A Question to Answer Before 2026 Arrives:
Are You Spending More on Marketing but Seeing Fewer New Faces?
Dear Dreamers and Doers,
Your marketing budget went up this year. You’ve invested in digital campaigns, tried new platforms, boosted your social presence. But when you look out at your audience, it’s the same wonderful, familiar supporters who’ve been with you for years—and not many new faces joining them.
Lots of us try, but: you can’t market your way out of a brand problem.
When Good Marketing Meets the Wrong Message
A museum director recently shared that they’d invested $50K in a visibility campaign. Gorgeous creative. Strategic placements. The result? Attendance actually dropped! Why? Because amplifying a message that doesn’t resonate just makes it louder—not more compelling.
Think about the last time you fell head-over-heels for an organization. Was it because their ad appeared in your feed repeatedly? Or because something about who they are—their energy, their purpose, their whole vibe—just clicked with your values?
Listen, we get it. It’s safe to say:
- “Excellence in artistic programming”
- “Enriching our community through the arts”
- “A cultural destination for all”
But when everyone sounds the same, no one stands out. The young professionals, the diverse communities, the new audiences you’re trying to reach—they’re looking for something to believe in, not just something to attend.
Three Shifts That Actually Work
- Move from describing to believing. What do you stand for that sets you apart?
- Get specific about who you serve. Universal appeal often means appeal to no one. A chamber music series that embraced being “For people who like their music like their coffee—complex and worth savoring” found their clan immediately. The people who weren’t into that? They were never coming anyway.
- Stand for something bigger. Resource Depot doesn’t just promote recycling and creative re-use. They declared “ENF—Enough Already” and gave people a passionate movement to join. When you stand for something, people stand with you.
Your 2026 Opportunity
Organizations trying to buy attention instead of building connection will keep struggling with shrinking audiences and growing marketing costs. But those brave enough to find and share their authentic difference—to really mean something specific to specific people—they’ll build movements, not just mailing lists.
Your brand is what people feel when they think of you. If they feel nothing specific, nothing memorable, nothing that connects to their life—that’s why your marketing investment isn’t working.
The question isn’t “How can we reach more people?” The question is “What do we offer that actually matters to someone’s life?”
Answer that with courage and clarity, and watch how much more your marketing dollars do.
Here’s to Finding Your True Voice,
Surale + Laura + Cheryl
P.S. Ready to discover what makes your organization magnetic to new audiences? Let’s find your authentic difference together. hello@thedrmtm.com