2006 ECommerce Incubator

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2006 E-Commerce Incubator The Decision to
Participate / The Arts Experience Email and
Website Marketing Case Study for Gene Siskel
Film Center
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It has helped our patrons live and experience
the Film Center in another way.
-Karen Cross Durham, Assistant Director
of Public Relations and Marketing, Gene Siskel
Film Center
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Who We Are
Since 1972, the Film Center of the School of the
Art Institute of Chicago has presented
world-class independent, international, and
classic cinema. Renamed in honor of the late film
critic in 2000, the Gene Siskel Film Center
presents approximately 1,500 screenings and over
100 guest artist appearances a year to over
65,000 film enthusiasts at its unique,
sophisticated, modern facilities which have been
operating since June 2001 at 164 N. State St.
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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Project Goals
• Convey online, and through email, what an
  enjoyable experience it is at this neighborhood
  movie theater.
• Increase number of e-newsletter subscribers
• Utilize email to drive more website traffic

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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Challenges
• Patrons have misperceptions about the experience
  due to Film Centers link to the Art Institute
• Outdated content on website (i.e. holiday offers)
• Low email click-through rate Whats not working?

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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Strategies and Tactics Drive traffic to website
• Added email signup in printed Gazette
• Increased visibility of signup on webpage
• Promoted voluntary conversion of printed Gazette
  subscribers to email subscribers, mandatory
  beginning November 2006

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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Strategies and Tactics Increase email
  subscribers
• Email signup cards in lobby
• Projecting slides before movies
• Making announcements at events

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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Strategies and Tactics
• Tweaked design of weekly update to encourage more
  click-throughs
• Made it shorter
• Included more links
• From April 05 to August 06
• 2000 subscribers added
• Up from initial 2,857 first week and 2,205 second
  week of campaign (April 22 and 28, 2005,
  respectively).
• Increased click through rate, on average, from 50
  to 200

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• Before
• Sender not identified with Gene Siskel Film
  Center
• No design
• No links

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• After
• Gene Siskel Film Center logo at top
• Greatly improved design graphics, type, color
• Multiple links at top and throughout text
• Added content to enhance the arts experience
  (i.e. parking, restaurants, testimonials, etc.)

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Engage Now!

• The Decision to Participate The Arts Experience
• Next Steps
• Add content to website to enhance experience
• Currently very little to show visitor The Arts
  Experience
• Show café and space with diverse people using it
• Make address and phone number more prominent
• Add pages for Directions, Parking, Nearby
  Restaurants