Marketing the Arts: A Quantitative Literature Review

[PRE-RELEASED VERSION]

François Colbert, Alain d’Astous, Pierre Lamoureux

François Colbert is full professor of marketing at HEC Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada, where he holds the Carmelle and Rémi Marcoux Chair in Arts Management.
Alain d’Astous (PhD, University of Florida) is Emeritus Professor of marketing at HEC Montréal and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
Pierre Lamoureux is a lecturer in marketing at HEC Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada and a Ph.D. Candidate at Concordia University.

ABSTRACT
Artistic directors play a crucial role in the performing arts sector, often portrayed in literature as revered visionaries with little interest in the business operations of arts organizations that employ them. Such organizations prepare and This article offers a quantitative mapping of how arts marketing research has developed over several decades. Using a systematic review of 849 peer-reviewed articles (1980-2022), we chart the field’s progression in terms of outlet dispersion, authorship patterns, thematic focus, research contexts, and methodological approaches. The evidence points to steady growth, broader diffusion across journals and geographies, and expanding collaboration, consistent with arts marketing’s increasing legitimacy within the wider marketing discipline. We also observe shifts in topical emphasis alongside greater methodological pluralism, even as recurring issues in study design and reporting indicate room to strengthen rigor. While work originating from Anglophone institutions remains prominent, contributions from diverse regions are becoming more visible, suggesting plural pathways for theorizing and practice. We conclude that arts marketing has consolidated as a distinct, interdisciplinary area and outline directions to deepen theoretical originality, broaden epistemic diversity, and tighten links between research and practice.
KEYWORDS
Arts marketing; quantitative literature review; research evolution; legitimacy; cultural marketing; academic publishing