A discounted approach to young patron engagement

Last year, the Tate family of galleries announced its intention to appoint its first trustee to represent the interests of young patrons. This trustee, they promised, would be a digital native and a cultural entrepreneur. The Prime Minister has now appointed Anna Lowe as Youth Engagement Trustee for a four-year term. At 28, she is the youngest national museum board member in the UK, a digital strategist, and an arts educator.

Tate’s youth engagement strategy has also included the establishment of a free patrons group, Tate Collective, which offers discounted exhibition tickets for 16-25 year olds—roughly older Gen Z and younger Millennials. In 11 months, 60k young people have joined the Collective. The discount probably has not resulted in a loss of income for Tate, though, because it undoubtedly has brought new visitors to the museum. But will cheaper tickets translate into major giving over the long haul? Beyond the discounted exhibitions, Tate doesn’t have separate programming for young patrons or discounted membership for those under 40 or 50 like many art museums in the US.

Have we discounted the value of discounted admission as a means for building engagement and loyalty to a museum? Is the concept of membership to a museum an outdated idea or just one that doesn’t fit with younger generations? A discount does make a museum part of the conversation and relevant if young people are drawn in and share their experiences on social media. Perhaps that’s more important than a membership card.

Now that a trustee has been appointed to advocate for younger patrons and provide insights into how they like to engage, it will be interesting to see what direction Tate’s strategy takes from here. One thing they and other museums might consider is that boards who do decide to designate an age diversity representative sometimes designate two seats to avoid tokenism and to make the young trustees feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts and challenging more experienced board members. Challenging old ways of thinking is, in fact, one of the most valuable benefits of bringing on younger board members.