Managing satisfaction in cultural events : exploring the role of core and peripheral product

This paper measures satisfaction with a cultural event following an innovative approach by differentiating between the art form itself (core product) and the main attributes connected with it (augmented product). 122 individuals (out of 820 visitors) were interviewed on their overall satisfaction and on different aspects of their visiting experience. Multivariate techniques such as ANOVA, principal component factor analysis and regression were performed to analyse the data. Results show the importance of both the core and the peripheral product in measuring satisfaction with a cultural event, thereby highlighting their importance for product management in the arts. The small sample, the specificity of the data and the bias of the distribution have prevented further multivariate analysis. A future area of research is on antecedents to customer satisfaction in the arts field. The contribution of peripheral elements to satisfaction should not be underestimated. Despite artists' freedom to produce the work of art, a series of peripheral elements should be designed along with the other variables of the marketing mix in order to adapt and differentiate the artistic production to the target audience. This paper contributes a different perspective to measuring satisfaction in the arts context while considering the role of the core product and its peripherals.