From print to radio, from television to the internet, the medium for selling event tickets seems to be ever evolving. While the internet appears to be the frontier of the future, the focus has shifted from traditional web advertising. Promoting your event tickets through a web site is still essential, yes, but now it’s a part of a larger movement, that of social media marketing.

            Aside from being fairly easy to implement, social media marketing is also extremely inexpensive.  No matter the cost, though, you want to get a return on your investment, be it money or time. Here are a few aspects to focus on when using social media marketing to sell your event tickets:

·      Frequency

·      Interaction

·      Quantity vs. Quality

·      Integration

These four items are key to being successful as you jump into the world of social media.

Like Clockwork

            Part of the appeal of using social media platforms for marketing is the frequency with which you can send out your message. Web users are constantly looking for new information, and sites like Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter allow you to give them that information. You need to mention your event tickets as frequently as possible, so your promotion doesn’t get lost in the constant information stream.

            Remember, all news is important in the social media world.  If you’ve just designed your event tickets, mention it online. Even if you’ve just started considering what your event tickets should look like, bring that up. Frequent updates engage your audience and make the process more personal, no matter how tiny the detail might be.           

A Part of the Team

            The internet allows you to interact with your audience like no other medium and social media sites take this to the next level.  That germ of an idea for the design of your event tickets? See what your audience thinks. Invite them into the process. You don’t have to listen to their suggestions; you just have to ask for them. The simple act of listening to your audience will draw them in.

            Get them talking. Allow comments on your posts on sites like Blogger and WordPress. Create a posting board. Encourage discussion on every aspect of your event, from the aforementioned event tickets to reviews afterwards. Getting them to come back for updates is great, but getting them to come back because they want to interact is even better.

Playing the Odds

            When promoting your event tickets online, try to cast as wide of a net as possible. Networking can spread like wildfire, as one connections links you to another who links you to another and so on. Your target demographic for event tickets is simply your first audience, but they are certainly not your last. Once you connect with them, you can expect your message to spread.

            If you’re creating compelling content about your event tickets, your updates will get passed along from person to person, and suddenly a link to your site is popping up everywhere. This makes up your expanded audience, those who end up visiting your site and investigating your event tickets because they saw a link somewhere.

            It’s the grapevine of the 21^st century!

Headquarters

            It is absolutely essential that, while promoting your event tickets, you have all of your online interactions point back to your web site. Your latest status update may be interesting enough to gain you new fans, but unless they are following you back to your web site, it won’t translate into event ticket sales.

            The process works both ways. It easier than ever to imbed your social media updates into your web site. You want to make sure that anyone who comes to your site directly can also follow you through other sites. Once they add you as a friend or a follower, they indirectly become a part of your marketing team!

            Social media marketing is a cost effective, high traffic way of selling more of your event tickets. With just a little bit of time and effort, you can receive a big return on your small investment!

How to Make Virtual Friends and Influence People is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

8. Track and analyze readers
Invest in some tracking software to understand traffic to your sites. You can start with free services like Google Analytics or Stat Counter to determine which of your blogs gets the most traffic, where your visitors come from, and which pages they like best. Later, you may want to pay for more advanced tracking. Figure out what your fans want so you can provide more of it! Tracking software also provides keyword analysis, so you can see how people are finding your blog in the first place.

9. Find subscribers
Your fans need know when new content is posted so they can connect immediately. RSS feeds are the easiest way to notify fans of new posts. Once you have the feed set up, display the RSS feed button prominently on your blog in many different places. Some users like to be notified by email. You can collect email addresses and send your updated blog out directly. To increase your fan base, offer contests that encourage fans to sign up for your RSS feed: give away tickets or VIP passes to your next event, posters of your album cover, shirts, or other merchandise. Above all, make signing up easy! It should only take one click to get weekly updates.

10. Create a Conversation
You’ve got to allow comments on your blog. Interesting discussions indicate an active fan base; a blog with zero comments on every post appears unpopular and discourages followers. Ask questions in the conclusion of each post to encourage reader responses. Get the ball rolling by asking a friend to write an interesting or controversial comment on your first post. Then, respond to your comments. Readers want to know their voices are being heard, and they feel more connected to the band when they hear back from you. Comment on other blogs, including forums and chats (see #4). Always include a link back to your own blog so casual readers can follow you home and become fans.

11. Avoid Routine.
Many readers lose interest when confronted with pages of pure text. Add the occasional funny YouTube video, unique MP3, screenshot of a website you discuss, or photo of your guitar. Anything that breaks up the text and requires a second glance will boost your blog’s appeal. Consider occasionally changing the type of blogs you write. Every once in a while, make your blog a video-blog. Just film yourself narrating the blog and upload it to YouTube. Create a music video and advertise it through your blog. Consider hosting a guest-blogger every once in a while (maybe the drummer thinks he can write better than you). Inviting band-mates, other musicians, or club promoters to share their opinions gives the readers a different point of view. If you’re then asked to become a guest blogger on their sites, the cross-linking can provide a boost in traffic.

12. Build a brand.
Differentiate your blog! Make sure it is recognized as your blog, not just another page on the web. Promote your blog in as many different ways as you can. Bring it up at performances and to friends. Put your blog on business cards, your website, and social networking sites.

These 12 surefire steps will get you started as a successful blogger and help you to develop a loyal fan base. Just remember your audience and keep them satisfied. Then watch your work pay off as you achieve popularity online and with your musical career!

Taking it to the Web: Band Blogs (Part 2 of 2) is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

1. There can be only one!

stand-out

Your band is unique. Play your individuality up online. You’re real people with real messages for your fans. They want to know who you are. Add links talking about your history, including how you got together, your history and influences as a band, and personal biographies of every band member. Create new content available only on your site, like behind-the-scene photos and videos. All you need is a digital camera and someone to follow you around documenting your gig, rehearsal, or trip to the store to buy new guitar strings. Album artwork, upcoming performance schedules, lists of your favorite philosophers, and even snapshots of yourselves as small children all constitute high-interest content.

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2. Talk to Me!

The Internet isn’t a one-way street. Once you start promoting yourself online, you need to provide an easy way for booking agents or promoters to reach you: your contact information. Don’t post your personal email address on the site unless you love unsolicited junk mail. Instead, designate an account just for band-related correspondence and post that information in a prominent place. If possible, make the “Contact Us” link a different color than the rest of the page. A corner of the page is a good place for this information. When you add this address, you can expect a certain amount of junk email to hit your inbox, but don’t worry! If spammers can find your site, so can real people. Services such as Gmail have excellent spam filters, and eventually your target audience will find you.

3. Feel the Love!

Toot your own horn. You’re musicians after all. Whenever your band makes the news or receives a positive review online, be sure you link to it so everyone sees how popular you are, and how people besides your mom think you’re great. Make sure to save these reviews to your hard drive, too. Sometimes sites fold or take down old content. You can always repost reviews (with permission and attributions) and other testimonials on your own pages. In addition, you can create an RSS feed so your fans can sign up to receive updates any time new content is posted on your website, blog, or news feed. When people are talking about you, that’s free publicity! Your website can turn up the volume on the buzz.

4. Right back at ya!

The Internet is all about community, and community means dialog. Give your fans that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from proximity to their idols by creating forums where fans can interact with each other and band members. Set up a message board where people can post questions or comments about the band or its performances, and make sure to answer those questions personally. If you can’t monitor these boards, find a host to interact with the community, set the overall mood of the forum, and ban trolls and other undesirables. You can even set up online chats during which fans can talk to the band online for an hour or so. This all helps to generate more positive press for you. You can cull the best of this information into testimonials reposted elsewhere on the site and use the contact with your fans to figure out what they want. If you can’t manage a forum or a board, keep a blog instead and write just for your fans. It’s an easy way to let folks comments and connect.

Stay tuned for part 2, in which we continue to reveal to you the awesome power of the Internet, the strength and beauty of your website, and the secret ninja skills of Web 2.0!

I Have a Website! Now What? is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog