Programs > Digital Discoverability Program

Digital Discoverability Program

A screenshot of 6 performing arts events (organized as two rows of square images), with "35 Upcoming Events" written above.
During the 2019-2020 Digital Discoverability Program, the Burlington Performing Arts Centre used Culture Creates' Footlight program (pictured here) to harvest structured event data from their website. Screenshot courtesy of the Linked Digital Future Initiative.

“As an arts organization run with few resources, our energy is spent in conceiving and presenting our events, rather than building up our intrinsic capabilities. Now I see how it all comes together because of CAPACOA membership.”

TK Raghunathan (President, Kabir Centre) on the Digital Discoverability Program

In a world where we rely on Google and Siri to tell us about new artists or upcoming events, publishing a webpage about an artist or event is only the first step toward digital discoverability. The next step is ensuring that these pages meet Web 3.0 requirements. As part of these requirements, they need to have structured data. These specific computer-language codes help machines “see” text, images and other media on a webpage.

Just like humans, machines often ignore web pages that they don’t understand. But with structured data, Google, Siri and many other platforms will more likely recommend your events and introduce your artists to new audiences.

Want to learn how to bring your events and artist profiles into Web 3.0? Consider applying to CAPACOA’s Digital Discoverability Program.

Each year, arts organizations can apply to work one-on-one with the Artsdata team. You will receive a personalized diagnosis of the digital discoverability of your event pages and/or artist profiles. Additionally, you will learn how to boost your SEO and publish structured data on your website.

Nicholas Beach (General Manager, Jeanne and Peter Lougheed Performing Arts Centre) shares his experience of participating in the 2022-2023 Digital Discoverability Program:

For more information, please email the program coordinator Dessa Hayes at dessa.hayes@capacoa.ca.

This program is funded by the Government of Canada and by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Government of Canada and Canada Council for the Arts logos side by side