobile Friendly or Mobile Optimized

• Keep the layout simple and easy to navigate• Keep images to a minimum• Use .png or .gif images – faster to load• Test your site on a number of mobile devices• Optimization plug-ins for current content

management systems (e.g. WordPress, Drupal, etc.)• Create a separate mobile site

▫For example: m.yoursymphony.org instead of www.yoursymphony.org

▫Consider using free and low-cost services like YoMobi▫Redirect mobile users to your mobile site

Responsive Design

Mobile Apps• Software designed

for a mobile device

Mobile Apps

• Software designed for a mobile device

• Platform-specific

Mobile Apps

• Software designed for a mobile device

• Platform-specific

• What can apps do that mobile websites cannot?

• Apps are faster than mobile websites.

• Apps allow you to access native features of the mobile device – like the camera or GPS

• Many apps have a feature called “push notifications” that allow you to send short text messages to your subscribers.

Coming soon to a performing arts app near you:

GEO-FENCING

Geo-Fencing

Venue

Geo-Fence

Patron

Outside the geo-fence, the app subscriber sees your standard app content: event listings, directions, parking information, videos, music, social media, etc.

Inside the geo-fence, the app subscriber sees content that is all related to the event they are attending: welcome video from an artist, program notes, artist bios, educational info, quizzes, reminder of a post-performance reception or Q&A, etc.

Mobile Apps

• Software designed for a mobile device

• Platform-specific

• What can apps do that mobile websites cannot?

• Psychology of the end user

Mobile users open the internet browser on their phones when they are searching for something.

When mobile users want to engage with content repeatedly over time, they want an app for that.

Four Types of Arts Apps: Marketing & Promotional

Example: Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra

Four Types of Arts Apps: Educational & Information Based

Example: Carnegie Hall’s 120th Anniversary Mobile App

Four Types of Arts Apps: Playfully Interactive

Example: Bravo Gustavo from LA Phil

Example: The Show Must Go On app from Royal Opera House

Four Types of Arts Apps: Games

Investigate Multi-Platform Services

• InstantEncore• TN Mobile Plus• Cloudtix• Mobile Roadie• Apps for Venues

Online-based services that use a central control panel to deliver content to multiple mobile platforms – Android, Apple, mobile web, etc.

Hire an App Developer

• Be sure that your app has needs beyond a template service

• Look for local developers or relationships to leverage

• Make sure that the developer creates apps for Apple AND Android

• GET REFERENCES

Things to Think About

• What does your audience want from their mobile experience with you?

• What types of content do you already have to use?

• What budget level do you have to devote to mobile engagement?

• Can you leverage other resources or relationships?

David Dombroskydavid@instantencore.com