Run It Like A Business…And Why I Used to Hate That Phrase
Some Book Launch Confessions and Personal Stories
Love or hate that phrase, the arts are a business — a $1.02 trillion sector whose 100,000+ organizations serve almost every county in the nation.
But for me personally, I used to hate that phrase. Often it was a board member who said it, and I thought it meant I wasn’t doing enough…or sometimes it was followed by asking if my team had thought about reaching out to Amazon for a donation yet. Back then the scene would cut to sarcastic thoughts in my head like, “Yeah, let’s just call up Uncle Jeff right now…” or “Good idea because Amazon is so well known for their arts philanthropy…” (Now I would say, “Who there can you introduce me to?” but I digress.)
Then over the years, I started realizing a lot of challenges those board members and I were seeing at the organizations we served weren’t all that new, and in fact had been addressed by other businesses. At the end of the day, a cultural organization has some fundamental qualities of an e-commerce business (we sell tickets online), a B2C (business to consumer) enterprise, an organization competing for entertainment dollars (call it art, call it culture, but for a lot of people it’s an activity that comes from the entertainment budget), and dealing with the same macro trends in consumer behavior, technology and media, company culture, competing for talent, representation and EDI work…the list goes on.
I eventually came to realize that the arts are in some, even many, ways, not that different than some of our for-profit counterparts. Running arts organizations like the businesses they are isn’t unwitting board speak; it’s essential to revitalize this critical, massive economic engine — and ultimately better serve the art and its consumers.
Run It Like A Business is out now. Whether you don’t have a copy yet or just got yours delivered after pre-ordering, you can engage with some of the early conversations happening:
1. Listen: Podcast from Last Night’s Launch Party
Recorded live at this week’s book launch event with my colleague and friend Kelly Harris, Executive Director at Haight Street Art Center, we cover central themes of the book like the newcomer experience, retaining patrons, and securing new revenue streams. We also talk about “why now” for this book, and discuss how HSAC is employing some of the strategies I wrote about.
2. Watch: Run It Like A Business Overview
Filmed at the Association of British Orchestras Conference, this was the first group to learn the book was coming when I delivered the closing keynote last year, and they graciously agreed to share the session with you.
3. Read or Write: A Review on Goodreads or Amazon
Really grateful for and blown away by early reviews like this one.
4. Discuss: Your FAQs
Here are some questions a few of the first people who pre-ordered sent me, plus some quick answers:
Q: What’s the least expensive thing an arts organization can do to increase revenue?
Focus on patron retention (chapter 2)
Q: How are the value propositions at arts organizations changing?
Art used to be in a consumer category similar to religion (essential and maybe even infallible). Today consumer research shows the category is now entertainment, and that requires a different approach to be relevant to consumers (chapter 10).
Q: What one thing should not change?
Our artists are so exceptionally talented, creating a product that we’ve literally been working to perfect for hundreds of years. The art is not the problem; it’s our greatest asset (chapter 1).
Q: Did you ever think about writing a book before?
Well…sort of. Back during the 2008 financial crisis, a call went out for chapter proposals for a “20 Under 40” arts anthology that was being compiled to feature new ideas from young, rising leaders. I was 25 years old at the time, and seeing this question made me curious to go dig it up. If you’ve followed my work for just about any amount of time, some of this will probably sound familiar to you. Here’s what a younger version of myself had to say:
…As patrons on tighter budgets have cut back spending and charitable donations to only those entertainment options and organizations to which they feel most connected…a new revenue model is in order that relies more on truly engaging consumers…
…Existing marketing and audience development initiatives within the organization should be complemented with activities such as rich content on the website, a social networking presence, and fun and interesting programs and events…
…Usually, the ideal progression of a patron’s involvement with a performing arts organization over time is as follows: First time ticket buyer → Repeat ticket buyer → Subscriber → Donor → Larger donor + more involvement → Major donor and possibly Board Member. Each step of the progression has fewer constituents. We must decrease barriers to entry in the early steps in order to cultivate a larger population to move through the stages of engagement…
…This will result in increased income because 1) there will be more constituents progressing along the patron ladder, and 2) a greater percentage of these patrons will be more connected, more loyal, and therefore more primed for donating to the organization…
My essay was rejected for inclusion as a chapter, but today, those seedling thoughts have now grown into a whole book. The ideas are more refined, vetted, and tested. And I’m so happy to finally be able to share it all with you.
Out now, order my book, Run It like a Business: Strategies to Increase Audiences, Remain Relevant, and Multiply Money — Without Losing the Art.
You’ll learn how to:
- Grow audiences and keep them coming back again
- Make our organizations more inclusive
- Get younger attendees in the seats and on the donor rolls
- Generate millions more dollars in revenue
- Continue to create the art we love — without the stress of figuring out how to afford it
Just because your arts organization is a non-profit, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t make money; it means the money the organization makes goes back to fund the mission — whether that’s music, visual arts, theatre, dance, or one of many other mediums that enrich our lives.
Order today and get the playbook to generate the revenue you need, grow audiences, and build a vibrant artistic future: www.aubreybergauer.com/book
About the Author
Hailed as “the Steve Jobs of classical music” (Observer) and “Sheryl Sandberg of the symphony” (LA Review of Books), Aubrey Bergauer is known for her results-driven, customer-centric, data-obsessed pursuit of changing the narrative for the performing arts. A “dynamic administrator” with an “unquenchable drive for canny innovation” (San Francisco Chronicle), she’s held offstage roles managing millions in revenue at major institutions including the Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera, Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival, and San Francisco Conservatory of Music. As chief executive of the California Symphony, Bergauer propelled the organization to double the size of its audience and nearly quadruple the donor base.
Bergauer helps organizations and individuals transform from scarcity to opportunity, make money, and grow their base of fans and supporters. Her ability to cast and communicate vision moves large teams forward and brings stakeholders together, earning “a reputation for coming up with great ideas and then realizing them” (San Francisco Classical Voice). With a track record for strategically increasing revenue and relevance, leveraging digital content and technology, and prioritizing diversity and inclusion on stage and off, Bergauer sees a better way forward for classical music and knows how to achieve it.
Aubrey’s first book, Run It Like A Business, published in 2024.
A graduate of Rice University, her work and leadership have been covered in the Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur, Thrive Global, and Southwest Airlines magazines, and she is a frequent speaker spanning TEDx, Adobe’s Magento, universities, and industry conferences in the U.S. and abroad.
