Strategic and digital marketing in cultural institutions and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic - a comparative analysis of two case studies

This article investigates the impact of the coronavirus pandemic COVID-19 on marketing within cultural institutions, specifically in the field of digital marketing. The aim is to examine how the pandemic has affected digital strategies, marketing communication, and the performance itself - the presentation of cultural programs. The primary research was conducted in Croatia, using the method of semi-structured in-depth interviews with managers in two cultural institutions in Zadar and Dubrovnik at the end of 2020. A qualitative descriptive analysis was performed to answer the question of how cultural institutions have adapted to the crisis, especially when it comes to the marketing and the performance of cultural programs. The results show a certain degree of flexibility in adapting to the new conditions, in a way that marketing communication after the crisis turned more strongly towards digital media and was followed by adjustments to the cultural programs and their performance, as well as the budget for cultural activities. The marketing digital communication played a key role in this, which proves that cultural management in the era of the pandemic adopted the so-called digital-first paradigm, modeled on the for-profit companies. The authors conclude that culture, as a social need and necessity, will continue its activity after the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but that it will also function in new and creative ways.