No matter how great your show may be, it won’t be a smashing success unless you have audiences to see it. Keeping the patron excitement and buzz going through the performance week should be an important part of your marketing strategy. But how do you keep the enthusiasm going?
One easy answer: Social media. Through your theatre’s myriad platforms, social media content can amplify excitement for your show, boost attendance, sell more tickets, and create lasting, loyal connections. If you’re searching for ways to keep your show’s buzz going through your performance week(s), On The Stage can help.
Creating that excitement and anticipation is the first step to a successful show. Before opening night, try the following marketing strategies to drum up organic engagement and get patrons excited about what you have to offer.
Everyone wants a peek behind the curtain – and in this sense, we mean it literally. Make sure you’re staying active on social media before your show opens, posting behind-the-scenes content that will engage existing patrons and excite potential new ones. Some BTS footage you can post includes:
You always want to leave your audiences wanting more, which is why posting teasers before your show opens is a great idea. Whether you’re presenting small clips from your musical’s most anticipated number or a short but powerful scene in a new play, ensure you’re showcasing enough to draw patrons in – but not too much to spoil the production and its content.
Another great way to drum up anticipation is posting countdown clocks or other time markers on your social media platforms and your show website. Not only will this remind your patrons of the imminent opening night excitement, but will also encourage a sense of urgency for stragglers to buy last-minute tickets. Win-win!
Your theatre shouldn’t be a faceless entity – which is why posting cast spotlights before your show is an excellent marketing strategy to humanize your company and your production. Offer Q&A sessions with your leads, your hardworking chorus members, your skilled technical team, your choreographer, and other members of your theatre. Keep them short and sweet, offering insight into your theatre, the rehearsal process, and just how great the production will be!
While building up that buzz before opening night is critical to ensuring the most tickets sold, it’s almost important to engage your audience in real time, meeting them where they are in their journey with your theatre and keeping interested potential patrons updated on how your production process is going – hopefully to entice them to buy a last-minute ticket! We offer a few suggestions on how to tackle that goal.
Before and during your show run, your social media platforms should be filled to the brim with content. This includes moment-in-time story posts that let your community know how the production run is going, just how well-filled your theatre is, and just how much your patrons are enjoying their time at your theatre.
If you really want to embrace that ‘real time’ aspect, go live on your social media platforms – in your lobby before a show begins, at intermission, or following a production to get off-the-cuff reactions of the show itself. This sort of content creates itself – you just need a phone and your patrons!
If you want to increase your social media engagement during show week, utilize the ‘poll’ feature. Ask your patrons about their favorite moments from the show, what they’re most excited about seeing if they haven’t yet gone, or another poll question related to your specific theatre and production.
For dedicated theatre fans, a question and answer session is the perfect addition to a show experience. Whether before or after the production, have some of your cast and crew members sit down with VIP patrons – or anyone interested if you want to increase accessibility – to discuss the ins and outs of the show, the subject matter, and other relevant content.
While you may think hashtags are soooo 2010s, they are actually still a powerful marketing tool that can help create a digital community and showcase just how much traction your theatre has in your community. When posting marketing materials, ensure you use the hashtag – and encourage others to do the same!
Another smart marketing tactic to employ, in order to create more buzz around your production, is leveraging the power of user-generated content. What is UGC, you may ask? Well, as its name suggests, UGC is any marketing content made by people (in this instance, your patrons) rather than a brand (in this instance, your theatre and its representatives). Here’s how to leverage it:
Perhaps the easiest marketing tactic out there, reposting a patron’s content – whether it’s a selfie at your show, a photo of your merchandise, or a video waiting for the curtain to rise – allows you to generate organic buzz, build trust and name recognition within your community, and save money. It costs nothing, after all, to share another’s content.
If you want to encourage your patrons to create their own UGC, hold a social media contest that requires your patrons to post about your theatre and your show. The prize, of course, can be anything you think your patrons will find desirable – valet parking, free concessions, a branded T-shirt, tickets to another show, the list goes on. Just make sure that you create clear guidelines for the type of UGC you want to see to avoid confusion!
No matter the product, show, or experience – testimonials and reviews are incredibly engaging, so encourage your patrons to let you know how they liked the show! This type of UGC acts as a trusted resource for potential new patrons, influencing their decisions to purchase tickets, visit an event, or otherwise support your brand. Additionally, it gets you higher engagement numbers and insights into what is working and what isn’t when it comes to your productions.
You don’t want the excitement about your theatre, as well as that organic buzz, to fade away completely after the curtain falls on your finale production. Here are a few ways to farm some post-show engagement.
If you’ve been creating and reposting quality UGC content during your show’s run, don’t forget to post a highlight reel for the entire process on your social media platforms. This gives patrons a tiny glimpse into just how hard your team has worked for the community to bring a great show together.
It’s appreciation time! Make sure you’re posting heartfelt thank you content to your cast and crew, sponsors, community partners, and loyal patrons for visiting your show. You can also use this time to seek feedback from all those people to improve the experience for next time.
While you have your patrons’ full attention, make sure to post previews of upcoming shows, launch any presale deals and promo codes you might have, and encourage people to buy early. Strike while the iron’s hot, and all that!
Curating and maintaining organic buzz and excitement for your theatre and specific productions can be tough, but sometimes, you just need a little help. That’s where On The Stage’s social media integrations can help.
With On The Stage’s Integrations feature, you can streamline your processes, fuel targeted marketing efforts, and make the On The Stage (OTS) platform even more powerful by connecting your social media accounts and email marketing tools. With deeper insights, more automation, and cross-platform access, you can better understand your patrons and create enticing marketing campaigns that convert and drive sales.
If you’re ready to start your journey on increasing and elongating patron engagement with your theatre, partner with On The Stage and book a personalized demo today.