Many cultural organisations and makers have started to embrace digitalisation in recent years: from innovative artistic products to online educational platforms and online festival experiences. What is less recognised is that digitalisation is a powerful social tool as well, says Maaike Verberk, director at DEN, in this opinion piece.

The time to reap the benefits is now

We are seeing a slow decline in experimentation with digital activities, particularly among smaller organisations. Now that they need to once again apply the same budgets, costs and output criteria for physical visitors, it becomes impossible for them to continue to serve the remote public properly. This is a real shame, since digital channels undoubtedly proved their worth during the corona pandemic.

In my view, therefore, we should not fully return to the old normal. Indeed, this is the perfect time to reap the benefits of the digital developments prompted by the pandemic. The ways that culture is produced, presented, experienced and archived has radically changed. And the audience is changing with it. The SER recently published a report that shows that a large part of the population has embraced a hybrid lifestyle, including culture.

Digital developments make it possible to serve an audience remotely.

Scope to invest

Digital transformation has opened up opportunities for the cultural sector, and it deserves and requires our continued attention. This is why we, as a sector, must give it a much higher priority. The public has been given a taste of what’s possible and wants more. It also became clear during the pandemic that people who usually do not or are less likely to physically attend cultural events, will link up online.

So digital activities not only attract a younger audience but also a more diverse and more international audience. Through online presentations, organisations can reach audiences for longer periods of time. Creative hotspots emerge where the audience can participate and co-create. This removes physical barriers: digital content results in greater accessibility as well as democratisation. It is also easier for young makers to gain exposure online than on a physical stage. By expanding their range of values, the cultural sector can boost itself from within.

By now it is evident that the cultural sector can increase its social significance by creating digital content for a remote public. Meanwhile, digitalisation is often mentioned in the same breath as an increase in earning power, although this is not a realistic prospect for cultural organisations in the short term.

After all, the general public is not yet used to paying, and therefore not always prepared to pay, the full price for online content. This means that these types of productions rarely manage to cover all the costs. First of all, creating digital content and setting up digital channels requires start-up capital. It also requires the time and space to experiment, let go of old routines and start new collaborations.

To encourage innovation in the cultural sector, we should look beyond the usual four-year cycle.

Overall, organisations should invest in an innovative organisational climate that looks beyond the four yearly subsidy award cycle. Only then can digitalisation result in true digital transformation. This requires a cultural ecosystem that supports digital transformation. In the commercial market it is common for digital business models to go hand in hand with a significant investment period. The cultural sector may be inherently agile but this does not mean that there is no need for more scope to invest and experiment.

A set of values for agility

The expansion of values results in strategic agility and increased social relevance. The Council for Culture recognises this in its recommendations for a recovery and innovation policy to the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science on 4 November 2021. According to the Council, the sector should build on the innovations that were deployed and the partnerships that were established during the pandemic. A strategic innovation agenda is therefore essential. The role of DEN as the driving force and accelerator of the digital transformation has become even more important. A fundamental development of this kind requires more financial resources. Outgoing Minister Van Engelshoven took a step in the right direction on 16 November 2021 by emphasising the importance of an investment budget for digital transformation.

We should not only fully recognise the urgency of digital transformation in the cultural sector, but should also broaden the idea of what this transformation could entail. This means that we first need to fully capitalise on the societal values before paving the way for new business models in the future. This will only succeed if the sector and government take collective action. That way we will be able to fully tap into the potential value creation and take the next step forward into the future.

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Maaike Verberk is algemeen directeur bij DEN en leider van de DEN Academie. Ze zet haar ervaring en netwerk uit de sector in om culturele instellingen te inspireren tot digitaal leiderschap met en een strategische aanpak van digitale innovatie.