Imagine walking into a performance where the program book has been tailored with content designed just for you. Your favorite artists’ bios are right next to special offers for performances you love, followed by a promotion for your favorite neighborhood restaurant, and an invitation to a book signing by an author you admire. This bespoke experience isn’t just a dream. Tailored digital program books are a reality that you can offer your patrons today.
The Evolution of Program Books
Traditional printed program books deliver information in a one-size-fits-all package, with no ability to cater to individual preferences. The program and promotional information is completely static and cannot be modified for different audience segments. But today’s modern consumers expect a personalized shopping and entertainment experience across every platform, including the performing arts. The evolution of printed program books to a digital platform is the next step to meet this need.
The Art of Personalization with Digital Program Books
Where static program content was the limiting factor in the past, digital program books break through this barrier into the future of personalization. First, digital program books allow you to customize, adapt and update the content dynamically based on specific audience segments and other factors. Second, digital program books provide an interactive vehicle for audience members to ask questions, react to surveys, and provide feedback. With this valuable information, you can build a truly personalized program book with content aligned to each patrons’ preferences and interests. The experience can even adapt in real-time based on clicks or selections made by the patron.
A digital program book platform ultimately gives you the power to create engaging, relevant content that is curated based on audience preferences. The platform captures audience member behavior such as prior shows attended, clicks on links, requests for information, and feedback responses. This provides a complete picture of each audience member, as well as entire audience segments. Use this information to promote special artist events to some audience segments, inform others of discount ticket offers based on their past purchase behavior, and offer ‘thank-you’ promotions to other audience segments. This tailored outreach can take place in emails and text, but it can also be rolled into the digital program book experience for each audience member, enhancing their connection with the performing arts.
Enhancing the User Experience and Empowering the Audience
The custom content opportunities provided by digital program books are just the tip of the iceberg. Any opportunity for personalized interaction presents a chance to further engage and captivate your audience. This can include everything from a suggestion box or feedback poll to more interactive elements such as multimedia, augmented reality, or gamification. Every engagement that delivers a ‘fun’ interaction and that speaks to the audience member on an individual level elevates their experience to a memorable event and keeps them coming back for more.
At the same time, personalization empowers each audience member to directly shape their own user engagement experience as well as future program offerings. The flexible format of digital program book content gives audience members the freedom to explore various performances and genres based on their individual preferences. With every click, every survey response, and every feedback submission, audience members also shape future program offerings and promotions. The result is increased audience engagement and satisfaction, and a greater likelihood of repeat attendance.
What Does the Future Hold?
Digital program books are at the exciting intersection of new technology and new market drivers. As audiences demand ‘more, faster, better’ in their personalized experiences, technology is constantly evolving to stretch the limits of what’s possible. Emerging trends in artificial intelligence and machine learning are just one example. ChatGPT and similar content generation/automated response tools have exploded in popularity and are spreading to every business sector, and could certainly play a role in digital program books. Augmented reality could bring the event viewing experience from the stage to your living room. And at every step, the ability to provide every audience member with their own unique, personalized program book will give some performing arts organizations a significant competitive advantage.
Taking the Next Step to a Personalized Experience
Tailoring the program book experience for individual members is not only easily achievable, it unleashes incredible benefits for your organization. Digital program books are the key to the truly transformative potential of audience engagement. Ready to begin exploring options for customizing your next program book experience? Contact us today to learn how Audience Access can make these possibilities a reality.
