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Digital Culture 2013-2015
How arts and cultural organisations
in England use technology
Client
logo
28th January 2016 │Contact ed.corn@mtmlondon.com │ Tel +44 (0) 20 7395 7510
1
MTM helps its clients take advantage of digital-driven
change
Consumer insight
Market and policy research
Strategy and growth
Service design
Digital transformation
2
In 2012 MTM was commissioned to run a three-year study
into how arts and cultural organisations use technology
7,476
Number of organisations invited (2015)
2,822
Total responses across three years of study (2013-15)
239
1.3m!
Organisations that responded in all three years
Approx. number of data points collected (2013-15)
3
Digital plays a crucial role for many organisations, across
a range of functions
The importance of digital to different business areas
Essential
Important
20%
28%
22%
70%
52%
Marketing
Preserving
and archiving
24%
27%
28%
27%
Distribution
and exhibition
Creation
20%
52%
Operations
25%
Business
models
4
Impact varies with artform and size, but remains high
across all subgroups
The overall impact of digital – major positive impact
72%
81%
82% 80%
77% 73%
70%
78%
63% 60%
72% 69%
5
In particular, we have seen the role of digital in revenue
generation and business models increase significantly
Digital and revenue generation, for example:
45%
Now see digital as
important to
business models
(up from 34%)
41%
16%
Report a major
positive impact on
revenue generation
(up from 11%)
Now accept
donations online
(up from 35%)
6
However, there have been drops in importance for
operations, distribution and creation since 2013
The importance of digital (sig. changes marked with arrows)
Essential
Important
18% 20%
27%
28%
24%
22%
30%
73% 70%
57% 52%
28%
27%
24%
56% 52%
32% 28%
36%
20%
17%
27%
17%
25%
2013 2015
2013 2015
2013 2015
2013 2015
2013 2015
2013 2015
Marketing
Preserving
and archiving
Operations
Distribution
and exhibition
Creation
Business
models
7
This has fed through into small but significant declines
across a range of activity and impact measures
Activities
Impacts
• Six activities are now less common, e.g.:
• Falls in six impact areas, e.g.:
Publishing
content to
website
Exhibiting the
end product
Live streaming
Making recordings
available digitally
• Two data activities also less common, e.g.:
Use data to inform
online strategy
Audience
engagement
Collaborating
with other
orgs
• Drops most likely to be reported by
medium-size orgs, and by music and
combined arts
8
It seems that organisations are finding it difficult to deliver
on ambitious plans
Reality vs. aspirations
Chg. in take-up (2015 vs. 2014)
Planning to introduce new activity (2014)
1%
Crowdfunding
21%
3%
Accept online donations
19%
-4%
Sell products online
16%
-2%
Educational content
14%
-5%
Digital experiences used alongside exhibition
12%
-4%
Educational interactive experiences
12%
-4%
Make recordings available digitally
12%
Blog with commentary -6%
11%
-5%
Track discussion on social
10%
-4%
Post video/audio
9%
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Qualitative feedback suggests a number of potential
explanations for these declines
•
Financial pragmatism – orgs scaling back in
non-core areas as budgets tighten?
•
Experimentation – many still in test and
learn, dropping things that aren’t working?
•
Consolidation – orgs realising they need to
refocus on fixing basics, e.g. website?
•
Barriers increasing – lack of digital skills and
suppliers, reduced appetite for risk?
Our initial live-streaming pilot in
2014 did not lead to high-quality
video, so we want to re-assess our
options in this area before
attempting it again
Our website…is clearly not doing
justice to the scale and reach of
our work…As a strategic priority
we have earmarked a major
investment in a new website as
part of a broader digital
communications strategy
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The data show us that barriers have become more
widespread since 2013
Top 10 barriers (sig. changes marked with arrows)
Lack of internal funding for digital
73%
Lack of in-house staff time
71%
Difficulty in accessing external funding
61%
No senior digital manager
39%
Slow/limited IT systems
37%
Lack of in-house skills
37%
Lack of expert advice
Lack of external suppliers
Lack of in-house confidence
Lack of control over IT systems
36%
32%
30%
27%
2013
2015
11
And the situation has also got more difficult from the
point of view of digital skills and R&D behaviours
Digital skills
R&D behaviours (NB. change since 2014)
• 4 of 13 skills gaps have widened, e.g.:
Website
design
• 2 areas have become less common:
Digital
production
Rights
clearance
What we are never truly aware of is
the amount of time and therefore
cost required to train and develop
the skills needed for the successful
application of new technologies
Experiment
& take risks
Evaluate impact
of digital work
• Small orgs considerably worse off, e.g.:
Use research
Small
and data for
decision-making Large
9%
34%
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Against this backdrop we do, however, see
organisations which are having great success with digital
Digital leaders
10% of orgs
that ascribe
highest
importance
to digital…
1. Do a wider
range of activities
13.7
Number of activities
(average 9.5)
2. Do more
complex activities
57%
Doing standalone digital
exhibits (average 23%)
3. Exhibit R&D
behaviours
68%
Experiment and take risks
(average 28%)
4. Realise benefits
97%
Report overall major positive
impact (average 72%)
5. Especially on
financial measures
38%
Report positive impact on
profitability (average 14%)
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In conclusion, we observe a sector transformed by
technology, but with significant issues to address
Digital has had a profound impact…
…but the study reveals important risks
•
Benefits widely felt – 72% feel a
major positive impact
•
Difficult conditions for innovation –
skills gaps and barriers getting worse
•
Orgs want to do more – 78% intend
to try something new next year
•
Late adopters – 10%+ have no email
marketing, website or Facebook
•
Leaders showing the way – doing,
more, realising more benefits
•
Small organisations – unable to
sustain R&D, risk of falling behind
How can the sector respond to these challenges?
14
Ed Corn
MTM
Associate Director
20-22 Shelton Street
London
020 7395 7519
WC2H 9JJ
Ed.corn@mtmlondon.com
United Kingdom