Ken Davenport - Opinions from a Broadway Producer

What I learned from a Mall or Four ways to keep your audience at your theater.

If you run a theater anywhere in the world, your goal should not only be to get your audience to your theater, it should also be to keep your audience at your theater.

The longer they hang around, the more they think of it as a place of respite and entertainment, and the many more tickets they will purchase.  Expand the brand and they will buy.

I call it "Mall theory:"  creating a destination where people want to hang out . . . and eventually they'll spend money, because you'll be able to reinforce your message more often, and educate your consumers on all that you have to offer. For you Sondheim lovers, I also call it, "Spreading pitch on the stairs," so your audiences get stuck.  (Name the show!)

While a theater or a theater complex will never have the traffic of the Mall of America, there are a number of very small and inexpensive perks that a theater can provide to keep consumers coming back, and maybe, sticking around.  Here are Four Ways To Keep Your Audiences At Your Theater.

1.  Free Wifi

With more and more devices that need Wifi (like the iPad) for their full functionality, a free Wifi spot is like an oasis in the desert.  I'll plop myself for hours in a comfortable spot just to have that access, and I'm sure your audience will, too.  Add Free Wifi to all your common areas, and put signs for it everywhere.  You'll have people stopping by sooner than you think (there's no coincidence that Starbucks just traded out their pay Wifi service for free service for all).  Once your WiFi-ers are online, make them sign up for your mailing list in order to access the web.

2.  Live Music

People love live music and it doesn't take much to get an up-and-coming singer/songwriter to play a few tunes in your lobby or wherever people may congregate.  Or better . . . use your theater itself (which is probably dark during the day) for free lunchtime concerts for local artists.  I know a bunch of folks who'd do it for tips or for the credit (it's the coffee house or subway tunnel approach).  

3.  Food/Drinks

Speaking of coffee, do you offer free coffee at non-peak times?  I'm not saying you have to have the best Columbian beans brewing for every passerby, but some basic free coffee is an incredible pull.  There is a Cub Scout group on I-95 that uses this bait and catches a lot of fish.  They put a huge "STAY AWAKE!  FREE COFFEE AT NEXT REST STOP!" sign on the highway, and get thousands of people pulling over.  They do have free coffee . . . and a bunch of other bake sale items for sale.  I bought a rice krispie treat.  And I don't even drink coffee. Beyond coffee, strike a deal with a local deli or sandwich shop to get a few sandwiches on consignment.  How many times have you gone to the mall just for the food court, and ended up buying something while you're there?  We need food and drink in order to survive.  Unfortunately, the same isn't true for theater.  So, put what we need in your place, and you'll get more people coming by.  

4.  Lectures

People love to learn.  This is especially true of theater audiences (according to League statistics, 73% of the Broadway audience has college degrees, and 36% has graduate degrees).  So get some people to give free talks and lectures about a variety of subjects.  Have a Broadway Producer come and chat about what it's like to Produce on Broadway (I'd do it).  Have a local painter come and talk about how she gets her inspiration for her paintings.  Or have an investment banker come and talk about how to navigate the choppy market (the subjects don't have to be about the arts - they just have to be about the audience).  By providing these free mini continuing-ed courses, you'll be giving something of great value to your audience, which should engender a reciprocal give-back to you, in the form of a ticket purchase or a donation.

Audiences are like children.  You want them playing in your own backyard so you can keep an eye on them, make sure they aren't being influenced by others, and . . . tell them what to do.

How do you keep your audiences at your theater?
 

A Will It Recoup Update. How is Broadway doing this Spring?

You forgot about this contest, didn't you?

Back in February, we launched our second 'Will It Recoup' fantasy Broadway investment game and put a Kindle on the line.

The name of the game says it all (just like the name of your show should reflect exactly what your show is about).  It's your job to pick the winners from the floppers in the Spring season.

So how are you (and the Broadway Producers) doing so far?

Here's what we know and what we don't:

A View from the Bridge: RECOUPED!
The Miracle Worker: Did NOT recoup.
A Behanding in Spokane: Did NOT recoup.
Next Fall: Did NOT recoup.
Looped: Did NOT recoup.
Red: RECOUPED!
Lend Me A Tenor: Too soon to tell.
Fences: RECOUPED!
Enron:  Did NOT recoup.   

So that makes a total of 3 Broadway shows out of 9 that have recouped already. That's a pretty bountiful Spring, considering the statistical average is 1 out of 5 (although it is certainly not a coinky-dink that two of the three shows that have recouped featured Hollywood mega-stars Denzel Washington and Scarlett Johansson).  

Still, the game is not over.  We've still got one show on the fence.  We could have quite a good year if it falls into the win column.

How are you doing? 

Well, there are 27 of you who picked those three shows to recoup, and the five shows that did not.  27 of you are still in the money!  

So...it all comes down to Lend Me a Tenor.

See you in August! 

Broadway Grosses w/e 06/27/10

Show Name	GrossGross	TotalAttn	%Cap	AvgPdAdm
AMERICAN IDIOT	$870,640	10,200	74.61%	$85.36
BILLY ELLIOT: THE MUSICAL	$1,172,529	11,306	99.45%	$103.71
CHICAGO	$509,112	6,566	76.00%	$77.54
COME FLY AWAY	$695,277	7,035	54.59%	$98.83
EVERYDAY RAPTURE	$226,168	4,340	73.31%	$52.11
FELA!	$588,286	7,264	88.16%	$80.99
FENCES	$1,138,982	8,769	101.59%	$129.89
HAIR	$712,008	9,638	85.32%	$73.88
IN THE HEIGHTS	$563,124	8,824	82.07%	$63.82
JERSEY BOYS	$1,083,587	9,751	99.26%	$111.13
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES	$747,616	8,062	95.34%	$92.73
LEND ME A TENOR	$374,601	5,031	62.95%	$74.46
MAMMA MIA!	$844,768	10,106	84.33%	$83.59
MARY POPPINS	$1,061,258	13,861	96.42%	$76.56
MEMPHIS	$923,861	10,786	91.72%	$85.65
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET	$565,267	7,164	73.76%	$78.90
NEXT FALL	$180,317	3,044	64.60%	$59.24
NEXT TO NORMAL	$322,673	4,823	78.09%	$66.90
PROMISES, PROMISES	$1,311,246	13,699	98.02%	$95.72
RACE	$204,944	3,945	46.61%	$51.95
RED	$723,560	6,403	99.55%	$113.00
ROCK OF AGES	$464,654	5,448	68.30%	$85.29
SONDHEIM ON SONDHEIM	$349,333	5,982	74.48%	$58.40
SOUTH PACIFIC	$526,973	6,551	78.66%	$80.44
THE ADDAMS FAMILY	$1,396,262	11,841	97.44%	$117.92
THE LION KING	$1,551,798	13,425	100.07%	$115.59
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA	$870,182	11,212	86.78%	$77.61
WEST SIDE STORY	$700,394	9,442	69.55%	$74.18
WICKED	$1,641,718	14,472	100.00%	$113.44
TOTAL	$22,321,137	248,990	82.79%	$85.48

5 MORE Takeaways from the Get Your Show Off The Ground Seminar.

Last Saturday, another great group of super passionate producers, writers, artists and more woke up early and spent the day with me and the other entrepreneurial artists who signed up for my Get Your Show Off The Ground Seminar. 

We had a blast.

We heard about all sorts of projects at various stages of development.  We talked about finding and signing collaborators, how to wear multiple hats on multiple projects, and yes, you guessed it, we talked about how to raise all those important funds.  And everyone walked away with a to-do list that they were psyched to check off.  

While it's impossible to recreate the energy of the room in a blog, I thought I'd do what I did after the last seminar, and post five simple takeaways that resonated with the group, that will hopefully resonate with you.

• Creating experiential entertainment has never been more important than it is today.
• The nicer the theater you put your show in, the higher the expectations from your audience and the press, will be.
• Your agents and your lawyers work for you.  You do not work for them.
• Developing scripts can be like sick children.  And if your kid isn't getting better, don't stick with your one doctor.  Take him/her to the best doctor you can afford.
• Just because your show doesn't belong on Broadway, doesn't mean it doesn't belong.

There was a ton of other great stuff that came out of the seminar, and so much of it came from the participants themselves!  These seminars have turned into great collaborative think tanks of some of the most exciting and emerging theatrical minds I've seen.  Thanks for being so awesome, guys.

If you'd like to participate in one of my seminars, sign up today by clicking here. The next seminar will be on Saturday, November 13th. (The timing is ideal for all of you post-festival peeps curious about what to do AFTER the festival.)  FYI, I've modified the structure a bit to make the seminar more efficient, but that also means that there are only 12 spots available.  These spots will go fast, so register today.  

Click here for more info and we'll see you there!

Guess what? The Tonys aren't about reaching new audiences.

The Tony Awards ratings dropped a disappointing 8% this year, despite one of our most celebrity-studded presentations ever.  We had Green Day and a NY Jet and more Hollywood stars than the Betty Ford clinic.

So why didn't tons of new viewers tune in and get hooked on showtunes?

Because it's still a three-hour presentation about the very nichey subject of theater.  And if you're not a theater fan, most likely you are not tuning in, I don't care who you dress up in a gown and teach an R&H song to.

Are my football-loving and Budweiser-drinking friends from suburban Massachusetts all of a sudden going to give up three hours of their lives because a NY Jet has a 45-second intro to a musical?

Is the JetBlue pilot who flew me from Tampa to JFK but lives in Houston and has never seen a show in his life gonna feel so compelled to turn on the Tonys just because he loved Sean Hayes's character from Will & Grace?

Or is my Brooklyn-based little brother, who works as a sound engineer mostly in the hip-hop scene (although he has worked a few sessions of Broadway musicals), gonna take time out from mixing beats to watch the number from Fela?

The answer is no, no, and whatever the word for 'No' is in Nigerian.

But don't be depressed.  They were never the audience.  Sure, we'd all love it if millions of viewers turned on CBS just to catch a glimpse of Denzel in a tux, but that's just not what happens.  Do a few more folks tune in because we've got a couple of folks from Glee?  Probably . . . but it's not enough to make any noticeable difference.   

And that fact has never been more noticeable than this year, with the almost double-digit drop in ratings.

But don't be depressed, because IMHO, our mission with the Tony Awards isn't about reaching new audiences (especially since it's not working anyway).

Our marketing mission of the Tony Awards, should be energizing our core audience, the ones that tune in year after year, and to try to excite them so much that they . . . 

• See one more show per year than they usually do.
• Bring a friend to a show who would not have gone on their own.

Pareto's Principle states that 80% of the effects comes from 20% of the causes. Rather than focusing on trying to reach past our 20%, we should focus our efforts (and our awards shows) on that 20%, the faithful who are tuning in.  The show should whip them up into such a Broadway frenzy, that they go out and preach its importance as entertainment louder than the year before.

Because here's what we know:

• Word of Mouth is what sells everything.
• People fall in love with the theater after being introduced to it by someone else.

New audiences don't buy Broadway because they see a clip or a star on a Tony Award show.  They fall for what we do because they are dragged to it by someone else.  I didn't have any clue what I was going to see when my Mom dragged me to Les Miz when I was 16, and I had been involved in the theater since I was 5.  But that performance changed my life.

I had never seen a Tony Awards before then.  

And I've never missed one since.

Advice from an Expert: Vol. XVII. My Mother The Theatergoer.

There's always a lot of talk about the Tonys in the weeks that follow the big show.  What numbers were successful?  Could we give the plays more attention and still hold the audience's attention?  And who fit Katie Holmes into her dress?

But the most important question for the Producers out there is . . . after watching the Tonys, what shows does the public want to see?

All of us in the industry debate this question like crazy.  But what do we know?  Most of us don't have a clue what it's like to be a family of four from the suburbs interested in seeing a show on their next long weekend.  In fact, I would wager that the people making the product in our industry and the people seeing the product are more different than in most industries out there.

But that doesn't stop us from guessing.  

I was in the middle of a heated discussion about my own guesses on what the public wanted to see last week, when I realized it was time to go to the source.  I decided to go to what most advertising agencies would describe as the model of a "traditional" theatergoer:  a suburban female in her 50s-60s who sees 3-5 shows per year, mostly musicals, and pays full price.

And that theatergoer is my momma.  And she's literally been in my backyard this whole time!

I called Mom, who, of course, had tuned in to the Tonys, and asked her if she would write a mini-blog for me about her perspective on this year's show.  Most specifically, I asked . . . "Mom, after watching the Tonys, what shows do you want to see the next time you are in town?"  

Here's what Mom had to say . . . [my comments are in brackets]
 

"I watched the Tony Awards a few nights ago.  I love the excitement, costumes, music - even the speeches.  I often get ideas about what I'd like to see on our next NYC trip.  Before I tell you what shows captured my attention from the way they were presented at The Tonys, I thought you might find it interesting to get a few additional details about my perspective (and some of these Kenneth doesn't even know).  [Yes, she, and about three other people on the planet, call me Kenneth.]

• My first theater experience was 50 years ago when I saw Annie Get Your Gun.  When the stage curtain opened, revealing a real live horse . . . I was hooked!  [When people see things on stage that they don't expect to see: kids, animals, helicopters, it elevates the experience.]
• As a teenager, I was addicted to buying show albums, and also listening to show songs popularized by famous artists.  I loved those album covers and the summaries of the shows on the back (King and I, Mame, etc.)  [Oh, if only popular artists were covering our tunes today.]
• I was a teen in the '60s, which put me in the proper emotional state to grasp the power of music.  It brought people together, challenged their thinking and even caused them to take action (Hair, West Side Story, Jesus Christ Superstar).  

And now, here are the shows that I wanted to see and the ones that didn't interest me (there were many other shows that I had no opinion on - I'd have to learn more before putting them in the "to see" or "don't see" category).  It's important to remember that this is based solely on what I saw on the Tonys.  I might not see any of these shows, or I might see them all.  A lot of things may change my mind before I get to New York next, including what Kenneth thinks I might like to see or not.  [Good ol' fashioned Word of Mouth trumps all, and I can't believe she called me Kenneth twice in this blog.]  

SHOWS I REALLY WANT TO SEE!

Memphis:  The music and the dancing were so exciting, this is at the top of my list.  (I have to admit that 'Listen to the Beat' sounded like Hairspray's 'You Can't Stop The Beat.' but I loved the music and the dancing in that show, too!)  [Music, dancing . . . the keys to an audience-pleaser of a musical.]

Fela!:  I love the costumes, the music and the dancing.  The story (about using music to communicate) also seemed very interesting to me.  [See her comment about growing up in the '60s.  What our audience lived through helped make them who they are today and influences what they want to see.]

Million Dollar Quartet:  Loved the music and the story idea and Levi Kreis's performance.  

Red:  I really liked the premise about the importance of art and what I saw of both Alfred Molina and Eddie Redmayne.  [Mom was disappointed to hear she wouldn't get a chance to see this show because of its limited run.  I told her if she was disappointed, imagine how the Producers must feel.]

NAH, I'LL PASS

American Idiot:  To me, it seemed like a concert, and not a show.  I've heard about Green Day because my other son is in the music business, but I've never listened to any of their music before.  The music was interesting to me, but I'm not going to play it in my car anytime soon. 

A Little Night Music:  I don't know this show very well, so I can only base my thoughts on what I saw, but I wasn't inspired.  I love 'Send In The Clowns,' but I didn't learn anything else about the show through the performance."
 

So there are Mom's Tony Award Takeaways.

Now please remember, this is only one Mom's opinion. And the opinions expressed here by my Mom are solely my Mom's and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Moms everywhere or even me.

But she's a Mom with a Mastercard, and she uses it to buy tickets.  So maybe we should listen to all of the Moms out there more than we listen to those of us on the inside of the business.

So . . . what did your Mom think?

[Update:  My mom came into the city this weekend unexpectedly.  Although she wanted to see Memphis, she ended up getting Chicago tickets instead (and special thanks to Michael at the Ambassador BO for helping her out).  Why?  "I thought your step-father would enjoy it more."]

5 Ways to get higher open rates on your email blasts.

Yesterday we dismissed the myth that the size of an email blast list determines its value.  Since we know that the true success of any advertising campaign is the number of conversions and ROI (return on investment), it's essential that we examine ways that we can increase those conversions. 

And before we get to the message inside the blast, we've got to make sure as many people are opening it as possible. 

Here are five tips you can use to increase the open rates on your email blasts, whether a third party is sending them for you (Telecharge.com, etc.) or whether you're blasting the subscribers to your own lists.

1.  Customize your "From" field.

Most third party email blast providers (like Benchmark, the service I use and recommend) allow you to send emails from whatever name you'd like.  Make sure it's not coming from 'emailblast@yourcompany.com' or anything impersonal like that.  It should come from you or your show or maybe even a character in your show.  The more personal your communication, the better. Whatever you choose, make sure it's as instantly recognizable as possible.  

2.   Avoid Spam flags.

A lot happens to every email you send before it (hopefully) gets to your intended recipient.  Their ISP scans that sucker a few times looking for signs that you are a spammer.  If it sees one of those signs, your email will be sent to your recipient's Spam folder faster than it would take you to throw up after eating a whole can of Spam by yourself.  Or worse, the ISP may just bounce your email back at you!  How can you decrease the chances of being seen as Spam?  Here are some things to avoid in your subject lines specifically:  exclamation points, dollar signs, all caps, words like "free," "discount," "special," "save," etc.  

3.  It's all in the timing.

There are not only better days of the week to send emails to increase your open rates, but there are also better times of day.  The tricky part is determining the best day/time for your specific message.  My research has shown more success on mid-week email blasts for the best open rates when pushing a sales message, so I focus on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday when I have a choice. Since most folks get their emails at work, I try to avoid Mondays (when their inboxes are overloaded from the weekend) and Fridays, when people are trying to get out of work.  Weekends are more successful than they used to be, but I try to steer clear of selling on a Saturday or Sunday.  I time my messages for the middle of the day (around lunch time), in the hopes that the recipient may open it while they're munching on their salad or sandwich, since they have more time.

4.  Your subject is not a subject, it's a headline.

A well written subject is the equivalent of old-fashioned direct response copy (click here to read one of the most successful headlines of all time).  It's an ad for the ad.  Don't just slap a few words together to say, "save $20 on tickets to XXX show."  Your subject has to rev up your reader so that they are compelled to hit that "open" button.  Spend time on your subjects.  And watch what subjects intrigue you as you open emails every day.  

5.  Test it and tweak it every time.

Split test your emails with two separate subjects, if you can.  If you can't split, then try different ideas with each blast and see how your open rate changes from blast to blast. Testing is the key to improving anything, not just advertising and not just open rates, but this is one of the areas that we seem to ignore in this industry more than anything.  If we are so dependent on email blasts and open rates, then we have to try different things with each effort and adjust accordingly. 

Email marketing isn't going anywhere.  It's still your show's strongest asset, whether you're buying email blasts from third parties, or sending them yourself (I hope both).  If you focus on improving your open rate with these tips (that, by the way, don't cost you any more) you can make that asset even more rewarding.  

Is bigger better when you're talking about blasts?

Here comes an old chestnut of a joke for you.

Size doesn't matter.

When people are peddlin' you email blasts for your shows, they'll all trumpet the size of their lists. 100,000.  350,000.  650,000! Immediately you'll feel that "bigger is better" pull and think, "Wow, just imagine all those impressions at a cost of only pennies per!"

The moment someone tries to sell you a list, the first question you should ask is "How many subscribers do you have?"  

But don't stop there.

The second question you should ask is, "What is your average open rate?"  (An open rate is exactly what it sounds like . . . how many people open your email after receiving it).

Then, do some 9th grade math:

# Subscribers x Open Rate (%) = Actual Impressions

My research indicates that most commercial email blasts sold in our industry have open rates ranging from approximately 10-15%.

So . . . that means . . .

350,000 subscribers x 12.5% (in between 10-15%) = 43,750 impressions.

All of a sudden, the size of that list doesn't seem that impressive, does it?  

And that doesn't mean those 43,750 people even read your "ad."  Preview panes, mobile devices, etc., are screwing with open rate statistics now more than ever.  

The truth is, the open rate isn't even the most important statistic.

Now we all know that the real strength of these lists is in the number of conversions you receive from the openers.  But obviously, the more individuals that open your email, the greater chance you have at converting a sale.

So how do you increase your open rate?  

Tomorrow I'll give you 5 tips on how to increase your open rate.  

In the meantime, don't be impressed by the size of something.  

Because, yes, that old Catskills-like joke is true.  

Size does not matter.  

(And that doesn't mean my list is small, by the way. Cuz, it's not. I've got a big list.  I'm just saying that . . . you know . . . it doesn't matter for those out there that don't have a big list but know how to use it.  Really.  I swear.)

Stay tuned for tomorrow's follow up.

Broadway Grosses w/e 06/20/10

Show Name	GrossGross	TotalAttn	%Cap	AvgPdAdm
A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC	$950,296	7,282	97.77%	$130.50
AMERICAN IDIOT	$818,463	9,358	68.45%	$87.46
BILLY ELLIOT: THE MUSICAL	$1,107,337	10,919	96.05%	$101.41
CHICAGO	$437,533	5,563	64.39%	$78.65
COME FLY AWAY	$667,096	6,737	52.27%	$99.02
EVERYDAY RAPTURE	$213,249	4,024	67.97%	$52.99
FELA!	$628,783	7,600	92.23%	$82.73
FENCES	$1,135,974	8,770	101.60%	$129.53
HAIR	$501,436	7,920	70.11%	$63.31
IN THE HEIGHTS	$558,246	8,339	77.56%	$66.94
JERSEY BOYS	$1,070,258	9,589	97.61%	$111.61
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES	$687,825	7,316	86.52%	$94.02
LEND ME A TENOR	$336,475	4,637	58.02%	$72.56
MAMMA MIA!	$772,589	9,529	79.51%	$81.08
MARY POPPINS	$924,739	12,566	87.41%	$73.59
MEMPHIS	$835,071	10,171	86.49%	$82.10
MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET	$554,008	6,603	67.99%	$83.90
NEXT FALL	$154,207	2,788	59.17%	$55.31
NEXT TO NORMAL	$282,213	4,517	73.14%	$62.48
PROMISES, PROMISES	$1,237,426	13,589	97.23%	$91.06
RACE	$253,436	4,025	47.55%	$62.97
RED	$666,618	6,362	98.91%	$104.78
ROCK OF AGES	$421,578	5,447	68.29%	$77.40
SONDHEIM ON SONDHEIM	$304,728	5,310	66.11%	$57.39
SOUTH PACIFIC	$474,824	5,839	70.11%	$81.32
THE ADDAMS FAMILY	$1,339,693	11,590	95.38%	$115.59
THE LION KING	$1,527,708	13,418	100.01%	$113.86
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA	$827,332	10,743	83.15%	$77.01
WEST SIDE STORY	$647,181	8,846	65.16%	$73.16
WICKED	$1,620,876	14,472	100.00%	$112.00
TOTAL	$21,957,194	243,869	79.21%	$85.86

Favorite Quotes Vol. XXVI: How to get young audiences to see your show.

It's been 9 months since the theater-owner line up was shaken up big time when young gun, Jordan Roth, was called up to head the Jujamcyn Organization.

New York Magazine checked in on the young turk in a fantastic feature published a week or so ago, that describes how Jordan plans to take the theater into the 21st century (yes, I know we're technically already in the 21st century, but the theater has a habit of lagging behind, so in my mind, it's still 1998).  

So what is Jordan's advice on getting the younger audience to the theater?  He sums it up like this:

"What I believe in is product. Don’t waste your time trying to figure out how to get a young audience to see The Music Man. If you want a young audience, don’t f*cking do The Music Man.”

Great quote, right?  It's definitely hot enough to qualify for this FQ column. 

But it was Jordan's final comments in the article that really resonated for me.

"The shows that change the world do it because they offer something you haven't seen before."

Unique product is the key to any industry and any art form.  Marketing is great and fine and important and all that bologna and cheese.  I mean, give me a show, and I'll market the bejesus out of it with promotions and advertising and stunts and more.

But if you really want to be successful?  Give us something that we don't even know we need . . . but once we get a taste of it, we can't get enough and don't know how we ever lived with out it.
 

Read the feature here to learn about Jordan's renovation plans, how he chooses product, and the secret door that leads to the St. James Theater.