Smart Arts - Creative New Zealand

1THE PLACEOF LITTLECHEA well-planned marketingcampaign for Little Che in2000 was key to asuccessful first season andsowed the seeds for anational tour in 2002.The purpose of the firstseason of Little Che was to“test run” the piece insmall fringe venues with aneye to touring at a laterstage.With this and thetarget audience in mind, itwas decided to stage theshow in small, fringe-stylevenues with low financialrisk.The choice of fringevenues would also keep alarge part of the potentialaudience away.Thisseemingly perverse idea wasso that the play’s initialdevelopmental season didn’tcapture a large slice of themarket for return seasonsto the same town or city.The venues selected wereBATS Theatre in Wellingtonand The SiLO in Auckland.Both these venues arerecognised fringe venuesand familiar to their targetmarkets.They take a smallpercentage of the door takeas venue hire. Not only doesthis lower the financial risk,it means ticket prices canremain affordable to theirtargets.• Will you be given sufficient access to the venue and enough pack-in and pack-out time?• How secure is the venue while you or your equipment/money is there?• For outdoor venues, what are the wet-weather alternatives? How do you inform your public?• Does the venue have any requirements for sponsor branding that may conflict with your own?Make the most of venue organisers. They’ve usually seen hundreds of people throughtheir venue and have learned a thing or two. Use them as testing boards: show them yourposter design, talk through your marketing and promotion, and find out if they have anyfriendly suppliers.PositionThis refers to the position of your product in the market. The measure of this is how youwant your public to perceive you, particularly when compared to your competitors.When other events are competing for the same target markets it’s important that youidentify your points of difference to ensure that your product stands out as unique.The needs, desires and perceptions of your target markets will determine how youposition your event. Factors such as price and place have a big impact on the audienceyou attract and, therefore, on your position in the market. The quality of paper youchoose for your flyer reflects where you are positioning yourself in the market place.PromotionOnce you’ve identified the six other Ps you are ready to put together your promotionalstrategy. You have worked out what you have to market and who you wish to target.You’ve worked out the behaviour of your target segments and how to reach them, andhave lessened the obstacles of place and price. The rest of this guide is about developingyour promotional strategy and putting it into action.For the seven Ps’ template: Promoting Little Che atBATS Theatre inWellington and SiLOTheatre in AucklandSmart arts | Toi huatau14