You probably can't wait to walk into a building to see live shows again.

Me, too!

Yet, it's clear that even when IRL performances do come back - online performances and events will still endure in some form.

But that's a good thing. 

Of course, virtual shows will never replace that unique energy that artists and audiences share in a live setting.

​But being forced to go online this past year has allowed arts organizations to reach new audiences they wouldn't have otherwise from a geographical standpoint and an accessibility standpoint.

If you work at one of those arts organizations, you're probably starting to take a long-term view of virtual programming and how you can find opportunities for online content in the future.

Because, number one, it's imperative to hold on to these diverse and historically underserved digitally mined audience members -- and to cultivate more of them!

And, number two, research shows that people who stream content are 67% more likely to buy a ticket to similar live events. This means your virtual content will likely increase local demand for live performances.

Exciting stuff, huh?

So, given all this, what's your strategy to retain your digital audience and further expand your reach to connect with potential new fans of your organization? 

One suggestion for where to start -- focus on enhancing your SEO. 

​I suspect you already have an idea of SEO what it is, but basically defined:

58 percent of searches are now done on mobile.

​And data shows this is likely going to increase.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise, especially with more people now working remotely and on the go.
​
​So make sure your arts organization’s website is optimized for mobile. Run it through Google's Mobile-Friendly Test for a fast check.

Now that arts organizations are digitally connected to new audiences, it would be a good idea to find out what kind of entertainment these audiences are seeking. 

Perhaps your arts organization is looking to become better aligned with your target audience's needs. Is there room in your mission for your organization to expand artistically, if needed, to serve these new digital audiences? Does your digital audience want more access to online arts education programming or special events?

Understanding searcher intent will help you and your organization make more informed, strategic decisions.

​As a start, simply type queries into Google to see what your target audiences are searching for in relation to online programming. Also, pay attention to similar queries to yours and the pages that come up in the results.

Look at these areas on the first search engine results page:​
​

• People also ask
• People also search for
• Searches related to​​

Ask yourself these questions when reviewing the results:
​

1. Do you see other arts organizations from across the world ranking in these searches?
2. Which of the "5 W's" are people using? What are the "How" questions?
3. How can this data inform your content, programming, and new audience lead gen strategies? 

​Become acquainted with some SEO tools for better analysis

Taking a little time out every day or every week for some basic SEO investigation and analysis will empower you and your organization.

There is an overwhelming number of free and paid tools out there to help you. The free tools I list below are a place to start.

​Used in combination, these tools and extensions can help provide some insights:
​

• Answer the Public
• Google Trends
• Keyword Surfer
• Keywords Everywhere
• Moz
• Ubersuggest

If you find you need better data than the free tools can provide, then a company like SEMRush or Ahrefs may be the way to go if you have the means in your budget.

Chances are you are already using relevant images for your site. There should be at least one featured image related to your posts or articles. And make sure they are optimized:
​​

• Do all of your images contain relevant alt tags?
• Did you name the file using text related to the image and with hyphens in between each word?
• Are you using the most appropriate and optimized image file sizes? If the file is big, it could affect how quickly the page loads.
• Can you reduce the image file size and still retain the quality?

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever expect to see Brian Stokes Mitchell and Robin Rothstein listed together in the same show notes.

​But we are living in wild times!
 
Thrilled to be a guest on the latest episode of Dr. Nancy Berk’s popular podcast, “Entertaining Insights” where I talk a bit about my background as a playwright and theatre professional, and the appeal of the 10-minute play.
 
Stokes is a tough act to follow, but hopefully I hold my own!
 
Check out the episode on iTunes, Spotify, or iHeart Radio when you get the chance!

And be sure to subscribe to “Entertaining Insights” and browse through Nancy’s other episodes. They’re full of engaging interviews with Broadway notables and other stars from throughout the entertainment industry.

Despite COVID-19 temporarily putting the kibosh on live, in-person performances, there are, no doubt, arts marketers like you still working behind the scenes. And you're probably challenged by a tighter budget due to loss of revenue and less staff as a result of furloughs and layoffs.

Chances are your marketing department is down to one to two people--or maybe it's just you holding the fort. But even with little to no programming, you still need to promote your organization’s brand and get messaging out to your patrons and the community. 

The good news is that there are loads of free tools out there that can help maximize your creative output and workflow. 

I’ve selected seven freebies that I use (and love!) and urge you to check them out. They're super easy to learn and can make the lives of arts marketers like you who are working on a shoestring a whole lot easier.

It should go without saying that whatever writing you put out there—especially when it’s part of your organization’s brand—should be engaging and error-free. But if you’re the only set of eyes available at the moment to check your work, then Grammarly is going to be your new best friend.
​
As you write, the Grammarly browser extension will usually automatically integrate and identify spelling and grammar errors and weak areas in your writing. Alternatively, you can manually open the Grammarly extension and copy and paste all of your text directly into a new document there to check your work. You'll see a more robust set of recommendations and a readability score.

Note: Grammarly may point out problem areas that will require the premium version to unlock, but you’ll likely be able to figure out what Grammarly's recommended changes are by making a few intuitive adjustments.

​Once you use Grammarly, you’ll wonder how you ever sent any writing out into the world without it!

Do you need to write a summary for your boss concerning a Zoom meeting she couldn’t attend? Are you conducting an interview on Google Hangouts that you need to incorporate into an article or blog post? If so, then Otter will bring you much joy!

Otter is an app that allows you to transcribe meetings, and it works seamlessly in conjunction with a variety of online video systems. The free version gives you up to 600 minutes a month of free transcription recording and 40 free minutes per session. (If you find that you need more flexibility, the PRO plan is less than $10 (US) a month and gives you 6,000 transcription minutes per month and 4 hours per session.)

With the browser extension, you can integrate Otter.ai with Zoom and Otter will transcribe the meeting in real-time automatically. Alternatively, you can transcribe your Zoom meeting afterward by opening Otter in your Chrome or Firefox browser and playing the video on speaker mode.

And if you don’t use Zoom, not to worry. Otter integrates across a variety of programs.

I know, it doesn't have anywhere near the sophisticated bells and whistles of Adobe Premiere Pro, but hey, it’s free, it’s easy and iMovie can probably get your job done—and quite well. 

If you’re an arts marketer with few resources, but you have a smartphone, a laptop, and great content to share--you can edit your work quickly in iMovie with professional-looking results.

The computer version has more robust features, so I recommend that you upload all your video content to your Mac or PC and edit it there. That said, if you’ve never edited before or you need to edit something on the fly, the phone and tablet version of iMovie has got you covered. It has fewer features, but all the features in the world are not as important as the quality of your content. So if you have some phone video you need to clean up, add a title to, and throw some music under, do it in iMovie on your phone, and you'll be able to publish and promote your great content ASAP!

PRO Tip: Not quite finding the right music in iMovie’s free soundtrack library? Go to YouTube’s free Audio Library to find something you like more, download it, and then open it in iTunes. The track will now be in your iTunes library, and you should be able to import it into your iMovie project on your phone. If you’re editing on your computer, drag the downloaded music file from your downloads folder directly into your iMovie project.

Another PRO Tip: Posting this video on your arts organization’s YouTube channel? Don’t forget to use Canva to make an eye-catching thumbnail that will entice your intended audience to click and watch!
​
There are many more free tools out there that could bolster your marketing strategies, but these tools are a great start to help  you plan, create, and post valuable content.

If you have time, check out the link below to a Google Sheet I put together that includes the resources I discussed here, along with a few more freebie tools.

[NOTE: This sheet is "View Only." Once you access the sheet, go to the "File" menu and select "Make a copy" from the drop-down, and you'll have your very own copy on your Google Drive!]

In this latest episode of "TAKING FIVE WITH..." I get to chat with a charming and talented Broadway actor about:

• Their Broadway journey
• How their dreams came true
• Where they were when COVID hit
• Will the Broadway tour they were on be back in 2021?
• What they’ve been doing to stay positive and active during the pandemic
• What it's like to be at the Tony Awards when your Broadway show is nominated for Best Musical

• And...what's next for them?

 
Find out the answers to these questions and more -- in just five minutes!

And if you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to check out this other fun episode of
​ "TAKING FIVE WITH..."

Looking for someone to help script and produce
your next short vide0 project? ​

Excited to announce my latest bike tour video highlighting some of downtown NYC's coolest landmarks, public art, and monuments! 

This is the third video in a three-part series that I produced for Village Preservation.

In this final episode of the series, discover the history and delights of Astor Place, St. Marks Church in-the-Bowery, Charlie "Bird" Parker's Residence, and Tompkins Square Park.

The video also includes interviews with local experts: Village Alliance Executive Director, William Kelley; Reverend Anne Sawyer, the fourteenth rector of St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery; and professional saxophonist and "Bird" expert, Jason Marshall.

If you like this video, please check out here and here for the first two videos in this series.

As I say over on my home page, I'm here to tell your organization's most compelling stories. 

Compelling, positive stories. 

I mine positivity. Because there are already plenty of people out there putting out the negative stuff. And I've got nothing to add on that front. Nor do I want to add anything on that front.

Speaking of mining positivity, here's something that got me excited that I really wanted to share. The HBO show Betty was recently shooting some scenes in SoHo for one of their second season episodes. We used to have TV and film shoots in NYC all the time. And this shoot was a sure sign that we're gonna have a whole bunch of shoots again very soon!

I decided to get a little meta and did a short shoot of the shoot. Check it out here.

​Or, you can see it by clicking this photo:

While life has been difficult in one way or another for just about everyone lately, I was recently reminded that it can also deliver nice surprises right when you need them.

About six weeks ago, I answered a call for submissions from a theatre company in the United Kingdom called INK. They were seeking two-minute duologue plays designed for radio.

I've certainly written very (very) short plays before, but not specifically geared for the radio. But I thought, what the heck. I'll give it a go.

I had a premise for the play, and the first draft took me roughly 30 minutes to write. I then returned to it the next day, made a few edits and then fired off my brand new two minute duologue, Finding Balance to INK.

To my surprise and delight INK selected the play for broadcast on BBC Radio Suffolk!

I don't believe any of my work has ever been performed by a U.K. theatre company before, so I was especially excited by the news.

The artistic team at INK and Jon Wright of Radio Suffolk who interviewed me after the play live (eek!) could not have been kinder, and the actresses, Jill Freud and Esther Freud (yes, they're related to THAT Freud) who performed the piece were terrific!

If you'd like to hear my very (very) short play followed by the interview, just click on the BBC Radio Suffolk logo at the top of this post. After a few seconds of earwormy dance music, Jon segues into his intro of the play.

Hope you enjoy it! 🤞
                                                                                # # #

My second bike tour video that I produced in partnership with Village Preservation is now posted!

🚴‍♀️ In this latest short video I highlight examples of public art, monuments, and landmarks in the Greenwich Village area.

🚴‍♀️ The video also features SUPER interviews, including a special chat with UK-based professional sculptor Isabel Coulton and her delightful mum--who was Pablo Picasso's muse for "The Bust of Sylvette!" Sylvette (who now goes by Lydia) is, quite literally, an inspiration. You won't want to miss her! I also interview Michael Venturiello, the founder and highly knowledgeable ​lead tour guide of Christopher Street Tours. 

🚴‍♀️ There is much to discover and enjoy in our neighborhoods, and I look forward to covering more meaningful downtown NYC sites in my next video.

🚴‍♀️ If you missed my first bike video, you can check it out HERE.

I'm a HUGE fan of LinkedIn. I've been a member for close to 10 years now, and I'm pretty active on the platform. It's way more than just a place to hunt for jobs and it's definitely my favorite of all the social media platforms out there by far. It's a place to network, learn, meet people from all over the world, and yes, job hunt, but it's also where I get the most promotional bang for my (free!) buck.

In fact, here's an article I just published there. 

I otherwise post on LinkedIn in my regular feed pretty often. Let me know you found my website and send me a connection request!