Introduction
Company Overview
The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. With both an inside and outside space, the NCMA offers events that go beyond museum exhibitions, workshops, and tours. The 164-acre Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park and the Joseph M. Bryan Jr. Theater hosts family activities, weddings, concerts, and nature trails. Art has the power to change lives and NCMA uses a mixture of brand and offering signature stories to promote diversity, equality, inclusion, and visual representation with its addition of museum podcasts, NCMATalks and SharedArt.
Mission: "The North Carolina Museum of Art stewards and shares the people’s art collection and inspires creativity by connecting our diverse communities to cultural and natural resources" (North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc., 2022).
Vision: "To be a vital cultural resource for the entire state and a national leader in creating a welcoming experience of belonging and joy" (North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc., 2022).
Audience Profile
Demographics: The target audience is women and minorities ages 9 to 40 (millennials and generation Z) within the art and education communities. When it came to digital platform preference, the article News platform fact sheet stated, “25% of men and 21% of women” (Matsa & Naseer, 2021, para. 6) preferred podcasts when receiving news. Of those participants, the ethnicity breakdown was “23% white, 22% black, 24% Hispanic, and 24% Asian” (Matsa & Naseer, 2021, para. 6).
Psychographics: This target audience is well known for listening to podcasts and wanting to explore new art forums or expanding on their current knowledge and skillsets. According to data from the Pew Research Center, “In terms of general entertainment and media consumption, we found that 93% of respondents under age 30 listen to music, the radio, or a podcast in some format on a daily or near-daily basis, compared with 78% of those 30 and older” (Zickuhr & Rainie, 2014, par. 10).
Geographic Information: It is important to reach the younger demographic as soon as possible so that they have the opportunities to flourish within their creative mindset. Zickuhr and Rainie noted, “Young adults ages 25-29 are also more likely than younger age groups to visit museums, art galleries, or historical sites regularly” (Zickuhr & Rainie, 2014, par. 9). Since the younger age groups are less likely to visit a museum or go to art galleries, it would make more sense to reach them through technology because that is what they are comfortable with. Therefore, having something that can be listened to from anywhere would be the smartest route to take.
Campaign Objective and Timeline
This marketing campaign spans over several communication channels and focuses on diverse signature stories. The main objective was to provide visual representation of women and minorities from the local art community so that viewers would be inspired to create art. As for the timeline of each campaign piece, a one time digital press release was issued on March 27, 2022 to introduce the new podcasts. On March 29, 2022, social media posts on Twitter and Instagram reminded the brand community of the new podcasts launching. The first podcasts episodes hired on April 1, 2022 and a one time blog post and recurring commercial were shared on April 03, 2022. Each week new podcasts will hire on Fridays and social media posts will be released on Tuesdays and Thursdays around 10:00am to advertise the new podcast content.
Digital Press Release
This digital press release highlights the launch of two new museum podcasts, NCMATalks and SharedArt, while connecting an offering signature story to the brand community and target audience.
Edits: I made all corrections provided in the instructor feedback. I bolded the title while adding both podcast names at the end. The major edit was in paragraph one. I moved the launch date up to the second sentence, added the artist name, created a compound sentence, and gave an overview of each podcast. For the second paragraph, I added the podcast names and moved the two hyperlinks. I removed words, added the SharedArt name in the third paragraph. For the contact line, I added the NCMA name. Aaker (2020) noted, “Voice and tone also build credibility” (pg. 68). All edits spoke to the ideas of brand awareness, visibility, creditability, and building trust with multiple perspectives. Aaker (2018) wrote "A story can be made more interesting by telling it from different perspectives" (pg. 32).
Blog Post
For this blog post, I wanted the signature story to not only inspire, but speak to a topic that is relevant, beauty and body image. As a female who has always struggled with body image issues, this is a topic that is close to my heart and needs to be talked about more because society has set unrealistic expectations for women. Aaker (2020) noted, “A social or environmental higher purpose often provides a more powerful source of pride and inspiration” (p. 70). Therefore, I researched previous exhibitions, artist interviews, and blog posts that the NCMA had and pulled information from the What is Beauty Today? exhibit. This exhibit was based on a larger exhibition, Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau Visionary. Each commissioned piece was done in a way that represented the current era of different females and realistic body types.
The visual content will help support the brand and give it credibility. Aaker (2020) mentioned, having a “personal touch” and “The ultimate is to include a human in the offering” (pg. 71). Keeping that in mind, I made sure the tone of my writing was welcoming and drew the target audience to the new subcategory. I also included the three YouTube videos from Alisha Locklear Monroe, Tori “FNoRD” Carpenter, and Lakeshia T. Reid in the blog post as well as personal quotes from an interview that the artists did with Raleigh Magazine. This will allow the audience to connect to each artist or piece of artwork in their own way.
From the headline to the last quote, the blog post tells the story of three very diverse females and how they hope to inspire those around them. Aaker (2018) stated, “A storyteller is usually more authentic, credible and liked than a person just trying to persuade with facts” (pg. 65). By having the visual representation of these three local artists, the target audience would be more likely to try an art forum because they feel like they could create art too.
Micro-Podcast
For me, creating this podcast was truly a personal experience because I used my own narrative as the offering story for NCMA. Aaker (2018) noted “A brand endorser provides attention-getting interest for signature stories, leveraging his or her credibility and/or prestige” (pg. 107). Since NCMA had such a major impact on my life, I thought that sharing my story could do the same for my target audience. I have learned how important it is for a brand to create “must-haves” that consumers seriously care about. For the new subcategory to be successful, the target audience needs to connect with the brand and signature stories being told on an emotional level. This will keep them coming back each week.
When trying to figure out how personal the story should be, I just sat down and started writing. I put my memories and emotions into words that I thought people could connect to. After the script was finished, I recorded each piece, going back and adding any extra words or personal phrases to the script that I had added in the recording. I let my southern accent ring true because it would create a sense of comfort and familiarity to local listeners. I then pieced it all together in Adobe Audition by reducing the noise, making edits, and adding music to the intro and after the sign off at the end. I have never used Adobe Audition before, but I have experience with Adobe Premiere. So, the learning curve wasn’t too high, but I do wish that I had a better-quality microphone for the recordings. It probably would have helped cut down the editing time.
I really wanted to focus on the ability to face diversity and overcome the challenges that life throws at you. That it does not matter where someone comes from or the societal limitations that are placed on them, someone can achieve their dreams with the right resources, dedication, and drive. Aaker (2018) stated “As discussed in the last chapter, a higher purpose is increasingly influential because it can provide self-expressive benefits to many customers” (pg. 89). This is a concept that a lot of people can understand and relate to. Aaker (2020) mentioned “There should be an easy-to-understand and credible concept of the new subcategory and the exemplar brand” (pg. 105). NCMA has set goals to reach a more diverse key audience and this new subcategory will help them reach those goals by not only providing resources to its key audiences but showing examples of what is possible for those who may not see it.
Planned Social Media Posts
With art funding being cut in public schools and the lack of art resources in low income and rural areas, it has become harder for people to learn creative outlets. These two new podcasts allow NCMA’s target audience the chance to explore and express themselves in ways that were not previously available. Aaker (2020) wrote “A strong and visible social or environmental program can deliver self-expressive benefits, particularly for customers who have strong feelings about these issues” (pg. 146). Keeping this in mind, I wanted to make sure that the two social media posts were relatable to the target audience while having the ability to create engagement.
For my two social media posts, I incorporated NCMA’s brand colors: red, black, and white. This gave the brand visibility and awareness. I designed an Instagram post and a Twitter post because these two platforms allow easy engagement for NCMA’s target audience. The Instagram post was highlighting the new podcast, NCMATalks. It had the podcast name, launch date, a brief overview of the topics covered with a host introduction, and a listen now button at the bottom. I used the same images from the blog post and the Twitter post to tie the deliverables together and make them seem like a cohesive set, which will strengthen the overall brand image. On the Twitter post, I geared that towards the SharedArt podcast. Since it is a visual podcast, I wanted it to be more fun and personal. Therefore, I used a mixture of bitmap and vector images that relate to the episode topic. With the podcast name and a brief overview, the audience knows what the podcast is about. The call of action was the watch now button.
I wanted to make sure that I represented both the signature story and NCMA brand well. Aaker (2018) noted “A great presentation cannot save a weak story, but an inferior presentation can damage a good one. The keys are what you say and how you present it” (pg. 127). By tying in the signature story, my personal narrative, into the social media posts, I have created the opportunity for an emotional connection to be formed. The self-portrait is a fun and creative pose that allows the viewers to see me as relatable and a brand endorser. When writing the copy for the posts, I wanted to keep it direct while drawing interest. This allows viewers to feel comfortable and connected to the posts.
Edits: When it came to edits, I reviewed the instructor feedback and made changes. On the NCMATalks post, I lengthen the text frame and changed the format setting for the "Weekly podcast..." content. This made it easier to read. For the SharedArt post, I removed the "Meet Marilyn..." textbox because that was originally supposed to be the caption information for Twitter. That caused me to shift everything over to the left a little to balance the overall design out more. After the designs were complete, I placed each post into the appropriate template and added supporting captions with hashtags to make it more realistic for the viewers.
Longform Video Layout
For my design process, I started by writing the script and then picked appropriate imagery and music. I wanted the commercial to take the target audience on a short journey through NCMA while introducing the new subcategories, NCMATalks and SharedArt. By using the NCMA logo on both the first and last slide, it created brand awareness, visibility, and provided credibility to the commercial. The images used came from previous material that NCMA has created along with some stock images related to art podcasts. I included the Diverse Beauty commission pieces that I mentioned in the blog post and podcast to tie the deliverables together. The last piece was picking a royalty free song that created an upbeat and engaging atmosphere. Aaker (2020) wrote “If the exemplar brand has energy it will emerge” (pg. 160). I found this to be extremely important since energy is tied to creativity.
Digital content can cause a new subcategory to grow, but viewers must feel connected to what the brand is producing. This commercial speaks to the brand community and allows them to feel an emotional connection. Aaker (2020) noted “They provide an avenue for involvement, and a more involved customer is going to be hard to dislodge and will more likely be a sustaining force of customer commitment” (pg. 159). Since this new subcategory promotes user generated content and engagement, the brand community plays a major role in the subcategory’s success and growth.
To ensure continuous growth and success, NCMA must retain its trust and credibility with its target audience. Aaker (2020) stated “A brand engenders trust by relentlessly performing. But it must also be authentic and credible” (pg. 156). This commercial stayed true to the authenticity of NCMA’s brand mission and values of providing resources, diversity, and inclusion to its target demographics. By producing new content each week, the subcategory will remain trusted and become the exemplar brand.
Final Takeaways and Reflection
This campaign focuses on the new subcategory of podcasts within the museum podcast category. The name of the new NCMA podcasts are NCMATalks (audio) and SharedArt (visual). The signature stories that will be utilized for this new subcategory are artists narratives along with a companion how-to tutorial that demonstrates the art style of the featured artist. There will also be signature stories from NCMA staff that explain certain museum exhibitions. Those signature stories will highlight the exhibits process and importance. At times, the new subcategory will be a combination of both artists narratives and an exhibition if the artist is currently alive.
Main NCMA offering story:
A young girl visited the NCMA during a class field trip one day. She had never had the opportunity to visit a museum before and had a limited knowledge of the art community. However, she had a cheap point and shoot camera and loved photography. The visit opened her eyes to the possibility of a profession within a passion that she had only previously thought of as a hobby. That day she promised herself that she would do whatever it took to get her photographs hung in an exhibition. Fast forward years later, after art school and a lot of hard work and dedication, that young girl is now a professional photographer and her photographs have been displayed in multiple exhibits. She contributes her success to the employees and exhibitions that she came into contact with during her visit because they showed her the power that art could truly have on someone and inspired her to follow her dreams.
SharedArt companion story:
The companion story would be a visual podcast that shows how to setup and create a photograph. It will start with the camera equipment used, camera settings, subject matter, lighting, and framing. Then it would move to the editing phase within Adobe Photoshop and finish with ways to print and display the photograph. Once the companion story is complete, the viewers would be asked to share their photographs on Instagram.
Brand / Exhibition Story: What is Beauty Today?
The NCMA stated, “To celebrate the upcoming Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau Visionary exhibition opening October 23, the NCMA commissioned three North Carolina–based artists to reinterpret Mucha’s iconic art nouveau works from the turn of the 20th century. These reinterpretations explore contemporary definitions of beauty and widened cultural representation” (North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc., 2021). The artists are Alisha Locklear Monroe, Tori “FNoRD” Carpenter, and Lakeshia T. Reid. All three artists are women and two are from minorities. Each one provides some background on the piece they created and gives some personal narratives of their journey.
Edits / Final Thoughts
After reviewing the peer and instructor feedback on each piece of the campaign, I made edits that would further help build a cohesive set of marketing deliverables. Edits were made to the digital press release and the planned social media posts. The social media posts would appear every Tuesday and Thursday at 10:00 a.m. because this would cause the most engagement on Instagram and Twitter. According to the website, Sprout Social, “While interpreting the data for each social network individually, we consistently noticed that the highest times of engagement were Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 9 or 10 a.m. Midweek mornings proved to be a successful time across most social platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn” (Keutelian, 2022, para. 8). I decided to leave the blog, micro-podcast, and longform video alone because they already blended well together and fit the brands image well. Overall, I would say the two most important takeaways that I learned from completing this marketing campaign would be the power of stories and the need to create competitor barriers. I did not fully understand the importance of brand innovation and execution at the beginning of this campaign, but overtime through our course readings and seeing each piece link together, the lightbulb turned on for me.
References
Aaker, D. (2018). Creating signature stories: Strategic messaging that persuades, energizes, and inspires. New York, NY: Morgan James Publishing.
Aaker, D. (2020). Owning game-changing subcategories: Uncommon growth in the digital age. New York, NY: Morgan James Publishing.
Howsam, M. (2021, October). Three diverse female artists join the NCMA's Mucha exhibit. Raleigh Magazine. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://raleighmag.com/2021/09/reverie-redefined/.
Keutelian, M. (2022, April 13). The best times to post on social media in 2022. Sprout Social. Retrieved April 17, 2022, from https://sproutsocial.com/insights/best-times-to-post-on-social-media/.
Matsa, K. E., & Naseer, S. (2021, November 8). News platform fact sheet. Pew Research Center. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/fact-sheet/news-platform-fact-sheet/?menuItem=95a54394-35a5-45e5-85bf-d375e23a2b26.
North Carolina Museum of Art. (2021, November 16). Modern Beauty Artist Focus: Alisha Locklear Monroe [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22u5oCBCuZ8.
North Carolina Museum of Art. (2021, December 6). Modern Beauty Artist Focus: Tori "FNorD" Carpenter [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZePMWooIgU.
North Carolina Museum of Art. (2021, December 14). Modern Beauty Artist Focus: Lakeshia T. Reid [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5dhCtmiVMU.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2021). Alphonse Mucha: Art nouveau visionary. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/series/alphonse-mucha-art-nouveau-visionary/.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2022). About. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/about-2/.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2022). Annual impact report. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/series/impact-report/.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2022). Press. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved March 26, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/about/press/.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2022). Statewide engagement. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/series/statewide/.
North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc. (2022). Strategic plan and diversity, equity, and inclusion work. North Carolina Museum of Art. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://ncartmuseum.org/series/strategic-plan-and-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-work/.
The Ansel Adams Gallery. (2022). Welcome to the world of fine arts. The Ansel Adams Gallery. Retrieved April 6, 2022, from https://www.anseladams.com/.
Thomson, K., & Rainie, L. (2013, January 4). Arts organizations and digital technologies. Pew Research Center. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2013/01/04/arts-organizations-and-digital-technologies-3/.
Zickuhr, K., & Rainie, L. (2014, September 10). Younger Americans' reading habits and technology use. Pew Research Center. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2014/09/10/younger-americans-reading-habits-and-technology-use/.
Credits:
Created with images by MarekPhotoDesign.com - "podcast word cloud on napkin" • Prostock-studio - "Art, hobby and recording streaming video for drawing blog. Young african american lady paints picture of landscape with paintbrush and watches lesson on smartphone" • Evrymmnt - "Feminine freelance workspace concept. Woman's hands typing on white laptopp with black keyboard, desk with matte blue table top. Freelance blogger writing an article. Close up, copy space for text." • denisismagilov - "Smiling businesswoman with headphones is pondering about new creative ideas" • Prostock-studio - "Happy young diverse women using smartphones to post in social media, watch videos, study or work remotely" • encierro - "Art painter live streaming from her studio. Freelance artist" • i_valentin - "Collage of still lifes "The Rite of Spring"" • Drobot Dean - "Bright mixed color paints on art palette with paintbrushes"