News and Events
Open Air Theatre to Enhance Customer Experience with AudienceView
London, UK - December 4, 2006 - The Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park has selected AudienceView to provide all of their ticketing, CRM, and fundraising needs. Managed by the New Shakespeare Company, the Open Air Theatre is the oldest fully professional, permanent outdoor theatre in the UK. In 2007, it will celebrate its 75th anniversary.
"As a not-for-profit organisation with no public subsidy it is critical that we maximise the lifetime value of our customers, said Caroline Carter, Marketing & Development Manager at the Open Air Theatre. "The increased customer insight enabled by AudienceView means we will be better placed to exceed customer expectations and maximise the effectiveness of our marketing spend. Our organisation has a large number of fixed term staff but we are on sale year round. This, together with increasing market drivers, makes online delivery our most important sales channel. Working with AudienceView & our Internet team at Mind Unit, we strive to maximise the opportunities in the dynamic online marketplace."
The Open Air Theatre is in the heart of Regent's Park and is one of the country's largest theatre auditoriums, home to two venues – the Main Theatre (1240 seats) and the Studio (96 seats). The theatre is famous for its Shakespeare productions, and A Midsummer Night's Dream remains a signature piece. Each year they also produce a musical and a children's play. They attract in excess of 120,000 people throughout the course of their 15-week summer season, which runs from the end of May through to September. Despite their short season, the Open Air Theatre has an extraordinary turnover of around £2 million. In recent years they've also developed a successful Sunday concert series, with performers including The Finn Brothers, Nerina Pallot, Ronan Keating, KT Tunstall, and Jimmy Carr.
AudienceView will help the Open Air Theatre reach more people more accurately and with a greater level of choice. With a system that fully integrates all aspects of their business – ticketing, CRM, and fundraising – the theatre looks to not only improve upon their existing business practices, but also to increase online sales and provide greater levels of customer service and choice for their patrons. Working with AudienceView and the arts-focused Internet team at Mind Unit, the Open Air Theatre will be seamlessly integrating online ticketing, memberships, and fundraising into their website as well as providing an online environment for interactive customer communication. The theatre will also use AudienceView's powerful Business Intelligence tool to ensure accurate marketing initiatives across all channels of their business.
"We're proud to be working with such a long-running and prestigious organization," said AudienceView CEO Kevin Kimsa. "More and more, not-for-profit organizations are realizing the critical importance of a fully integrated solution for ticketing and funds management that can help them increase revenue while truly meeting the needs of their customers"
The Open Air Theatre joins AudienceView's growing list of UK agency and performing arts clients, including the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Sheffield International Venues (SIV), Lyceum and Crucible Theatres, and Norwich Theatre Royal.
About AudienceView
AudienceView provides advanced, flexible ticketing services to leading arenas, stadiums, arts venues and theaters worldwide. It offers a fully branded customer experience across traditional and emerging touch points and channels. Clients benefit from integrated CRM tracking customer data, interactions and preferences to support enhanced marketing and sales initiatives. Its growing feature set leads to greater control of ticketing and related services and higher revenue streams for its clients.
About the Open Air Theatre
Established in 1932, the Open Air Theatre is the oldest fully professional, permanent outdoor theatre in Britain, with one of the largest theatre auditoriums in London. Over 120,000 people visit each year during the 15 week summer season. Producing under the name of the New Shakespeare Company Ltd since 1962, the theatre is most famous for its Shakespeare productions, with A Midsummer Night's Dream the their signature piece. The Open Air Theatre has received more than 20 Olivier nominations in the last 10 years. On Sunday evenings they host a series of comedy and concerts. The New Shakespeare Company Ltd. is a registered charity and a not-for-profit company. They receive no public subsidy and all work is funded entirely by their operating activities. For more information, visit www.openairtheatre.org. For more information about Mind Unit, visit www.mindunit.co.uk.
- For More Information on AudienceView Ticketing:
- Chris Castle
- 416-687-2010
- chris.castle@audienceview.com