Episode 257 - Betty Brennan talks about combining art and business, mission-based storytelling and exit strategies

Betty Brennan is the Founder and Ambassador of Taylor Studios, co-founding the company over 30 years ago. After obtaining her MBA from Missouri State University, Betty has been focusing on the business side of creativity. With a strong background in nature and history and with a distinct appreciation of art, Betty has been making the financial calls to keep a creative business running and create immersive, educational experiences for all generations. In this interview, Betty talks about combining art and business, mission-based storytelling, and exit strategies. 

Combining Art and Business

 

"Sometimes, working within the box can require you to be creative."

 

When it comes to combining these two different worlds, Taylor Studios prides themselves on having the ‘Business Mind’ right at the start of a project. By maintaining several processes for quality control and assurance as well as keeping the door open for communication and collaboration, Taylor Studios keeps their clients’ mind at ease. 

 

The world of art and business, although different, do cross over more than one would expect. As an artist, it’s important to know the project management process, making sure the client is happy and understanding the barriers of communication and how to meet a deadline. The same goes for the project management and business roles, as it’s important to know how a creative mind functions and how to incorporate that into a schedule and budget. 

Mission-Based Storytelling

 

“We want to transform the visitor into another time and place.”

 

Every story has to have a purpose, and pinpointing that exact purpose to help push a narrative is beyond important within experience creation, especially when it involves educational experiences with a goal to give the guest a new understanding of the world and deliver a call to action, something many museums and educational experience clients are constantly on the search for. 

 

Ultimately, people don’t visit a museum to gain a bigger understanding of one specific topic. Guests come to these experiences to have a fun day out and enjoy their time, so knowing your audience is key. By creating immersive experiences and intense scenery, you can truly engage the guest and tell them a story in such a unique way that they naturally feel obligated to follow your mission. 

Exit Strategies

 

"You have to have good business practices so your business can go on without you."

 

An exit strategy is incredibly important as unfortunately, not all ideas work. Having a plan B, or even C is critical in helping grow yourself and keeping the community you created. Having those basic business practices in place will drastically benefit you when it comes time to say goodbye to your business.

 

By keeping those doors open, prosperity and growth continues within the ideas and models you made, not only keeping people happy, but also keeping people growing even without you. By preserving your company, you also preserve all the documentation, processes, and most importantly, people that made your company so great. 

To learn more about Taylor Studios, you can visit their website  To reach out to Betty directly, you can connect with her on LinkedIn.

 

This podcast wouldn't be possible without the incredible work of our amazing team:

• Scheduling and correspondence by Kristen Karaliunas
• Branding and design by Fabiana Fonseca
• Summary by Mason Nichols

 

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