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Annual Workshop Series
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Each year the Arts & Business Council offers Business Essentials for the Arts, an educational workshop series for arts professionals and their boards on topics critical to successful arts organization management. Offered monthly, the workshops address a range of business related topics ranging from strategic planning and board leadership to fundraising and marketing. Designed with careful attention to the evolving needs of the Chicago arts community, each workshop offers up-to-the-moment information and tangible takeaways ready to be applied to your organization immediately.
2009 Business Essentials Series: The Art of Resilience In a challenging environment, the 2009 Workshop Series is appropriately focused on your all-important activities relating to strategic planning, fundraising and audience-building. Each session will pay due attention to the financial and operational issues surrounding the topic while attempting to help you recognize the adjustments your organization may need to make now even as you lay the groundwork for the future. Presenters will challenge you to reach deep into the creative stores upon which your institution was founded to help you overcome what obstacles lay ahead. To that end, the Arts & Business Council will be responsive to the ever-changing economic climate and its effects on the arts community in Chicago and may adjust our programs accordingly. | |
Registration and Pricing Business Essentials for the Arts workshops are open to staff and board members of nonprofit arts organizations, as well as individual artists. Registration is required. SINGLE PROGRAM FEES: Fees per person for staff, individual artists and board members are based on your organization’s annual budget: • Annual budget under $250,000 - $40 • Annual budget of $250,000 and over - $60 The fee for individuals and companies that do not have not-for-profit status is $60
All Marketing Matters Workshops in this Series are offered as part of the National Arts Marketing Project, a program of the Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts, sponsored by American Express:    The 2009 workshop series is co-sponsored by
National-Louis University College of Management and Business
The topics and dates of this year’s workshops are:
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Successful Fundraising Efforts: A Time for New Approaches
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Tuesday, February 24, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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This year many arts groups are hoping for a small miracle with their annual fundraising efforts—and may need one if they plan to rely on the same formats to attract wary donors. With miracles in rare supply, it’s time to take stock, act smart and think creatively...
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Drafting a Clear Marketing Plan to Drive Sales
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Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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Effective marketing will shore up your immediate earned income while helping to achieve consistent, long-term audience growth through careful adherence to a Customer Acquisition Process. This proven approach helps you identify, reach and persuade the best prospects in your target market. This workshop will teach you how to create a focused marketing plan that you can customize to your individual needs.
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Financially Sound Strategic Planning
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Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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Do economically challenging times mean a halt to your organization's pursuit of strategic planning? Do today's realities make your existing plan irrelevant? This essential workshop will make the case that strategic planning - and the careful financial choices that form its core - is more essential now than ever. With an expert strategist and timely case stuides, this session will examine how a multi-year strategic plan can help to clarify near-term financial and budgeting decisions, leading to decisive actions and swift group consensus.
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Establishing Your E-Marketing Strategies
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Tuesday, May 19, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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Is email the new print ad, poster, or postcard? Is your website the interactive vehicle your subscription or other brochure could never be? Using your Marketing Plan as your guide, this workshop will examine specific tactics that will help you transition from costly printed marketing pieces to affordable digital and online alternatives while helping to deliver on your goals of improving visibility and building an audience.
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PR in the Digital Age
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Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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Where’s your ready-to-go content? RSS feeds? Is your blog a must-read? Oh, and you’re keeping an eye on your brand equity, right? Yes it’s hard work, but keeping your voice heard during difficult times is vital...
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Creating and Managing your Online Presence: The Dynamic Content Approach
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Tuesday, July 28, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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This three-hour workshop will get you on the right track to digital marketing success by covering the basics of setting up, populating and promoting a dynamic, content-rich site. The course will include a general overview of media formats, the importance of keyword-rich content, credibility-based design, viral video, frequent content updates, and so on. Find Out More.. |
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What We've Learned in the Downturn
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Tuesday, September 22, 2009 at 9:30 AM
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Nine months into the year, we’ll shape this follow-up (to the Feb. 24 Fundraising workshop) session in response to the changing economic landscape and what we’re hearing from fundraising professionals and arts organizations alike...
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The Fundraising Board
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Tuesday, October 27, 2009 at 5:30 PM
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In a changed environment, your board has never played a more essential role in the hard work of fundraising. But how do you mobilize the group and generate involvement? A seasoned panel of expert fundraisers and inspired board members will share techniques and best practices...
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