smARTstart

Mission: what is your “raison d’être”?
For an arts organization, the marketing process should start by drafting a clear mission statement which should succinctly define the organization’s purpose, products, values, targets and geographic scope. The mission statement should answer the following questions:

• What are the organization’s services and programs?
• For whom are the services and programs intended?
• What are the fundamental contributions the organization provides to its audience?
• Which geographic area(s) is (are) served?

Examples of mission statements:

• Steppenwolf Theatre Company is a Chicago-based international performing arts institution committed to ensemble collaboration and artistic risk through its work with its permanent ensemble, guest artists, partner institutions and the community. Steppenwolf has redefined the landscape of acting and performance by spawning a generation of America's most gifted artists.
• Urban Gateway’s mission is to improve the quality of a child's life by incorporating the arts into all levels of education for aesthetic, academic, cultural, and personal development; ensuring that children have equitable access to the literary, performing, and visual arts; and serving as an arts education resource both for the Chicago metropolitan area and the nation at large.
• The Neighborhood Writing Alliance provokes dialogue and promotes change by creating opportunities for adults in Chicago to write, publish, and perform works about their lives.
• Victory Gardens Theater is a seminal institution within the Chicago Theater Movement, dedicated by mission to serving playwrights and producing world premiere plays.
• Luna Negra Dance Theater creates, performs and teaches contemporary dance by Latino artists.