press room

For Immediate Release

10/22/2007

Contact:
Beth Olsen
Goodman Media for Americans for the Arts
212.576.2700 ext. 243 or bolsen@goodmanmedia.com


More than 600 Arts Marketers Convene in Miami to Explore Innovative Ways to Build New Audiences for the Arts

Washington, DC — October 18, 2007 — Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts will hold its National Arts Marketing Project Conference in Miami, November 2-5. The conference, entitled Flourishing in the New Frontier: New Media, New Audiences, New Opportunities, will focus on using new technology to build new audiences for the arts. Leaders will present the latest research in the field and offer attendees insight on new media from RSS to podcasts, blogging, texting, optimizing e-mail, e-commerce, Web 2.0, and search engines. 

Attendees will network with colleagues from around the country, discover fresh perspectives with highlighted speakers, and inspire their work through crafted sessions on a variety of marketing techniques. Intensive workshops, plenary sessions, an open forum for new ideas, and sponsorship clinics led by top marketing and sponsorship experts will round out the conference. Executive directors and board members, as well as marketing, public relations, membership, and development professionals from all cultural disciplines and budget sizes will benefit from the many events at this conference.

The National Arts Marketing Project Conference is the premier and largest gathering of arts marketers in the country. The convening is a critical forum for arts groups to discuss the rapidly changing demographics and behaviors of U.S. consumers, as well as how arts organizations can remain relevant in the era of consumer control.

A special pre-conference titled Sponsorship Friday takes place on November 2 and offers intensive Sponsorship Boot Camps designed to help marketers craft corporate and media sponsorship packages to secure mutually beneficial business partnerships.

Keynote speakers for the conference are:

• Brenda Andolina, Director, Brand Marketing & Public Relations, Fisher Price
• J. Walker Smith, President, Yankelovich, Inc
• Elena Park, Assistant Manager/Editorial & Creative Content, Metropolitan Opera
• Ben Cameron, Program Director for the Arts, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

For a detailed schedule of National Arts Marketing Project Conference workshops, speeches, and events, visit the conference website.

As the producer of this event, Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts is harnessing the expertise of leading arts marketing professionals from across North America. The conference also draws on Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts’ lauded National Arts Marketing Project, sponsored by American Express, which operates nationwide and also offers marketing workshops, an advanced audience-development training program, and the Web resource www.ArtsMarketing.org.

Americans for the Arts is the leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With offices in Washington, DC, and New York City, it has a record of more than 45 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts. Additional information is available at www.AmericansForTheArts.org.  The Arts & Business Council of Americans for the Arts targets the business community in an effort to stimulate more business support for the arts and at that same time stimulate a rich, multifaceted relationship between the two sectors. It also is the umbrella under which the national programs of the Arts & Business Council are operated, including Business Volunteers for the Arts, the National Arts Marketing Project, and MetLife Foundation National Arts Forum Series.