Four of the main Mad Men characters—Don, Betty, Roger, and Joan—are set to be released as versions of Barbie & Ken dolls.  (Ok, they’re not really action figures in the usual sense, but fans of the show know how much “action” these four get so I couldn’t resist.)

In a New York Times interview Kevin Beggs, president of Mad Men‘s production studio Lionsgate, said that several “nontraditional” marketing methods were being used to increase the show’s audience.  Besides the Mattel dolls, other licensing agreements have been struck with clothiers Brooks Brothers and Banana Republic.

Your art may not quite have the audience of Mad Men devotees—if it does, we so need to talk—and dolls might not be the best fit for your product licensing.  But this story is another reminder of how important it is to explore and experiment with as many different marketing methods as you can.

In addition to marketing methods that simply attract people’s attention, the show’s producers are creating and delivering more of the show’s value.  The more ways an audience can connect with the value they cherish in your art—be it a sculpture, play, feature film, or TV show—the more opportunities you have to profit from it.

Story & photo via the New York Times.

According to projections by arstechnica.com, 2010 is the first year that more people in the US will buy their music digitally rather than physically.  Globally, this same shift is expected in 2016.  Make no mistake, we’re still buying music; what’s changing is how it’s delivered.  People still want to have real-time voice conversations with geographically-diverse people, but now we use our cell phones instead of our home phones.  People still want to be entertained by movies and shows, but we’re more frequently using our computers to watch them instead of using movie theatres, video stores, and cable boxes.  Don’t confuse content generation with content delivery.

THE BOTTOM LINE – Your audience will pay for content it values, no matter how it’s delivered

According to a survey recently released by the National Endowment for the Arts, the number of US adults attending an arts performance dropped to nearly 35% in 2008 from 40% in 1982, 1992, and 2002.  At the same time, more Americans viewed or listened to broadcasts and recordings of arts events than attended them live (live theater being the sole exception).  Needless to say, the dynamics and demographics of arts audiences are in flux.  Movie actress Scarlett Johansson is set to star in an upcoming Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s A View From the Bridge and producers plan to offer discounted balcony seats to Ms. Johansson’s younger fans attracted to the show via their Facebook and Twitter outreach pages.

THE BOTTOM LINE – How are you addressing the changes in your audience?

Ahh, the New Year’s Resolution.  So quick we promise, and so soon we forget.  Why?  According to a survey conducted by coaching and training firm Gail Kasper LLC, less than half of those surveyed even bothered making resolutions and of those, only 21% had some kind of plan.  The value of writing down resolutions and a plan to achieve them is clear: research published several years ago in the Journal of Clinical Psychology found that by July, those who made resolutions in January were 10 times more likely than non-resolvers to be successful in achieving what they wanted.

THE BOTTOM LINE – What’s your plan to further your arts business in the New Year?

In a recent edition of the Wall Street Journal two unrelated articles point to the struggles artists face as they straddle the two extremes of pure creativity and pure marketability. The first article notes that ABC Network is taking great pains to test audience reactions prior to giving a style makeover to the title character of its hour-long comedy Ugly Betty.  Notwithstanding claims of following their creative instincts, producers are soliciting a lot of input from viewers on if and how soon Betty should have her braces removed.  On the other end of the spectrum, the second article discusses how Manhattan’s New Museum lowered its building ceiling by two feet—at considerable expense—to accommodate the request of in-demand sculptor Urs Fischer.  Fretting over Betty’s braces seems like overkill, but remember the audience backlash when Felicity’s title character cut her hair?  Similarly, can a business really justify the cost of lowering a perfectly good ceiling just because the artist thinks it makes his art look more impressive?  It can… as long as it sells.

BOTTOM LINE – How do you find balance between artistic intention and audience reaction?

From houstonartist.org:

Oh my! Pocket Pies launched their “Paint our Food Truck Challenge” open to all local Houston artists.  Artists will compete for the opportunity to paint the startup restaurant’s mobile food vendor truck in mid-October.  Any artistic style is accepted including graffiti, pop, abstract, etc.  There will be no financial compensation for the winning artist, but all materials to paint the truck will be paid for.

This is a creative way for a startup business to get unique advertising on a limited budget.  For an artist able to work more for exposure than a commission, it’s a wonderful opportunity to have your work exhibited as rolling mural.

BOTTOM LINE –Are your investing as much creativity into your arts business as you put in your art?

World-famous photographer-of-the-stars Annie Leibovitz is $24 million in debt and faces two lawsuits and a $1.4 million tax lien, according to a recent New York Times article. Although sources and friends said she wasn’t living a lavish personal lifestyle, a series of business missteps and personal tragedies got her off her fiscal game. There were two fascinating quotes that point to the lessons to be learned. The first comes from long-time Leibovitz associate and Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, who noted, “The mind that can take these extraordinary pictures is not necessarily the same mind that is a perfect money manager.” The other comes from celebrity debt counselor Jerrold Mundis who observed, “Celebrity or even a spectacular talent doesn’t proof one against a problem with debt.” [NY Times, Jul 31, 2009]

Core skills as an artist are not the same as business skills; gifts and talents in one realm do not guaranty success in the other. Focus on your strengths, delegate your weaknesses to professionals, monitor their work, and enjoy your success.

BOTTOM LINE: Ignore the business of arts at your own risk.