9:45 a.m.–11:00 a.m.   General Session

State of the Arts of E-Marketing Speaker: Eugene Carr, Patron Technology Setting the stage for our exploration into e-marketing, this opening session will provide a facts-and-figures-filled overview of how people use the Internet and e-mail. Drawing from Internet industry research, as well as arts industry research and case studies, this session will answer questions addressing who is online today; what are they doing with their time; and what matters most for arts patrons online—how do they buy tickets, search for information, and prefer to be contacted? We’ll look at both website usage and e-mail marketing.

11:15 a.m.–12:30 p.m.   Concurrent Sessions

Basic E-marketing Training: Top 10 Tips for E-marketing Success Speakers: Mark Famiglietti, Patron Technology; JD Hixson, Patron Technology For those just getting started, developing an e-marketing program may seem daunting. If that’s your situation, then this highly tactical session will get you started with the 10 essential areas of e-marketing to focus on first. We’ll look at e-mail marketing and what’s most important in terms of starting an effective program. We’ll cover essential techniques of how to develop an e-mailing strategy, how to build your mailing lists effectively, and what to send out and when. Website strategy and design will comprise the second half of this session where we focus on what an effective arts website really is and what you should focus on to improve your existing site to get the best results. We'll offer case histories from actual arts organizations for each strategy covered. E-Marketing for Semi-Rocket Scientists Speakers: Eugene Carr, Patron Technology; Jim Royce, Center Theatre Group This session is designed for those who are actively involved with e-mail and web-based marketing, and will focus on those technical issues that confront experienced e-marketers. We’ll look carefully at the results available through technology’s latest data mining and analysis potential, finely grained list segmentation and targeting, and the CAN-SPAM act and compliance issues, as well as e-mail deliverability, including the latest information on Domain keys. We’ll also hear directly about what techniques are being used at the Center Theatre Group for its highly effective web-based ticket sales.

12:45 p.m.–2:00 p.m.   Joint Plenary Luncheon

Speaker: Ann Cramer, Director, North America IBM Corporate Community Relations, Atlanta, GA IBM has been a leader in corporate social responsibility (CSR) for decades, using CSR to reinforce its brand as a global technology solutions leader. As the nature of its business changed over the years, IBM constantly revised its operations, its use of technology, and its infrastructure, but remained committed to its values and its responsibility as a corporate citizen. Ms. Cramer will share how IBM manages changes in the marketplace and its current strategic priorities for corporate philanthropy. She will also discuss innovative ways for arts organizations to integrate technology as a means of enhancing the infrastructure, such as sharing technology to improve the efficiency of back office operations, increasing revenue with e-commerce initiatives, and using technology to improve programming and marketing.

2:15 p.m.–3:15 p.m.   Concurrent Sessions

Website Transformations and Innovations Speakers: Beth Hondl, San Francisco Symphony; Nancy Roberts, Chanticleer; Mark Famigletti, Patron Technology Moderator: Eugene Carr, Patron Technology This session offers a report from the field as we look at the nuts and bolts of how two arts websites are managed. Chanticleer recently upgraded its site, and we’ll hear about how that process worked and what pitfalls and lessons came of the experience. The San Francisco Symphony is embracing some highly innovative approaches with its website, and we’ll learn first-hand how they approach the strategy of innovative change—what they are working on now, and what they think really matters most when launching new site features. E-marketing on a Shoestring Panel: Chad Bauman, Virginia Stage Company; Joetta Talford, Culture & Heritage Museums Moderator: JD Hixson, Patron Technology Many arts organizations don’t have the luxury of substantial technology budgets to accomplish their e-marketing goals. Yet, this needn’t be the recipe for lackluster web-based marketing. This session will discuss the steps a cultural institution can use to develop an effective online marketing campaign that creates dynamic results without a big investment. Joetta Talford will describe how the Cultural & Heritage Museums created an internet marketing strategy for a three-day weekend that celebrated the 225th anniversary of the Revolutionary War and generated web sales that accounted for 33 percent of its total revenue. Chad Bauman will share how the Virginia Stage Company increased its single ticket sales by 91 percent last year and gained 1,061 new subscribers (a 26 percent increase). You will be amazed at how small of an investment is required to make a big impact using today's newest technology.

3:30 p.m.–4:30 p.m.   Concurrent Sessions

Next Generation E-marketing: The Wiz-Bang Stuff Speakers: Eugene Carr, Patron Technology; Gregory G. Curtin, Civic Resource Group Moderator: John Copeland, Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs This is the session with the hot buzz words! We’ll define and demystify a selection of the newest trends and techniques in e-marketing and talk about how you can effectively use them with your e-marketing. On the content side, we’ll look at podcasting and RSS, as well as blogs and video streaming. We’ll then provide an overview of search engine traffic development, covering the basics of “paid” and “organic” search. E-mail List Building: How to Super Charge Your E-mail List Building Speakers: JD Hixson, Patron Technology; Carrie Banasky, Los Angeles County Art Museum, Maggie Pourabedi, Music Center of Los Angeles County Moderator: Mark Famigletti, Patron Technology  The bigger and better your home-grown e-mail list, the better you will be able to reach your patrons and motivate them. Personal privacy issues have prevented the market for rental e-mail lists, which means that you must develop your own “opt-in” list. This session will present a menu of ideas and tips about how to develop your e-mail list.

4:45 p.m.–5:30 p.m.   General Session

E-Marketing Open Mike—Stump the Experts Panel: Jim Royce, Center Theatre Group; Beth Hondl, San Francisco Symphony; Greg Curtin, Civic Resource Group; Eugene Carr, Patron Technology; Mark Famiglietti, Patron Technology; and JD Hixson, Patron Technology  To close the session, you'll have the opportunity to ask questions and share concerns in an open forum regarding anything to do with e-marketing and technology that might still be lurking in the shadows.