Case Study – Turning Around San Diego Repertory Theatre

DESCRIPTION

Far far away, behind the word mountains, far from the countries Vokalia and Consonantia, there live the blind texts. Separated they live in Bookmarksgrove right at the coast.

When

January 2017

Who

Jason Davis, John Anderson, Mirco Cattabriga, Aaron Jones, Amanda Johnson, Steve McQueen

When I joined San Diego Repertory Theatre in 2015, the company was facing some significant challenges.

The organization was in a tough spot, but I knew that, with the right approach, the decline could be reversed through more sophisticated marketing.

As Winston Churchill is often quoted as saying, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” Despite the difficulties, I saw a real opportunity to turn things around.

Turning Around San Diego Repertory Theatre Case Study Video

The Challenges

The popular opinion at the time was that the subscription model was dying. My take was different—I believed that, even if the subscription model was struggling, it certainly wasn’t dead. I had seen successful subscription models at other organizations and knew it was possible to revive them with the right strategy. I was also shocked by the lack of investment in core marketing and sales. The telemarketing room was internal and an HR nightmare—there was constant infighting, and the subscription planning was thin. Not to mention, the organization was often comping more tickets than it sold.

It was troubling to find out how entrenched the ticket comping culture was—it had become a habit. But I believed it was possible to break away from this practice. While the product wasn’t always easy to match to the market, we leaned heavily on storytelling, strong artwork, and aggressive direct marketing to expand audiences for lesser-known, harder-to-position works. Even with programming that didn’t always match audience demand, we were able to build excitement by focusing on narratives and impactful visuals.

The Solution: A Multi-Channel, Data-Driven Approach

The organization had relied too much on traditional marketing without exploring new strategies. My first step was to analyze where we were missing opportunities to connect with audiences. It was clear that the solution needed to be multi-channel and data-driven if we were going to turn things around. By identifying these gaps early on, I knew we could diversify our efforts to engage audiences more effectively.

The organization didn’t have media sponsorships, and much of its marketing was traditional—newspaper ads, limited direct mail, and surface-level digital. I expanded our marketing by adding TV, larger radio buys, and advanced digital efforts, and did this in a financially responsible fashion by securing over $100K in free ads through new partnerships. The investment in direct touchpoints had been lacking, and we pivoted to focus on broader, more impactful engagement.

Digital Efforts

We used techniques like geofencing, empty cart ads, a larger investment in digital display, and video. We also doubled down on Meta (formerly Facebook), building stronger social media campaigns. This allowed us to target specific audiences and use more sophisticated storytelling to engage and appeal to them. These new digital strategies started to show results quickly, increasing both audience engagement and ticket sales.

Enhancing Visual Identity with Studio Conover

Recognizing the importance of a strong visual connection with our audience, we partnered with Studio Conover, a renowned graphic design firm. Together, we updated the theatre’s overall look and feel, starting with the creation of a new, user-friendly website that better showcased our productions and facilitated easier ticket purchases. Studio Conover also helped us enhance our show artwork by blending photography and illustrations, resulting in compelling visuals that resonated more deeply with our patrons. This strategic refresh of our visual identity not only strengthened our brand presence but also played a crucial role in attracting new audiences and re-engaging existing ones.

Telemarketing and Pricing

As I mentioned, when I arrived, the internal telemarketing room was a problem. I knew from experience that internal rooms are too expensive and rarely effective, especially for an organization this size, so I outsourced telemarketing to the firm DCM, which streamlined the process with more advanced lead management and a more professional staff. This shift led to immediate improvements in efficiency and overall sales.

We also partnered with JCA Consulting to adjust pricing, allowing us to gradually raise prices while keeping entry-level options accessible. Their Revenue Management Application helped us implement dynamic pricing, which, in one case, netted an additional $40K in sales by shifting a show schedule. These changes not only improved revenue but also allowed us to be more strategic about pricing adjustments, ensuring that we maximized potential earnings without alienating core audiences.

Projecting Revenue for Strategic Investment

As part of our approach to maximizing revenue, we became better at projecting revenue potential for each show. By doing this, we could focus our investments on the productions with the highest potential returns, while pulling back on those with lower revenue prospects. This allowed us to avoid overspending on less profitable shows and truly maximize revenue. For high-potential productions, we doubled down on marketing and engagement efforts, ensuring we didn’t miss out on maximizing their impact.

The Results & A Final Note on the Pandemic

Despite the organization’s struggles with financial management, we were able to put the organization on its best financial footing in recent history. Subscriptions grew by 89%, and our single-ticket sales set new records multiple times. By the time the pandemic hit, we had exceeded every ticket goal, and we were positioned for a record year. The true tragedy is that we had a show in May that was well on track to be our best-selling of all time, and would have brought in over 20% of the overall annual revenue for the organization.

All in all, my experience in marketing was a huge win. I found the right partners to fill in what I didn’t need. To their credit, the organization invested in my professional development, sending me to conferences and giving me access to training from industry professionals. This investment in my growth was key to ensuring we stayed ahead of the curve in our marketing strategies and tactics.

The organization became another casualty of the pandemic. Despite government subsidies and relief, they couldn’t bounce back, largely due to factors beyond their control. The theater itself was underground, causing even more concern for patrons in the age of COVID. Additionally, flooding from a rainstorm and construction damage added the final blow. However, this all happened after I had already left. The optimism we had going into 2020—before COVID hit—was shattered by these events, which were simply too much to recover from.

Conclusion

I’m proud to have supported work so focused on diversity and inclusion—long before it became a widespread industry trend. We were able to broaden our reach, expose important and diversity-focused work to new audiences, and build a solid foundation—even if external factors later derailed it. The legacy of that work remains in the expanded audience base and the increased visibility for shows that might not have otherwise had a chance.

Book Consultation

References:

San Diego Reprtory Theatre:
JCA Performing Arts (Pricing and Fordasting):
DCM (Telemarketing):