Aubrey Bergauer

Run It Like A Business Academy

Unlock growth with data-driven audience development. Earn buy-in and drive results.

 
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For arts organizations of all sizes wanting to increase sales and donations.



The Run It like A Business Academy offers step-by-step training on Aubrey’s top revenue-generating strategies, in more detail than the book of the same name.

 
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By the end, you will be able to

  • Increase subscription and donation renewals
  • Generate more revenue immediately while also building your pool of future subscribers and donors
  • Implement the Long Haul Model for patron retention
  • Know how to price the house to drive demand
  • Get more board buy-in and build your influence
  • Write donor appeal letters that get more gifts every time

Program Includes

 

Video Lessons on Demand

Twenty nine video lessons across four modules: Customer Experience, the Subscription Economy, Patron Retention (Long Haul Model), and Digital Content.

Extra Downloadable Resources

Lessons are accompanied by worksheets, checklists, templates, and other resources to help implement the strategies covered.

Biweekly Office Hours

Open office hours with Aubrey alternate in the afternoon and in the morning for ease of participation across time zones and schedules.
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Real Success Stories

 

 

112% increase in ticket sales

 “The board is enormously satisfied…  what I love hearing from my board members is, ‘Everything you have promised, you've delivered, and more!’”

Justin Morgan
Director of Audience Development, Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake

2.5X tickets sold and 1.6X revenue

 “The course content really helped frame my mind and communicate to other stakeholders. I [convinced] our board to keep the tickets prices as they were and not cut the price tag.”

Michael Evans
Interim Executive Director, Chorus Austin

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Curriculum

 

 

Module 1

Customer Experience — Online and In Person

  • Welcome & Course Overview
  • Newcomer Focus on the Website
  • Copywriting Do's and Don'ts
  • Newcomer Friendly in the Venue
  • Newcomer Facing Marketing

 

Module 2

The Membership Economy

  • The First Year Cliff
  • Opt-In Renewals
  • Pricing Part 1: General Rules
  • Pricing Part 2: Scale of House
  • The Membership Economy x Donations

 

Module 3

Patron Retention—Long Haul Model

  • First Time Buyers
  • Multi-Buyers
  • New Subscribers
  • Renewing Subs
  • New Donors
  • How to Write An Appeal Letter that Rocks
  • Renewing Donors
  • Major Donor Relationships
  • Lapsed Donors
  • Lapsed Attendees
  • Special Event Attendees

 

Module 4

Using Digital Content to Drive Analog Attendance

  • Planning Content Cycles
  • Streaming Strategy
  • Other Content Tips
  • Conclusion

They Did It. So Can You

 
 

Increased donations during off-season

“We used what we learned about segmentation to create our first donor impact report—a piece so meaningful, it prompted donations in October and November, which is not a normal giving time for us at all. That piece, without an ask, naturally grew our giving window.”

Stephanie Cabacoy
Director of Marketing & Development, American Shakespeare Center

Ticket sales well ahead of last year

“ The individual conversations I'm having are some of the best I've ever had since I've been here. People are constantly coming up to us and saying, ‘We're so pleased with what you're doing. Please keep it up. The experience we're having is top notch.‘”

Chris Carter
CEO, Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center

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Two Ways to Join

 
 
 
 

See the Growth

 
 

Fort Collins Symphony

  • Ticket sales surpassed pre-pandemic levels
  • Subscription renewal rates highest in seven years
  • New subscriber renewal rate exceeding pre-pandemic levels and thirteen percentage points above industry norm
 

Queensland Symphony Orchestra

  • Total ticket sold increased by 15%
  • Total ticket revenue increased by 35%
  • Made budgeted sales goal every year
  • Added concerts to accommodate increase in sales
 

Chorus Austin

  • Ticket sales increased 150% year-over-year
  • Ticket revenue grew by 60%
  • Net contributed revenue exceeded projections by $150,000
  • Pricing optimization doubled the venue's revenue potential
 
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 FAQs

 
  • The Academy curriculum covers the first three strategies (chapters) from the book of the same name, but in more depth. Each module offers step by step instruction and detail for the topic covered. Specifically, this includes:

    • Customer Experience (5 lessons, as well as how to run your own user experience research)

    • Subscription Economy (6 lessons, with 2 dedicated to pricing and scale of house, which is not covered in the book)

    • A whole module dedicated to the Long Haul Model (11 lessons spanning what Aubrey is asked to consult on the most)

    • Digital Content (6 lessons packed with ideas on how to use your digital content to drive more ticket sales and donations)

    • Additional examples and stories not included in the book

    • 2 lessons specifically on pricing for both subscriptions and single tickets so the house looks full even when its not sold well; plus how to know which seats are priced correctly and which ones need an adjustment to maximize sales (lessons 10 & 11)

    • Lesson dedicated to copywriting with tips not covered in the book (lesson 4)

    • Lesson on how the membership economy applies specifically to donations (lesson 12)

    • Lesson on research-based tactics to write a fundraising appeal letter that gets more gifts every time (lesson 19)

    • Worksheets and checklists accompanying almost every lesson, as well as a resource library you can come back to and reference at any point.

    • Data pull templates with formulas pre-populated

    • Time with Aubrey directly: open office hours every other week so you can talk through any questions or ideas with Aubrey face to face

    • Instant connection to a community of people also doing this work

  • Organizations or teams that register with the flat fee discount receive lifetime access to the curriculum and resource library, and can add new people at any time (such as when as new staff member joins the organization).

    Individuals have access for one year, at which time you can renew the registration if you still want to revisit the material. You could also downgrade your membership to only the Changing the Narrative community if you wanted to stay connected to others without the curriculum.

  • You can watch in whichever order you'd like. For example, if you really want training on the Long Haul Model (most popular), you can begin with Module 3. If you're getting ready for subscription or donation renewals, maybe you want to start with Module 2.

    You can also assign different lessons to different staff members if you’d like to divide and conquer based on each team member’s role or area of expertise.

    You're in the driver's seat to get the most-important-to-you content, an intentional benefit of this on-demand curriculum.

  • Each video ranges from about 5-15 minutes. They are meant to be short, digestible, and packed with information and ideas to help you implement the material. Each lesson is accompanied by a worksheet, checklist, or template to further aid in incorporating the concept into your daily work flow.

  • The Academy curriculum will be most helpful to people who work in marketing and development functions at cultural organizations. The videos are directed to working staff professionals in revenue-generating roles.

    That said, everyone who has interest in this material is encouraged to participate (including other departments, artists, and board members), as the more people in the organization who understand these strategies, the better for all involved. That’s why one flat fee allows access for as many people in the organization as you’d like.

  • The whole program is designed for you and your team to go at your own pace, take small steps at a time, see and celebrate the results those steps bring, and then come back when you're ready for what’s next.

    You are disciplined because you are here right now, thinking through solutions for your organization. None of this was meant to be done all at once.

  • You can use the participant form (which you will access after you register) to add folks at any time…whether that’s a group you want to register right away, people who join your organization six months from now, next year, whenever.

  • Yes, you can register at the individual rate, and then upgrade your current plan to an organization plan and only pay the difference in price.

    To do this, go to the billing section of your profile and change your plan.

 

Enroll Today and Start
Generating More Revenue

Registration Closes

April 17 AT 11:59 PM Pacific Time

 

Join as an Individual

4 Monthly Payments of $297 or discounted when you pay in full

Join as an Organization

Pricing scaled to budget size with option to pay in installments, starting
at $576

 
 

Templates, Worksheets, & Checklists With Every Lesson

 
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Templates, Worksheets, & Checklists With Every Lesson

 
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Favorite Parts of the Program

 
 

Clean data means clearer strategy

“Module 1’s iceberg concept was huge. We pulled our data and found 5,000 inactive accounts—some with no activity in 10 years—and decided to clean them up. Now, we’re tracking first-time ticket buyers all the time.”

Reanna Bradford
Chief Financial Officer, Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center

A whole new way to think about audiences

“In Europe, we can be really closed-minded, so I was looking for a new way to promote classical music. The module on how we treat our audience, digitally and in person, was a beautiful inspiration.”

Marta Kotaszewska
Artistic Organisation & Production, Sinfonietta Cracovia

If You’re
Still Not Sure

 
 

Money Back Promise

The Academy comes with a money back guarantee. Yes, you read that right.

If you do the steps in any 3 lessons and do
not see positive results in 90 days, you get your money back. Full Terms >>

 
 
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Join Today

 
 

4 monthly payments of $297 or
discounted when you pay in full

Starting at 4 installments of $576
for the entire team or save in full