For the May/June LEGACY shows, we usually like to begin marketing and promotion early in the game. If the show opens at the end of May for example, I don’t want to begin marketing at the end April. That would be like tossing a rope around your neck because you’ll spend more time stressing and you will drive yourself insane trying to sell so many seats in a single month. We have a unique approach and plan of action when selling our show to the public.
The secret to having a successful marketing campaign is simple: “Show them what you’re going to show them”. There are many performers out there (some, who I’ve met personally) that advertise this and that plus a bag of chips & a footlong on paper and the web but when you see their product LIVE, you never get the chips or the footlong. In other words, they offered something they don’t have. That’s a turn-off to people and that is why many show-goers are careful about what they buy. In my opinion, the best thing to do is to show new, prospect audiences your product upfront. I like to advertise the show and myself by showcasing some of the work LIVE. I don’t know how effective handing out a flyer alone is. I’m not discrediting paper advertisement by any means; we use paper and web advertisement too. However, we accompany our paper advertisement with a live performance most of the time. When I tell people what I do the reaction is something like “Oh, nice… “
When I show them a video clip of the live performances their reaction is very different. They say something along “Oh My God!!! This is serious!!! Wow!! “ and then they ask for show dates, times, ticket prices etc. which is what I’m aiming for; keep them wanting more. It’s the approach that is the key to selling tickets, not the flashy flyers and the online marketing alone.
February 19th is our first “official” promotional show for the 2011 shows. Then, we move into the March promo-shows beginning the 5th and 6th. These are brand new audiences that are going to experience a sample of the pie. If they want more, they are going to have to come see us at SteppingStone. After our promo-shows, we like to stick around, mingle, take photos with members of the audience and hand out flyers and business cards with our contact info. New opportunities tend to arise from these shows and that you can’t pass up.
As I said before, I am not anti-print advertisement. I just like to enhance it with the real deal up-front. I want for people to feel confident about buying tickets to see our shows. For the 2011 season, we are sending 10,000 full color flyers to the printers followed by 500 color 18x24 posters that will be distributed at nightclubs, dance schools, dance studios, universities, theatres and just about anywhere else we know it may look appealing to MJ and non-MJ fans.
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| Marques Mathias (Marketing Director & Dancer) |
Marques Mathias is the director of marketing (as well a a dancer for LEGACY) and so far, we are on schedule and I’m very confident in Marques's work. He is always on top of things and marketing is the key to selling the show. As a matter of fact, tickets are not on sale yet and there have been several large orders for tickets by a few groups. It’s nice to know we have people who know what they’re doing and groups who are eager to get tickets reserved. We are expecting a large number of pre-sales based on last year’s reaction to the show. Last June, tickets were pre-selling at a high rate even before we moved into the theatre the week before the shows. We owe this success to our team, our dancers, the fans and the marketing tactics we have set in place to make sure we make the most of our time at SteppingStone. The more tickets we sell, the more we donate to such a great cause.
And that is your LEGACY Marketing 101.
-LC
-LC
Marketing materials & artwork by Luis Castillo
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Above: front and back of flyers (4.25x6)
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| Business Card |
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| Business Card |
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| Poster design is currently in production |
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