street promotion...does your band do it? does it work?

[Dickarms]

thinking about going old school and walking the streets this week to promote the friday night show.

does your band do this? is there a noticeable increase in turnout? be honest.
i made a poster for the show as shown in the poster thread, but i think i will rework it into a small flyer, say 4 flyers to a sheet, cut em up, and distribute them by hand to people and talk with them a bit. maybe something even more crypcti like a bigass QR code with a cryptic but arresting phrase or some shit on it.

i know it has worked on my during sxsw before, a band convincing me to come see them out of my way, but outside of the festival madness, i havent really seen it.


i just wonder in this age how much good it would actually do. trying to get some strange in the door.

[K-Bizzle]

Did this with a band and even gave out free nice looking demos at some shows.

Overall did nothing for us that I ever noticed and we were pretty good for the style.

[Schweezly]

Did this with a band and even gave out free nice looking demos at some shows.

Overall did nothing for us that I ever noticed and we were pretty good for the style.

Agreed, but maybe it's just our market. We used to pass out 100-150 promo CDs 1-2 times per month promoting local shows. We might have gotten some interest in the music, but not much for show turnout.



Can't hurt to try though. You'll never know unless you go out and do it. Plus, you've got nice weather. We did this shit in the dead of winter in Chicago when it's 5 degrees.

[Dickarms]

did you engage people personally, or just hand them out? not dogging either method, just trying to get accurate data

[Telephant]

I think putting posters up at the venue, and at spots near/around said venue would do just as much. Though I'd agree that it can't hurt and its totally worth a try!!! So don't let me discourage you! Its better to get our there and try than to not.

[K-Bizzle]

did you engage people personally, or just hand them out? not dogging either method, just trying to get accurate data

Both.
Thought it would do something, really didn't.

Reality is here people come out to shows for social function just as much if not more than for the music.
Sad but true.


It'd probably be most effective by getting popular people into your band.

[Dickarms]

see im thinking exactly this, from what ive seen. thanks for the confirmation!

[JiveTurkey]

It'd probably be most effective by getting popular people into your band.

Funny, yet probably most nail on the head answer in this thread.

[Schweezly]

did you engage people personally, or just hand them out? not dogging either method, just trying to get accurate data

We handed out at the door of small venue shows (300 max). Tried talking to some people. I never once saw one CD get throw away and I never had to pick up a flyer.


But people don't seem to want to talk today. If you approach someone on the street there's a good chance they think you're crazy and don't want to talk. Cell phone world man, sucks.

[Dickarms]

well thats where charm comes in. i'm really good about conversing with random strangers actually. almost to a fault. it pisses VC off all the time. she'd rather cross a street than talk to someone.

but context is key. i dont know, maybe ill make a drinking night of it, go out thursday or something and hit up some bars that i fit in at, and just start working it into conversations while out on the town anyway

[GuitarBilly]

Best way to do it is to go to the venue you are schedule to play one or two weeks before your show and engage people there. If there are already there and like the venue alright they are more likely to come back for your show in 1-2 weeks. You need to engage people, just passing out flyers won't do anything. If they don't know your music, just a flyer won't do anything to convince them, but if you take the time to talk to them and they like you enough, it's something.

I've done a lot of it before, it works well if done right. It's also a great excuse to approach women.

[clipless bumper]

Worked for these guys:
[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IcX7q6V98w[/video]

[Dickarms]

good points. as the show is friday, it will be a little hasty, but its a good spot for it...different scenes in different parts of this town, this one on e 6th happens to have a lot of people who go there no matter who's playing, to an extent. n

[BroSlinger]

One time, Falcon Joe and I ventured out to the hipster bar to promote our hipster music gig coming up at another hipster-esque bar. We had hip little flyers that looked tight as shit. We personally engaged people. We really tried. Since we technically weren't deeply intertwined into the scene, the people treated us like we had ebola. We could have had better success selling bibles to atheists.

So, tldr = don't even try. you will feel more dejected, and you will not generate a better turnout. FWIW, Falcon Joe and I look back on that time fondly when we were fully committed to the falcon. I miss those times.

[Dickarms]

i do imagine it would be scene dependent. all the fort wayne hipsterati shut you out? fuckers.
but its a good point. even here, its more acceptable during SXSW i would say.

i think around her its better to be like "we're throwing a party come drink lonestars and there coincidentally will be some kickass bands there", then to be like
"come see us"
"what do you sound like?"
"um......fuck..well its....well its not...well....fuck"

[clipless bumper]

if you offer free beer - they will come

[Dickarms]

if you offer free beer - they will come

there is always that....

[K-Bizzle]

Best way to do it is to go to the venue you are schedule to play one or two weeks before your show and engage people there. If there are already there and like the venue alright they are more likely to come back for your show in 1-2 weeks. You need to engage people, just passing out flyers won't do anything. If they don't know your music, just a flyer won't do anything to convince them, but if you take the time to talk to them and they like you enough, it's something.

I've done a lot of it before, it works well if done right. It's also a great excuse to approach women.

Might be a better idea than our approach which was to hit folks coming out of shows for national bands that had a similar vibe to us. Might have been the wrong crowd to try to get to go to locals all together but it was the best idea we could think of.