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Every Price Tells A Story

May 27, 2026

by:

Joe Patti

Seth Godin made a post about price and its relation to value and story rather than cost of production.

I am excerpting heavily here because he says a lot of things about price, but I have a narrative I am going to focus on. So read the full post if you want all his thoughts.

It’s better to explain your fair price once than to apologize for low quality over and over.

[…]

When someone says, “that’s too expensive,” what they mean is that the story you’ve told them so far (and the reputation you’ve earned) doesn’t match the price you’re charging. You probably don’t need a lower price, but you might need to earn a better story.

“It might not be for you,” is almost always part of “we make the best (for someone).”

Bargains, sales and coupons are a sport and a narrative. They’re not just a discount, they create their own sort of value and expectation.

Convenience is often underappreciated as a component of value.

[…]

The most resilient slogan you can earn is, “you’ll pay a bit more, but you’ll get more than you paid for.”

Source

What I really appreciate about these thoughts, (as well as those I didn’t include), is that they emphasize that pricing doesn’t exist in a vacuum isolated and unrelated to story and reputation.

Every price has at least one story associated with it, and one of those stories may be one being told by a customer.

I have made a number of posts over the years citing research that shows free admission or low prices often damages brand perception rather than helping new audiences and visitors discover and become invested in your organization.

Which is not to say low prices don’t lower a barrier to entry for new audiences. There has to be some form of communication that connects the preferred rate to an identity group the person belongs to -resident of a neighborhood, member of a club, etc. Essentially, there is a story attached to the pricing.

Similarly, there are companies out there who will work with you on pricing who emphasize pricing based on the purchaser’s perceived value rather than yours. You may think a section of seats are the most mediocre in your venue, but there are a lot of people who will pay much more than you’re charging. Likewise, you may think an artist is the most gifted of their generation, but low awareness outside professional circles will translate into few buying tickets to a special exhibit.

Godin’s line about convenience being an underappreciated component of value reminds me that many of the barriers to participation arts and culture visitors identify are often outside the control of the organization – things like parking, traffic, restaurant reservations, perception of crime, etc.

Though elements like the ticket purchase path, wayfinding to and through the venue, feeling of welcome, are all within the control of the organization.

The ease of navigating all these elements contributes to an often intangible perception of value associated with an experience.

Those first and last lines I quoted had the most impact on me when I read them.

I hadn’t considered them before. Especially the idea it is better to explain the value behind the pricing rather than apologize for poor quality.

I sort of feel like the brand promise of paying a bit more but getting a bit more has permeated a lot of the work I have done and facilitated and has been echoed back by participant comments. But working to consciously embody that as an individual and organization dovetails well into the core missions of a lot of arts and cultural organizations

Marketing/PR, Pricing

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Put Down The Phone, Pick Up Jenga

May 26, 2026

by:

Joe Patti

Last week a colleague had posted on LinkedIn about a secret pop-up concert Phoebe Bridgers had conducted in one of her venues. She had mentioned that people’s phones were stored away in magnetic Yondr pouches. At the time I assumed that this was because it was a secret concert.

But later that day or the next, Artsjournal.com had a WBEZ story about Chicago venues that were requiring people to stow their phones in pouches and specifically mentioned that musicians Phoebe Bridgers and David Byrne were requiring concert attendees to check their phones at the door.

The WBEZ story was reporting on a broader attempt to create an environment where people interacted and socialized to a greater degree than they are.

Because the story shifts quickly between discussing the environment in which this efforts are occurring, I made the mistake of thinking theaters were providing games and activities for audiences. That was actually a program by a marketing group called Little Council in response to clients seeking unplugged spaces where people could engage with each other.

They have an area in a co-working space labeled “Fulfillment Center” whose goal is to assist the achievement of personal fulfillment.

….visitors made their way over to a pair of industrial shelves stacked with activity boxes labeled “make,” “play,” “read” and “write.” Inside the boxes, they found crafts, readable materials and games — plenty of things to do instead of scrolling endlessly on their mobile phones.

[…]

The boxes are filled with things that people “might not always make time for, like creating or writing or reading or just playing,” Fuller said.

Source

Even though I was mistaken about where the Fulfillment Center materials were being used, something along these lines might be something a performance space/group with the right vibe might employ. (Probably won’t be found in Lincoln Center in NYC, but maybe the Lincoln Center in Fort Collins, CO)

Ideally, you wouldn’t use this in conjunction with confiscating phones but rather as a social lubricant to get people in a communal space chatting with each other and asking to borrow the purple markers. Though in some places people may be so entrenched with their phones there may be little to no movement away from them after offering alternatives for a year.

Activities like these can make experiences feel more welcoming. One venue I ran, I created a visual arts fair that occurred twice a year. I partnered with a local creative group who helped arrange for music and different themed activities. I was a little concerned that people might not think a visual arts fair was for someone like themselves so having music and activities was one way to make the experience more welcoming.

The turn out and participation wasn’t too bad. I haven’t really tried something like that in connection with a performance but it could definitely work after some trial and error in design and execution.

Audience Relations, Building Public Will For Arts And Culture, Marketing/PR

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Relax, Said The Night Man…

May 19, 2026

by:

Joe Patti

Seth Godin made a recent post about hotel night clerks. He noted that while they often have the highest number of customer interactions, especially with those that may be experiencing a degree of distress, the clerks are generally not empowered with the authority and training to respond effectively. Management probably isn’t soliciting feedback about the comments and complaints they are getting. Nor may the clerks be paid enough to care.

It’s the night clerks that have the most customer interaction–in fact, they’re almost certainly the highest leveraged, most insightful marketing cohort in your organization.

They have information, and if we give them agency, they could transform the customer experience.

Alas, our systems rarely help. Many night clerks are underpaid and underappreciated, and systems around them push them not to care.

When your organization gets stuck, don’t blame them. Instead, find a way to help them become the contribution they’re capable of being.

Some useful questions you might not be asking:

How much does the information we’re not collecting cost us?

What is the customer service cost and brand dilution of depriving our people the freedom to take action?

Source

The same questions apply to front of house staff for arts and cultural organizations. Whether they are paid or volunteer, have people been trained and empowered to address issues and concerns that arise? If they don’t have the experience or consistency to effect a solution, are they able to summon someone who can help? And can they see that issuing that summons results in a satisfying solution for the customer?

This can be extended to all staff that may encounter customers be it maintenance staff passing through with a ladder or marketing staff returning from a meeting. Is there an organizational culture that rewards people for noticing someone may be lost or have questions and offering to help?

Because we certainly don’t want people feeling like they checked into the Hotel California.

Audience Relations, Building Public Will For Arts And Culture, Business Models, Management Philosophy, Marketing/PR

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Praying For Tickets

May 18, 2026

by:

Joe Patti

Over the years I have written a lot about the various schemes people have used to acquire tickets, resell tickets, scam people by offering tickets they don’t possess. Ticketing sites and governments have instituted digital hurdles and laws to try to limit these schemes and are often able to only create a solution for a short time before someone figures out a way to circumvent those barriers.

One thing I haven’t really addressed is divine intervention.

Admittedly this situation is a bit less problematic than ticketing scams, price gouging, and the ridiculous litany of fees being added to purchases I usually write about. I figured the topic could use an injection of relative lightheartedness.

The BBC recently reported on 9th century Shinto shrine in Tokyo dedicated to the deity Inari. Originally, people prayed at the shrine for abundant rice harvests and prosperity. At one point the shrine was permitted to host lotteries to generate funds to support itself. In time people started to make offerings for success in lotteries of all types.

And that is where the connection to concert tickets comes in.

There is such a demand for tickets to some concerts, fans need to enter a lottery in order to get a chance to purchase a limited number of tickets.

Fans enter for the chance to buy tickets, and can only purchase them in limited quantities if they are selected. The system is designed to make the process fairer, but some fans look for a bit of divine intervention to boost their odds. If praying at Fukutoku is believed to work for winning scratch-off lottery tickets, fans hope it might bring luck with concert tickets, too.

Source

So many people believe that a show of devotion will boost their odds that the street outside the shrine had to be closed due to the masses who gathered when bands started touring again once Covid restrictions were lifted.

I suspect if I did deeper research I might find there are methods to secure tickets outside of the ticket lottery and praying to kami. From what I have read, there are Fan Club and Pre-Public lotteries where you have to have paid a membership fee or have purchased merchandise of some sort to be entered in a lottery to purchase tickets.

Though many concerts go straight to the Public Lottery phase. While there may be a fee involved, apparently it is relatively small unlike the thousands of dollars people in the US have to donate just to be entered for a chance to buy season tickets to a college or professional sports event.

Audience Relations, Pricing

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