This is the second post on Digital Music Marketing Ideas. These stemmed from a project with Betapond here in Waterford. All the ideas came from two four hour sessions at the end of December and I thought some of them were worth sharing. The brief was to come up with a bunch of marketing ideas for a music event that all featured an online element.
�?Hello Glastonbury’
Say this fictional event is large in scale, perhaps a summer festival that features many large screens. Why not encourage viewers to upload footage of them impersonating their favourite acts (who are playing at the event) to Youtube? The best ones get shown at the event on the big screens between acts. The ones selected for screening are based on views and the amount comments, which encourages the uploaders to promote the video. To be eligible to enter each clip must begin with �?Hello (insert name of the event)’, – I just used Glastonbury in the title. While sometimes I loathe these user generated contests, I know a lot of people would probably jump at the chance to dress up and take part. Who knows something genuinely good might come of it, after all the best ones will not be the most accurate impersonation but the most entertaining. This could also be extended into a band competition with the winning act getting a slot.
Guerrilla Augmented Reality App
This mobile phone app uses pre existing advertising billboards as markers to trigger AR content. What am I talking about? Watch this,
However instead of art, what is revealed is branded event related content, such as pictures, artwork, video or maybe even a game – but whatever it is its all related back to the event. The billboards that trigger it need not necessarily be related to the event, but could be a selected advertisement currently on display nationwide – hence the guerrilla aspect, you’re actually using someone else’s advertising space to promote your event. Would this annoy other brands & marketers who’s work your using? Who knows? Does anyone actually really look at billboards anymore? Think of the location of a billboard you pass everyday, closest to work or home and try recall whats on it right now. At least this would get people actively searching for billboards to reveal content and if spinned the right way should get plenty of online and offline buzz. Using billboards gives the app a sense of scale and also the same billboards will be available across the country so if you’re in Dublin or Dingle you can still get access to this content. Also as advertising cycles change and new ad’s go up on the billboards the app can be updated to reveal more content. Similarly this could also be used post-event to reveal exclusive content from the event itself.
Rock Band Manager Facebook Game
Yep I couldn’t come up with a better name, but for those of you old enough to remember Rock Star Ate my Hamster on the Amiga or Commadore 64. In the game you managed a band to the top of the charts earning money , kudos and fans along the way. How about updating that for Facebook, throw in some real world elements and give it a Fantasy Football style feel.
A brief explanation of the game the aim is to manage an act to become so big they headline the music event these ideas are aimed at marketing. Real world elements can be brought in by including actual Irish venues where the fictional bands can tour, sponsorship opportunities for brands to be featured in game – eg �?Hotpress’ be the in game music bible, a variety of different real world sponsors could also offer these fictional bands in-game sponsorship, record deals etc. Run the game for 10 – 12 weeks in the months leading up to the actual event that way people won’t get bored, playing it becomes an event in itself and it can always be updated for the following year. There’s a lot more to this idea, there’s endless opportunities, but you get the idea so far.
Eco-Friendly
Many large events encourage their patrons to be more eco friendly. What festival campsite doesn’t end up covered with a mountain of rubbish come the harsh bright lights of Monday morning. How about educating the audience in advance about the importance of being environmentally friendly with their trash? How can this be done? Using a Facebook application and an incentive provided by a sponsor thats how. The app encourages users to sign up and spreads viral-like through their profile news feed. Everyone that signs up will earn a chosen environmentally friendly project or non-profit a defined amount of money (eg 20cents or 50 cents etc). So there’s a benefit to people signing up. Also the app uses �?intention to behave’ theory to get a better commitment to act at the festival. For example users access the app they don’t just sign up to be more environmentally friendly, but sign up to �?use green bins for all my recyclables at (insert name of event)’ or �?will refuse to throw litter on the ground at (event)’. Studies have shown that getting people to define what and how they intend to carry out an act leads to greater percentage of people actually carrying out that act. Of course this could be communicated in any number of other ways, but this is its most basic. For the cynical marketers don’t forget that having something viral related to an event spread across Facebook will also do no harm to the profile of that event. I hate to be cynical but sometimes with �?green marketing’, especially when it involves big brands, it’s hard to be anything but cynical. However the element of education and revenue generation for a non profit in a related field is positive.