How audience-focused are you? Take the health check 

Quiz Questions

• 1.
  Do you have a good idea of who your current audience is? 

  • A.
    Yes, we know exactly who our audience is, our research gives us a detailed profile. 
  • B.
    Kind of, we have a rough idea of who is attending. 
  • C.
    We know vaguely from who we see in the building, we don’t have much data. 
• 2.
  Could most staff answer the question “who is the organisation for”?

  • A.
    Yes, without hesitation, we are very clear about this.
  • B.
    Most would come up with a rough idea, but it might differ depending on which function they work in.  
  • C.
    We are for everybody, we don’t define this in more detail. 
• 3.
  Do you work to a strategy that outlines which audiences you want to attract? 

  • A.
    Yes of course. 
  • B.
    Somewhat, but different parts sit in different places - it could be better aligned across the organisation. 
  • C.
    Not really, but we should. 
• 4.
  How much of your audience research is turned into actions? 

  • A.
    A great deal. 
  • B.
    Could be more, somehow we seem to lose focus after a while. 
  • C.
    Not that much, we mainly use it for reporting. 
• 5.
  Your audience development activities are... 

  • A.
    mainly one-off projects. 
  • B.
    consistently part of your core activities and sustained over time. 
  • C.
    a bit of both. 
• 6.
  Who is responsible for audience development at your organisation?

  • A.
    Everyone, we plan for audiences collaboratively across functions. 
  • B.
    Mainly one area (e.g. Marketing or Education).
  • C.
    There is no clear responsibility assigned. 
• 7.
  Listening to audiences is ...

  • A.
    ...a key value of what we are doing. 
  • B.
    ...mainly a marketing thing, other functions don’t engage with audience insight so much. 
  • C.
    ...not really a priority, there are hardly any resources for it. Our decisions are mainly based on the experience and opinion of our staff. 
• 8.
  The audience research we get is... 

  • A.
    ...set up so that it answers key strategic questions that we have about our audience. 
  • B.
    ...a set of standard questions, some useful, some not so much. 
  • C.
    ...not a lot. I wish there was more but I am not quite sure what we actually need (or if we can afford it). 
• 9.
  How much practical insight do you get from your audience research?

  • A.
    A lot, it makes clear what we can do to attract more of our desired audience. 
  • B.
    The data is interesting and there are a few nuggets of insight, but a lot is not really that actionable. 
  • C.
    There is some data, but it is not so clear what it practically tells us, I should really look at it again. 
• 10.
  How do you develop new innovative offers for audiences?

  • A.
    We develop ideas based on audience insight and show them to audiences – we experiment. 
  • B.
    We look around what others are doing for similar audiences. 
  • C.
    We develop ideas in our team and launch them if they feel right. 

Quiz Outcomes

• 1.
  You are not too audience focused yet.

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  It sounds like you are at the beginning of a more strategic approach to audience development. No worries. Here are some tips to develop your audience focus: A good way to start is to look into what your organisation’s purpose and any other strategic documents say about audiences. Take some time and think about who your organisation wants to serve and why you want to do so. Involve people from other functions and come to a shared perspective. Consider your priorities in relation to your resources and be clear which audiences you want to make a special effort for. It sounds counter-intuitive, but if you want to develop your audience - don't be for everyone. Now you are well on your way to creating an audience strategy. Consider what you need to know about your desired audiences to attract them. If you don’t have audience research at your organisation, there is a surprising amount of data about cultural audiences publicly available. If you can establish some budget for your own audience research - even better. For more inspiration, you can read my Manifesto for Audience Focus or subscribe to my monthly newsletter. I’d also be happy to send you some more information or give you a free 15 minute consultation. Just click the button below to get in touch, it would be nice to hear from you. To find out more about me, click here. Thanks for taking part!Sabine Doolin - InsightUnlocked
• 2.
  You are pretty audience focused. 

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  You are already pretty audience focused. This is a great place to be, because there is room for some amazing improvement to effectively develop your audience. Why not bring it to the next level? Take another look at any existing audience research, bring key functions together and workshop strategies and ideas to attract your desired audiences. Prototype and test some innovative ideas with audiences. It might also be worth reviewing your processes - how are decisions that touch audiences made and what could be improved? For more inspiration, you can read my Manifesto for Audience Focus or subscribe to my monthly newsletter. I’d also be happy to send you some more information or give you a free 15 minute consultation. Just click the button below to get in touch, it would be nice to hear from you. To find out more about me, click here. Thanks for taking part!Sabine Doolin - InsightUnlocked
• 3.
  You are highly audience focused. 

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  It’s wonderful how audience focused you and your organisation are, keep up the great work! In the meantime: Don't forget to check in every now and again to ensure everyone is on board with your audience strategy. Review regularly whether your audience development is working or needs adjustment. Why not share some of your experiences or case studies to inspire others? For more inspiration, you can read my Manifesto for Audience Focus or subscribe to my monthly newsletter. I’d also be happy to give you a free 15 minute consultation, should you want to talk anything through. Just click the button below to get in touch, it would be nice to hear from you. To find out more about me, click here. Thanks for taking part! Sabine Doolin - InsightUnlocked