Give your summer concert some staying power with mobile messaging

It’s that time of the year again; radio summer concerts and festivals are coming to a town near you. Remember when stations could just announce a show, plug it on air, and place some TV ads?

Now, people are listening across streaming and mobile apps and interacting with your station via social and mobile channels. Which means event promotion needs to evolve so it is more in line with the habits of the modern listener. So what does that mean? Let’s walk through a few different ideas that can quickly be implemented by stations.

Build hype for your event

If your website is up to date, listeners will know about your summer concerts. But what about those who are fans of the artists or have similar taste in music but aren’t listening to your station?

You can reach this audience with targeted social and mobile messages. Facebook, Twitter and other social platforms allow you to target fans of your artists or fans of similar acts. For example, a fan of Luke Bryan and Blake Shelton might also like Florida Georgia Line.

You can employ mobile messages to reach your listeners and direct them to a mobile website for further event information. The ads and website can be co-branded to give extra value to sponsors.

The mobile website can capture visitors data for future re-marketing and have social sharing so fans can help promote your event through their personal networks. Social sharing should also include specific station social media properties (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) and hashtags to help increase listener engagement and interaction with the station.

Additionally, you can create a segmented text message database that will send show reminders and updates to those who opt-in to receive them. Those who opt-in can be the first to know about pre-sales, set times, artist meet and greets or other insider information about the show.

Engage attendees during the event

Anyone who’s been to a concert in the past few years knows how much time people spend on their phones filming, texting, tweeting or posting ‘selfies’ to Instagram. You need to funnel that engagement and content for your station.

Blanket the venue with social and mobile reminders to encourage attendee interaction. So make it easy for them to remember shortcodes and hashtags by promoting them on everything from tickets and shirts to cups and posters.

You can post pictures or other social content directly to video screens at the venue to let everyone see what’s happening beyond the small patch of grass they are on by simply using keywords or hashtags.

No more 'one and done' events

Just because the show’s over doesn’t mean the marketing can’t continue. Post-event marketing can help drive further website visits and expand your email or text databases.

Record your show and broadcast exclusive performances on your station’s website. These performances, interviews or behind the scenes footage, can also be sent directly to listeners via text or through the stations social properties, where they can easily view and share the content with their friends.

By utilizing these social and mobile marketing tactics, you can transform what was once a “one-and-done” event, into an ongoing campaign that drives meaningful listener engagement and loyalty.