Help working parents rekindle their relationships

The New York Times recently reported that the average age of audience members at the Metropolitan Opera is 57, a number that has steadily risen for the past several decades. Where are the 30- and 40-year olds? Many of them are busy parenting. According to Pew Research Center, approximately 50% of millennials were parents in 2018.

According to the Care.com 2019 Cost of Care survey, American families are cutting back substantially on other expenses in order to be able to afford child care costs, which have tripled since 1990. Expenses such as entertainment or date nights are likely at the top of the list.

Let’s imagine ourselves in the shoes of millennial parents who live in the Boston area. To attend a performance at the Boston Lyric Opera, their expenses would include tickets, parking, and dinner. Add 4-5 hours of babysitting, and that’s a pretty expensive night out (especially in light of the financial challenges that millennials face, including declining net worth, decreasing annual earnings, and rising student debt):

At first glance, the problem of attracting working parents in their 30s and 40s to the opera seems insurmountable. But Jobs to Be Done theory allows arts organizations to think outside the box and grow their audiences in innovative ways.

Millennial parents want date night and time away from their kids, but they’re facing an obstacle. In a nutshell, their Job to Be Done in this circumstance is "Help me plan a sophisticated night out that fits into our budget so I can rekindle my relationship with my spouse and feel more connected to them.”

Arts administrators can target this potential audience by thinking about how they can help them solve this problem or remove this obstacle. What if the Boston Lyric Opera could eliminate the largest line item of that date night price tag by offering complimentary or low cost childcare? Obviously the logistics would be complex, but fitness clubs have figured out how to offer this benefit all over the country. The BLO might explore a partnership with a local respected daycare who could open their facilities in the evening on certain dates. Staffed with licensed, trained, and experienced childcare workers, the facility could offer pizza and ice cream, then show a movie or provide activities for the children. There might even be an opportunity to weave in some educational outreach with opera or music education programming.

Rather than pigeonholing millennial parents as unreachable nonconsumers, Jobs to Be Done theory provides a framework that allows arts organizations to see them as an opportunity for innovation.