by Allison Delatte
A year ago, a small Steering Committee launched an Artsopolis-based events web site for Hampton Roads. The Artsopolis concept started in Silicon Valley, California, and had spread to a handful of regions across the country. Your757.com was the seventh, launched as a full-service arts, sports and entertainment event site.
Now Your757.com has 60 members and is governed under corporate bylaws by a regional Board of Directors awaiting IRS word on its 501c3 application. The site has listed more than 3,300 events and logged over 120,000 visits from all over the United States as well as 136 other countries/territories in its first year.
The Artsopolis network has continued to spread, now with a presence in 18 regions, most recently in Boston, Philadelphia and Ft. Lauderdale.
“We are very pleased with our first year of operation, with successes in many areas, despite the woeful national economy that has affected many events-producing organizations,” said Gus Stuhlreyer of the Virginia Opera, chairman of Your757.com.
Other officers and committee chairs are Nancy Perry of the Portsmouth Museums, vice chair; Bert Schmidt of WHRO, Nominating Committee chair; Mark Hough of the Mariners Museum, Membership Committee chair; Erika Guess of the Contemporary Arts Center of Virginia, Marketing Committee chair; and Rob Cross of the Virginia Arts Festival, Finance Committee chair.
As a nonprofit organization founded by the Downtown Norfolk Council with generous support from the Norfolk Foundation, Your757.com has worked hard at outreach and has formed partnership with several community institutions, including WVEC TV 13, Sinclair Radio, CW27 TV, Hampton Roads Magazine, with discussions with other organizations in the works.
In April, WHRO radio launched a new feature called Your757.com Minute, giving on-air exposure to major events coming up for each weekend. Your757.com’s distinctive logo, including the every event/every day slogan, has been displayed on outdoor advertising boards, the Admobile, and banners as numerous outdoor events like the Boardwalk Art Show.
“Community partnerships are the lifeblood of Your757.com,” Nancy Perry said. “We are working in a win-win environment to benefit our partners and to broaden and deepen support of arts, sports and entertainment events throughout Hampton Roads.
The Membership and Marketing Committees are collaborating on a membership campaign for membership renewals on July 1 and for new members.
“Signing up members was a difficult task a year ago, when we were a brand new unproven community service,” Mark Hough said. “But now we have an established track record and a broad audience. And we have even more potential to use additional features on the site and provide even greater services to our members and site visitors. The future is unlimited.”
Allison Delatte is the Program Manager for Your757.com, the all-inclusive resource for “what to do” and “where to go” in Hampton Roads, Virginia. Your757.com is a project of the Arts & Entertainment Marketing Partnership of Hampton Roads (AEMP) – a nonprofit program. Your757.com is also a member of the Artsopolis Network, a growing number of member licensees dedicated to effectively promoting Arts and Culture in their communities.