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Staff Training: How to Teach When You’re Not a Teacher

Today’s blog post is written by Christy Warren, Senior Manager of Education, PatronManager.

I worked for a non-profit arts organization for 14 years, so I understand your title doesn’t always reflect everything you do. You might be a box office manager or a development director, but you probably also handle budgets, payroll, scheduling, hiring, ordering supplies, and maybe even cleaning the office microwave. 

One other task you likely do is train new employees. This is an extremely important task, but it usually doesn’t get as much attention because it’s more of an as-needed assignment. Most people in the arts don’t come from a background of teaching, though they tend to be very empathetic and relationship-focused people which lays a great foundation on which to build.  

Full confession: I fall into this camp. My first box office position was shortly after college. I was good at my job, so my boss charged me with training new staff members as they were hired. We had a list of items everyone needed to know, so I would just work my way through the list showing all new hires how to do each item. It was fine. New staff learned how to function and did well in their jobs. But after working with four or five people, I started to figure out ways to help them learn faster and more effectively. 

Fast forward a few years, and I enrolled in graduate school to study adult learning and organizational development. This is where I discovered the theories behind the methods I was using in the box office, unbeknownst to me at the time. The two biggest takeaways I can offer you from these experiences are:Read the Article

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Knowledge Sharing: The Importance of Documentation

Today’s blog post is written by Emily van der Harten, Documentation Specialist, PatronManager.

Recently while catching up with a friend, they mentioned they were moving on to a different company and had found a replacement for their current position. This position was a many-hats-for-one-person kind of job… sound familiar? Since my job here at PatronManager is literally to document processes, the first question I blurted out was, “Whoa, did you document all the stuff you do for your replacement?” They replied with an emphatic “Yes! It took me like three weeks to write it all, but it’s done.”

While my friend and I waxed poetic on the merits of creating and maintaining documentation on best practices for fellow colleagues, it got me thinking about my own love for thorough documentation, and why it’s important for organizations to value it. Creating and fostering organization-wide documentation has multiple benefits. It encourages continuity, efficiency, and a collective memory so your organization can thrive!Read the Article

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The Evolution of E-commerce: What It Means for Your Arts Organization

Today’s blog post is written by Alyssa Jean, Sales Development Representative, PatronManager.

With smartphones, tablets, laptops, and various other WiFi-enabled devices at our fingertips, e-commerce and online shopping trends have changed quite drastically over the past few years. Physical shopping malls and retail stores are no longer the primary sources for purchasing clothing, electronics, and even furniture. People are turning to the ease and convenience of online shopping from the comfort of their own homes more and more. 

According to this article from Digital Commerce 360, based on a survey conducted this year, millennials complete 60% of their purchases online, which is a 47% climb from a separate survey conducted in 2017. In just two years, that’s almost a 50% increase in online shopping versus in-store shopping! These trends, however, are not just exclusive to the retail industry; consumer studies have shown a rapid increase in online ticket sales as well, particularly on mobile. Let’s look at another study.Read the Article

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Brand Activations: Stealing a Profitable Idea

Part 1 of a conversation between Gene Carr, Founder, and Paul Miller, VP Sales – Non-Profit Ticketing, PatronManager:

Gene: During the past few years, I’ve become aware of a trend in brand marketing that flies a bit under the radar in the non-profit world but is big business in the commercial sector. It’s called “brand activation,” and simply put, sponsors of live events are no longer willing to just slap their name on an event or park their luxury car out front of a venue and feel like they are getting value. They (like almost everyone else) want the names of the people who are interested in their products — and to achieve this, an entire industry called “brand activations” has emerged.  

Brand activations are a way for a brand to engage with a passerby who agrees to trade their personal information (typically an email address) in return for some kind of benefit. These benefits are sometimes games — “enter to win” or a branded photo booth where the patron gets a photo to post on social media or share with their friends. Last week at the U.S. Open in New York, American Express offered its cardmembers a free headset to listen to commentary about the matches in progress — and in return, the company learned who was actually at the event. Read the Article

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Applying the Consensus Workshop Method to Arts Administration

Today’s blog post is written by Mary Alice Dutkanicz, Senior Manager of Data Migration Services, PatronManager.

In last week’s blog post, my colleague Rachel Hands wrote about preparing your team for a productive brainstorming session. Today, I’d like to share my experience with a specific method of brainstorming. This method can help your arts organization generate a clearly defined vision, whether for grant writing, seasonal development, or just figuring out what audience segments are most important for your marketing efforts.

I recently attended a Salesforce Admin Day hosted by Soapbox Engage. This Admin Day followed the typical structure that you might find at any workshop: coffee and introductions, a presentation of new Salesforce features, and an afternoon of breakout groups. What made this workshop different was the framework of the event itself. In the days leading up to the event, I was intrigued to see that, aside from a general outline of activities on the event web page, there was no description of what topics would be covered during those activities and breakout groups. This was explained in an email prior to the event:Read the Article

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3 Steps to a Better Brainstorm

Today’s blog post is written by Rachel Hands, Director of Client Services, PatronManager.

Picture it, arts leaders: you’re planning a staff meeting for the beginning of your fiscal year. Your season is set, you’re excited about it, and you want to come up with some new and engaging ways to help your patrons connect with the work you’ve chosen! You know your team is made up of thoughtful, creative people who are committed to that same goal — you’ve done your job well in hiring and mentoring — and you want to take advantage of that, so you’re pretty sure that a brainstorming session is in order. It’ll help you learn what’s top-of-mind for the folks who are the most deeply invested in your organization — chances are, they’ve been thinking about this already, and have some fresh ideas ready to share. 

There’s just one thing that’s giving you pause before sending that calendar invite: you’ve seen brainstorming meetings go a bit off the rails, so you want to make sure this one goes as productively as possible. Read the Article

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