The Price of Admission
Free of Charge! Live Music! Open Bar! These are a few qualifiers that never fail to draw a crowd. The first makes the wallet of a casual event goer happy and the second assures them they'll be entertained (for free), while the third sets them up to crack open that very same wallet for other goodies. I can confidently say that every one of the above exclamations has enticed me into an event of questionable interest.
Catch the eye of a stranger (and pique the interest of those who already support the product):
Events marketed by Trampoline are usually hosted by one of our clients. They have a brand that we need to reinforce, a clientele of their own to consider, and a regular means of sharing information. The point of event marketing is to reinvigorate the interest of those people and draw in newcomers. One of our favorite ways to do this? Create new artwork for the event.
The best place to start is with the brand standards already being used by the event host and visuals centered around the theme of the event. From there, take creative risks – cultivate a sense of excitement. Build the information into an image, use a custom type treatment, or get outrageous with the size, color and/or content of your advertising. Find that inspiration and capture it to create something conceptual and new. You’ve got to stop those busy feet, eyes, and thumbs. The digital world, am I right? I like to ask myself, “would I want this poster on my wall?” It’s rare that an advertisement stops me on my lunch break, but doesn’t make me interested in the event.
Create a unique experience:
When making weekend plans there is often simply too much to do. Life gets busy, so the audience has to be made to feel like the event is worthwhile. What’s different? What’s new? Event advertisements are constantly battling with movie releases, show posters and happy hour at the local watering hole. A fundraiser with music can be the same night as a good concert, but if that concert is presented as just another performance and that fundraiser seems like a one-time, can’t-miss event, decisions can be influenced. For this to occur there needs to be something about the event that stands out. Catchy naming, killer photography, and original art can go a long way.
Depending on the frequency of an event, the “unique” element can be tricky. This creates the necessity for consistency on top of captivation. If your event is going to happen with any degree of regularity, then it needs to have elements that make it special, and become a system onto themselves. Create a recurring poster style. If there will be multiple dates, give it different colors than the brand family. If there are different colors, make the fireworks those colors too.
Put that logo on some s#!t:
Repeat impressions. Repeat impressions. I repeat, impressions. When the mark is made and the event announced, take that mark and slap it on everything you can. The strategy and planning of event marketing materials only carry so much weight. Good old fashioned exposure is your best friend. At the risk of being garish, get that thing out there. If there is an ad, resize it for Instagram, Facebook, the newspaper, a web slider, a poster for bulletin boards, you name it. SWAG (Stuff We All Get), collectibles, stickers, apparel, and advertising that can also be sold as art are fantastic ways to add a little extra incentive to attend, while also giving your event recognizability. An event t-shirt that people want to wear after the fact is guerrilla marketing gold. A beer glass with a logo is going to remind guests about next year’s event every time they pour a cold one. That beautiful poster? Now it’s on my wall, wonder what next year’s will be?
The above are just a few things to consider when creating marketing materials for an event. There are more and many things that can be done from visual, strategic, and incentive standpoints to draw crowds to your fundraiser, special evening, concert or trivia night. So long as you make the materials as fun as the event, you can’t miss. If none of the above is working, just open the bar.