Bluebird Cafe: Managing Success & Building Community
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The Bluebird Cafe is a small Nashville venue that hosts 90 people but receives over 70,000 visitors annually. Founded in 1982, it is known for launching the careers of artists like Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift through its songwriter nights. The Bluebird Cafe manages its growth through revenue opportunities like merchandise and partnerships while staying true to building a supportive community for performers through open mic nights and charity events.
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Bluebird Cafe: Managing Success & Building Community
- 1. THE BLUEBIRD CAFE: MANAGING SUCCESS & BUILDING COMMUNITY JAIME SCORBY | ROB VAN DISSELDORP
- 2. PRESENTERS Marketing Manager, The Bluebird Cafe ROB VAN DISSELDORP Events Manager, The Bluebird Cafe JAIME SCORBY VENDINI MEMBER VENDINI MEMBER
- 3. AGENDA HISTORY OF THE BLUEBIRD CAFE BIG BUSINESS IN A SMALL SPACE BUILDING A COMMUNITY Q&A
- 4. HISTORY OF THE BLUEBIRD CAFE
- 5. HISTORY OF THE BLUEBIRD CAFE • 1982: Founded by Amy Kurland • 1984: “Writers Night” debuts • 1985: “In the Round” shows debut • 1987: “Open Mic” nights are added to the schedule
- 6. HISTORY OF THE BLUEBIRD CAFE • 1987: Garth Brooks fills in for an absent performer for “Writers Night” • 2008: Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) become owners • 2012: “Nashville” debuts on ABC
- 7. MUSICIANS WHO HAVE PERFORMED AT THE BLUEBIRD CAFE (THE SHORT LIST) • Garth Brooks • Taylor Swift • Toby Keith • Kathy Mattea • LeAnn Rimes • John Prine • Dierks Bentley • Faith Hill • Kris Kristofferson • Deanna Carter • Kix Brooks • Kenny Chesney • Steve Earle • Emmylou Harris • Townes Van Zandt • Guy Clark • Carole King • Vince Gill • Amy Grant • Shelby Lynne • Suzy Bogguss • Dave Grohl
- 8. BIG BUSINESS IN A SMALL SPACE
- 9. BIG BUSINESS IN A SMALL SPACE • Manage Growth • Look for revenue-generating opportunities • Seek out trusted partners • Stay True To The Mission • Never forget (or exploit) your supporters • Meet expectations, but don’t be afraid to try new things
- 10. BIG BUSINESS IN A SMALL SPACE • Located in a small, unassuming strip mall outside of downtown Nashville • Entire venue seats just 90 patrons • Receives over 70,000 visitors a year
- 11. BIG BUSINESS IN A SMALL SPACE • Sources of revenue • Traditional food and beverage sales • Merchandise • Corporate Partnerships • Private Events
- 13. BUILDING COMMUNITY • A process designed to develop talent as a community • Open Mic Night • Writers Night • Early Shows • Late Shows
- 14. BUILDING COMMUNITY • Respect both the audience and the performers • Silence is golden • Fair pay for performers
- 15. BUILDING COMMUNITY • Charity and benefit shows • Online • Social Media • Email lists
- 16. RESOURCES • bluebirdcafe.com • facebook.com/bluebirdcafetn • instagram.com/bluebirdcafetn • twitter.com/bluebirdcafeTN
- 17. THANK YOU JAIME SCORBY| JAIME@BLUEBIRDCAFE.COM ROB VAN DISSELDORP | ROB@BLUEBIRDCAFE.COM
Editor's Notes
- AG NOTES: Please go into some detail about the history of each of these bullets. Explain the differences between these types of shows (AG NOTE: don’t go to far into detail – we’ll cover that later in the presentation when we talk about the process for how one graduates from each type of performance to the next)
- AG NOTES: 1987: Garth Brooks fills in for an absent performer for “Writers Night”: Please mention that he got his first record deal with Captiol Records the very next day on the strength of his performance. 2008:Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) become owners: Talk about how/why Amy Kurland transferred ownership to a nonprofit organization. Also, please talk about what it means to operate a business like Bluebird as a nonprofit (Many Vendini members are non-profits and this will be particularly interesting to them). 2012: “Nashville” debuts on ABC: Talk about the important role Bluebird plays on the show.
- AG NOTE: SUGGESTED QUOTE: “As you can see, the caliber of the talent we attract here is simply beyond comparison. In addition to these household names, we’ve also featured thousands of talented songwriters on our stage since 1982.”
- AG NOTES: MANAGE GROWTH: Please talk about the following: The role of commerce in running a non-profit business. How your mission is to support and develop talent and serve your audiences, but how that is only possible by also making sure you’re generating revenue. How important it is to work with corporate partners who share your values How it’s crucial to grow at a pace you can control STAY TRUE TO THE MISSION: Never forget (or exploit) your supporters: Talk about how important it is to honor and value your patrons and community Specifically mention that there is no cover for early shows and that you intentionally keep ticket prices low Meet expectations, but don’t be afraid to try new things: Talk about the importance of delivering the kind of experience the audience expects, but also how you should remain open minded to trying to find new ways to improve the experience.
- AG NOTES: Located in a small, unassuming strip mall outside of downtown Nashville: Talk about how Bluebird grew into being such an iconic venue without being in a “prime location” Entire venue seats just 90 patrons: Talk about how you handle things like ticketing (would love a plug for Vendini here), line management and seating for a venue thats audience exceeds its physical capacity Receives over 70,000 visitors a year: Talk about how you manage to receive this many visitors a year.
- AG NOTES: SOURCES OF REVENUE: Please talk about the role of commerce in running a non-profit business. Discuss how your mission is to support and develop talent and serve your audiences, but how that is only possible if you’re generating revenue. 1. Traditional food and beverage sales: Talk about how dinner shows and beverage sales help contribute to the bottom line 2. Merchandise: Talk about how Bluebird Café merchandise contributes to the bottom line. Also, please talk about the benefits of selling merch online in addition to on-premises. 3. Corporate Partnerships: Talk about how corporate partnerships such as the Epiphone signature guitar can help bring in revenue as well as build your brand. 4. Special Events: Talk about the kinds of private events you book. Please mention the American Girl Nashville Doll launch party, as well as talking about things like weddings.
- AG NOTE: The top level message here is that you help foster community by having performers engage in a process where they earn their stage time. And that the process guarantees they spend time with each other learning more about the craft from their peers. AG NOTE: Please describe the following: Exactly how your process works for booking performers How artists work their way up from Open Mics to to showcases to Late Shows. How mentorship from seasoned musicians helps develop the talent of younger performers One anecdote about a performance where you saw experienced and developing performers playing together and having a sort of magical momement Wrap it up by talking about how important Bluebird is to the professional recording industry: how it’s the go-to spot for Nashville A&R people, how labels develop their artists at showcases there, and how it’s a place where pro session players congregate to check each other out as well as perform themselves.
- Respect both the audience and the performers: Discuss how the community you’ve built depends on both the audience and the musicians. Silence is golden: Talk about how the culture (and the rules) of Bluebird insist on people not chatting during the performances, and how that culture of respectfully listening to the music improves the experience for everyone. Fair pay for performers: Talk about how (and why) performers keep 100% of the cover charge.
- AG NOTES Online communities: “Digital tools help us connect with our fans and help build our community not just online, but in the real world as well. Social Media: Talk about how the key is to provide meaningful content that really tells your story and makes people feel connected to your venue. You can also mention Bluebird can reach more than 240,000 people through your own social media properties Email lists: Talk about the power and the value of maintaining a good email list. Mention that you make signing up for your email list and social media accounts an option on every single page of your website. ”When you make it easy for people to follow you, they will” Charity and benefit shows: Talk about how providing a space for charities to host benefits lets you give back to the community that supports your venue (and how that goodwill is good for both business and the soul) Describe a few meaning benefits you’ve hosted (for example: “Alive at the Bluebird” concert series benefiting Alive Hospice, collaboration with the Nashville Ballet for “The Attitude Series”)