ISO Hits Highest Note in Five Years
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe 2013-14 Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra indoor concert season has ended on a high note. The ISO reports an 18 percent rise in ticket sales over last season and its highest subscriptions numbers in five years.
June 26, 2014
News Release
Indianapolis, Ind. — The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra announced today that it has concluded its 2013-14 indoor concert season with substantial growth in overall ticket and subscription sales from its previous season at the Hilbert Circle Theatre.
Total number of tickets sold for the ISO’s indoor concerts increased by 18 percent from the 2012-2013 season, which includes Lilly Classical Series, Printing Partners Pops Series, Dow Agrosciences symFUNy Sundays Series, Stella Artois Happy Hour at the Symphony concerts, Yuletide Celebration and special events.
FY14 subscription sales for the classical, pops and family concerts increased 30 percent over the 2012-13 season and are 16 percent higher than the FY12 season. In addition, the ISO sold a record 6,569 student tickets for FY14 – a 50 percent increase from last season and the most student tickets ever sold in a single season.
“Artistically, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra has had much to celebrate this season,” said Gary Ginstling, CEO of the ISO. “And these sales and attendance results confirm that there is a real buzz in our community about the ISO’s performances. We are reaching more subscribers, patrons and students in every concert series and are confident that we will continue that trend with the programs we have planned for the coming season.”
Subscription Sales
Subscription sales for the recently completed season are at their highest level since the 2008-2009 season, thanks to a renewed focus on marketing subscription packages launched in the spring of 2013. In order to boost the subscription base for fixed-seat packages in its classical, pops and family series, the ISO altered pricing, packaging and messaging to better emphasize the value and benefit of becoming a subscriber.
New subscribers make up a large chunk of the ISO’s increase in subscriptions. For the ISO’s evening Classical Series, new subscription sales were up 126 percent over the previous season, and an astonishing 500 percent over fiscal 2012. For the evening Pops Series, sales from new subscriptions increased 248 percent. And for the four-concert family series, subscription sales jumped nearly 400 percent.
Student Ticket Sales
As of June 17, the ISO sold a record 6,569 student tickets for FY 14 – a 50 percent increase from last season and the most student tickets ever sold in a single season, surpassing the previous high of 4,507 tickets in the 2011-12 season.The ISO revamped its student ticket program back in November 2013, when it held its first-ever “Student and Teacher Appreciation” concert. Beginning in 2014, all student tickets for classical, pops, family and Happy Hour concerts were made available for $10 (previously, $13).
The ISO attributes the success of the student ticket campaign to a combination of the price reduction and increased visibility on campuses throughout the region via master classes and performances with ISO musicians, and consistent, targeted messaging to Indiana educators and college students through online channels and social media networks.
Next season, the ISO has scheduled its second annual “Student and Teacher Appreciation” concert for Friday, Feb. 27, at 8 p.m. and will feature works by acclaimed American composers Aaron Copland, George Gershwin and John Adams.
Source: Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra