[Dixielandjazz] Advertising suggestions to get MORE people to the gig...

Mon May 14 15:57:14 PDT 2007

Hey Larry,
    Bands just can't NOT afford to advertise their gigs -- especially when 
they're not playing "mainstream" music. But it sounds like you at least make 
the effort for your gigs -- may I suggest Xeroxing some flyers and taking 
them around to: ballroom dancing studios (each town usually has at least 2-3 
studios that will have a bulletin board for places to go dancing), yoga 
studios (usually have bulletin boards and you'll be surprised how many yoga 
devotees love music with melodies), and elementary/junior high & high school 
band directors? They usually have bulletin boards and kids need to hear this 
music! Maybe the band director will Xerox enough flyers to give to the kids 
to take home if your concert is outdoors or free. I think every jazz club 
should call the local junior high school band directors and ask if they can 
put on a program or invite some of the kids to the Sunday jam -
    Also, you can't underestimate the power of the web! Every time I land in 
a new city (right now I'm in San Francisco for a month), the first thing I 
do is google "swing dancing", "dixieland", "trad jazz" and "lindy" plus the 
city to find the Calendars that SOMEONE is creating for that town. San 
Francisco has several because they have SO much fabulous jazz -- of course, 
they also have RaeAnn Berry, who is an incredible ambassador to trad jazz as 
well as a member of the DJML -- she not only gave me a sheet of ALL the trad 
jazz gigs in the San Francisco area with the websites, addresses, phone 
numbers and gig dates - she passes them out to anyone she MEETS at the gig 
who's enjoying the music. Every town should be so lucky to have someone like 
her.
    Most of those sites are eager to have someone let them know they have an 
upcoming show -- especially if there's a dance floor (ie, www.sflindyhop.com 
and  www.lindylist.com are great sources to know where to go). And it helps 
if the band has a hotlink to their website with mpgs of their music to check 
out what they sound like before I go -- especially if there's a cover 
involved!
      I spent last summer in Toronto enjoying their FABULOUS swing and trad 
jazz scene - LOTS of wonderful bands playing every week -- and not only did 
I sit in and sing with most of them - Jeff Healy hired me to sing the 
following two weeks since his singer was off doing festival work (there's 
multiple festivals all over the Toronto area all summer long -- it's 
HEAVEN!)
    If you'd like to see my blog about the San Francisco jazz scene-- check 
out: http://jazzinwithjeanne.blogspot.com and be sure to check out some of 
the band's websites -- most of them do have mpgs so you can hear their 
music - and that really raises the probability that I'll go see them. Of 
course, with the lineup of musicians in Philadelphia, I would have gone to 
see them in a heartbeat if I'd been within 100 miles!
    I hope that helps sell out all your upcoming gigs!
Jeanne Brei

Jeanne Brei
Tin Pan Alley Cat Entertainment
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.jeannebrei.com
NEW! I'm on YouTube! Click here to sing John & I singing! 
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=tinpanalleycat
EVEN NEWER! Check out my BLOG! http://jazzinwithjeanne.blogspot.com
http://www.viewnews.com/2002/VIEW-Jun-28-Fri-2002/Summerlin/19044673.html
12/13/05 Radio Interview on "Coffee With Caryll": 
http://www.alltalkradio.net/main/modules/Audio_Archives/Coffee%20With%20Caryll/coffee121305.MP3.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
To: <tinpanalleycat at cox.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Monday, May 14, 2007 11:53 AM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Is this typical? - Advertising


>I think that the problem of poor turnout is advertising.  Bands just can't 
>afford to do their own advertising because of the work and cost involved.
>
> Recently my band played at the Scott Joplin House here in St. Louis.  They 
> have a club next door called the Rosebud and as venues go it's very nice. 
> The club holds about 60-80 people.
>
> I advertised via e-mail to everyone on my list and requested that they 
> forward my e-mail to their friends.  I don't know if anyone did it or not. 
> As far as I could see no one from my list showed up.  Most everyone on my 
> list is a musician which may have played a part in it.  I have a small 
> e-mail list to clients and venues.
>
> I printed color flyers that were put in several places as well as at the 
> Joplin House prior to the concert.  The members of the band passed some 
> out too.  I mailed out a few but I suspect the groups I mailed them to 
> needed them a month earlier to act on them.  I should have gotten them out 
> earlier but that just wasn't possible.
>
> It was pointed out that I didn't have a notice in the Get out St. Louis 
> column of the Post.  That is free and comes out once a week on Thursdays. 
> One of the audience reminded me that I wasn't there.   I also didn't 
> notify the Jazz Club for a notice.  This one I didn't do because I wasn't 
> a member yet and didn't know they did that and when I found out it was too 
> late to make the newsletter.
>
> In spite of all my shortcomings on the concert we had almost a full house 
> which was good but could have been better.
>
> I was disappointed with the internet advertising the venue did.  We were 
> supposed to be on the web site announcement but never made it even though 
> I called and reminded them.  I was assured that it would be done. (NOT!!!) 
> They did send out, so they say. an e-mailing.  Does anyone read those 
> things or does it just become so much spam? At this point I don't know how 
> much good e-mail does but since it's more or less free it's foolish to not 
> use it.  If anyone wants to see what my e-ad looked like I can send it off 
> list.
>
> Even the amount of advertising I did was a fairly large effort and while I 
> could have done more and directed things a bit differently the result 
> wasn't as good as I had hoped.  As time goes by I will refine my efforts.
>
> I sent out about 85 postcards on my list before the rates went up.  Lets 
> see if I get any calls from those.  I ended up booking 9 jobs from that 
> list before and generated 2 calls for NY eve.  The cards were aimed at 
> some Tuesday nights we are free, summer concerts and July 4.  The other 
> reason is that I want to keep my name in front of the people that hire 
> bands.  That's the expensive part of advertising.  While I did well with 
> the last mailing you have to keep it up.  The post cards cost right at $28 
> for everything. You have to factor in the work involved but postcards are 
> inexpensive if you aren't sending out thousands and have a targeted mail 
> list.  All I have to book is one job from the mailing to more than pay for 
> it.  But like the lottery I might get lucky.
>
> I'm sort of wondering if the leader and musicians in this group as well as 
> the venue were hoping to magically draw a crowd on the names alone without 
> doing anything much else?
> Larry
> St. Louis
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Steve Barbone" <barbonestreet at earthlink.net>
> To: "Larry Walton" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
> Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
> Sent: Monday, May 14, 2007 9:52 AM
> Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Is this typical?
>
>
>>A sad story from one of the local Jazz Society e-mails, about their 
>>monthly
>> concert, this one in a church venue for Mothers Day. (Reminds me of the 
>> last
>> time they presented Tony DiNicola and Kenny Davern together with a 
>> monster
>> quintet and drew about 110 people)
>>
>> Good example of why OKOM needs an infusion of youth in all phases of the
>> genre.
>>
>>
>> -----start snip
>>
>> Hi ---- MEMBERS:
>>
>> This is to those that missed the best concert of the year in any music
>> venue!!! You missed out on a great climax!!
>>
>> Dan Levinson got down on his knees before the last tune and asked Molly 
>> Ryan
>> to marry him. She said yes, but was speechless for a long time afterward.
>>
>> The music was great, the root beer was plentiful and received well, the
>> venue had many good remarks made, the CD sales went well, but of 75 
>> there,
>> about 25 were TSJS members. Luckily we have some members that 
>> "subsidized"
>> the concert with funds, food for the band, ads in the papers, and such. 
>> That
>> is only 10 % of our members, which total is an all time low since 1995. 
>> We
>> had a band made of 8 band leaders.
>>
>> ------ end snip
>>
>> Who was in this band that drew only 75 people, 25 of whom were from the 
>> jazz
>> society?
>>
>> Dan Levinson, leader/reeds; Randy Reinhart, trumpet; David Sager, 
>> trombone;
>> Mark Shane, piano; Vince Giordano, guitar/banjo/bass saxophone; Brian
>> Nalepka, bass; Kevin Dorn, drums, Molly Ryan, vocals.
>>
>> WHAT A GREAT PITY THEY THERE WERE ONLY 75 PEOPLE IN THE PHILADELPHIA AREA
>> SUPPORTING THE MUSIC OF THIS GREAT BAND. AND ONLY 25 FROM THE JAZZ 
>> SOCIETY
>> WHO WOULD TRAVEL TO A DIFFERENT VENUE, JUST A SHORT DISTANCE FROM THEIR
>> USUAL AMERICAN LEGION HALL. For those who think the metro area that I
>> operate in is a gold mine, think again. I'll bet Dan's band would draw 
>> more
>> people than that in any town in the boonies you can think of.
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Steve Barbone
>>
>>
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>
>
>
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