“The call center has long been an important, if decidedly unglamorous, corner of the cultural fund-raising world,” write Sophie Haigney and Michael Cooper in Tuesday’s (9/5) New York Times. “These days, as performing arts organizations rely on philanthropy more than ever, the importance of such calls has only grown for many organizations. But cultural telemarketers now face the difficulty of reaching prospects in an era of cellphones, caller ID and growing impatience with annoying interruptions. … Money pressures have risen for many cultural organizations as box-office revenues generally pay a smaller share of the cost of performances than they used to. While the bulk of that money is raised from well-heeled board members, or at star-studded galas … smaller donations are still seen as important, and as a way of building a broader community of supporters…. Telemarketing, which cultural organizations often refer to as telefunding, is nonetheless still seen as important tool.… Some organizations said they believe many patrons appreciate getting reminders of when to renew their memberships, or when hot tickets are going on sale.… Major performing arts institutions said that while phone calls yield only a tiny fraction of what they must raise each year, they are vital.”
Posted September 8, 2017
