Audience Outlook Monitor
Our 2020-2023 program of work that helped artists and cultural organisations connect with audiences during the pandemic.
The way people engaged with arts, culture and creativity changed dramatically during the pandemic. Artists and cultural organisations needed to continually innovate the events they programmed, their marketing and their policies.
The Audience Outlook Monitor was launched in Australia in 2020 in partnership with US research agency Wolf Brown. It was designed as a public tracking study of audience sentiments during the pandemic years where rapid change made planning complex. For four years the research brought timely and essential data to the sector’s decision making about planning and programming live events.
Latest results
In this Audience Outlook Monitor report, ‘City Lights to Red Dirt’, we look at the geographic trends in data collected from past attendees to cultural events, comparing audiences in big cities, outer suburbs and the regions.
August 2023 results from the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available. Explore 7 topics around current audience behaviour, presenting the datapoints you need for strategic planning, forecasting attendances, remodelling subscriptions and targeted marketing in 2023 and beyond.
Read about the findings and download the National Snapshot report.
Data is available to explore in a dynamic dashboard, which can be filtered by artform and region.
The dashboard is publicly available, click more to find out how to login.
April 2023 results from the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available. Get the details on how the attendance outlook varies across three key audience segments and the programming, marketing, and ticketing opportunities that exist to improve consumer confidence.
Read about the findings and download the Live Attendance Update.
October 2022 results from the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available, covering current attendance levels, financial barriers, re-entry anxiety and the desire for innovative arts experiences.
Read about the findings and download the Live Attendance Update.
August 2022 results from the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available, covering current attendance, spending levels, competing priorities and key barriers.
Read about the findings and download the National Snapshot Report.
March 2022 results from of the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available, covering current attendance and spending levels, the most encouraging COVID safety measures and the outlook for cultural tourism in 2022.
Read about the findings and download the National Snapshot Report.
November 2021 results from of the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available, suggesting that audiences are cautiously optimistic as summer approaches.
Read about the findings and download a Snapshot Report.
July 2021 results from of the Audience Outlook Monitor are now available, indicating setbacks in audience attendance and comfort.
Read about the findings and download a Snapshot Report.
Download the August 2023 State Snapshot reports to discover the top trends in audience behaviour at a state-level.
Download the April 2023 State Snapshot reports to see how inflationary pressures are being experienced differently across the country.
Download the Access Report to find out more about how the state of access in our sector has changed, case studies to demonstrate the data through lived experience, and resources and tips to prioritise the access needs of audiences.
Download the October 2022 snapshot reports for key states/territories for tailored insights into how Australian audiences are settling into the post-COVID landscape.
Young people are more confident and active than other audiences — though some barriers to attendance remain.
Download the Young People Fact Sheet to discover the attendance outlook for Gen Z and Millennial audiences and key takeaways for encouraging their attendance in light of the challenges.
Explore the findings related to audiences members who re parents and caregivers.
Download the Family Attendance Outlook Fact Sheet.
Explore the findings related to online participation in arts and culture.
Download the March 2022 Digital Engagement Outlook Fact Sheet, and key facts for state/territories.
Find out how audiences across Australia are adjusting to ‘living with COVID’.
Download the March 2022 snapshot reports for key states/territories.
Tips and tactics
Access 100s of evidence-backed tips and tactics for sustaining audience engagement during the ongoing pandemic. From communication to COVID-safety, this resource presents the facts along with practical advice from arts professionals at the ‘coalface’ of audience engagement.
Webinars
Join Tandi Palmer Williams from Patternmakers and a special guest as they discuss the latest insights related to arts audiences and the economic outlook in 2023.
Join Tandi and Liz Tomkinson, Manager, Multi-Year Investment at Australia Council for the Arts on Wednesday 26 October, as they discuss the latest audience insights from October 2022.
Join Tandi and Andy Donovan, Director of Multi-Year Investment at the Australia Council for the Arts on Wednesday 24 August, as they discuss the latest audience insights from August 2022.
Join Tandi and Andy Donovan, Director of Multi-Year Investment at the Australia Council for the Arts on Wednesday 23 March, as they discuss the latest audience insights from March 2022.
Watch Tandi and Annette Madden, Director of Theatre at Australia Council discuss the outlook for the summer and coming year using new data from the Audience Outlook Monitor.
Watch Tandi and Anne Dunn from Sydney Dance Company discuss strategies for reaching audiences at home during lockdowns, restrictions and border closures.
Watch our Regional Connections webinar with Australia Council for the Arts, where we discuss how to use data to reach regional audiences across Australia.
Watch Tandi Palmer Williams join George Dunford for the latest in a series of Recovery Roadmap Webinars to discuss audience needs and expectations during a pandemic.
Watch our Live Attendance Outlook Webinar to explore the July 2021 results from the Audience Outlook Monitor with Tandi Palmer Williams and Andy Donovan.
Watch Tandi Palmer Williams and Morwenna Collett discuss the latest findings related to disabled audiences.
Watch our International Perspectives seminar with WolfBrown where we compare insights from Australia and the USA.
Watch our Digital Audience Engagement webinar with Stuart Buchanan where we share insights on audience participation in digital culture experiences.
Watch the webinar with Creative Partnerships Australia where we discuss the main findings related to the outlook for fundraising and support in 2021.
Watch the Live Audience Outlook webinar with the Australia Council for the Arts, where we discuss the findings and share our hot tips for programming, marketing and audience experience in 2021.
Catch up on past webinars related to the Audience Outlook Monitor, topics like Museums and Galleries, Performing Arts and First Nations.
Visions for culture
We asked audiences, 'What role can arts and culture organisations play in your community, to assist with recovery from the pandemic?' They were asked to share examples, great or small, and their answers illuminate new visions for culture.
From installing street libraries to calling for the end of capitalism, audiences see many and varied roles for the arts in future.
Click the button below to explore key quotes, illustrating the themes in the data: heal, connect, place, escape, transform and remodel.
You can also explore the qualitative data according to artform and community segment, with thanks to City of Sydney.
Other resources
Book a briefing
Arrange a virtual research briefing for your organisation, or book a speaking engagement.
Questionnaire
Access a copy of the questions contained in the Survey for each Phase, free for use in your own surveying.
Methodology
Find out more about the method, including the event types included and participating organisations.
About the study
Inflationary pressures are impacting three key audience segments, Older and Bolder, Family Frugality, and Young and Restless, in different ways. Read for the insights on each, and suggestions on targeted marketing strategies to ensure no one gets left behind.
The wild ride of the lockdown era is now behind us, so it’s time for a clear-eyed look at where we’ve landed. In this article, we share the topics that we’ll be researching this year, to ensure you can plan for the challenges and opportunities of the post-pandemic years.
Audience behaviour is shifting and it can be hard to know what to expect. Here are six audience behaviour trends to prepare for, according to the data from our October phase of the Audience Outlook Monitor.
Subscribe for updates
Study partners
Delivered in Australia by
Made possible with support from