Arts entrepreneurship is an emerging and growing area in business that has attracted artists, creatives, and practitioners from all over the world. In the United States, there are over 700,000 businesses pertaining to art creation and distribution creating approximately 2.9 million jobs (Americansforthearts.org 2016). It is a field that covers a broad range of the artistic endeavors, and is implemented in diverse ways.
The chapters in this book indicate that arts entrepreneurship impacts life and business in profound ways. The chapters in the book expanded understanding of arts entrepreneurship, linked its implications on culture, values, and internationalization, and offered pathways—including tools and knowledge—to support the growth and success of arts enterprises.
Based on the chapter contents, academic research and professional experience, the authors identified ten (10) key strategies that are important to the practice of arts entrepreneurship. These strategies are highlighted in Table C.1.
Balance |
Success in the practice of arts entrepreneurship requires finding the balance between artistic and business demands. |
Timing |
Execution of courses of action needs to be at a proper time that is suitable to customer and market needs, policies and competitive pressures. |
Value |
Art is valued in different criteria. It is important for artist entrepreneurs to fully understand their value proposition and build on areas where they can best connect with consumers who will most appreciate their vision and voice to optimize profitability. |
Knowledge |
A keen understanding of the operational environment is important. Artist entrepreneurs need to be aware of trends, customer expectations, competitive terrain, and even the usage of technology to accelerate their business. |
A shallow understanding of business concepts is not enough for an artist to be commercially successful. Deep knowledge of concepts relating to marketing, financial matters, networks, and effective management is important. |
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Socialization |
Networking and relationship building is critical for arts enterprises. Development of a strong rapport with various stakeholders will have aid the artistic enterprise. |
Technology |
Several arts ventures have leveraged technology effectively to boost sales and improve business efficiency. Investment in technology and carefully planning its utilization in the enterprise can yield positive results. |
Adaptability |
The very nature of art is grounded on change and evolution. Consumer tastes and preferences change, policies that support the arts fluctuate, and social and technological climates shift. Therefore arts enterprises need to be able to change quickly with the times. |
Partnering |
Some arts enterprises have grown their business by working with the right strategic partner. Finding like-minded firms where synergies can be built can be beneficial. |
Growth |
Artists entrepreneurs need to make a serious effort to grow. Given the competitive and evolving nature of the business, planning for and pursuing a definitive pathway toward self-betterment is essential. |
In order to assist the reader in thinking about specific approaches to implement arts entrepreneurship strategies, a Strategic Assessment Guide is provided in Table C.2. In this table, selected questions are offered to help the reader think through the key issues.
Balance |
What are my current artistic interests and demands? What are pressing business needs? What are priorities? What do I need to do to find the right balance? What resources will I need to make this happen? |
Timing |
What are the current needs of my customers? What are the current demands of the market? In what ways are my competitors superior to me? What are current policies and programs available that I can utilize? How do I respond to customer and market needs and competitive pressures in a timely manner? What do I need to make this happen? When do I make this happen? |
Value |
What is the value proposition of my business? Do my employees, partners, customers and other stakeholders know this? Does my value proposition translate to profitability? Why or why not? What needs to change? What do I need to make the changes? |
Do I thoroughly understand my operating business environment? What are the current trends? What are customer expectations? How is the political and economic environment influencing the arts industry? How is technology changing my business? How are trends and customers changing my business? What does the competitive terrain look like? Who are my toughest competitors and why? |
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Depth |
How well do I know business concepts (i.e., marketing, accounting, finance, management)? With which aspects of business am I strong? Where am I weak? What changes need to take place? What areas do I need to learn more about? What skill sets do I need to hire in my organization? What would it take to make this happen? What would it cost to make this happen? When does this need to happen? |
Socialization |
On a scale of 1–10, how would I rate my networking ability (1-lowest, 10 highest)? Why? Is this adequate for the business? On a scale of 1-10, how would I rate my relationship building ability (1-lowest, 10 highest)? Why? How has this impacted my business? How would I rate my organization in both areas? What needs to change and how? What would it take? What is my relationship like with other stakeholders (i.e., community, board, investors)? How can this be improved? |
Technology |
On a scale of 1-10, how effective is technology in my business (1-lowest, 10-highest)? Why? What can be done better? What resources do I need to optimize performance? |
Adaptability |
On a scale of 1-10, how adaptable is my organization (1-lowest, 10-highest)? Why? What changes need to happen? How can these changes be made and by when? What changes or shifts in policy can be anticipated? How can those be mitigated should they come to pass? Should I restructure my organization? How? |
Partnering |
What types of other ventures or firms might offer synergy with my business? Would partnering with them provide unique opportunities to strengthen my value proposition? compete better? improve profitability or financial self-sufficiency? How can these partnerships be structured? What are the cost and resource implications? |
Growth |
With regard to personal development, which areas need the most attention? Where do I need to grow? How do I execute these growth plans? How much would it cost? When does this need to happen and why? What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relating to my enterprise? Considering these, what changes can I make that would have the most significant impact on my business and profitability? Which of these should be priorities? Where does the organization need grow? |
Identification of specific tasks can be helpful in plotting an effective action agenda. Table C.3 highlights a Strategic Action Plan for art entrepreneurs.
Table C.3 outlines suggested action steps that can be taken to implement strategic changes for arts enterprises. This serves as a blueprint for business enhancement. Since organizations vary, this approach should not be viewed as a one size fits all model. Its implementation can be tailored to best suit an organization’s goals, resources, and priorities.
The pathway to successful arts enterprises is not an easy path. There are countless factors to consider and evaluate. Organizations will be well served by keeping an open attitude and constantly seeking ways to improve. After all, creative industries set the stage for innovation and development (Bilton 2007). This is referred in the preceding table as pivoting, and it is important to stay nimble in competitive industries.
There is a high need to differentiate. Some artist entrepreneurs established creative social enterprises to become unique, heighten value proposition, and enhance community engagement. Trapp (2015) highlights the case of Earthen Symphony a decorative art studio in India focused on training and providing jobs for designers and artisans. Success in the industry requires a strong ability to gather and analyze information. Microenterprises in the craft industry need to develop a strong marketing strategy (Kean, Niemeyer, and Miller 1996). Communication skills and financial acumen are important skill considerations. Entrepreneurship and leadership plays an important role in the arts (Henry 2007; Lapierre 2001).
In addition to the aforementioned, the authors recommend considering the following:
Professional memberships—being a part of a professional organization in the arts or business can help expand knowledge on the practice. For example, an organization such as the Society for Arts Entrepreneurship Education offers several developmental and networking opportunities. Association of Arts Administration Educators also has arts entrepreneurship within its various focal areas, and the United States Association of Small Business and Entrepreneurship has a dynamic special interest group called Creative and Arts Entrepreneurship.
Mentors—find a suitable mentor for business or the chosen craft. There are opportunities for finding mentors in business, academe, arts, and the non-profit sectors. Mentors can be invited to be a part of your organization as Advisory Board members.
Personal development—attending conferences and workshops on arts entrepreneurship can help one grow and be up to date with emerging trends. Taking formal arts and business classes can be helpful. Several arts and entrepreneurship academic programs are being created worldwide. There is an annual Self-employment in the Arts (SEA) conference for artists of any discipline to share best practices and gain inspiration.
Social networks—being part of an art community online and offline and can expand ones network. In addition, sharing work spaces or being part of a start-up incubator or accelerator can help one find useful support.
Art communities—creating or being a part of art communities can offer value. The authors recommend the formation of Art Economic Zones (AEZ) where art business can be housed together under one roof and gain cost efficiencies and economies of scale. This model may also lead to negotiated tax breaks from the local government. In addition to cost benefits, AEZ’s can also offer ease of access to technology, marketing and internationalization expertise, project funding, and training and development. The authors are exploring the possibility of piloting an AEZ based on the Microenterprise Economic Zone (MEZO) model originally introduced by J. Mark Munoz (2010) in the book “Contemporary Microenterprise.”
As more arts enterprises flourish, exciting business models will emerge. Keeping an eye on the best practices in the field would be helpful. For example, Social Print Studio, a California printing company that preserves Instagram memories for clients was ranked 66 among the Inc 5000 fastest growing companies in America with a sales increase of 4,100 percent (Godfrey 2016). Ultimately, learning and applying effective business practices will optimize the potential of arts enterprises.
Americansforthearts.org. 2016. Business and Employment in the Arts: Measuring the Scope of the Nation’s Art-Related Industries. Viewable at http://americansforthearts.org/by-program/reports-and-data/research-studies-publications/creative-industries (accessed October 7, 2016).
Bilton, C. 2007. Management and Creativity. Oxford: Blackwell.
Godfrey, E. 2016. “How Performance Art Turned into one of America’s Fastest Growing Businesses.” Accessed at Inc.com on October 7, 2016. Viewable at http://inc.com/elaine-godfrey/2015-inc5000-performance-art-piece-into-a-successful-photo-printing-studio.html
Henry, C. 2007. Entrepreneurship in the Creative Industries: An International Perspective. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
Kean, R.C., S. Niemeyer, and N.J. Miller. 1996. “Competitive Strategies in the Craft Product Retailing Industry.” Journal of Small Business Management 34, no. 1, pp. 13–23.
Lapierre, L. 2001. “Leadership and Arts Management.” International Journal of Arts Management 3, no. 3, pp. 4–12.
Munoz, J.M. 2010. Contemporary Microenterprise: Concepts and Cases. London: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Trapp, R. 2015. “The Creative Social Enterprise: An Impact Investment.” GIA Reader. Viewable at http://giarts.org/article/creative-social-enterprise-impact-investment (accessed October 14, 2016).