Gigs With Big Audiences
Tired of playing for small crowds and want to play Gigs With Big Audiences? Want to build your recognition within a larger marketplace? Want to play in front of hundreds if not thousands? Then it’s time to knock on the doors of city hall. Yes local government departments are a great place to find some big audience gigs.
You know the ones I’m talking about. Ever see the whole community turn out at the local band stand or amphitheater or city park? Who goes to these concerts-the whole town perhaps? Well why aren’t you playing on that stage in front of all those people? It is possible you know.
So let’s break down the process of getting those gigs.
- Step one is to pay attention to your local papers, the arts paper and the daily paper and look for ads promoting the local events occurring in town. These may be prime spring, summer and fall events. Sometimes even a winter event like a New Years Eve First Night Event. These are the perfect kinds of gigs with big audiences.
- Attend a few if you don’t already and ask the sound person, “Who is the person who books the talent.” They will always know who to direct you to if they are a sound company hired by the city. If they came with the band, then ask the band. You could also go to the city’s website and look for links to the concert series, recreation department, down town foundation or just call city hall and ask for the contact.
- Call them and find out when they book the next season and if you’re really bold, ask if you can open for a show they’ve already booked this season just to get your foot in the door. Drop off some promo or email a link to your EPK and website. If you know other acts that have played these gigs with big audiences in the past, perhaps they can refer you to the right contact.
- Now there are other types of gigs with big audience events that occur in your county and province, so start looking through the arts calendar for events that are not just club listings, but are things like fairs, local festivals, races, ballgames. By looking beyond the regular performance venues you can begin to broaden your recognition within your community and your region.
Now one final note- just because many of these event may be free to the public, they are events that pay their performers, so don’t discount them just because the audience doesn’t have to pay. And don’t feel compelled to play for less either-there are budgets for these events and you should start by asking for a realistic fee. Do your budgeting, position yourself appropriately-don’t undersell yourself.
By playing for these events where a general population attends, you have a chance to widen your audience, gain fans that might not ever have sought you out or come to the venues you normally play.
My motto for building an audience has always been, when the fans won’t come to you-you go to the fans. If you think of more places where people gather for events and turn them into potential performance opportunities, you will build a larger fan base, sell more CDs and get more people to come to your other gigs. Oh and have plenty of business cards on hand as these sorts of gigs are a great place where community members will seek you out for other events they may be involved with coordinating.
Have you been playing some of these gigs with big audiences? If not, would you consider trying this process for next summer? How might this strategy help your audience development plan?
Leave me a comment below or on the Performingbiz Success Strategies Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/PerformingbizSuccessStrategies.
I can’t wait to hear about your success.
Now, Thanks to the band Curfew from the UK for providing the Biz Booster theme music, “Future Dance.” Check them out at www.curfew.co.uk
And for more career boosting tips, articles, books, resources, tele-seminars and online courses, visit me at Performingbiz.com
