An Empirical Analysis of University Students' Leisure Decision-Making
1. Carnegie Museum of Art
An Empirical Analysis of
University Students’ Leisure
Decision-Making
An Empirical Analysis of University Students’
Leisure Decision-Making
Terrence Boyd
Yun Cai
Kathryn Feriozzi
Stephanie Garuti
Lin Hsieh
Sang Luo
Elizabeth McFarlin
Rachel Niederberger
Jacob Oresick
Laura Zwicker
Jerry Coltin, Faculty Advisor
Kitty Julian, Client
H.J. Heinz III College – Carnegie Mellon University
Systems Synthesis Fall 2011
4. Acknowledgements
It is with immense gratitude that we acknowledge the support and help of the various
individuals who contributed their time, advice, and expertise to the development of this project.
First and foremost, we would like to express our sincere thanks to Kitty Julian and the Carnegie
Museum of Art for entrusting us with this research great opportunity.
Many thanks to our supportive advisory board: Sarah Beauchamp, Social Media Director,
Silk Screen and SponsorChange.org; Gina Casalegno, Dean of Student Affairs, Carnegie Mellon
University; Yu-Ling Cheng, Marketing Manager, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; Cynthia
Closkey, President, Big Big Design; Benjamin Davis, Coordinator of Student Activities, Arts
Pass Program and Student Media Groups, Carnegie Mellon University; Nicholas Ferrell, Former
Community Advisor and Residential Assistant, Carnegie Mellon University; Jake Flittner,
Student Body President, Carnegie Mellon University; Ryan Freytag, Manager of Cultural Policy
& Research, Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council; Jeff Inscho, Web Media & Marketing Associate,
Heinz College; Ramayya Krishnan, Dean, Heinz College; Lindsay O’Leary, PR & Marketing
Manager, Mattress Factory; Brenda Peyser, Associate Dean, Heinz College; Nick Pozek,
Manager of Technology & Web Initiatives, Carnegie Museum of Art; Kate Prescott, President,
Prescott & Associates; Shernell Smith, Coordinator of Student Development and
Multicultural/Diversity Initiatives, Carnegie Mellon University; and Anne Witchner, Assistant
Dean of Student Affairs and Director of Orientation, Carnegie Mellon University.
Thank you to everyone who helped with the preparation and execution of our survey:
Janel Sutkus, Director of Institutional Research and Analysis, Carnegie Mellon University; and
Heinz College Ph.D. candidates Laura Brandimante, Rajiv Garg and Skylar Speakman.
Thank you also to Marsha Powers, General Manager, Eat’n Park; Ed Helgerman, General
Manager, Giant Eagle; Donna Morosky, Carnegie Mellon University Athletics Department; and
Carnegie Mellon bookstore, School of Drama, and School of Music for their generous donations
for our survey incentives.
To everyone else who assisted in our research process, we are greatly appreciative: Justin
Acierno, Director of Marketing and Ticket Operations, University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Department; Michael Bielski, Senior VP and COO, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; Elizabeth
Bolander, Assistant Director of Audience Research and Development, Carnegie Museum of Art;
Laura Brandimante, Heinz College PhD Candidate; Annabelle Clippinger, Director of Pitt Arts,
University of Pittsburgh; Erin Lynn, Director of Group Sales, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Luke Skurman, Co-founder of Baller BBQ, and Laura Synnott, Associate Teaching Professor,
Heinz College.
Finally, we would like to thank our systems advisor, Jerry Coltin, and our team members
for their hard work and dedication, without which this project would not have been possible.
4
5. About Systems Synthesis
Since the founding of the H.J. Heinz III College at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in
1969, Systems Synthesis has served as a required Master-level capstone project to be completed
in a student’s second year. The Systems Synthesis project has three main goals:
1) To provide an opportunity for students to develop skills in problem structuring and
solving, including how to define a problem, its boundaries, and a project scope;
determine a client’s requirements; proceed effectively even though information is
incomplete; determine effective analytical methods and theories; design alternative
solutions; estimate/compare impacts and risks of alternatives; develop implementation
plans; and document results and communicate recommendations.
2) To enable students to develop project management, teamwork, and communication skills,
including how to develop and effectively use the skills of each member; take initiative
and responsibility; design tasks that are feasible, linked, and phased; keep members
informed and coordinated; accommodate unforeseen circumstances; communicate results
and obtain useful feedback; professionally resolve interpersonal problems; and meet
deadlines.
3) To provide a capstone experience for students, offering the opportunity to learn how to
conduct applied multidisciplinary research; learn new methods, theories, or skills as
needs arise; adapt methods to real problems; be alert and receptive to new ideas; frame
technical/organizational/economic/political criteria; evaluate alternatives from many
perspectives; understand the organizational context for problem-solving; be able to work
comfortably with partial knowledge; develop contingency plans; and translate analytical
work into recommendations for clients.
5
6. About Carnegie Museum of Art
Mission Statement
Carnegie Museum of Art (CMoA) is one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, a
collective of institutions dedicated to providing creative and distinctive experiences for
exploration and learning. CMoA falls under the umbrella of the “most far-reaching cultural
organization in Pittsburgh, known throughout the world for vast art and scientific collections and
scientific research”.1 Independently, the museum is internationally and nationally recognized for
its collection, a diverse synthesis of genres, mediums, and exceptional artists, and for its
commitment to providing enriching opportunities that educate minds, inspire visitors, and unite
the community.
History
Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie founded CMoA in 1895 with the vision of creating a
museum with collections consisting of “the old masters of tomorrow”.2 As opposed to
institutions focused on acquiring old masters at the same time, this arguably makes CMoA the
first museum of modern art in the United States. Since its inception, the museum has presented
contemporary, American, decorative, European, French and post-impressionist works of art.3
With numerous expansions and renovations since its’ opening, the museum today includes
twenty-nine galleries, a permanent collection of 35,000 pieces of work, and approximately 1,800
works on display at a time.4
Company
Located in the Oakland neighborhood east of downtown Pittsburgh, CMoA resides down
the street from CMU and the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt). CMoA positions itself locally by
collecting and exhibiting work from local artists, and regionally, through participation in the
Pittsburgh Biennial. Alternatively, the museum has a strong international presence, shaped
primarily by the Carnegie International, an exhibition of contemporary work from around the
world, held every three years. This showcase of work also serves as a vital acquisition
opportunity for the museum. Winslow Homer’s The Wreck (1896) is but one example of the
many works acquired through the International. The museum focuses on educating and engaging
their audience through lecture series, monthly e-newsletters by Lynn Zelevansky, the museum’s
director, and interactive activities on its website.5
Consumers
Approximately 300,000 people visit CMoA every year.6 While the museum attracts both
national and international visitors, its primary audience is from Pennsylvania, and specifically
regional counties. Family activities, youth classes and school and teacher programs such as
ARTventures for Families and The Art Connection make CMoA a popular place for families,
1
“Facts & Figures.” Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.carnegiemuseums.org>.
2
“History.” Carnegie Museum of Art. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.cmoa.org>.
3
“Facts & Figures.” Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.carnegiemuseums.org>.
4
Ibid.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
6
7. children and students. With many campuses located in close proximity to CMoA, university
students make up another large audience base at the museum.
Competitors
There are many other sources of arts, culture and entertainment in Pittsburgh that are in
direct competition with CMoA—sporting events, concerts, movie theaters and other museums. A
prime competitor is the Pittsburgh Cultural District, which has many cultural institutions,
restaurants and opportunities for social activities conveniently located together in one downtown
area.
Collaborators
CMoA’s collaborators are the other three Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, with a
specific emphasis on the Carnegie Museum of History, as they share a facility and offer a “two
for the price of one” admission rate. CMoA also collaborates with many local universities,
including CMU, Chatham University, Duquesne University, Point Park University, and Pitt to
offer free admission programs to university students, known as the Arts Pass program.
Context
Pittsburgh is a mid-sized city with a vibrant arts community. The city is home to a
plethora of museums, representing a diverse range of focuses, including history, science,
installation art, aviary, and botanical gardens. Carnegie Museum of Art operates within Carnegie
Museums of Pittsburgh, the largest art collective in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.
7
8. Executive Summary
An Empirical Analysis of University Students’ Leisure Decision-Making was a Systems
Synthesis research project conducted by ten Master’s students from CMU’s H.J. Heinz III
College in the fall of 2011. The client for the project was Kitty Julian, Director of Marketing at
the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History Museum. The impetus for the project was the
Arts Pass program—a partnership between local universities and arts and cultural institutions in
the Pittsburgh community that grants students of those universities free admission with their
student ID to each participating institution.
Data from 2001-2010 showed that the Arts Pass penetration rate of CMoA with CMU
students was about 30%.7 However, this rate was based on swipes of ID’s and did not capture
anything unique about each individual student. As a result, Kitty lacked knowledge about who at
CMU was utilizing the Arts Pass, why they were utilizing it and what behaviors or aspects
influenced their decision-making. More importantly, Kitty was unsure why CMU students were
not using the Arts Pass. This Systems project stemmed from these core problems and sought to
uncover information about CMU student’s decision-making processes when deciding whether or
not to participate in or attend activities and events in the Pittsburgh community. By determining
what influences students, the Team aimed to better enable and inform Kitty and her marketing
staff on strategies to help engage students while at CMU as well as potentially retain their
participation post-graduation.
The Team established four main assumptions that helped guide the formulation and
execution of the research. First, the concept of an “event” or “activity” was defined in the
broadest sense possible—what a student does in his or her leisure time, that he or she is not
required to attend. Second, the notion of leisure time was presumed to be time spent outside of a
classroom or workplace setting. This definition does not exclude time spent on-campus, as many
social and typical leisure activities do take place on-campus. A third assumption was that
reference groups were key influencers and are defined as people to whom a student compares
him- or her-self (e.g. peers, friends, club leaders, etc.). Lastly, the study assumed that full-time
students were more likely than part-time students to have the time and be in proximity to attend
local events and activities such as going to CMoA. Consequently, the study survey only sampled
full-time CMU students.
After establishing these assumptions, the Team devised a four-prong methodology
strategy with the objective of determining the behaviors and influencers of students’ decision-
making processes in regards to event attendance. As shown below, the research methodology
included conducting literature research, interviews, focus groups, a survey and case studies.
7
CMoA lacks the technological capacity to measure exactly how many individual students use Arts Pass, and instead it can only
count the total number of uses by a student with a CMU ID card. Therefore, this 30% figure is merely an estimate of individual
attendees from CMU.
See Appendix # for details of this data.
8
9. This four-pronged methodology uncovered numerous conclusions that helped form the
Team’s conclusions. These conclusions are outlined below and are separated by methodological
approach:
Research:
1. Social networking is engrained in university students’ everyday lives
2. Multi-channel marketing is expanding as marketers strive to win the attention of
consumers
3. 18-24 year-olds are heavily influenced by their peers when making decisions
Interviews:
1. Social media is not always the most effective mode of communicating with university
students
2. Consistent personal e-mails are an effective way of marketing arts and cultural events to
university students
3. Having an institutionalized, arts-centric program at a university helps retain and engage
students throughout their academic career
4. Social media influencers are hard to identity and their influence is difficult to quantify
5. CMU provides outlets for outside organizations to reach its students
9
10. Focus Group I:
1. Content, especially for graduate students, is the primary influencer of event/activity
attendance
2. One-time events/activities are more appealing than ongoing events
3. Social media influence on event attendance is less than one might expect
4. A personal invitation has a greater impact on university students’ desire to attend an
event/activity
Survey:
1. Content and whether friends are going are the main influencers of event/activity
attendance for university students
2. Most students hear about events through word-of-mouth
3. Social media is a good outlet to hear about events, but does not necessarily influence
attendance
4. University students are more likely to attend an event/activity if they hear about it
through multiple channels
5. Most CMU students are aware of Arts Pass, but less than half use it per year, with an
average usage rate of three times per year
Case Studies:
1. University students want to be in social environments
2. Personal connections positively impact a student’s perception of an organization
3. Collaboration with a university can provide key access to its students
4. Multi-channel marketing effectively engages students’ attentions
5. Tiered-pricing can drive student attendance, as most students are cost-conscious
6. Content and word-of-mouth greatly influence decision-making
Focus Group II:
1. Time of day is an important influencer as most university students are extremely busy
2. University students are more influenced to go to one-time events versus ongoing events
3. An event organizer’s connection to CMU would influence students to attend
4. Students, especially undergraduates, operate on a “group” mentality and will attend
events/activities in groups even if the event’s content does not necessarily appeal to them
Based on these conclusions, the Team developed a marketing strategy that will enable
CMoA to better market to university students, specifically CMU students. This strategy is
purposefully broad-based as the Team expects it can be generalized to other arts organizations
that are comparable to CMoA in terms of proximity to a university population. The strategy is
based on three key words: collaboration, experience and messaging.
Collaboration refers to CMoA seeking opportunities to further partner with CMU and
local events and organizations. This study uncovered that students are apprehensive about
10
11. museum attendance, especially if they do not identify themselves as “museum-goers”. By
collaborating with familiar entities, such as CMU, CMoA will be able to help diminish these
barriers to entry.
In conjunction with establishing partnerships within the community, the Team also
recommends that CMoA focus on creating casual and social experiences in both its physical and
virtual environments. The research overwhelmingly found that university students are incredibly
social creatures and like to hang out with friends during their spare time. In order to convince
students to hang out with their friends in a setting like an art museum instead of in their dorm or
at a party, CMoA should provide opportunities to experience the museum in an informal way
such as offering a study space or events that allow social interaction in addition to education.
This casual experience should also be mirrored on CMoA’s web presence by offering a page
dedicated just to university students where the tone and content reflect students’ interests: friends,
socializing, and interaction.
The third aspect of the marketing strategy is messaging; spreading the right words
through multiple channels. This study demonstrates the utmost importance and influence friends
have on university students’ decision-making. Consequently, CMoA’s marketing messages to
this audience should include terms such as “bring a friend” or “have fun with your friends at the
museum”. Students are keen to share their experiences and opinions with friends as the
popularity of social media sites like Facebook demonstrates. As a result, when offering
promotions or tickets for events in which CMoA wishes to engage students, the museum should
offer them in pairs, thus enabling a student to share his or her experience with a friend.
11
12. Project Timeline
Phase 1
Sept 22 Establish survey sampling framework
Sept 26-Oct 9 Draft Survey 1.0
Oct 3-5 Focus Groups I
Oct 10 Group discussion regarding Survey 1.0
Start Survey 2.0
Distribute Survey 2.0 to selected Advisory Board members
Oct 10-17 Collect feedback from reviewers
Sub-Group discussion regarding Survey 2.0
Oct 19 Finalize Survey 3.0
Pilot test Survey 3.0
Oct 21 Collect and upload pilot test results
Begin work on Survey 4.0
Oct 24 Send Survey 4.0 (final) to John Papinchak, CMU Registrar, for review
Oct 24 Obtain random sample from Dr. Janel Sutkus
Oct 24 Interim Presentation
Phase II
Nov 5 Distribute survey to CMU campus & begin case studies
Nov 12 Collect survey results and start Minitab data analysis; finish case studies
Nov 14-17 Focus Group II
Nov 16 Integrate survey results into formal report
Nov 22 Final presentation
Dec 5 Final presentation to systems advisor, Jerry Coltin
Dec 12 Submit report to the Heinz College and client
12
13. Project Goals and Relevance
Project Goals
By collecting data on students’ decision-making processes and behavioral characteristics,
and by further adding to the Team’s best analysis of that data, the Team hopes to achieve three
main goals:
1. Inform CMoA on how to best make strategic marketing decisions
2. Enable CMoA to better market to this unique audience
3. Add a unique and valuable perspective to existing national arts marketing
research on this topic
Project Relevance
It is particularly important for CMU and CMoA that much of this project is specific to the
Pittsburgh region, because Pittsburgh is a top destination for CMU post-graduate employment.
For CMU’s undergraduate class of 2010, Pittsburgh was the second most common employment
destination, closely behind New York City.8 As university education has been shown to be the
number one indicator of museum attendance,9 it is crucially important that CMoA engage
students during their time on campus. If CMoA can pique CMU students’ interest while they are
in school, there is a good chance it can retain these students as museum patrons for years after
graduation.
Further, this project builds on existing research that has tried to understand young
audience participation in the arts. Specifically, this project expands on two pioneering studies, by
the PITT ARTS program and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). First, PITT ARTS, an
initiative that has had tremendous success in connecting University of Pittsburgh students to
cultural activities, conducted valuable research between 1999 and 2004 in the research study
called the “Young Adult Arts Participation Initiative” (YAAPI). YAAPI concluded time was the
“most significant barrier to young adult participation in the arts, followed by studying,
transportation, and knowledge that an event was happening.”10 However, the proliferation of
social media in the time since that research was conducted has fundamentally altered the way
this demographic communicates, and ultimately makes decisions. This project serves to flesh out
much of the YAAPI findings.
The NEA’s “2008 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts” primarily compiled
demographic information. The NEA found that participation in the arts fell significantly from
2002 to 2008, irrespective of age group,11 although reasons for this decline and possible solutions
were not explored. Therefore, this project—through the Team’s research, survey and focus
groups—seeks to expound upon both the PITT ARTS and YAAPI studies by better
8
2009-2010 Career & Professional Development Center Annual Report. Carnegie Mellon University. Web. 20 November 2011.
<http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu/career/about-us/annual-reports/annualreport>.
9
Williams, Kevin, and David Keen. 2008 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts. Rep. no. #49R. NEA Office of Research &
Analysis, Nov. 2009. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.nea.gov>.
10
Julian, Kitty, and Annabelle Clippinger. Young Audiences and the Arts. Rep. PITT ARTS. Web. 2 Dec. 2011.
<http://www.pittarts.pitt.edu>.
11
Williams, Kevin, and David Keen. 2008 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts. Rep. no. #49R. NEA Office of Research &
Analysis, Nov. 2009. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.nea.gov>.
13
14. understanding students’ comprehensive decision-making processes, especially with regard to
attending events. That is, the national body of research on arts participation would benefit from
greater insight into what students want to do, where they want to do it and how they want to be
reached.
This project is also relevant because it provides insight into the behavioral habits of the
Millennial Generation, which is too large and important to ignore. The current generation, which
is generally defined as those born after 1977, is roughly 80 million strong, and the largest
generation since the Baby Boomers.12 The Millennial Generation is not only large, but it is
uniquely connected to and reliant on the rapidly evolving technology of the day. Technology has
an increasingly prominent role in work, play and consumer decisions, and it is essential to
understand how this generation uses technology in its decision-making.
Finally, this project is nationally relevant as there are a plethora of arts organizations
comparable to CMoA in terms of proximity to a university. Across the United States, there are
over 200 art museums located within three miles of a college or university. Therefore, it follows
that this project’s conclusions and recommendations may be applicable, or at the very least
+ There is a plethora of art museums within
instructive, for arts organizations across the country.
2-3 milesArt Museums within 2-3 Miles of a University (n= ~200)
Map of of a University
12
Pew Research Center, Millennials: Portrait of Generation Next (February 2010), 4.
14
15.
METHODOLOGY
15
16. Exploratory Research
Survey
As part of the four-pronged methodology approach, the Team conducted research on a
broad range of relevant topics such as consumer behavior, student psychology and museum
trends. The goal of this research was to gain a foundation of information that would further
influence the development of the survey. The Team looked at multiple sources throughout the
semester such as Mashable.com, Socialmediatoday.com, New York Times, and a multitude of
other online resources dedicated to the task of publishing trending ideas in the social media
world. Throughout this research, three themes related to student engagement emerged: reference
groups, social media and multi-channel marketing. Each part of research is backed up with
articles, interviews, and focus group data to solidify the importance of these three key areas.
Background: Reference Groups
As previously mentioned, reference groups are defined as those people to whom students
refer themselves (e.g. friends, family, coworkers, etc.). Because of reference groups’ strong
influence in students’ decision-making, the Team researched this topic in-depth. Below is a brief
outline of the reference group data gathered to help support and develop how reference group
influence would be tested in the survey developed for CMU students.
Research
In the study “Making Connections, Dimensions of Student Engagement,” by the
Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE), researchers determined a number
of elements that make up a person’s social influencers. According to the report, “connecting
[with peers] is an interactive, iterative series of events that is personal and creates a sense of
presence.”13 This building of a relationship with peers is applicable to museums and other
cultural institutions. For example, the Metropolitan Museum of Art14 is actively engaged in its’
visitor’s participation. The Met has created a synergy of its’ mobile app, website, and in-house
technology experience, ultimately creating a relationship with its visitors. By encouraging
involvement both in the museum and outside at a home computer, the Met is encouraging the
development of a personal connection to an institution, through the sum of its parts. Overall, the
technological elements combine a person’s interests with the interests of other museum-goers
and are planned to help the future growth of the museum’s visitors, both online and in-house.
Personal emails were also found to be a way to market effectively. A Mashable.com
article said the following:
“E-mail addresses are a safer long-term investment than social media features. Think about all the money
companies spent advertising their MySpace pages in 2007. Even on Facebook, your direct messages to fans
are relegated to a second tier inbox no one reads. This is something you don’t have to worry about
13
Center for Community College Student Engagement. (2009). “Making Connections: Dimensions of Student Engagement (2009
CCSSE Findings).” Austin, TX: The University of Texas at Austin, Community College Leadership Program.
<http://www.ccsse.org>.
14
Grobart, Sam. “Multimedia Tour Guides on Your Smartphone.” Nytimes.com. New York Times, 16 Mar. 2011. Web. 3 Dec.
2011. <http://www.nytimes.com>.
16
17. happening in e-mail marketing. Among 20- to 35-year olds, at least, their physical addresses change more
frequently than their e-mail addresses.15”
This research shows that friends, family and other close interactions are the paramount
influencers of students’ decision-making. To further develop this idea, the Team looked into the
ways that students interact, and any other studies in the field about reference groups. Dr. Ray
Junko’s blog, “Social Media in Higher Education,” does just that:
“94% of students report using social networks weekly and these students are not spending
more or less time studying or doing any other activity than their counterparts who do not use
social networks”16
Dr. Junko goes on to explain that these social media active students are also very active in their
real-life social activities. Many of these students “have a stronger connection to their institution
and feel better about their social life.”17 This information provided the Team with more evidence
about the importance of social media and that reference groups play a large role in how students
interact, plan activities and go to events.
In addition, Dr. Junko explains the importance of marketing to these social media savvy
students. Most students use Facebook as a source of event information, and plan activities and
itineraries based on what their friends are saying. As a result, the Team wanted to test if a
student’s involvement with his or her university made him or her more likely to rely on social
media, and his or her friends’ decisions.
Outside of students’ decision-making, there is more research to enforce the reference
group idea as the primary influencer in peoples’ decision-making. In the article, “Why Online
Listening,” Michael Lewis details that reference groups are critical, which is why it is important
for marketers to really watch what people are saying online. Lewis says, “studies confirm that
peer recommendations influence buying decisions more than any other form of advertising—
90% of buyers trust peer reviews and 70% trust online reviews,”18 which shows that people trust
their friends and family in the social space both for information and for reviews on products.
While Lewis talks more about the best practices for companies, he still provides valuable data
about peoples’ decision-making processes by specifically demonstrating that having an online
community is essential to the development of reference group influence—people talk, and people
listen. Clearly, from peer to peer real-life relationships to the influence of reference groups in the
virtual realm, reference groups dominate as the primary influencers of university students.
Background: Social Media
In 1990, people woke up and read the newspaper. In 2000, people woke up and visited
their homepage. Now, the first thing one does in the morning is check his or her Facebook
15
Ferriss, Tim. “4 Social Media Marketing Predictions for 2011.” Mashable.com. Mashable, Inc., 28 Dec. 2010. Web. 6 Oct.
2011. <http://www.mashable.com>.
16
Heiberger, Greg, and Ruth Harper. “Have You Facebooked Astin Lately? Using Technology to Increase Student Involvement.”
Web log post. Social Media in Higher Education. 10 Oct. 2011. Web. 24 Oct. 2011. <http://blog.reyjunco.com>.
17
Ibid.
18
Lewis, II, Michael. “Why Online Listening?” Social Media Today. Social Media Today, LLC, 12 Aug. 2011. Web. 26 Sept.
2011. <http://www.socialmediatoday.com>.
17
18. profile.19 This switch from expert publications to peer opinions has drastically changed the way
people discover and absorb material. People are more willing to learn from their direct online
social circles instead of outdated and impersonal sources that are restrained by space and time.
Social media sites like Facebook have created the platform where everyone can be a broadcaster
by sharing endless amounts of content—ranging anywhere from world news to silly antics.
People are naturally interested in what others are doing20 and social media is the easiest
way to keep up with this boundless stream of data. What separates social media from an intricate
form of gossip is that it invites an interaction with information instead of being a one-sided
conversation. At some level, social media is the new-age office water cooler, a social gathering
place where people take a break from their daily happenings to share miscellaneous—but self-
absorbed—content to anyone willing to hear it.
For most young adults, social media is fully integrated into their daily routines, especially
with its’ emergence on mobile platforms. In 2010, it was measured that “social networking …
eats up twice as much […] online time as any other activity”21 and 96% of all 18-35 year-old
Americans belong to a social network.22 This recent spike in social media use triggered the
Team’s investigation of the habits and reliance on digital communities in order to better
understand how social media effects students’ decision-making.
Social Media Main Concepts:23
1. Reach – The ability to spread an individual’s message to a focused or global audience
2. Accessibility – Easily available to the public at little or no cost
3. Usability – Only requires a modest amount of existing skills or training, making it
accessible to virtually anyone
4. Immediacy – Ability to instantly publish content and instantaneously receive responses
These concepts better define the advantages that social media has over uses of traditional
media. Using these ideas, the Team hoped to structure the survey in a way that would elucidate a
greater understanding of how CMU students specifically utilize social media to make decisions
about whether or not to attend certain events/activities.
Research
Researchers attribute the popularity of social media to the mirror effect. This effect is
defined not in the “obvious narcissistic way, but in a more profound and symbolic sense to
19
Reiss, Christopher. “What is ‘Social Media’ All About?” Quora. 4 May 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.quora.com>.
20
Somak, Roy. “Why Are Social Networks So Addictive?” Quora. 19 Nov. 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.quora.com>.
21
Ostrow, Adam. “Social Networking Dominates Our Time Spent Online [STATS].” Mashable.com. Mashable, Inc., 2 Aug.
2010. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.mashable.com>.
22
Petri, Keith. “The Biggest Shift Since the Industrial Revolution | Social Media Social Media Revolution Infograph | We Create
Fans | En.gauge Media – Keith Petri's Space.” Keith Petri's Space. 12 Jan. 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://keithpetri.com>.
23
“Social Media.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 18 Nov. 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media>.
18
19. reflect who we are, or more, who we would like to be”24. Through social postings across several
platforms (Figure 1), people—especially those aged 18-35 years—mold an electronic image of
themselves through the friends they publically interact with, the places they check into, the
opinions they comment on, the photographed facial expressions they display or by the events
they attend.
25
Chart by Arno Ghelfi
People are also posting more than ever—the average Facebook user creates 90 pieces of
content a month—because they are addicted to the sense of community that these sites provide. 26
Brian Roemmele, President at Multiplex Media Corporation,27 even goes as far as to say that this
addiction is a chemical reaction, making the argument that social media identification is
connected to the same psychological changes (production of neuropeptides) people experience
when they feel love—the human tendency to seek the feelings of being needed and accepted.28
In 2010, Neilson Media Research noted that social media was dominating online
messaging, superseding both email and instant messaging.29 Communicating and planning have
now become a social activity that encourages group collaboration and approval. With the
immense amount of content that is posted each day, the Team wanted to investigate which social
24
Roemmele, Brian. “Why Are Social Networks So Addictive?” Quora. 26 Jan. 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011.
<http://www.quora.com>.
25
Hempel, Jessi. “Web Strategies That Cater To Customers.” Businessweek.com. Bloomberg, L.P., 11 June 2007. Web. 3 Dec.
2011. <http://www.businessweek.com>.
26
@jmyjmz Web log post. Twitter.com. Web. 3 Dec. 2011.
27
Roemmele, Brian. “Why Are Social Networks So Addictive?” Quora. 26 Jan. 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011.
<http://www.quora.com>.
28
Ibid.
29
Ostrow, Adam. “Social Networking Dominates Our Time Spent Online [STATS].” Mashable.com. Mashable, Inc., 2 Aug.
2010. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.mashable.com>.
19
20. media channels a student acquires information from and how it factors in to his or her decision-
making process.
Figure 1
Background: Multi-channel Marketing
Multi-channel marketing encompasses all marketing, including the previously mentioned
social media. Multi-channel marketing is a conscious combination of Internet based marketing,
direct mail, telemarketing, broadcast media, and unique marketing schemes such as street teams.
Marketers pick and choose a combination of various channels of marketing to grab the attention
of their target audience.30
It can also be said that organizational websites have evolved from a “channel” into a
“platform.” Online marketing platforms include:
1. Email Campaigns
2. SEM & SEO (Search Engine Marketing & Optimization)
3. Directory Listings (free and paid inclusion)
4. Banner Ad Campaigns
5. Whitepaper Syndication
6. RSS Feeds & SMS
7. Mobile
8. Blogs
30
Kolleman, Jan J. “The New Definition of Multichannel Marketing.” Translation and Localization Blog - SDL Blog. SDL plc,
16 Nov. 2009. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://blog.sdl.com>.
20
21. 9. Social Media & Networks31
For the purpose of this study, the survey sought to find out if multi-channel marketing is
effective in influencing student attendance as well as to determine what multi-channel
combination is most effective with university students. Like other research on multi-channel
marketing, the Team sought to gain insight into different areas of this type of marketing: the mix
of communication channels and alignment of those channels with respondents’ preferences.32
The preferred volume of communication was also researched during the study’s two sets of focus
groups. In addition, due to the research conducted on the importance of reference groups and
social media, the study focused on multi-channel marketing viability and methodology in the
survey.
Interviews
In order to provide greater context and gain insights about the research methodology, the
Team conducted interviews with CMU’s Student Activities Office, Pitts’ PITT ARTS Director,
and Rajiv Garg, a Heinz College Ph.D. candidate. The context, major findings and importance of
each interview are outlined below.
CMU Student Activities Office
Interview Date: September 23, 2011
Interviewees:
• Ben Davis, Coordinator Student Activities, Arts Pass Program & Student Media Groups
• Taylor Grabowsky, Former Arts Pass Coordinator and Residential Assistant
Context
CMU’s Arts Pass Program was started in the early 2000s and was directly connected to
the College of Fine Arts’ budget and curriculum. The program soon opened up to the entire
university after the Student Affairs Office took control and began funding it through the campus’
activities fee.
Liz Vaughan, Director of Student Activities at CMU, suggested that the Team meet with
Benjamin Davis about the Arts Pass program. Having this information would facilitate stronger
communication about the Team’s research goals and efforts. Likewise, it would also help prevent
any potential confusion that could arise when presenting to the broader campus community. Ms.
Vaughn also strongly recommended that the Team consult Taylor Grabowsky, a former
coordinator of the Arts Pass Program to learn more about the program and key influencers on
campus.
31
Kolleman,
Jan J. "The New Definition of Multichannel Marketing." Translation and Localization Blog - SDL Blog. SDL Plc,
16 Nov. 2009. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://blog.sdl.com>.
32
Godfrey, Andrea, Kathleen Seiders, and Glenn B. Voss. “Enough Is Enough! The Fine Line in Executing Multichannel
Relational Communication.” Journal of Marketing 75.4 (2011): 94-109. Marketing Power. American Marketing Association, 1
July 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.marketingpower.com>.
21
22. Major Findings
CMU has a very systematic way to disseminate activity information. A Housefellow, the
staff member who directs a residential community, either sponsors an event or is approached
about promoting one. The event details are then passed down to the dormitory’s Community
Advisor (CA), the student who manages the building’s Residential Assistants (RAs). These RAs
are in direct contact with the students and it is their job to provide information and experiences
for students while living on campus. Another, but less effective, way of making students aware
of events are by posting flyers about upcoming events on bulletin and announcement boards.
There are several opportunities during the year to communicate to students, the first being
in their “welcome packets” at student orientation. CMoA potentially has a chance to provide
organizational information packets to the entire incoming class at orientation. Later that week,
CMoA has another opportunity to reach these new undergraduates by setting up an informational
table during the Pittsburgh Connections Fair, a program that strives to engage students in outdoor
recreation throughout the city.33
Significance
One of the major takeaways of this interview is the fact that there are plenty of
opportunities for CMoA to get involved with CMU students (tabling, hanging flyers,
participating in activities fairs). These opportunities are geared more heavily toward
underclassmen; since all freshmen are required to live in the dorms their first year, it is very easy
to grab their attention using the residential staff. However, once a student moves off campus, the
information distribution chain is broken and it becomes more difficult to market to
upperclassmen and graduate students. Mr. Davis suggested that since these students do not have
an RA or CA, direct emails would be the next best way to communicate to this audience.
PITT ARTS
Interview Date: October 13, 2011
Interviewee:
• Annabelle Clippinger, PITT ARTS Director, University of Pittsburgh
Context
Launched in 1997, PITT ARTS was designed to encourage Pitt students to participate in
cultural opportunities in the community. PITT ARTS wants students to be actively involved in
the arts so that they will become sophisticated consumers and supporters of the arts, as they grow
older.
Each year, PITT ARTS has meetings with large and small arts organizations ahead of the
season to set its programs. PITT ARTS purchases blocks of tickets from these organizations for
“Pittsburgh Connections.” Cmu.edu. Carnegie Mellon University. Web. 4 Dec. 2011. <http://www.studentaffairs.cmu.edu>.
33
22
23. undergraduate students. In sum, PITT ARTS has 110 free events per academic year and eight to
nine programs per week. Sometimes it offers free dinner, transportation and other incentives to
encourage students to participate. The program’s goal is to help promote diverse arts to the
students. As a result, it spends less effort on promoting popular shows like “Wicked.”
PITT ARTS has been very successful at attracting students to attend these activities. The
average attendance rate is about 90% and the program has numerous free events in collaboration
with big and small arts organizations. Three team members met with Annabelle Clippinger,
Director of PITT ARTTS, to gather more information about the program and gain a broader
understanding of how Pitt promotes arts experiences to its students.
Major Findings
PITT ARTS encourages students to sign up to a weekly mailing list that has 8,000-9,000
subscribers. By using PatronMail (Pitt’s email system), PITT ARTS sends out different
newsletters to undergraduate and graduate students each week. Almost all of the free programs
are targeted to undergraduates, with two to three free programs for graduate students each year.
There is also a different program called the “cheap seat program” for graduate students and staff
that offers discounted tickets to arts events. PITT ARTS promotes its programs through activity
fairs, dormitory news, and by attending five to six different orientation events a year.
Ms. Clippinger believes the content of the e-newsletter definitely plays an important role
in engaging students. If students do not understand certain types of art or are unfamiliar with the
arts organization, it is really hard to motivate them to attend the concerts. Thus, PITT ARTS tries
to play around with the words or create an image that appeals to the students to encourage them
to attend. PITT ARTS does not utilize social media, because the program has direct access to its
audience—Pitt students—through its comprehensive email list. Instead, PITT ARTS relies
primarily on e-mail and posters to sufficiently market its events.
In addition, PITT ARTS has a complete database that records each student’s event
attendance. This record makes it easy to trace who are the most involved students and who
seldom attends any programs, giving PITT ARTS a better understanding of the demographics of
the attendees. To further understand more specific information about these active students, PITT
ARTS conducts 12-14 small surveys. These surveys focus on learning how students receive arts
information outside of PITT ARTS and the Pitt campus so the program can collaborate with
those organizations.
Significance
The most significant finding from the PITT ARTS meeting is that an integrated system
within a particular university is an effective way to substantially promote students’ arts
attendance. Although the PITT ARTS framework may be challenging to start and grow, the
rewards are demonstrable—PITT ARTS is highly successful at attracting and engaging students
with a 90% participate rate and low marketing costs.
Similarly, creating and maintaining a ticket and attendance database has enabled PITT
ARTS to conduct the majority of its research in house. As a result, PITT ARTS knows its
audience and knows what events draw their attention as well as how to attract them, especially
23
24. undergraduate students. Ms. Clippinger knows proximity might be the issue for students, so she
offers free transportation for them. She knows students like incentives, so she sometimes offers
food at the events. And she knows the content of the e-newsletters is effective in engaging
students, so she spends a majority of her time describing each event in an appealing way. Overall,
the PITT ARTS interview provided valuable insights about how a university can successfully
promote arts engagement among its students given the proper organizational framework.
Rajiv Garg
Interview Date: September 27, 2011
Interviewee:
• Rajiv Garg, Heinz College Ph.D. Candidate, Carnegie Mellon University
Context
A Master of Information Systems Management student from Heinz College referred
Rajiv Garg to the Team as a valuable person to consult regarding the Team’s survey research. Mr.
Garg’s own research focuses on online social networks, information diffusion on the Internet,
digital piracy, Internet content personalization, open source software, technology innovation, and
technology mergers & acquisitions. Two team members met with Mr. Garg to discuss his
research and garner advice from him about surveying, research strategies and social media
influencers.
Major Findings
Meeting with Mr. Garg had a large impact on the design and implementation of the
Team’s survey. Mr. Garg's expertise with surveying university students proved incredibly
valuable in making sure CMU students could accurately take the survey as well as be motivated
to click on the survey link. Similarly, Mr. Garg's advice about offering the first 50 respondents
an incentive in addition to a drawing for prizes proved useful, as the survey had over 100
respondents within the first 8 hours of its distribution. Overall, meeting with Mr. Garg was a
critical component of the survey design process and the Team is grateful for his advice and
expertise.
Significance
Mr. Garg is experienced with conducting survey research, particularly with a similar
study population to this project. Consequently, he was able to provide many insights about
constructing effective surveys. For instance, Mr. Garg suggested including two similar questions
about events with slight differences in order to test the consistency of respondents' answers. Mr.
Garg also put some aspects of the survey into perspective for the Team. In particular, he talked
about the challenges of the Team’s desire to capture specific information about social media
influencers. He mentioned that capturing that kind of data is extremely difficult and would
involve a long-term study in which the researcher monitored social media activity on a daily
basis. In addition, Mr. Garg gave the Team advice about administering incentives in a way that
24
25. would drive up the response rate.
Focus Groups
The Team conducted two sets of focus groups. The first set served as exploratory
research to uncover deeper insights about the previously mentioned research findings. The
second set of focus groups served as a way to further validate previous research, test differences
between CMU undergraduate and graduate students, uncover museum-specific behaviors and
confirm the Team’s survey conclusions.
Question Methodology
Both sets of focus groups began with fairly vague questions. The questions became more
precise as participants volunteered more of their own insights. For instance, a beginning question
was “What factors are most influential in deciding whether to attend an event?” Participants’
responses were most often stream-of-consciousness attempts to describe how they perceived
their social decision structure, and although initial answers were fairly unfocused and off-topic,
patterns invariably emerged.
Focus Group I
Who: CMU graduate students
Topic
The Team asked students what factors influence their decision to attend events/activities
in general. Specifically, the Team asked how these influencing factors (e.g., proximity, cost,
content, etc.) were weighted relative to each other. The Team also asked how students learn
about events/activities and how different channels may be more or less likely to influence their
attendance. The conversation was left broad in order to see if the participants would advance it
organically in any particular direction.
Insights
Students indicated that an activity’s content was the primary influencing factor and that
they would attend events alone if the content was sufficiently attractive. Students would,
however, attend events they did not find appealing if enough of their friends were attending. The
group also indicated that they usually prioritize one-time events and infrequent events over
ongoing activities. Other factors that were important, but not critical, were cost and proximity.
In terms of learning about activities, students preferred a multi-channel approach. That is,
they like to be informed and reminded about an event from as many different media channels as
possible, because this is convenient for them and can also reinforce an event’s credibility. One-
to-one invitations are powerful, whether it is in person or via e-mail since students tend to
dismiss mass e-mails as spam, even when they come from friends. Students also demonstrated
that they are somewhat influenced by whether their friends have replied to a Facebook event.
25
26. Focus Group II
Who: CMU undergraduate students
Topic
In this set of focus groups, the Team tried to refine previous research and test the survey
results. The Team asked questions directly related to CMoA, as opposed to the initial focus
groups, where questions were not exclusively related to museum attendance. Four areas
influenced this focus group’s questions: influencers, museum behaviors, effective
communication, and barriers to entry. Specifically, the Team wanted to discover what prohibits
students from attending the museum and garner feedback on proposed ideas that may resolve this
problem.
Insights
Students indicated that friends are the most influential factor in determining what activity
or event to attend. They said that it is undesirable to split up, and they would prefer to stay in
groups, even if they would prefer to do different things.
Regarding awareness of CMoA, students noted they have no knowledge of the events,
programs etc. offered by the museum, as they never see anything advertised. Therefore, this
seems to make proximity and price irrelevant, even though students walk by CMoA everyday.
However, proximity is actually a significant influencer. Most undergraduates do not have a car
and look for activities nearby where they can spend a few hours.
In addition, time of day is crucial. Students are often busy during the week with school and
meetings, so in their limited free time, many students said that they want to relax, spend time
with friends, play video games, and “turn the intellect off.”
Students also expressed that there are some things that would make them more inclined to
go to CMoA. First, if they were communicated to through multiple channels (e-mail and social
media applications specifically), it would put the museum in their mind, substantially increasing
their likelihood to attend. Second, if a firmer connection existed between CMoA and CMU, it
would pique students’ interest. While students said it is hard to attend CMoA during the
weekdays, if the museum offered an early evening event (6-8pm) during their usual free time,
they may be more inclined to go to the museum as it enables students to still have a social night
out, as the museum is nearby, and the event ends early.
26
27. Case Study: Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
The Team wrote five case studies to provide further context to this study as well as
demonstrate best practices for student-event engagement. The following case studies were
selected based on three criteria: the event or organization specifically targets university
students; is within close proximity to a college/university or is easily accessible to university
students; and the event’s organizers use innovative marketing tactics to engage students. The
events chosen were the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s College Nights; Baller BBQ; the
Museum of Science, Boston’s College Night; the University of Pittsburgh Men’s Basketball
games; and the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Summer Solstice Party.
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra: College Nights
Prepared By: Rachel Niederberger and Laura Zwicker
Introduction
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (then the Pittsburgh Orchestra) was founded in 1896.
PSO has educational programs for school children, university students and continuing education
for adults. This case study will deal exclusively with the College Nights at PSO, an educational
program specifically for university students in the Pittsburgh area and surrounding towns.
Pittsburgh is unique for its high concentration of university students. The 2002 census ranked it
22nd out of all cities in the United States with a saturation level of people with a Bachelor’s
degree or higher at 31%.34
Begun in 2000, the College Night program started inauspiciously. The University of
Pittsburgh (Pitt) bought several sets of group tickets for its students and PSO took notice. When
Pitt bought the groups of tickets, PSO began to think about the possibility of a future partnership.
Over the next few years, Pitt’s Office of the Provost developed a partnership with PSO, where
the office underwrote a dessert reception at Heinz Hall (where PSO performs), and students
bought their own tickets to the concert. This partnership inspired an expansion over the next ten
years to bring in more universities from the surrounding areas to fill the gap between young
grade school students who attend PSO’s Fiddlesticks concert series and PSO’s typically older
demographic.
In addition, the faculty and staff of Pitt are involved in the College Night program. Many
of them use the concerts as extra credit or even bring a class to hear performances. The PITT
ARTS program is the marketing tool for College Night at Pitt, making it a significant player in
the success of the College Night program at Pittsburgh’s largest university. PITT ARTS provides
multiple options to order and pay for tickets as well as a central contact to answer questions
about transportation, making the planning process for students attending College Night much
simpler.
Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Fine Arts (CFA) joined the College Night
program in approximately 2005.35 At the same time, PSO was pushing to engage more university
34
U.S. Census Bureau. “ACS: Ranking Table -- Percent of People 25 Years and Over Who Have Completed a Bachelor's
Degree.” American Community Survey. U.S. Census Bureau, 2002. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.census.gov>.
35
Communication with Cheryl Hays, Director of the President’s Office and Secretary of the Board of Trustees, and Michael
Bielski, Senior Vice President & COO at the PSO about when CMU joined the College Nights program, Oct. 2011.
27
28. students. CMU, like Pitt, created a partnership with PSO through the Office of the President. As
many of the CFA faculty members are also members of PSO, most of CMU’s College Nights are
scheduled around concerts in which a faculty member is being featured as a soloist. This
scheduling gives PSO a definitive way to market to CMU students. Millie Myers, a PSO board
member who is also involved at the Tepper School of Business on CMU’s campus, was
instrumental in connecting PSO to the right people to initiate the partnership.
Pittsburgh’s demographics are, once again, strongly university students, especially in the
city limits. This gives PSO an easy way to market to the students—simply by putting up posters,
handing out flyers and sending e-mails, all of which PSO currently does. Getting to PSO is also
simple, thanks to Pittsburgh’s accessible bus system.
PSO’s program is particularly important because of its comprehensive reach to university
students. There are also some that have reciprocal relationships with PSO, like West Virginia
University that PSO plays at twice a year. The universities currently on the College Night list
are:
o West Virginia University
o The University of Pittsburgh
o MBA Night
o Robert Morris University
o Carnegie Mellon University
o California University
o Slippery Rock University
o Indiana University of Pennsylvania
o University of Pittsburgh Alumni
o Pennsylvania State University Alumni
o Grove City College
o Duquesne University Alumni
o Engineers Night (student organization from Pitt that arranges their
own night)
o St. Vincent College
o Point Park University
o Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio
o Chatham University
o Carlow University
PSO is close to these schools, but the presence of College Night with each university is
more of an inherent and happenstance program than something that was strategized and planned
out by PSO. This makes it difficult to identify the characteristics of College Night that
distinguish PSO as a leader in this programming to university students. But PSO has been
successful and this analysis strives to determine the key factors that have affected that success.
Problems & Solutions
Even though the PSO College Night program was not planned, it did encounter and solve
multiple problems dealing with reaching out to students. Erin Lynn, the Director of Group Sales
at PSO, visits both Pitt and CMU regularly to pass out flyers, posters, and other promotional
28
29. materials. Ms. Lynn, while satisfied with the marketing at Pitt, thanks to the PITT ARTS
program, was a little frustrated by CMU’s system. “I don’t know the point person at CMU,” she
said. Also, she said, the contact at CMU changes a lot, and she has not been able to keep up with
who it is, much less have a relationship with him or her. Ms. Lynn thinks that perhaps CMU’s
Student Activities Office does not broadcast itself as the point of contact for CMU enough to
outside organizations like PSO. Ms. Lynn indicated that it might be easier to get a bigger
response at CMU if the Student Activities Office actively marketed outside events to its
university students. In addition, CMU does not have a main events calendar that goes out to all
students. There is an “opt in” d-list for undergraduates, but the only online exposure that PSO
gets at CMU is in CFA e-mails about its events, which are also “opt in.”36 Ms. Lynn is concerned
that the event is not advertised enough, but she does not have a lot of options to increase
attendance.
Each university has proved to be different and difficult in its own way for marketing
PSO’s College Nights. Ms. Lynn is satisfied with the numbers for each College Night, but
looking over the history of the attendance data, she does not see much of an uptick in student
attendance over the past 10 years. She does not really know why, either. PSO also does not have
a notice about College Nights on its website, perhaps indicating the lesser importance of the
College Nights to the organization as a whole. Ms. Lynn said there was supposed to be a website
notice, but over the past year, there has been very little communication.
To deal with this problem, Ms. Lynn is interested in exploring more channels to market
to students. With the exponential increase in social media use worldwide, Ms. Lynn is very
interested in capitalizing on students’ use of social media to advertise the College Nights more
broadly. Currently, PSO’s presence on Facebook, Twitter and other social media is run solely by
the single-ticket marketing arm of PSO, in which Ms. Lynn is not involved. Therefore, Ms. Lynn
recommends texting—which PSO already uses for its’ single tickets program. Studies have
shown that more and more young people prefer texts as their primary means of communication.37
In addition, PSO needs to advertise the College Nights on its own website. The authors’
knowledge of the 2010 CMU College Night was happenstance—there were no social media,
website advertisement or e-mail blasts about it. CMU students who currently work at PSO
primarily advertised the event through word-of-mouth. By advertising the event on the PSO
website and through social media, PSO can take an active role in endorsing this pivotal program
that has shown so much promise.
Ms. Lynn also indicated that the universities that have heavily involved alumni, faculty
and administration have more attendees at the College Nights. For example, the MBA Night at
PSO involves six universities including Robert Morris, CMU, Duquesne, Carlow, and
Waynesburg. What started as a small chamber music concert with light hors d’oeuvres and the
involvement of just a couple of universities has evolved into the night that currently takes place
at Heinz Hall and includes dinner and a business and music panel before a full-orchestra concert.
Ms. Lynn says these attributes encourage students in the MBA programs at these universities to
36
Davis, Benjamin, and Taylor Grabowsky. “Student Activities Office Interview.” Personal interview. 23 Sept. 2011.
37
Fox, Zoe. “31% of U.S. Adults Prefer to Be Reached by Text Message [STUDY].” Mashable.com. Mashable, Inc., 19 Sept.
2011. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. <http://www.mashable.com>.
29
30. attend the PSO College Nights because they provide students with the additional opportunity of
seeing and interacting with their peers and role models.
The partnerships between the aforementioned 17 universities also usually involve a
reception, but some of the better-attended College Nights involve dinner, and/or some similar
event to an MBA Night. This continues the thought from the PITT ARTS research studies that
expanding an event into more of an occasion with all kinds of benefits increases attendance.38
Ms. Lynn also talked about the personal involvement of PSO’s Music Director, Manfred Honeck,
in the College Nights. “Manfred takes a particular interest in all of the students at each College
Night and takes the time to talk to each person in the room,” says Ms. Lynn. Maestro Honeck is
keenly interested in the success of College Nights and wants to be directly involved. Ms. Lynn
believes that this contributes to the success of College Nights.
Additionally, several schools have their own unique personal connections with PSO:
CMU, through orchestra members who also serve as faculty members at CMU’s School of
Music; and Point Park through its relationship with Marvin Hamlisch as one of its Distinguished
Master Artists in Residence.
Conclusions and Recommendations
From the data on the PSO College Nights thus far, three factors have been identified as
ways PSO increases student attendance:
1. School administration involvement (reception)
2. Tying concert to something else of interest (ex: MBA Night business/music panel)
3. Alumni involvement and/or other connection between university and PSO
Based on these findings, specific recommendations for CMoA include getting school
administration involved in sponsoring receptions to indicate that CMoA has buy-in from the
school. These partnerships may also provide an additional incentive for CMU students to go to
the museum. Also, if there is something else of interest going on at the museum, such as a
networking event or panel, it might further encourage students to invest their time in attending.
Finally, a personal connection to the school through an alumnus, artist or museum representative
could potentially increase the likelihood of students’ attendance.
38
Annabelle Chippinger and Kitty Julian. Young Audiences and the Arts. Rep. Young Audiences and The Arts: Findings of the
Young Adult Arts Participation Initiative, 2004. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <http://www.pittarts.pitt.edu/documents/YAAPI_report.pdf>.
30
31. Case Studies: Baller BBQ
Baller BBQ
Prepared By: Terry Boyd and Yun Cai
Introduction
The Baller BBQ started in 2007 as an annual summer grill-out located in Pittsburgh’s
Shadyside neighborhood when a group of six friends and local residents—Michael Brant, Kevin
Heher, Alex Palma, Luke Skurman, Serge Smailbegovic, and Bobby Zappala—decided to start
throwing parties for young professionals. These informal networking parties were dedicated to
students who had resisted the urge to leave town post-university graduation. The BBQ is now
held twice a year and provides 1,000 pounds of food, a massive bar, and an assortment of live
entertainment for its rapidly growing attendees.
The Baller BBQ’s founders initial plan of encouraging progress and creativity in
Pittsburgh through celebration soon became a fundraising effort called the Business Bout—a
competition offering $5,000 in seed money to startups with a desire to stay local.39 Baller BBQ is
particularly important as a case for this report because it appeals to the 21-35 year-old
demographic (a majority of this study’s target audience) and the event’s organizers have
successfully used social media and digital communications to promote the BBQ.
Problem
Although Baller BBQ does not have any direct competitors, Mr. Skurman, one of the
event’s founders, mentioned they still implement an aggressive marketing campaign to raise
young people’s interests and passion to attend the BBQ. Furthermore, Baller BBQ has relied
heavily on social media marketing. Nonetheless, the BBQ needed to diversify its social media
approaches. Due to the most recent change in making Facebook events—if you have more than
500 confirmed attendees, you can no longer send messages to your guests—Baller BBQ is
having problems using Facebook as a marketing platform.
Solutions
Mr. Skurman was able to solve these problems by building close friendships with local
communities, utilizing creative social media marketing strategies and redesigning its business
model. Baller BBQ leveraged its relationships with Pitt, CMU, Duquesne, AlphaLab and
Innovation Works to spread the word about the $5,000 prize to their channels of young and
aspiring entrepreneurs. Baller BBQ also has a great relationship with several media outlets
regionally, such as the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, PGH BIZ Times, Pittsburgh Mag, Pop City and
WTAE. These relationships have been fruitful, as they have enabled the BBQ team to effectively
market its annual event to a large audience.
Facebook and Twitter were the most effective marketing channels when promoting the
events. They allowed Baller BBQ to directly connect with its fans before the event and create
interactions that provided a real-time FAQ section. This also gave yhe Baller BBQ team the
39
Collier, Sean. “Last Warning: Don't Miss the Baller BBQ.” Pittsburgh Magazine Sept. 2011. Pittsburghmagazine.com.
Pittsburgh Magazine, Sept. 2011. Web. 3 Dec. 2011. <http://www.pittsburghmagazine.com>.
31
32. ability to tweak its parties to better cater to its guests’ needs and expectations. Baller BBQ also
complemented its Facebook and Twitter posts with YouTube compilation videos of its previous
BBQs. Besides the Facebook fan page and Twitter account, it also posted promotional codes and
coupons on discount event sites, like Groupon. In addition, Baller BBQ used personal e-mail,
which is the second most effective marketing channel (30% of attendees)40.
Baller BBQ believes that its events are also popular because of word-of-mouth. The team
attributes its success to “hype-men” who spread the word about the BBQ to their friends and
persuade them to attend. A “hype-man” is essentially an individual in a circle of friends who is
very passionate about an event.
Baller BBQ changed its model this year so that it can create even more positive changes
in the Pittsburgh community. By moving from a voluntary donation model to a required donation
model, the event significantly increased its revenue. The event went from raising $2,000 a year
to being able to rise close to $10,000 a year. Mr. Skurman said, “Everyone has been fine with the
transition, they were very upfront and transparent with the community that supports the events –
they understood our decision.”41
Recommendations
Based on the findings of this case, the recommendations to CMoA include creating more
interactions on different social media channels. The use of multi-channel marketing is an
effective way to promote special events as well as to increase website visits. For example, the
use of YouTube videos allowed first time BBQ purchasers to simulate a first-hand experience by
vicariously experiencing the event through people in the videos. This case also recommends that
CMoA develop stronger relationships with a variety of institutions and organizations who share
an overlap in the same demographics that they are targeting—this greatly expands the reach of
CMoA’s marketing campaign and is a possible tactic for reaching new, undiscovered audiences.
Skurman, Luke. “Introduction.” Message to the authors. 27 Oct. 2011. E-mail.
41 Ibid.
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