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Bernice New user 90 Posts |
Is there a specific demographic that accounts for the most of your ticket sales or bookings? I am experimenting with Facebook Advertising and am conflicted with what criteria I should be narrowing into.
There is a healthy youth market that are fed popular Youtube videos promoting bizarre themes. There is a niche there that I have been eyeing up for a while. I'm envisioning a Youtube channel with clickbaity videos to draw in eyeballs. Collabs with mainstream Youtubers hungry for content. Funnel the viewers to backend services and products. Something to test. |
dorian_faust Loyal user Los Angeles, California 278 Posts |
There is a large amount of people who are into True Crime and the paranormal. Maybe you could contact channels that are popular for making those kinds of videos.
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Bernice New user 90 Posts |
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On Jun 27, 2020, dorian_faust wrote: Thank you for the True Crime suggestion. I had never thought of that. I will research into the intersection of the two genres. |
chmara Inner circle Tucson, AZ 1911 Posts |
Living in Arizona I have a wealth of local history that was elevated to myth in movies. OK Corral is nearby -- Dillinger was captured in Tucson, Apaches attacked settlers and mining was king with Brewery Gulch being the recreation area in nearby Bisbee AZ.
The ghosts of your locale can provide many stories -- and a little research finds ghosts just about everywhere. Do not get me started on the Lost Dutchman Goldmine and stories that run back to the Conquistadors.
Gregg (C. H. Mara) Chmara
Commercial Operations, LLC Tucson, AZ C. H. Mara Illusion & Psychic Entertainments |
Bernice New user 90 Posts |
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On Jun 28, 2020, chmara wrote: That is a brilliant idea. Facebook advertising allows me to focus in on the location of the users that I can advertise to. You are right, there are countless local myths. My planned touring "show" could be adapted to incorporate these local stories very easily. That is such a winning idea. Thank you so much chmara! |
WitchDocChris Inner circle York, PA 2614 Posts |
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On Jun 27, 2020, Bernice wrote: I would recommend reaching out to Paul Prater and asking if you can get his lecture notes on marketing. He has a section specifically on using Facebook Ads to first mine data and then target ads to the appropriate audiences. https://www.paulprater.com/ Quote:
There is a healthy youth market that are fed popular Youtube videos promoting bizarre themes. There is a niche there that I have been eyeing up for a while. I'm envisioning a Youtube channel with clickbaity videos to draw in eyeballs. Collabs with mainstream Youtubers hungry for content. Funnel the viewers to backend services and products. Something to test. Not trying to be a wet blanket, but unless you already have a fairly successful YT channel, I don't recommend this course of action. Or, rather, understand it's not going to be a quick return on investment (unless you're gifted at video creation and fairly lucky). Getting traction on YT is very difficult these days. 'Mainstream' channels have no reason to collab with new channels. It literally brings them nothing of value, so the only time they do it is when they want to help boost a newbie. I would not plan on getting any collabs until you've got several thousand subscribers and are getting thousands of views per video. The most success I've had for bizarre events has come from either A) Conventions run by competent organizers (a rare beast indeed), or B) A venue with a promoter that is tied into a market that would be interested in what you do. For A - all I can say is good luck. In my experience more than half of companies organizing big events are in over their heads and you will have to expect to do ALL the leg work for getting butts in seats, and they also either try not to pay entertainment or simply have no budget to do so. If you can get hooked into the events that actually care about their performers, though, that's a sweet market. For B - I have had the most success with this approach. I found a venue in my city that caters to the goth/morbid/occult/metal scene and the owner is keyed into contacts all over the country. Every event I do there sells out and it has significant boosted my reputation in the region. Another option, which won't float a career but helps in being established - Fringe Festivals. I've done a few and they are usually good times, as long as they are well organized and advertised.
Christopher
Witch Doctor Psycho Seance book: https://tinyurl.com/y873bbr4 Boffo eBook: https://tinyurl.com/387sxkcd |
Bernice New user 90 Posts |
Go where your market is already spending money. Thank you so much WitchDocChris. It reads like you could sell information on how to market magic.
I need to sit down and brainstorm a list of venues that my intended market are already frequenting. I need to also think about how I make myself standout to these promoters or venues. Making the whats-in-it-for-them more attractive. Because I think when things start opening up they are going to flooded with be hungry and debt-ridden performers offering themselves for cents to the dollar. And thanks for the information about Paul Prater's lecture notes on marketing. That sounds like exactly what I need to do. |
WitchDocChris Inner circle York, PA 2614 Posts |
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On Jun 30, 2020, Bernice wrote: I appreciate the sentiment, but honestly I have very specific experience which has led to very specific knowledge. Quote:
I need to sit down and brainstorm a list of venues that my intended market are already frequenting. I need to also think about how I make myself standout to these promoters or venues. Making the whats-in-it-for-them more attractive. Because I think when things start opening up they are going to flooded with be hungry and debt-ridden performers offering themselves for cents to the dollar. There will almost certainly be a flood, yeah. My advice there is not to compromise your price. Allow that to be one of the things that makes you stand out. While everyone else is letting their value fall through the floor, be the one who recognizes what you're offering and what it's worth. Of course, you also have to be sure it's actually perceived as worth that amount to the person paying it. Scott Tokar has some good negotiating advice on his How To Make Six Figures project on Ellusionist. The point I found most useful was "Removing the elephants". In short - instead of just dropping the price, mention you can do a lower price if you remove certain elements, which retains the perceived value. Bizarre magic can be tricky to market because laymen don't know what it is right away. Saying, "I'm a bizarre magician" doesn't give them any information because they don't know what that term means. I even had trouble marketing seances because people around here just don't know the word "seance" a lot of times. The fliers and social media posts have born the brunt of giving people an idea of what to expect for me. Images and wording that convey what the audience should expect to experience. I also like to run those by people who are not familiar with the magic industry to see if anything confuses them or if it makes sense. That's why it's helpful to find a venue tied into the 'genre' of performance you'll be doing. For me it's an 'oddities' shop that sells a variety of antiques and unusual products that are considered 'dark'. Through the owner of that shop (who has become a good friend) I'm automatically connected to a large audience of people who understand exactly what I'm talking about when I describe my shows.
Christopher
Witch Doctor Psycho Seance book: https://tinyurl.com/y873bbr4 Boffo eBook: https://tinyurl.com/387sxkcd |
Bernice New user 90 Posts |
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On Jun 30, 2020, WitchDocChris wrote: I like that. I was listening to an interview with Anton Zellman and he mentioned a conversation with a potential client that went like this: Quote:
Client: "We can afford your rates." Two different strategies to test. Quote:
Through the owner of that shop (who has become a good friend) I'm automatically connected to a large audience of people who understand exactly what I'm talking about when I describe my shows. This is my priority. I will report back the results of my efforts. Great tip. |
TEB3 Veteran user Texas 387 Posts |
Listen to Chris!
Lary/TEB3/Traveler |
WitchDocChris Inner circle York, PA 2614 Posts |
I do tend to work with a client if they're willing to be open about their entertainment budget. Like I said, it's about perceived value. I don't just lower my price because they can't afford me, we work out a deal. The "removing the elephant" strategy maintains that perception of value.
Another thing my wife does occasionally is agree to work for a lower price the first time, but make the client promise to hire her again within a certain period (usually 6 months or a year). If the client fails to re-hire her, they owe the remainder of her normal fee for that first gig. The key with that strategy, though, is you have to actually follow through. You have to stay in contact to push getting that follow up gig booked, and you have to actually bill them if they don't book you in time.
Christopher
Witch Doctor Psycho Seance book: https://tinyurl.com/y873bbr4 Boffo eBook: https://tinyurl.com/387sxkcd |
weepinwil Inner circle USA 3828 Posts |
Why not just do what the retail clothing stores do? Ask 3 times what you want and then have a discount sale for your real asking price.
"Til Death us do part!" - Weepin Willie
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