A Transformative Event
“Soulsearchin’films is a film and theater production company that acts as a platform for youth and young adults within our inner city communities who have a passion for theater arts to hone their skills, build their resumes as performers, and embrace the opportunity to showcase their talent as actors, singers, and dancers,” Dawn Blair told me, this past January, of her Oakland, California based production company.
Events can entertain. They can also transform communities. Ghetto Magnolia, performed early in 2012 was a “gospel stage play production,” Dawn said. “The purpose of the production was to provoke change within the lives of our inner city youth and young adults, through the message of its story line. It was not a fundraiser.”
The story follows Magnolia Brown, an aspiring gospel singer faced with “harsh realities of the ghetto and the redemptive power of God.”
“There was nothing that did not go as planned. The production was a total success,” Dawn said. “The best part of our event was actually seeing the audience enjoying the production as the story unfolded on stage. The turnout was tremendous, and the production was a hit!”
Getting the Good Word Out
In order to get the word out to attendees, Dawn and her team relied heavily on print collateral and word of mouth. They designed posters and flyers using TicketPrinting.com. The stage play was produced on a limited budget. The professionally printed collateral gave it an extra “Bling Factor.”
Relationship sales were also very important to the success of this event. Many tickets were sold in advance. Each cast member was tasked with pursuing advanced ticket sales. With thirty cast members, the ticket sales were sure to be a success. This allowed the cast members to interact with potential attendees as well as promote themselves as performers.
Every Event is Different
The team behind Ghetto Magnolia was pleased with its success. The event was highly attended. The cast, crew, and audience had a great time. For this event, print collateral played a central role, defining the tenor of the event and portraying a professional production.
Some events benefit from a spectrum of marketing efforts. Some will advertise through online social networks and event websites. Others will take to the airwaves, advertising over radio and television or doing the interview circuit. Others will rely solely on word of mouth.
Every event is different, and each event’s success is defined by its organizers and attendees.
Use QR Code Posters to Market Your Website
Who has time to type in an entire website anymore? When you get down to the nitty gritty, it’s just a pain to try to read and memorize all the parts of a URL, and then type them in on your keyboard. It’s even tougher to try to type them into your phone.
If you miss a letter or leave out just one keystroke on the tiny virtual keyboard, you’ll end up, well, who knows where. It is for this very reason that there are high-tech shortcuts out there that save you from keying in the exact address.
One such shortcut, and a sure-fire way to increase traffic to a website, is a QR code. These nifty salt and pepper colored squares are made to be scanned by Smartphones, and they direct anyone who scans them to a predetermined website, chosen by the creator.
The Special Treatment
QR codes are the latest and greatest way to market your product, business, website, or all three. All you have to do is create the QR code, and set it up to take anyone who scans it directly to your website.
If you want to gain some real momentum, create a special offer that corresponds to the QR code, so anyone who scans your code will get some special treatment just for visiting the site. This works well as an incentive for people to explore your business and products more too.
Where Do They Go?
Now that we’ve covered what the QR codes do and how they can help market your business, what about the question of where to put them?
QR Code Posters are made for QR codes. All you have to do is create a code by entering the web address you want the code to link to, save the image of the QR code you’ve generated, and TicketPrinting.com will take care of the rest.
There are literally hundreds of different designs to choose from when it comes to QR Code Posters. You’ll want to pick a unique look that speaks to your brand, and entices people into scanning the QR code that’s displayed with it.
Post-Printing
Once your QR Code Posters are printed, start posting them! Put them up in places you know people are likely to have their phones handy. Two great places are bus stops or the train platforms. Or, if you live in a smaller town, try your local café or community center.
The more people see these easy-to-scan posters, the more people will visit your site and know about your brand.
by Lance on March 21, 2012
Print Marketing: Use Posters and Flyers to Promote Your Business
These days, the Internet dominates many marketing channels. But don’t throw away those hefty catalogs in frustration just yet. Our perceptions of print marketing have changed, but our need for it hasn’t. In fact, it may be just what your business needs.
Here are 6 reasons not to put all your eggs in the e-commerce basket:
- You can’t draw on the Internet. Well, you sort of can. It’s called Paint. However, I can tell you from first-hand experience that it doesn’t match up to Posters or Flyers in all their paper glory. Think random notes, local artist tags, or space for doodling.
- The Internet doesn’t jump out at you. Well, it used to. But thank goodness it doesn’t anymore. And any site that still has pop-up ads is probably going to give you a virus anyway. A bold and colorful Poster will stand out to anyone who passes by.
- Posters and Flyers stick around. Unlike a web page, you can’t close a Flyer when it’s posted to your local café window or bus stop. Flyers get passed on and tend to end up in some pretty interesting places, so they can reach people you never thought possible.
- The Internet doesn’t stay the same. It changes constantly. It even has bugs that prevent it from working properly. I guarantee you’ve never missed a Poster or Flyer due to technical difficulties.
- You can’t pass the Internet out on the street. Again, you sort of can. It’s called Foursquare and people use it to advertise locally. But for those that don’t have Foursquare and for those that do, you can advertise with an interesting Poster or Flyer. No download or plug-in required!
- Posters and Flyers are REAL! Yes, of course the Internet is real. But it’s certainly not physically present in the same way a well designed Poster or Flyer is. Give people something tangible, something they can feel, something they can touch. Give them Posters and Flyers!
With Posters and Flyers, you have the option of choosing from hundreds of templates. You can also create a custom Poster or Flyer that is completely unique to you and your audience. Or if you’d like to add your own, personal touch, choose a template that lets you upload your own image!
by Lance on March 12, 2012
Coffee Rock Live: For the Love of Good Bands
Talent isn’t always enough. Many great artists and musicians lack exposure and audiences miss out. Recognizing this, friends and music lovers Kevin DeMine and Jim Callery joined forces to found Coffee Rock Live. Their organization helps local bands from the Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and Washington DC areas get the recognition they deserve. By promoting local and independent music through online means and local concerts, Coffee Rock Live gives talented bands a much needed boost.
The First Event
The first event of the year took place on February 25th and featured the bands Minimus the Poet, Words On Paper, Evergreen and Jane Rittenhouse. It was “held at a local community hall in Hagerstown, MD where many members of the bands playing were originally from.”
The First Promotion
Kevin explains how the bands were promoted: “Our promotion for this event was done by social media outlets, flyers, and word of mouth. We used Facebook to create events and event notifications, which were sent to each of the bands who were able to invite all of the fans, friends, and families. Flyers were made by a local production company and placed at locations throughout Maryland in which they were appropriate such as coffee houses, open mic nights, and music retailers. By word of mouth associated with the event through its staff, bands, and advance ticket selling we were able to spread the word through much of the local community which assisted the most in helping us reach our goals.”
Coffee Rock Live was able to engage their intended audience through a variety of outlets, online and off. Social media allowed them to reach a wide audience, and it allowed for many people to take place in the promotion. Information about the show could be posted and reposted by others.
For the event, the bands were tasked with selling the tickets themselves. Presales were made at a lower price and allowed the group to gain a better understanding of how many people would be attending the event.
The Night of the Show
“Each of the artists that had performed did a fantastic job and we could not have asked for better,” Kevin says. “The reception to the event was our biggest personal highlight, as most attendees were impressed by how the show was presented. We had also been noted by some of the visitors that it had been the best local show they’d seen in that area.”
Preplanning To Prevent Problems
The show went great, but it didn’t take off without a hitch. There were some issues with timing that first night. The venue wasn’t ready at the expected time. Thanks to good planning, this was only a temporary obstacle. The team had planning meetings before the show and worked with checklists to ensure that foreseeable issues could be dealt with ahead of time.
Kevin also suggests keeping in touch with the talent, saying, “We would suggest making sure that all participants in the event are in contact with the event staff in case there had been any changes in their arrangements.” This ensures everyone is on the same page the day of the event.
by Lance on January 25, 2012
Print Posters and Flyers for Economical Event Promotion
Hosting an event is like putting together the pieces of a puzzle: everything has to fit just right for the finished product to look great. You’ve gotten your sponsors, procured materials for set-up, and sent out invitations to a hefty guest list. But there is something missing from your upcoming event.
For any public event, promotion and advertising are important components. Without promotion, even those who RSVPed and said they would show up may decide to opt out for a more favorable gathering, especially if there is no buzz about your event or party.
The question is, then, what is the best way to promote an event?
Most people have a limited amount of money to spend on advertising, and require a maximum return on their investment. Here are some ways to quickly and easily promote your upcoming event, without breaking the piggy bank.
Go Postal
Print posters and flyers to promote your next event. Put them up around your local event area, or anywhere around town that you can. Choose from hundreds of different templates for specific types of events, or create a custom poster or flyer that is perfect for that one-time special event.
Find out which local businesses will allow you to post your flyers on their community boards. Look up the law in your local area to find out if you can post flyers in places with high pedestrian traffic. For example, bus and train stops are great places hang posters that will catch commuters’ eyes and get them thinking about your event.
Promote your Sponsors
Want an easy way to pay homage to those generous sponsors who’ve given you the means to put on your fabulous event? Upload their logos onto your posters and flyers. Every time someone looks at a poster or flyer, they will be able to instantly recognize the sponsors and can begin to associate them with your event.
It’s easier than it sounds. Many of the templates available for printing posters and flyers already have areas dedicated to uploading images. They’re perfect for sponsor logos. All you have to do is request an image from each sponsor. And there’s no doubt each sponsor will be excited about the prospect of extra publicity for their companies, in addition to the guarantee that more people will hear about and attend your event.
A Transformative Event
