12 Marketing for Theatre

Marketing for Theatre

This is not a chapter for marketing pros, but a chapter to provide a few basics on the unique aspects of marketing for theatre that all those beginning a career in theatre should comprehend. Mostly it is important to understand the challenges that come with the reality of trying to sell tickets. Those pursuing marketing as a line of work will need very specific training in the area. Check out details in the Marketing track.

It is good to acknowledge that those doing this work are a special balance of marketing pros who have an in-depth knowledge of theatre and the arts. Marketing a theatre company and the product (which is a performance or a season of performances) is very different than if you were selling shoes. I’m sure shoes also have their own marketing quandaries, but people believe in the need for shoes whereas not everyone believes in the need for live performance.

According to Mariam-Webster, Marketing is defined as the process or technique of promoting, selling, and distributing a product or service. It therefore needs to be seen as a process that begins with deciding how you will communicate about the product to the actual sale of the product. If the goal is to sell, and in theatre this means selling tickets, you have to get audiences interested in seeing the show. Often, as part of this you need to market your particular production of a script at a particular theatre. If I’ve seen Hamlet a hundred times, why do I need to see this theatre company’s version of it?

Activity: Think about what is offered beyond the show? What else makes up the experience when you go to a play?

In many ways you are also marketing an experience, an evening or afternoon out, a chance to support the arts, an opportunity to share with others something that exists only in one moment in time. Of course all of this is weighed by audiences against things like ticket price, the value of their time, parking, babysitting, ease of access… With less discretionary funds to spend as cost of living increases, people will be selective. Will they choose an extra streaming service, concert tickets, sports events over live theatre?

Activity: Make a list of things that prevent you from going to theatre? Are there other things that might prevent people from choosing to go see a specific play?

Past surveys and research have asked audiences about factors that effect their ticket buying such as:

• price
• ease of ticket purchase
• quality of the play
  • a known or celebrated play
• artists that you know or are known
• friendliness of staff and volunteers
• location
  • cleanliness
  • safety of the performance venue
  • convenience (parking, bus routes)
  • accessibility
• offerings at concession
• whether there is an intermission
• performance time and running time

One core challenge is that the market (audience) doesn’t know the value of the product until they come out and see the show. It is something they need to experience. Often this requires convincing them that the show will be worth their investment of dollars and time. This is also why word of mouth is a huge part of what drives audiences. When someone you know and trust tells you that you need to see a show, that is a huge incentive.

There is also less opportunity to do market research or test the product that is theatre. The reality of the time it takes to get a show up on its feet means that a preview or two before opening is often the only way to test the product. Larger commercial ventures will do out of town tryouts with a show and allow time to make changes before premiering it in a larger centre.

Sometimes theatre makers and theatre companies also get caught trying to produce what is marketable. This usually doesn’t work, both because what is trending changes so quickly and because anything created to replicate a trend often turns out to not be authentic or artistically driven.

One aspect of marketing for a theatre company is public relations (PR). This includes creating an image for the theatre company that makes people want to attend, engage with, and even actively support. This goes beyond traditional advertising as it often includes ongoing publicity with stories and interviews in media outlets, active social media with engagement that is not just focused on selling tickets, and creating strong relationships with stakeholders. All with little to no budget.

Graphics, logo, colour, and slogans are used in theatre as in other advertising spaces. Theatre companies try to create a brand using these elements and also package their season under a theme. Branding is basically how you are identified in the public sphere. If you think of any product, for example a specific type of soft drink, they have a colour scheme, a logo, a tag line, a certain identity that they are trying to communicate. Same with theatres.

It is important to acknowledge the rise of social media as part of PR and branding, as well as a marketing tool. For certain audience demographics, the only way they learn about events is through social media. Effective use of social media can create a buzz. However, hundreds of people clicking that they will attend on Facebook does not usually translate into actual attendance. Work still has to be done to transition from buzz to a ticket purchase. Many theatre companies effectively post photos, videos, show updates, backstage sneak peeks, and introductions to their artists on social media. Making sure these easily lead the viewer to a ticket purchasing site is crucial. This is often where the company website still plays an important role. It is important to highlight the current reality that theatres, and those working in marketing, need to understand and invest in social media. There are a few more specifics below under promotional materials.

Activity: In Chapter 6 Self-Employment, social media was discussed as a self-marketing tool for the individual. Look at your favourite theatre’s social media accounts. How do they differ from an individual artist’s posts?

Regardless of the platform, some effort needs to be put in to identifying who your audience is, who your stakeholders are, and what makes your theatre unique. Knowing who you are marketing to is important. Many without experience will say they are marketing to everyone. Even if you want everyone to attend, realistically they won’t. You need to understand who will actually be interested in the show and who you want to target marketing to, as this will then affect your marketing strategy.

Being able to gauge the marketplace for theatre is a challenge. Figuring out the best approach is part of what a skilled marketing person can do. Often classical or known works are seen as easy to market as there is an existing desire to see these shows. Whereas, the lack of knowledge around a new play necessitates creating a desire to see the show.

As noted previously, for larger theatre companies the subscription model is a focal point. This means that getting people to subscribe, to commit to seeing multiple shows by paying in advance, is one big component of a theatre’s marketing campaign. There is often a brochure as a main marketing tool, but hosting season launches, undertaking direct mailings, and even phone calls are also commonly used marketing tools. I regularly receive calls from larger theatres about subscriptions after already having received e-mails and a mailing. Numbers of subscriptions had been decreasing pre-pandemic, perhaps as a generational shift. Then, after the reality of lockdowns and cancelations during the pandemic, people have been hesitant to plan in advance in the same way, so subscriptions have plummeted. Buying habits have changed to be more last minute, and theatres have taken a hit when it comes to the reliable income of subscriptions.

Marketing Plan

In order to successfully meet important box office goals a plan is crucial. As noted, you need to understand who you are focusing on as a potential patron. For a theatre company, this might shift from show to show depending on target audience. You need to figure out the best way to use resources and budget for the greatest return.

For specific marketing focus see Rhine’s two books (Theatre Management: Arts Leadership for the 21st Century and Marketing the Arts: An Introduction). He goes into further detail about marketing plans, as well as the 4 Ps of product, price, place and promotion.

In addition to a plan for each show, and a season, there will also be a grander marketing plan for a theatre company. Much of this is also about audience development with a constant aim to bring in new audiences while maintaining relationships with the existing audience. There can be overlap with things such as Education Directors who will create supports and programming for teachers and schools thereby incentivizing group bookings of classes. This is particularly the case for Theatre for Young Audiences, but also for work that has a youth target audience. Some audience development is also part of community outreach, whereby relationships are built with particular community groups in order to have them attend shows. For this to work, any barriers to attending need to be examined, such as ticket price and physical access. As a relationship it also needs to work both ways. Are representatives of the theatre attending events put on by community groups, engaging them in dialogue, finding ways that they can respond to the work; or are they just trying to get them to come to the one show that seems to be about their experience?

Marketing Tools

Many promotional materials are used when promoting a show/season and deciding which will be most effective is part of the Marketing Plan. Depending on the audience demographic, certain tools will be maximized, young people get their event information in different places from their parents or grandparents for example. It is important to think about the particular audience – where will they see it, what will speak to them, what information will they need in order to take action.

Action: Write out a few thoughts on how you would change the look and message of a promotion if you were trying to engage teens versus those 50+.

All promotions should lead to the call to action of buying tickets. And make it easy to take that step. I’m sure you’ve all seen some pretty slick promotional materials, but did they pique your interest enough for you to take action. Sometimes you’ll see a very visually exciting poster, but it wasn’t useful if the information wasn’t clear. Marketing teams work closely with graphic designers (when the budget allows) to create things that suit the show you are selling, that are artistically interesting, and still provide necessary details that result in action.

Fringe festivals are a great example of posters in action. Most Fringe sites will be rife with dozens of different show posters all competing for attention. You can immediately see a difference between a slick poster and something that looks rough because no effort was put in. If you want people to take it seriously you need to make it look professional, even if it is intentionally messy.

Activity: Take a look at some posters for shows in your community or other promotional materials. Make notes about which pique your interest. What do the colours communicate? Do any actually turn you off from the play? If so why?

A few tips that are good to think about as you become aware of how theatres are marketing their shows, or perhaps as you look at marketing a self-produced production:

• Less is more. If you are walking by and see a poster, you want to get the main information without having to stop and read for 5 minutes. Keep it simple, not too crowded, and easy to read.
• Make sure it accurately reflects what you are selling. You don’t want people thinking they are buying a ticket for a comedy and then sitting through a tragedy.
• It is always best to avoid negative words.
• Use active verbs and exciting language in any copy. (When you hear the term copy, this refers to the text in a promotional piece such as the text on a poster or in a brochure.)
• Be aware of copyright versus public domain. Certain images may not be available for use so you need to either get the rights or verify that they are public domain (available freely for public use).
• Match the style and language to the platform, for example an ad on Facebook should be different than what you’d run in a print newspaper. Facebook is more casual in tone due to the fact that it is a medium targeted to ‘friends’ and a more personal connection. A newspaper ad is less direct and therefore is less personal in tone.
• Tell a story. Convey an experience.
• Think about the collective conscious, certain images take on certain meanings (for example an apple can signify temptation or knowledge in the Western world).
• Likewise, colour has associated meaning so it is good to understand colour theory.
• It can be useful to ask – What do you want the viewer or reader to feel?
• Also think about accessibility, with fonts that are easy to read. For anything on-line include photo/graphic descriptions. If you are doing a promo video consider doing a version in ASL or with audio description.

Specific promotional materials might include:

• Brochure: especially for festivals and seasons
• Poster: which due to size really needs a strong visual
• Postcards/Flyers: often a smaller version of the poster but easy to hand out, mail or have at cafes/businesses for folks to pick up
• Website: is generally more static but should be easy to navigate and up to date
• Social media, both posts and advertising:
  • the goal here is usually to drive people to purchase a ticket
  • it should be a regular engagement tool though and often a 4:1 ratio is suggested whereby for every post pushing ticket sales you should have three others that offer something else (a meme, a video, photo, backstage insights…)
  • it tends to be more casual in tone
  • each platform has its own style so work with that
  • investing in paid boosting can be worth the investment
• Media release to be sent to all media outlets (radio, tv, print, bloggers, podcasters):
  • the goal here is to get an interview or story;
  • best to verify with each outlet how they like to receive releases, how far in advance, and to whom to send them
• Press kits: are sometimes still used although are usually digital now
  • basically include the media release and production photos as well as any other material to really get the interest of media;
  • often now the media release is just sent via email and then photos provided upon request;
  • media relations is again about relationship building
  • remember that they are likely getting hundreds of e-mails, so think about what you can do to stand out
• Photographs:
  • can be a challenge since the show often isn’t ready for full photos until close to opening
  • setting up a photo shoot without the full set or costumes can be done, or having a media time built into the early tech days to get photos and also invite cameras in

If you are self-producing or doing the Fringe, like most in this boat, you have a very limited budget. A few free options are:

• Get the show info into newsletters of other organizations or businesses who have an alignment with the play
• Disguise theatre coupons as a bookmarks and put them in libraries/bookstores
• Pitch group outings for community groups
• Offer group bookings where the group leader gets a comp
• Give free tickets to influencers who will share the show on their social media or with their circles
• Generate hype with flash mobs, chalk art, flyering in costume at events
• Blogs and podcasts, if done well, can boost interest
• Host a friendraiser having all those involved with the show invite their contacts for a teaser and then ask them to use word of mouth to spread the word
• Put materials at hotels where tourists are looking for things to do
• Affinity marketing in partnership with other groups or events and/or cross-promoting

Finally, just a note that you can market the heck out of a show and folks will still not come. Surveys are often used by theatres in order to improve their practices, so as an audience member it is always helpful to fill them in and assist with market research. Customer service, box office, and front of house are also important. A bad experience at the theatre can turn you off from going again no matter what the play is. The experience truly begins when you see promotional materials and take action towards a ticket purchase, as these things will influence your expectations and attitude towards the performance in many cases.

A few other resources, with thanks to Dr. Thea Fitz-James (Adjunct Assistant Professor at DAN School of Drama and Music, Queen’s University) for sharing resources used in her Theatre Administration course.

• Circuit West in Australia has some great videos and toolkits, including a nice primer on Marketing for Community Theatre
• A Simple 4-Step Guide to Great Theatre Marketing