Spring sprang early.
I remember when fall and winter were all about arenas and convention centers — indoor shows — and spring and summer we talked fairs, festivals and stadiums — outdoor fun.
The cycle has been disrupted by competition.
Booking is a year-round pursuit, tickets are sold a year before the show, announcements are made sporadically and somewhat randomly. What does this mean to the ticketbuyer?
I overheard a conversation at the beauty salon the other day (a great place to learn about the business.) A hairdresser announced she had bought the mega-ticket, eight country shows at a Live Nation amphitheater, for $800. They could be bought cheaper, she announced to the blow-dry audience, but she went for the big bucks because she could sell a couple of them and get her money back. And…a-n-d…she was done buying concert tickets for the summer. She’d blown her wad.
I’d put it up against the big data as good empirical evidence that fair buyers are right to buy early, sell early. They are competing for that mega-ticket money.
Renee Alexander, Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, who attends a lot of gatherings about booking talent, has already booked eight shows, putting four of them on sale for this year’s fair Aug. 27-Sept. 7. “This is the earliest I’ve had my shows on sale,” she said, citing a comment from Live Nation’s Bob Roux that he sold most of his tickets in the first quarter as her inspiration to break the mold and get the tickets out early.
Later that day, Renee participated in a panel at the Midwest Fairs Association gathering in San Diego titled “Booking Agent, Show Producer or Independent Talent Buyer?” Twenty years ago, fairs were the training ground for live acts. Garth Brooks and George Strait cut their touring teeth on fair stages. “People looked forward to the summer; that’s when they made their money,” recalled Mark Sparks, Triangle Talent.
Today, if a fair wants to book top-notch talent, it has to emphasize the positive – the diversity of the audience, reaching three generations of fans; the catering, assuming it is up to par with gourmet foods served elsewhere; and the marketing. Fairs are a marketing machine and can help acts grow new fans. That’s the message. Fairs still provide exposure that new artists need, added Joan Saltel, Buddy Lee Attractions.
“Every year, it starts sooner and sooner,” agreed R.J. Romeo, Romeo Agency, of booking fairs. With so many festivals popping up, he finds it’s best to book next year’s fair at this year’s.
Stadium and amphitheater shows are also on the rise, Renee said of booking earlier. “You have to get in the game.”
There are options to booking big name or even up-and-coming talent. The Colorado State Fair, Pueblo, has had great success with comedy, though that genre is also on everyone’s radar. It was suggested fairs look at more free stages, demo derbies and tractor pulls. There are strengths inherent in every type of sports and entertainment venue. Play to those strengths.
God grant you many years to spring to action first.