In September of 2016, RTÉ received the 25th Anniversary Special Award from Allianz Business to Arts. The accolade was a proud moment for RTÉ, which strives to keep the arts at the core of the organisation and features the best of the arts across television, radio and online with specific programmes like Arena each evening on RTÉ Radio 1 and The Works Presents on television.
Beyond this, there is RTÉ Supporting the Arts, a concept borne in the '90s which has evolved and grown to where it is today. Through the support it offers, the scheme gives a leg-up to festivals, groups, galleries and theatre companies, adding an important extra dimension to RTÉ’s arts output.
So, how does it work? Quite simple really. Carefully managed by a small committee who meet every month or so, the STA scheme is a labour of love. Each and every application is reviewed and support is offered to the successful applicants, by way of advertising airtime or on any (or all) of RTÉ radio, television and online at RTE.ie.
Promotions are made in-house, in most instances, so the recipients can focus their energies on their own events, leaving the campaign in the hands of the STA committee. Each event is also promoted via @rte on all core social media platforms – a boon for clients, with @rte on Twitter alone boasting almost 390,000 followers.
Seeing the impact of STA on the events we support is hugely gratifying. Promotion on a national platform can dramatically change the fate of the scheme’s clients - clients who, otherwise, might never have been in a position to consider a planned advertising campaign, much less a campaign on a national scale.
"The support of RTÉ Supporting the Arts has been invaluable to us", says Al Russell, Marketing Manager with The Ark, a dedicated cultural centre for children. "As an arts organisation, dedicated to creating and presenting work for children aged 2-12, we would never be able to afford the level of advertising exposure that the scheme can give us access to.”
Muireann Sheahan from Poetry Ireland adds that “the in-kind advertising support offered to us through the scheme is extremely generous, and has allowed us to reach vast numbers of people that we would never have had the resources to reach otherwise. It makes a significant and measurable difference to ticket sales, website hits and word of mouth buzz.”
In 2016 alone, STA supported over 100 events across Ireland, both north and south, and particularly aims to remain accessible to small, community-based organisations. All genres are welcome and to date STA has supported opera, street art, children’s literature, Polish cultural festivities and shades of everything in between.
Applying couldn’t be easier; just log on here and complete a short online application form. We can’t wait to hear from you!
