The Independent Cinema Office conducted a survey to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the exhibition industry to understand how cinemas can survive in the immediate crisis and be sustainable following resumption of service.

The second blog by Aaron McGregor, Marketing Manager (CRM & Digital) at Almeida Theatre as part of his Fellowship at AMA Digital Lab.

A practical toolkit by OF/BY/FOR ALL with Slover Linett aimed at making audience research easier.

Laura Cusick, Research Executive at thrive, the Belfast-based audience development agency guides as through what makes a great survey and how quantitative research can give you the insight you need.

In 2011 Dr Sharon Lockyer and her colleague Lynn Myers at Brunel University, undertook research into understanding live stand-up comedy from an audience perspective. The project consisted of both an online survey and a series of semi-structured qualitative interviews with stand-up comedy audiences. In this article Dr Lockyer reports on the five main themes that were identified in the semi-structured interview responses. This article was ... Read more

This resource will help you understand why tracking your audience’s online motivations is important and give you practical suggestions about how you can use online surveys effectively to explore these motivations within a logical research orientated methodology. This is one of ten digital guides commissioned by The Audience Agency from Culture24 as part of Audience Finder, the ... Read more

We do not yet live in a society which can fund opening for libraries 24/7. This detailed report examines opening hours with special reference to Sundays. The research sets this in a context of current social, economic and political developments and highlights a set of critical success factors and helpful practice.

Part of the third phase of the Envisioning the library of the future research project, this report summarises the results of a survey carried out to discover what people think about libraries. The survey asked respondents five open questions about their use of public libraries, as well as their views on their value, purpose and ... Read more

Take a look at this non-arts case study for a brief overview of how NHS Scotland revamped their evaluation processes and channels.  NHS Scotland invested in an app to help them capture patients’ digital stories via video based questionnaires.  They also developed an innovative online research package that allows children, their families and carers to express ... Read more

With plenty of anecdotal evidence of the benefits of the arts, this is a detailed account of a study exploring how it is possible to measure how people might be changed by an arts experience. Alan Brown discusses the design of the study, data collection, the results (intellectual stimulation, spiritual value) and the implications for ... Read more

A straightforward guide with information and tips to help you make the most of working with external research suppliers, from making the decision to outsource through to closing the project. This guide, by market research consultants Ruthless Research, is designed to help charities and other not-for-profit organisations to commission and manage external research and evaluation ... Read more

In this short article, Ruth Stevenson of Ruthless Research considers whether it is ever acceptable to break the ‘golden rule’ of questionnaire consistency when designing tracking surveys.

Many arts and cultural organisations utilise research and evaluation to enable them to make evidence-based decisions, and this often includes the use of audience or member surveys, or feedback forms, to gather information. In this short article, research consultant Ruth Stevenson discusses the merits of carefully designed, concise questionnaires and the benefits for the researcher and ... Read more

This is a short guide to the benefits of online quantitative research, when to use it and tips for getting the most out of online surveys.  This toolkit is the third in a series of seven toolkits designed to provide an introduction to market research – whilst acting as a handy refresher for experienced marketers.

This toolkit offers an ‘at a glance’ guide to the different types of questions you might include in a quantitative questionnaire. This toolkit is the sixth in a series of seven toolkits designed to provide an introduction to market research – whilst acting as a handy refresher for experienced marketers.

Thinking of designing your own survey? This short guide offers tips to ensure you get the most out of your survey, some useful ‘don’ts’ and some tips on question order. This toolkit is the fifth in a series of seven toolkits designed to provide an introduction to market research – whilst acting as a handy ... Read more

This is a short guide to online qualitative research.  It offers a list of the pros and cons of online focus groups and interviews.  This toolkit is the fourth in a series of seven toolkits designed to provide an introduction to market research – whilst acting as a handy refresher for experienced marketers.

The toolkit and guidelines for audiences at outdoor events and festival aim to provide a framework to measuring and evidencing the impact of an outdoor event. The guidelines provide practical advice for audience research at un-ticketed cultural festivals and other events in the following sections: research principles, data collection methods, evidencing success, estimating audience size, questionnaires and surveys, working ... Read more

Results of a pilot shared survey of galleries in the South East, South West, East, East Midlands, London and Wales. Visitors to galleries were asked questions about their age, locality, frequency of attendance, art specialism and art purchasing.

An introductory step by step guideline on the marketing research planning process, aimed at those working in arts organisations who have little experience of conducting market research.