How to keep your marketing fresh using today’s topics.

The marketing gold star of the week goes to Theaterworks in Hartford, CT for reminding us that one way to get attention for your show is to look at what else your audience is paying attention to.

Check out this link.

Rather then sending their email subscribers the typicial, “Hey, we’re doing A Steady Rain right now – you should come and see it – and oh, here’s a discount because that’s the most creative thing we can come up with right now,” the marketing folks sent out a WikiLeaks email spoof called TheaterLeaks.

As you’ll see when you click the link, it’s a “cable” in the form of a Stage Management report that doubles as a marketing message about the fun, the laughs, the standing ovations, and that tickets are going fast.

I know, a whole lot of you are thinking, “smaarrrrrt.”

It is smart.  And it’s smart for the following two reasons:

  • It’s different from all the other email messages you get about shows.
  • It’s topical, which makes their product seem topical, current, and fresh.

Cameron Mackintosh used to dress up his Cosette logos in Santa Claus hats at Christmas to try and keep his show seem current (and because the contrast of serious frenchie Cosette in “costumes” was just fun).

I’ve seen Tony congrats ads from shows, and most recently, even an email about The Royal Wedding (which I even blogged about on Monday).

Broadway shows can run for years.  Keep saying the same things over and over and your audience will tune their attention to one of the many new shows that open each year.

But watching what else is capturing your audience’s interest in the world outside of ours may just be the way to capture a few more ticket sales.

See the smaarrrrrt Theaterworks email here.

Got a comment?  I love ’em, so comment below!  Email subscribers, click here, then scroll down, to say what’s on your mind!)

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