One of the major hurdles for most comedians is figuring out how to properly advertise their shows, which is why so many of them don’t bother. Or, even worse, they simply create a social media post and invite everyone they know. While there is no one-size-fits-all method for concert promotion, you can follow the steps listed below to help draw more people to your show.
Understand: Consider who your target audience should be before you market your performance. The venue, the time of the event, the cost of tickets, the length of time you’ll be on stage, the subject of the show, and other factors. Because not every show is made for everyone, not every one of your shows will appeal to every single one of your viewers. With a little thought, you should be able to identify the types of people who are most likely to enjoy your presentation, and they will become your target audience.
Contact: Once you know who your target audience is, it’s much easier to figure out how to contact them. This applies to both online and physical campaigns. If you choose to run social media ads, you may target them quite accurately depending on demographics, region, and hobbies. You can also contact local websites and blogs that might be of interest to your target audience. If you know exactly who you’re trying to reach, it’s not that difficult to figure out how to contact them. If the intended audience for your presentation is people who live within walking distance of the venue, you already know where they can be found. If your target audience has a religious background, you should be able to figure out where they came from. If you’re looking for a stoner scene, you shouldn’t have a hard time locating one.
Offer: Provide a compelling offer to make to your target audience after you’ve figured out who they are and how to contact them. Consider how you can make it more engaging, and do everything you can to make it a must-see event. Discount tickets are one of the most popular services, which is great, but there are a lot of other things you can do instead of offering a discount. If you’re only performing on the show, you could persuade people to come by guaranteeing everyone in attendance a free copy of your album. Or if you’re promoting to people who have already seen you, you could promise that your set would be all-new material. The goal is to provide unique things you can offer in your show that will give people a reason to come to the event other than the promise that you’ll make them laugh. Also, consider what you can do to make the program truly unique something that will set it apart from the competitors if you’re producing it yourself.
Organize: Keep in mind that your concert promotion should be viewed as a long-term campaign rather than a one-time event. Once you’ve attracted people to come to your event, make sure you put on a good show and keep the promises you made in your advertisement. After they’ve seen you once, you want them to want to see you again. This includes people who haven’t seen your show before and haven’t been advertised to. The best way to lay the groundwork for your next event is to put on a fantastic performance and impress your audience.
Connect: As you perform more shows, most comedians feel upset with promotion; but, if you follow this step, your promotion should become a lot easier. When you’re performing, make an effort to connect with the people in the crowd who enjoyed your performance. At the absolute least, invite them to visit your website or connect with you on social media and if possible, motivate them to do so. Too many comedians perform and then walk out the door without identifying themselves with those who enjoyed them and would wish to see them again. This was a huge opportunity that was missed. Consider each of your shows as both the culmination of your prior promotional efforts and the first step toward advertising your next.
Promoting your concerts takes time, patience, and creativity, but it can also be a lot of fun. Now that you’ve figured out how to promote your comedy show, it’s time to get creative. You’ll need a few basics to get started. So get out there and try to get as many people as possible to attend. For more information, contact us.
