Do You Know Your Market?

How well do you know your market?  I mean, do you really know your market?  I learned years ago that you can live in a market your entire life and not really know the market.

When is the last time you did some hard market research?  When I first started in the industry, we didn’t have the internet.  This meant doing it the old fashion way of going to the library or the chamber of commerce.  I used to pull every demo and stat sheet I could find.  This didn’t mean I would use them all in my marketing plan.  But it’s always better to have too much information then not enough.

You would be surprised at what you can find out about the market by doing a little research.  For example, I learned years ago that St. Louis has more bowlers per capita then any other market.  The bowling hall of fame is in St. Louis.  I took this information and did a promotion with it.

Today, we have Google and the World Wide Web to assist us with market research.  But are we using it? More importantly, can we really learn everything about a market from the internet?  Isn’t it even more important to experience the market first hand?  The other day I wrote how face to face communication is your most important selling tool.  The same goes for market research. 

Should market research happen before or after the tour is routed?  If the show or event is playing in a market that doesn’t have a strong demo, should it play in that market?  We have all heard the line: “the show has to play somewhere”.  But does it?  Wouldn’t it make better business sense to play where the business is versus where it isn’t?

The Arena Ticket Series?

Is it time for the arena ticket series?  If theatres and orchestras use ticket series packages then why can’t arena events?  We are all looking for ways to put more butts in seats.  This might be a way for shows to help each other while selling more tickets.

Think about the different categories of events and shows that play at the arena venue.  You have family shows, concerts (older & younger demos), and sports. There are all kinds of different ticket packages you could put together. 

In the family show market you could put together a package that includes all the family shows.  How about a package that includes only ice show events?  What about a package for the tots?  This could include Thomas & Friends, Playhouse Disney, and Sesame Street Live. 

What about a ticket package for concerts?  Package a guaranteed sellout with a few shows that will need help.  How about the complete package? This includes a sampling of all the genres coming to the venue including sports, concerts, and family events.  I think you get it, so why not try it?

I Want a Golden Ticket

The TD Banknorth Garden in Boston is about to have its official name change.  On July 16th the Garden becomes the TD Garden.  To create a buzz for the venue and the name change, the Garden is taking a page from Willy Wonka.  They are promoting the TD Garden Golden Ticket Giveaway. The Garden is giving out thousands of free chocolate bars.  Five of these candy bars will have a golden ticket.  One of the five winners will win season tickets to every single event at the TD Garden for a year.  Now that’s an arena ticket series package!  The four other winners will win a 10 game package that includes Bruins and Celtics tickets.

Secret To Selling Groups: Get Out Of The Office!

If you sell group tickets then you want the quickest and easiest way to do this.  If you are group leader then you also want the quickest and easiest way to buy tickets.  So if you both want the same things, then how can it be so hard?

Group sales does take effort.  It is more then just owning a list and mailing a flyer.  Creating relationships is always the most direct path.  This is common sense yet so many group sales people don’t take the time or effort to make this happen.  You are a sales person; relationships are your best asset.  Ask anyone who sells in any industry.  The best sales people are the ones with the best relationships.

Think about how easy it is to sell something when you can just pick up the phone and call your group leader. They always find time to see you.  You know them on a first name basis.  You know what they like and dislike.  They know you on a first name basis.  They feel comfortable speaking with you.  They trust you.  But you can’t do this until you have earned it.

How do you seek out new relationships and maintain current ones: Get Out of the Office! 

Working at your desk every day is a bad habit.  I know you feel like you get more done when you are in your office, but you really don’t.  I understand how easy it is today to communicate via email, phone, snail mail, and the net.  You should look at these tools as a reward for your efforts, not for making the effort.  Face to face communication will always be the best tool.

Beware Of The Blogger

I read an Associated Press article this morning on how the Federal Trade Commission is going to monitor bloggers.

The world of online blogs has become a very important piece of web 2.0.  It is an opportunity to communicate your thoughts, knowledge, and opinion.  It has the power to influence readers.  This is where the problem lies. 

Like anything in this world, there are always people who want to take advantage of a good thing. Some bloggers are getting perks for the words they write. Some are getting laptops, trips to Europe, free products, or even cash.  Wow, sounds great sign me up (just kidding).  Sometimes these words are really not the writer’s thoughts, knowledge, or opinion but some ad agency creative department. In the past I wrote a ghost post for another blog.  But I got to write my opinion and I wasn’t selling anything.

The article states “journalists who work for newspapers and broadcasters are held accountable by their employers, and they generally cannot receive payments from marketers and must return products after they finish reviewing them”. Are you kidding me? Maybe the reporter didn’t get the perks but what about the employer? The writer should have thought twice before making that statement.

The most asked question I get from people today when I discuss this blog is “how do you make money from it”?  The quick answer is: I don’t.  I decided a year ago when I started that I want people to read my blog for the merit.  I never expect everyone to agree with everything I write.  What fun would that be?  But I want my readers to respect my thoughts, knowledge, and opinion.  I tell people that I hope to make money from the results of what I write.  I use this blog as one of my marketing tools to market me.  If these posts convince someone I am knowledgeable in marketing, then hopefully they will hire me to help them.

I receive requests from people all the time to write ”guest posts” for this blog site.  They are usually from people who have something to sell or promote.  I always explain to them that this blog is not intended for those purposes.

I am not a fan of the FTC getting into blog monitoring.  I don’t want the Government telling me what I can say and not say on my blog.  That goes against what this country was founded on.  I agree the role of the FTC is to protect the consumer about false product statements.  What about company websites?  Are they monitoring them?  A blog is designed to be someone’s opinion (good, bad or false).  I think most people today understand the internet is too big to believe everything you read.  When I research something, I don’t just believe the first thing I read on the net.  What is great about web 2.0 is the two-way communication.  If someone is spewing out crap, others will let it be known.   Like anything, a reader will find a place they trust.

When Sh*t Happens

If you read this blog on a regular basis, then you know that I am a big fan of the customer experience or what most call customer service.  While we all agree the customer experience starts from the moment your customer is interested in your product, the customer experience when something goes wrong may be even more important.

Even brands with the best customer experience sometimes have missteps.  They have policies and procedures in place to make sure that a bad experience doesn’t happen.  Even with all this, sometimes shit happens.  When it does, the good ones have a solution ready to go.

This week I am traveling.  I booked my flight with American Airlines over a month ago.  When I went to get seats, there were none available.  I believe the airline holds back seats to assign at the airport.  To me this is not a good customer experience.  I just gave the airline money for a ticket.  Is it too much to ask for two seats together?  The airport is stressful enough; do we need the stress of not having seats?  When I got to the airport, I made sure I spoke to a person and not a ticket kiosk.  Guess what, she gave me a good customer experience by giving me exit row seating.  When you fly coach, these are the best seats.  This made the rest of my very long flight a good experience. 

My brother is also a huge proponent of the customer experience.  So when shit happened at his food fest a few weeks ago, it almost killed him.  Every issue that happened that day was directly related to the customer.  While the damage was done that day, what he did after the fact made a huge difference.  He offered refunds to any customer that asked for one.  He went on the radio and offered an apology.  He even answered every single email that was sent to him.  Anyone who gave him their phone number, he called them.  He spoke to them in a personal manner.  He explained what happened and in most cases the customer understood.  While they may not have had a good customer experience at the event, they were treated with respect and given the post experience they deserved.  I bet many will go back to next year’s event.

Online Media Buying

I am still going through my notes from the conference and I have even more information I can share with you.  Today, let’s talk about online media buying.

The online sales & marketing session speakers at the Event & Arena Marketing Conference were Joyce Szudzik from AEG Live Interactive and Brandon Lucas with Carbonhouse.  The panel discussed what is working with online marketing.

For example they mentioned that local newspaper dotcoms are good online opportunities.  I agree with them. We all know that newsprint versions are on a major decline, yet we still want news.  In the market where I live, Boston.com is the number one local website.  I check that site everyday even if I already read the newsprint version of the Boston Globe. 

The online versions of newspapers, TV, and radio stations are always looking for ways to promote themselves.  This is where promotional opportunities from you come in.  Whenever you are pitching any local media outlet, make sure you get a promotion on their online sites to compliment the deal you have with their main media version.

The panel gave some sound advice on what to ask for when buying online advertising:

1.  Buy “above the fold”.  When an online reader clicks on the web page you want your ad visible in full without the reader having to scroll down.
2.  Find out what pages get the most traffic from your potential customer.  It may not always be the home page.
3.  Find out the S.O.V. (share of voice) of the buy. On major websites you may only get 5% but on smaller sites it could be 40% to 50%.
4.  See if you can run video.  Running your 15 second spot on the website will create great online exposure.

I Will Always Remember When

He was a young superstar talent performing with his brothers at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in the 70’s.  My brother and I were little brats hanging out backstage while our dad handled the PR for the Center.

While backstage, we were hanging out with Michael’s younger brother Randy.  We were running around in the big rehearsal hall when Michael came in.  He saw the piano in the corner and sat down at it.  We sat next to him.  He asked me if I knew how to play piano? I didn’t, so he started showing me.  What a cool picture that would have made.  Four young kids sitting on a piano stool playing.

A few minutes later, members of the Jackson family came in looking upset.  You see, there were always security concerns when it came to Michael.  He had left the dressing room and no one knew where he was.  We knew, he was being a kid and having fun with us. 

Once they realized everything was fine, they told the boys that it was time for dinner.  They asked us if we wanted to eat with our new friends too.  So the four young kids that were running around backstage went to the Green Room to have dinner.  To this day, I even remember what we had.  We had KFC (one of my favorites). 

Even though I am sure Michael or his brothers would never remember this story, it is one of my childhood memories that will always stay with me.  Just four young kids hanging out backstage on a piano stool and having fun like kids do.

Use Your Marketing Skills for You

One of the biggest surprises for me at this year’s Event & Arena Marketing Conference was the amount of unemployed event marketers.  I know the recession has done damage to our business but I didn’t realize how much. The percentage of the unemployed at this year’s conference was really high.  We are talking about very talented people.  For those event marketers out there looking, I dedicate today’s post to you.

As event marketers you know how to market. You write your marketing plan, pitch your media deals, and put your marketing into play.  Now you find yourself looking for a new job.  I am sure part of your daily search routine includes checking the internet job sites, making phone calls to your contacts, and reading the trades.  But what else are you doing?  How can you apply your event marketing skills to marketing you?

Marketing Plan

If you write a marketing plan for your shows, why not try it for yourself?  Make yourself the event.  Put everything down just like you would for a show.  Write down all the stats.  This should include what is happening in your industry.  If you are looking in a certain market, research the market. Who are your potential employers? What are their goals?  What are their needs?

Media

Write down your media plans.  No, you don’t have to buy TV, radio, or billboards.  That would be cool if you could afford it.  I did see where someone did this recently.  But you can afford to use non-traditional (21^st Century) marketing.  Use the internet and social networks to promote yourself.  The key to the internet is having your name everywhere.  Your goal is to have your name rise to the top of the Google search.  You don’t want to this happen only when someone searches your name.  You want your name to show up on marketing searches.  You want your name (brand) to be associated with marketing.  This blog is a perfect example. My name and this blog show up in marketing Google searches all the time.

You need to use Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.  Linkedin has become the number one online social tool for the unemployed.  It is designed to post everything you have ever done in the professional and educational world. They also have a job finding tool. Being active on these social sites will also promote you on Google searches.

Promotions

Why not create promotions around you?  I am not kidding on this.  Why not offer a contest for free marketing services?  Offer this contest to any company or industry that you are interested in.  This will get your name out there, tell them what you offer, and someone will win a free taste of your expertise.

If you skip over everything I just wrote then remember one thing:

You are re-building and marketing the brand called “You”!

Engage In Online Conversations

As with last year’s Event & Arena Marketing Conference, everyone at this year’s conference wanted to hear about non-traditional marketing.  Why are we still calling it non-traditional marketing?  This is 21st Century marketing.

Everyone wanted to know how to use Facebook and Twitter for their venue or show. The key to social network marketing is starting and engaging a conversation.  Web 1.0 was all about one-way communication (websites).  Web 2.0 is two-way communication.  Getting your fans/customers involved in the show or event is the best kind of marketing. If you use Facebook, you may have been invited to join something or go to something.  You can respond to the invite with yes, no, or maybe. 

Peer marketing is an important key.  Think about when you were in high school.  How many times did peer pressure come into play?  Why not engage your fans and ask them to tell their friends?  “I am so psyched to see … you need to go see them too”.

Reward is always a good incentive for spreading the word.  Give them a reason to talk about your event online.  Ticketmaster has created a new program called Ticketmaster Street Team.  You can spread the word about upcoming TM ticketed events. When someone you told buys a ticket (you have to prove this) you get paid a commission.  This is a virtual street team using the internet.  This program is perfect for Facebook and Twitter users.  It also works great for mommy bloggers. 

Many marketers are afraid to create conversational opportunities.  They don’t want people to say bad things about them.  If you are one who thinks this way, you need to get over it.  Today’s internet is going to spread the good, the bad, and the ugly anyway.  Don’t you want the opportunity to talk back or even let your fans talk back for you?  The “boo birds” will always be out there. Why let them voice their opinions alone?  I would rather they say it in my forum then someone else’s.

Email: It’s All In The Message

I like email marketing as long as it’s not spam.  I like it for the direct marketing it offers.  If a potential customer has openly given you their email address, they know that you may send them email.  If they decide they don’t want email from you anymore, they opt out.  Always make sure you honor their wishes.  Don’t send spam!  If you buy email lists, make sure these lists are potential customers that have given permission to be on email lists.  When I get spam, I immediately put them in my “junk mail” list and I never see them again.  Do you want to be a brand that customers think is annoying?

I look at email marketing like roadside billboards.  You have just a few seconds to get their attention.  Like billboards, you can accomplish this either with artwork or with a few key words. You want to grab their attention and get them to read on or click the link you inserted.  If you don’t peak their interest or if you make them work to understand your message, then you will be deleted in the blink of an eye.  I don’t know about you but I get at least a hundred emails a day.  I don’t have time to read all of them.  I look for the ones I am interested in.

Make sure the message is understandable.  Don’t confuse your reader.  I received an email last week from a minor league sports team.  The subject line read: “Buy 2, Get 2 at 50% off”.  I opened the email and took a look.  Again, the headline of the artwork gave the offer.  I then asked myself, buy 2 of what?  Why do I have to have to buy 2 of something to get 50% off on the other two?  The offer was on eight game packs. I am still confused with the offer. Why can’t I buy two and get one free?  If I am in the ticket marketing business and I am confused, imagine what the average customer is thinking?  Sometimes when we create the marketing message we are too close to it.  Give it to someone else to read.  See if they get it.