Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance (GVPTA)

Programs + Initiatives

B.C. Patron Insights

A Data Strategy for British Columbia's Arts and Culture Sector.

GVPTA is pleased to announce B.C. Patron Insights, a decentralized data strategy to better understand arts and culture patron sentiment in order to assist in our sector’s COVID-19 recovery efforts.

Submissions are currently closed. Please check back for further updates. 

Learn more about this initiative in the menu below. 

Summary Report

On September 11 we announced the first report, which includes responses from 2,189 patrons surveyed by 11 participating organizations from across British Columbia.

B.C. Patron Insights Strategy F.A.Q.s

What is the purpose of BC Patron Insights?
We are providing organizations with access to an individualized survey to learn more about their patrons' arts and culture activities, readiness to return, level of interest in types of programming, health and safety considerations, and demographic information. 

A series of core standardized questions have been developed to be used broadly in surveys across the sector in order to best learn about the impact of COVID-19 on arts organizations and to understand audience attendance patterns and intentions. 


We recognize that not all organizations have the capacity or experience to build their own survey; GVPTA's strategy is take some of this administrative burden off of organizations by managing the survey for them.


We also recognize the importance and power of a collaborative data strategy where we can aggregate answers from multiple surveys into a comprehensive dataset in order to share valuable information on the arts and culture sector with government, funders, stakeholders, and our community.
Who is eligible to access this service?
Non-profit organizations and charities based in B.C., with an arts, culture, or heritage mandate. Other non-registered arts and culture groups and collectives may also apply as well.


You are expected to have an established way to reach out to your patrons, whether through an email list or social media. 
We have or will be sending out our own survey; how can we participate?
We recognize that it's important that patrons aren't overwhelmed with survey requests. If you recently surveyed your patrons, you might consider using our service in the future. You might also be able to share with us the aggregate data that you've compiled.


If your organization is planning to distribute a survey on your own, you can still make an important contribution to this collective strategy. Email Kenji at kenji@gvpta.ca to talk about how we might be able to work together.
Is there a cost to this service?

No! This is a service the Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance is providing to arts, culture, or heritage organizations within British Columbia, free of charge. 

How do I access this service?
  1. Review the information on this webpage to understand the scope of this service/project.
  2. You’ll complete an online request form (located at the bottom of this page) to express your interest in participating, and to provide GVPTA with your organization’s logo and other details. 
  3. We will reach out to you with any questions we have, and if approved, we will build the survey for your organization and provide you with the survey link to be shared by your organization directly with your patrons in whatever manner you choose.
  4. GVPTA will provide you with ongoing access to the raw data and a summary report of your survey responses (See a sample of what this may look like here). 
  5. Your data will also be combined with other data collected from other organizations through this service to build a community-wide data collection.

If you have further questions or require clarification, please contact Kenji at kenji@gvpta.ca.
What questions are asked of patrons? Can we have custom questions?
Core standardized questions pertain to:
  • Patrons' general participation in arts and cultural activities
  • The level of interest in digital programming
  • The level of support they may be willing to provide your organization through the recovery process, and past patronage and participation. 
  • Their comfort level and interest in returning
  • Demographic information

Organizations may provide as many as five (5) custom questions unique to your organization's programming, activities, or patrons. (We recommend limiting your custom questions to three or fewer).


Examples of the types of questions you might craft that directly relate to your organization or activities:
  • When was the last time you attended one of our in-person events or performances  / visited our arts centre? (With select time windows to be checked)
  • How comfortable would you be purchasing food and/or beverages at that event? (Responses ranging from "Not at all comfortable" to "Very comfortable")
  • As in-person programming will continue to be limited for the foreseeable future, how interested would you be if we produced online programming? (Responses ranging in scale from 1 to 9; 1 = Not Interested to 9 = Very Interested)
What happens to our survey data afterwards?

In order to obtain a global picture and a more detailed understanding of the situation of the cultural sector in British Columbia and across Canada, aggregate data from survey results will be integrated with other surveys and/or shared with analysts and researchers with expertise in cultural participation and consumption. 

What about privacy issues?

Survey responses are kept confidential and anonymous. The survey does not ask for name, contact details, or any other identifying information. Only aggregate data will be publicly disclosed; individual responses will not be publicly disclosed. 

Can we ask patrons for their contact details within the customized questions?

To receive the most accurate information, we  do not request any identifying information from survey participants. If, however, you wanted to create an incentive for survey respondents, you could create an draw entry form which they could access after submitting the survey, where you could ask for contact information. Any incentive forms would need to managed by your organization. Pease contact us to discuss it further.

How do our patrons receive the survey?
When your survey has been designed and is ready for you to share, we will provide you with the survey link.


You are responsible for sending the link to your patrons, whether by email, posting on your website, circulating via social media channels, or sharing in whatever manner you choose. We've drafted a suggested introductory script that you may wish to use to preface your survey invitation.


Click here to view the suggested survey introduction template.
How do I apply?
A new intake will open in January, 2021, after the current provincial restrictions have been lifted. Organizations interested in participating and issuing a patron survey via B.C. Patron Insights in 2021 should check back on this page for updates in early January. 

If you have any further questions, email Kenji at kenji@gvpta.ca. 

Questions?

Email Executive Director Kenji Maeda at kenji@gvpta.ca.