Always on the lookout for interesting ways bring people out to shows and just found this from NYC-based artist Jennings, which I think is worth posting here as an example of turning "just another gig" into something special for fans...
When Coca-Cola introduces a new product, they don't just unleash it on the world. They start small, testing things in focus groups, and eventually a few select markets, to make sure people actually want what they've got.
Sometimes there are problems...
For example, "New Coke" was very popular in blind taste tests, but rejected when marketed under the Coca-Cola name. And "The Pepsi Challenge" in the early 1980s, had to change its method of collecting data, when more people picked Coke.
When dealing something as music, tests aren't perfect. People like music for a number of reasons, one of which is that their friends like the same music. Still, don't let that stop you from "testing" different versions of the same song, different set lists, different stage banter, and different merchandise to get an idea of what works best. Some idea is better than no clue...
In the direct marketing business, it's not uncommon to run two different marketing campaigns for the same product, at the same time. For example, if the method of reaching people were postcards, 50% of the postcards mailed would be "Option A" and the other 50% would be "Option B."
Sometimes the results, when you're testing on a small level, can be subtle... Little things can mean a big difference when you "go big" though.
If you mail 10,000 postcards, 5000 of each option, and get 37 orders from "Option A" and 43 orders from "Option B", that might not seem like a big difference, but with a mailing of 100,000 postcards, assuming you get the same percentage of orders, you'll get an additional 60 orders from mailing "Option B." And mailing 1,000,000 postcards, which isn't uncommon, can mean a difference of 600 orders.
Same work and same cost of doing business, but much different results...
You never know if you can do better than you are now if you don't test, so this is something I encourage you to look at. And once you do find something that works better, I encourage you to test something else against that, to see if you can improve things yet again.
The above method of testing is the foundation of why the process is so powerful, but something I feel most musicians will relate to is the testing that you see a comic do when he's telling jokes.
Let's face it...some things seem funny at times, but they're not funny at other times. And what you think is funny might not be funny to somebody else.
Do how does a comic find out if most people in the audience think something is funny?
1. He tells the joke every time he's on stage.
2. He asks, "Does it get consistent laughs?"
It's a little less scientific, but can absolutely make a huge difference in the success you're having.
Every comic goes through this process. By the time you see a guy on HBO, he's tested everything, because a big gig like an HBO special isn't the time to find out if something doesn't work. You want to do that in the small clubs, with a limited audience, so not everybody will see you fail.
Same for musicians. Get out there, try new things, fail fast, and fail often, but keep it small. Keep the stuff that works, tweaking it to be as good as it came be, while slowly expanding it to larger and larger audiences. During smaller gigs, keep trying new stuff and really tweak the things that don't work, eventually dropping it, if you can't turn it around.
Need something to test? Try these...
Have fun!
A few weeks ago, a friend of mine mentioned he'd been invited to a "business opportunity" presentation. I LOVE stuff like this. It doesn't matter if the product being sold is something to do with a work-at-home business, real estate, online marketing, stock market investing, FOREX trading, or MLM, I'm interested. The marketing lessons you can learn from these things, from the pitch, to the questions people in the audience ask, to what gets the audience to take action and buy, are huge.
So I tagged alone...
This presentation was both to motivate the people who had already signed up for the offer, as well as signup new people. The "opportunity" being pitched was some kind of multi-level deal, where you bought a package of technology-based services, like cable television, mobile phone service, and Internet access. According to the pitch, it was "stuff you're already paying for."
Part of these events is to bring in people who have had success with the opportunity to share their stories. The fomula is very similar to a "testimony" you see in a lot of churches, but instead of Jesus saving the day, the "opportunity" does...
"Nine months ago, I was so broke, I didn't have a pot to piss in. My wife was about to leave me. Then a friend invited me to sit in a meeting just like this one...and I said yes to the opportunity. Now I make a million dollars every day, I have eight homes on the beach, I drive a solid gold car, and I hang out with bikini models on my private yacht."
So how come people in the audience, who had signed up weeks or months ago, weren't having the same results? Here is why...
1. People don't take action.
2. When people do take action, they only work with the people they already know.
These two things are also why musicians have a hard time getting people to gigs, selling music, etc.
The Solution
Whether you're just starting or have been around awhile, you should always be looking to expand beyond the circle of people who currently support you. If you're relying solely on your close friends and family to come to every gig, your attendance will soon fall. People will only to go so many shows.
Even if you have a good stable of fans, you need to constantly be reaching out beyond their friends and family, because they have the same issue that you do-- the amount of people they know is limited.
Dunbar's Number is a theoretical cognitive limit to the number of people with whom one can maintain stable social realtionships. In other words, the number of relationships in which an individual knows who each person is, and how each person relates to every other person.
This number is thought to be around 150...and many of these people are shared between friends. That means, if you're looking to expand your reach to a ton of people, you need to connect with people who don't associate with any of your current fans.
People who don't do this in MLM fail, because the number of prospects/customers isn't enough to make money using this business model. And unless you can make a living with just a few hundred fans, if you fail to reach people outside your current circle of influence, you will also fail.
In short, "word of mouth" is limited, because we only know so many people...and our friends know the same people we do. If you want to really take things to the next level, you need to reach beyond the circle of influence that your currents fans are reaching.
What are you doing to reach beyond your current circle of fans? Post your thoughts below...
Being a musician is a lot like being a hooker...
For one, if you're good, you've got a lot of clients, but you have to act like you only have one. Or, if it's obvious you've recently been with other people, you have to act like they were lame
The bottom line is that nobody wants to think that what you did last night is anywhere close to the awesomeness that you're unleashing tonight. How could it have been, since your current audience was doing something else last night? The only thing that matters is who you're with right now because everybody (in the audience) knows that your current audience is the best one you've ever had...ever.
But that's not really true, is it? Your current audience is often the musician equivalent to a fat bald guy that smells like an highway rest stop.
So how can you be a "good hooker" and fake it?
STEP ONE: WARM THEM UP
The first step is to let your audience know how great they are and that you're going to do something a little extra, something you don't do for anybody else, just because they're so great...
And that, even though the audience might feel small, it's not the size that counts...
STEP TWO: KEEP THEM HOT
People forget things and this includes how awesome they are and how much you like them. Once you get them warmed up, you've got to keep bringing up that this is first time you've ever done something like this, and you normally wouldn't do something like this, but you're making an exception for them because they're off-the-chart awesome...
And that's not lying! "We haven't played this one in a long time," simply means, "We haven't played this one since last night. And you weren't there, so it doesn't count!"
Last night's show was pretty lame, actually. Bands use totally different stage banter for shows like that...
Well, ok. Maybe not. But that was just to practice for the current show. A couple of nights ago, I'm sure he said something different...
STEP THREE: THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE
Paul Stanley does the exact same thing you do in that he goes on stage for 90 minutes and plays music. So how come he makes a bajillion dollars more than you do?
The difference isn't the music itself, but the "girlfriend experience" that comes with it.
How do you do this? First ask for feedback from the audience, then remind them that this isn't a job for you and there is no way in hell you're watching the clock...all the time while running down the time you have left on the clock by getting everybody worked up a bit.
Like this...
STEP FOUR: EXTRA CREDIT
When you get good at the above techniques, try putting some of them together...
Want to hear more from Paul Stanley? The bootleg "People, Let Me Get This Off My Chest!" has 70 stage rants that I know will inspire you!
A couple of weeks ago, Imogen Heap came through Nashville. This was just after a huge flood hit the city, causing about $1.6 Billion in damages and displacing thousands of people.
The show was full of audience participation, but this took it to a new level. Instead of having somebody call out a request or doing a singalong, Imogen asked the crowd for a time signature, a tempo, and a key, then created a song with them.
Most shows are a "one-way" thing... The artist performs and people in the audience listen. This changed that, since the audience was actually part of the song being created.
The song was recorded and now it's for sale. All the money goes to flood relief. Buy the track now and see how she does it...
This is something she does in every city, by the way. And it works on so many levels... For one, it's not just any charity; it's a charity that means something to the local audience. It's also a moment in time, much like a photo, that lets people take the experience of a live performance home with them. And beyond just that, it's an experience of something they were actually an active part of, beyond just sitting in a chair and watching it happen.
Lack of followup from the thousands of people touring acts play for each night is "money on the table" at its finest. For a show like this, people pay around $50-100/ticket. They're obviously fans and fans never stop at just one purchase...but they do have to know something is available for them to buy.
How do you do this? A mailing list.
But people don't just sign up for a mailing list, you have to offer them a benefit for doing so, or make it part of another transaction in which you get their mailing information. Selling somebody a recording like this is that transaction.
People also have to like you and trust you before they'll do any business with you...and doing something for a charity they can relate to is a good way to make that happen.
Everybody has $1, right? Everybody wants to help others, right? Combine the two in your music marketing and you'll not only build great rapport and goodwill with your fans, but you'll also build a huge mailing list that you can use to promote other things.
Other things about this show which built rapport and goodwill...
1. Brought in a local act to open as well as join her on stage during the main performance.
2. Before the show, had people go to her website and tell her which songs they wanted to hear.
Now it's your turn... How are you building goodwill and rapport with your audience? Post your comments below...
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