October 3, 1997

Marketing Loyola: Research in the music industry

Loyola's Music Industry Studies Program has been involved in two high-profile research projects which are coming to fruition this month. The first project involves the use of the newly acquired Perception Analyzer audience response system used in conjunction with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra's "test concert," funded in part by the Knight Foundation. The test concert was designed to find ways of attracting and retaining new audiences for the classical concert setting. The LPO experimented with the addition of theatrical lighting, video screens, casual dress, and a general party atmosphere. The Perception Analyzer was used to measure the effectiveness of the LPO's efforts by having audience input as to whether the changes had a positive or negative effect on the concert experience. Loyola's relationship with the LPO is long-standing, considering that many of our orchestral teachers also perform with the orchestra. Over the past few months of discussing the upcoming test concert, it was apparent that the Perception Analyzer was a natural match with the LPO. "I think it's a great start that our first big project using the audience response system was with the LPO," said Reid Wick, publicity coordinator for the College of Music and a member of the LPO's marketing committee.

The second project was in conjunction with OffBeat Publications, publishers of OffBeat Magazine and Louisiana Music Directory. OffBeat publisher Jan Ramsey offered the use of her mailing list to the Music Industry Studies Program for a survey that would benefit the state's music industry as well as Loyola's program. College of Business Administration's Mike Pearson and Caroline Fisher, the Department of Commun-ications's Jim Eiseman worked with Wick and Ramsey to develop a survey that would measure attitudes, business practices, demographics, and economic activities of musicians and music industry professionals throughout the state. The survey will be mailed out with the annual Louisiana Music Directory, which is mailed to over 6,000 individuals in early October.