Marketing Workflows for Small Arts Nonprofits – How to Do More with Less

Picture it.

It’s 2025, and you’re a performing arts nonprofit with four part-time employees. You’re about to launch a world-premiere musical theater production for children, Papa’s Pagris. You have seven months until opening night, a tiny marketing budget, and about a million things on your plate.

How do you get eyes on your pre-production efforts? And, most importantly, how do you get butts in seats?

With limited staff and a marketing budget that wouldn’t even cover a Broadway latte, you need a workflow that maximizes time, minimizes effort, and actually moves the needle.

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Step 1: Leverage AI for Initial Outreach (a.k.a. Work Smarter, Not Harder)

Since you’re a savvy marketer, you already identified potential community partnerships last year when planning your 2025-2026 season. Now it’s time to reach out!

💡 AI Hack: Use ChatGPT (yes, the paid version is worth the $20/month) to draft outreach emails, social media posts, and even a press release.

Prompt ChatGPT like this:

"I'm reaching out to potential partners for our upcoming show Papa’s Pagris. We want to invite them to bring their constituents to our Pay What You Can Night in September and join our show-specific mailing list. We’ll share a new section of our teacher’s guide each month and exclusive behind-the-scenes content on BlueSky. Can you write three emails (sent over three months) that build excitement and FOMO, three social media posts they can copy and paste, and a press release that ties this into our mission?"

✅ Your outreach now includes: 

✔️ An invite to a Pay What You Can Night 

✔️ A show-specific mailing list to build engagement

✔️ A behind-the-scenes BlueSky page to share exclusive content

✔️ Social media posts partners can easily share

🚀 Time Saved: 3-4 hours of drafting and editing.

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Step 2: Automate Your Outreach (Set It and Forget It!)

Once you have your beautifully crafted emails, schedule three waves of outreach leading up to the event:

📅 Email 1 (Now): Initial announcement + invitation

📅 Email 2 (3 months out): Reminder with teaser content (video, rehearsal photos)

📅 Email 3 (1 month out): Last call—FOMO kicks in!

💡 Bonus AI Hack: Ask ChatGPT to generate three social media posts for partners to copy and paste. Make it easy for them, and they’ll be more likely to share.

🚀 Time Saved: 5+ hours of writing and scheduling.

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Coming up next:

We’re just getting started! In Part 2, we’ll cover press & publicity, content repurposing, and how to turn one workday into a seven-month marketing campaign.

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Your Turn: What’s the biggest time-waster in your nonprofit marketing workflow? Drop it in the comments! 👇

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**The Papa's Pagris example draws inspiration from Enchantment Theatre Company’s beautiful production of Mommy’s Khimar, a vibrant theatrical experience celebrating culture, imagination, and identity. If you’re looking for a magical, family-friendly show that brings stories to life through movement, masks, and puppetry, be sure to check out their incredible work. Learn more at enchantmenttheatre.org.