Below is the full data from the audience surveys that we carried out over recent months for members to make use of as they wish as well as a short summary of the main results from each. Click on the links to the files to inspect the original data, a summary of the results for each questions and full list of individual comments in response to the question “What would make you more likely to attend a folk club?".

We should all remember that this survey was designed in part to establish why some people don’t go to folk clubs, and what would make them go and/or go more often. On that basis the responses to some of the questions might appear unfairly critical of clubs and organisers BUT please remember that the questions were designed to try to establish such criticisms so that the network can consider them and decide what may or may not be done about them in the future.

As you will have seen from Sophie Dennis’s recent poll there are a good number of organisers and artist/organisers in the group and we know, because a lot of us have been there and/or still are there, that the existing guest booking clubs (and we believe that there are slightly more than 200 in the UK currently which book guests , weekly, fortnightly, monthly and less frequently), would not exist without the hard work of a substantial group of dedicated hard working volunteers that organise the clubs that so many of us enjoy so much.

So, please accept that these surveys were conducted to try to establish any issues, that addressed, could possibly help to strengthen individual clubs, regions, and a national network for Guest Booking Folk Clubs.

John Richards

11 Nov 2011

FESTIVAL SURVEY DATA

Surveys carried out at UK folk festival during summer 2011

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/FestivalSurveyExcelData.xls

(Excel) Full data, including text responses

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/FestivalSurveyFullSummary.pdf (PDF)

Full festival survey results summary

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/FestivalSurveyQ17.pdf (PDF)

Individual responses to Q17 “What would make you more likely to attend a folk club?" on the Festival Survey

ONLINE SURVEY DATA

Survey carried out online Sep - Nov 2011. Participants were self=selecting.

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/OnlineSurveyData.xls (Excel)

Full data, including text responses

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/OnlineSurveySummary.pdf (PDF)

Summary of the online survey

http://www.bryancreer.com/UKFCN/FCNdata/OnlineSurveyQ16.pdf (PDF)

Individual responses to Q18 “What would make you more likely to attend a folk club?" of the online survey

QUICK SUMMARY: Festival Survey

• 66 responses
• Almost 50 / 50 male /female
• 39% 55 to 64, 23%, 35 to 44, 19% 45 to 54.
• 64% working, 26% retired, 5% students
• 50% play and / or sing themselves of which 67% are amateur.
• The following venues achieved the listed attendance percentages of the people surveyed:- Folk Clubs 79%, Theatres 67%,Arts Centres 56%, Acoustic nights 44%, Open mics 26%, House concerts 24%.
• The music enjoyed by percentage of people was -- Traditional 91%, Acoustic 82%, Contemporary 74%, Americana 53%, World 46%, Blues 38%.
• 20% visited a venue weekly and 32% monthly.
• 20% of the people surveyed were prepared to travel 15 to 20 miles to a gig, 20%, 10 to 15 miles and 20% only 1 to 5 miles.
• Over 90% of people would look at an artist’s website if they had enjoyed them at a festival to see where else they are playing.

Matters that arose as important (at least) were:-

• Good quality guests and floor singers
• Regular guests
• Type and quality of venue
• Location of venue
• Club website
• Well organised club
• Ticket prices
• Good sound
• Individual comments appear later and also in their entirety with the original data.
• Major reasons for not going to a folk club were:-
• No known clubs in the local area
• Unwelcoming, uncomfortable venues.
• Some venues are cliquey and unfriendly.

QUICK SUMMARY: Online Survey

• 268 responses
• 63% male
• 37% 55 to 64, 22% 45 to 54, 16% 35 to 44.
• 67% working, 20% retired, 5% students.
• 79% play of which 55% are Amateur.
• The following venues achieved the listed attendance percentages of the people surveyed:- Folk Clubs 87%, Theaters 61%, Arts Centres 59%, Acoustic nights 56%, Open mic 47%, House concerts 22%.
• 90% of people would look at an artist’s website for details of gigs etc.
• The music enjoyed was - Traditional 89%, Contemporary 85%, Acoustic 75%, Americana 41%, World 33%, Blues, 35%.
• 61% made weekly visits to watch or play and 24% monthly visits.
• 55% were happy to travel over 30 miles to a gig.

In response to the “What would make you go more often?” question the following percentages were achieved:-

• Better welcome 66%
• More inclusion 53%
• Better known guests 50%
• More comfortable venues 49%
• Better sound 43%
• Better organization 42%
• Better floor singers 41%
• Summary of Salient Individual Comments from the two surveys (in no order of preference)
• Good venue and surroundings with a friendly, welcoming atmosphere (Less cliquey).
• Good organization and time keeping (e.g. finish by 11.00pm)
• Good variety of artists, Young and old, Better Quality more important than Better Known, not the same acts every year; include new acts on the scene.
• Good sound and lighting.
• Opportunities to learn, playing and singing, workshops etc attached to the club (Lewes Saturday Club for example)
• Up to date club website – able to buy tickets on line to save being turned away.
• The reintroduction of a sense of humour.
• Childcare, acceptance of children in to clubs, concessions (Young and old (given that 20% plus in each survey are retired – JR)
• Better advertising of what’s on where – On Line can be chaotic and not all clubs have good websites – or are area coordinated. A central website listing regional events is needed.
• Quality of guest, floor singers and organisers.
• The removal of the fear of it being a club and having to be a member etc.
• The end of the use of PA equipment which separates guests from the audience.

Future Action

The Focus Group will obviously be considering all of the points made but we would also appreciate your thoughts on the survey results and any of the issues that have been highlighted. I suspect there will be some very interesting discussion over the forthcoming days, the conclusions of which we can hopefully incorporate in existing and future initiatives.

The more people that have an interest in Guest Booking Folk Clubs that read this summary and the raw data and make comments the better so if you have friends, associates or contacts that would have an interest in this, and would be happy to be added to this Facebook Group, now would be a very good time for that to happen please.