If your next large event is a concert, one of the first steps in planning is promotion. Getting the word out to as many people as possible can fill your venue seats and ensure a successful event.
Learn how to promote a concert and which tactics give you the greatest outreach with our guide that provides tips and information to fill seats with happy and excited music fans.
Begin Promoting Early
Few concert promotion tactics bring positive results if you wait too long to begin. Eventgoers must plan ahead, especially those who must travel to the venue. Some fans travel 500 miles or more to see their favorite artists, so the sooner you begin promotion, the more time people have to plan to attend.
Consider using advertising teasers for your early promotion. Add the date of the lineup announcement in the advertising you use, such as:
- Digital advertising
- Billboards
- Radio ads on stations that match the artists’ genres
You can create plenty of excitement with these teasers and gain the interest of those looking for new live music experiences. Any advertisement for a concert should make the date, location, artist name, and ticket link easy to find so fans can take action quickly.
Use Presale Tickets To Build Early Momentum
Presale tickets can give your concert promotion an early boost before tickets are available to everyone. You can offer presale access to email subscribers, past attendees, VIP customers, fan club members, or social media followers to reward people who already know your brand or the artist.
Presales also give you a reason to promote the concert more than once. Instead of only announcing that tickets are on sale, you can build a full promotion schedule around presale access, general sale tickets, countdown reminders, and last-chance ticket pushes.
As you plan presale ticket pricing, consider offering a limited-time discount or exclusive ticket type that encourages fans to buy early. You can also use the presale period to test demand. If tickets sell quickly, you may know to increase promotion, add VIP options, or adjust your general sale messaging.
Understanding presale vs. general ticketing can also help you create a stronger concert strategy. Presale tickets build early interest, while general sale tickets help you reach the wider audience once your campaign is fully underway.
Invest In Radio Ads
While today’s streaming music sites may make traditional radio seem like a thing of the past, it remains a powerful advertising tool. Radio ads can reach a broad local audience and target new fans who might become curious about your performers after hearing the spot.
Traditional radio ads continue to work as a dynamic marketing tool in a world where many streaming music services allow you to listen ad-free. Depending on your advertising budget, you can run concert promotions on several stations and reach a wider audience.
You can also work with radio stations on ticket giveaways. Instead of relying only on short ad spots, a ticket giveaway can turn your concert into a recurring station mention and give listeners another reason to pay attention.
Create an Event Website
Many concerts benefit from online promotion, including websites that provide attendees with concert dates, performer lineups, and sneak-peek clips from previous shows.
Creating an event website can garner interest from various fans, from those who attend every concert a performer gives to those who recently discovered a performer’s music and now want to see a live show.
Make your website mobile-friendly and provide users with links to ticket purchase options and information about the venue, as many concertgoers buy their tickets online and use digital wallets to keep them safe. Your event page should also make ticket types clear, especially if you offer general admission, VIP access, presale tickets, or group options.
Use the Power of Social Media
Social media websites like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok connect many artists to their fans worldwide and are also effective marketing tools. Recent social media usage data from Pew Research Center shows why these platforms matter for concert promotion: YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok remain major places where U.S. adults spend time online. With the right posts, you can reach people who already follow the artist, fans who enjoy similar music, and local audiences looking for live events.
Creating social media circles around your event and asking those within it to share your posts can boost your advertising reach. Keep your brand consistent across multiple sites so eventgoers can track your posts easily from one platform to another.
For stronger results, ask the artist or band to help promote the concert, too. They can share your ticket link, post behind-the-scenes clips, co-host social announcements, or remind fans when presale and general sale tickets become available.
A few simple concert promotion ideas for social media include:
- A lineup announcement post
- A short video from a past performance
- A countdown post one week before the concert
- A post highlighting the venue
- A reminder when presale tickets are ending
- A last-call post before tickets sell out
Use Paid Online Ads
Using paid digital advertising can help you target different age groups and other demographics like location and music tastes. Using digital ads, you can also use keywords to find concertgoers based on their past online searches.
These ads also target audiences by offering ones related to their interests based on what social media groups they join. Advertising across platforms like Instagram and Facebook can reach many fans who might not hear your ads on the radio. This is especially useful for targeting young music lovers, as teens and those in their early 20s spend much of their time online.
You can also use paid ads to retarget people who visited your ticket page but did not buy. A reminder ad with a strong call to action can bring interested fans back before the event sells out.
Start an Email Marketing Campaign
Email is an effective way to spread the word about your upcoming concert event. Those familiar with your brand or who have attended your events previously can help you create a digital chain to fans near and far. This tactic involves more than simply sending out emails before the event date if you want it to have the desired impact.
If you collect email opt-ins through your ticketing page, those contacts can also help you promote future concerts. Past attendees are often some of the best people to contact first when you announce another show.
Create a Schedule
Email marketing can be tricky because you want to create interest in your concert without burying people in daily emails. Create a schedule instead and use extensions such as Boomerang for Gmail, which allows you to create and schedule recurring emails seamlessly.
Monthly concert reminders with updated information help your eventgoers track any changes up to the day of the show, preventing issues related to performer schedule conflicts and changes in ticket pricing.
Use a Simple Message Layout
As you begin your promotional campaign, design your emails with a simple layout. Too much clutter might distract the recipient from the important information you send. Use an easy-to-read font and avoid add-ons that might cause your email to load too slowly.
Always Link To Social Media Accounts
When you send out your email marketing items, add your social media links to each at the bottom. This gives your eventgoers access to additional information, teasers, concert contests, and photos that tease upcoming shows.
Add a Personal Touch
No one likes receiving spam emails, so make your email marketing mail stand out by adding a personal touch. Address people with their first names when they sign up for your list, and use dynamic language that encourages interaction.
Promote With Online Contests
Concertgoers usually enjoy perks with live events, and contests are a fun and simple way to promote them. Trivia contests related to the performers, ticket giveaways, and games where the eventgoers vote for their favorite “look-alike” photos submitted online can all promote your concert in a fun and unique way.
You can also use contests to encourage sharing. For example, ask fans to tag a friend, share your event post, or join your email list for a chance to win tickets. Keep the rules simple, and make sure the prize connects directly to the concert.
How To Promote a Concert With a Street Crew
When it comes to promoting a local concert, a street crew can prove invaluable. These individuals can promote locally by contacting influencers in the area to create marketing deals, spin signs on busy street intersections, and leave stickers and flyers in cafes and other locations where music lovers gather.
For best results, make flyers easy to act on. Add a QR code that sends people directly to your event page or ticket page so they can buy tickets while the concert is still fresh in their minds.
Let Us Handle Your Next Event
Do you need more information about how to promote a concert and how to solve other event logistics? Evey Events helps Shopify sellers manage ticketed events with ease. Contact us here at Evey Events and make your next concert one your guests will never forget.
