ADVICE FOR PUTTING ON/PROMOTING A NIGHT

gezabelle · Post by **gezabelle** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 3:33 pm

ok iv never had any experience but myself and a few others are looking to put on a night somewhere in london, and im just wondering what are the do's and dont's for this? what are your experiences? anything to avoid? anything to make sure is set in concrete?

any help/advice/stories greatly appreciated!

djadonis206 · Post by **djadonis206** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 3:50 pm

Start off with some free shows and don't expect much

Helps to have friends who are down and will come out and support no matter what

Do your first night on a holiday for free

Don't book expensive dj's no matter how cool they think they are - you can build your own following of people with your own dj's who will most likely play for free until you start making some cheddar

You need a following
a cool venue
and the right door price until you establish yourself (free)

oh and don't blow your budget on promoting with flyers - sure you need some but word of mouth and internet chatter is what actually pulls them in the door

"Oh, you're going to that? word I'll roll to." <--- that kind of thing

good luck and when you do get established fly me out from the states

robin · Post by **robin** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 3:55 pm

Adonis is spot on there.

Try and get a venue with a good soundsystem already installed. Doing your own is a pain and costs (unless you can guarantee getting enough punters to cover it but if your going for free then you need to make sure you can cover the cost just to get things up and running).

hartsta · Post by **hartsta** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 5:09 pm

Trust no-one, make friends with the bouncers, if some one passes you any notes, count it there & then, make sure the people/friends/business partners you are sharing the financial risk with are going into the venture with the same agenda as yourself.

spiderprod · Post by **spiderprod** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 5:20 pm

don't drink or take drugs on the night .
if you do , make sure the owners/managers are more drugged up than you .

LJ Martin · Post by **LJ Martin** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 9:29 pm

if you are charging, budget for 1/3 of the house, not a full house

mux · Post by **mux** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 9:47 pm

decorate.

it used to be that it was "all about the music", and that the only place you were going to hear a certain style of music was to go where that music was being played. the internet both spawned and ruined that scene - now anyone can get any music any time off the net, so that's not a drive anymore. ask yourself "what makes this event special?", and if you can't answer the question, then come up with a way to *make* it special.

the best parties are ones where the space is transformed visually as well as audibly - if it's the same old club that people go to every week, do something to distinguish your night from the others. think big and cheap, like hanging parachutes or camo netting or UV-reactive materials.

people recognize creativity and hard work. successful promotion is 1/3 beating the streets/forums/bars spreading the word, 1/3 the talent/space/stereo/security, and 1/3 your reputation. build a name for yourself by working your ass off.

oh, and like LJ Martin said, don't expect a packed house your first time, or you'll end up losing your shirt.

mikemc · Post by **mikemc** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 9:54 pm

before you pick a night, be aware of what's going on the same night in the area, which other events might draw away from yours.

Able Danger · Post by **Able Danger** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 10:34 pm

thanks some of this advice is cool. i've been looking at starting my own night up as well.

consistency is important, dont screw up a night of good music by putting on cheese just to get the floor moving, eventually the good music lovers and all their good music loving friends will appear.

add something a little different.. a friend of mine hires midgets in hawaiian shirt to just hang about...

im more interested in tips on methods of promotion... how to get the crowds in there. i think complete random crowd targetting is not really a good idea and will yield minimal results. i'd like to see if anyone's come up with some more interesting ways to get people through the door?

cosmosuave · Post by **cosmosuave** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 11:09 pm

We have hosted our second event in a year and both have been a huge success...

Check here...

http://www.compoundcollective.com

Review here...

http://www.nowtoronto.com/issues/2006-0 ... _pulse.php

Having a group of people to work with is essential...

Try to appoint different tasks and responsibilities to those of the group... Having members with good skillsets help i.e. webdesign, graphics, audio, magement, video, interior design and so forth... We have quite a few of those elements in our group that is key..

Have weekly meetings...

Have a theme...

Set a budget and stick to it....

Have a good attitude...

Promotion: flyers, posters, email, BB's, word of mouth... I did some research at our event and most people knew from word of mouth... Send promo packs to media with free tickets...

Don't scrimp on a PA if you have to rent..

Interior Design- Lighting and a bit of cheap fabric can do wonders... Visuals are a big plus...

Target your demographic...

All for now also give yourself a few weeks to prepare for the event...

Have a local well known or up and coming DJ on the bill as a headliner not sure what type of event you are doing Live PA or DJ's .... Our event was a mix...

DeadlyKungFu · Post by **DeadlyKungFu** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 11:35 pm

cosmosuave wrote:Interior Design- Lighting and a bit of cheap fabric can do wonders... Visuals are a big plus...

A group I was involved in used white spandex stretched around the event space, looks really cool and can hide a bunch of stuff. Get a small rubber, push it against the spandex, then on the other side of the fabric tie a string around the ball and tie the strings in different directions. For lighting we just used flood lights.

Nobody mentioned alcohol sales? We borrowed a permit from a restaurant (how, I don't know and your laws would be different anyway). One line for selling drink tickets another area for trading tickets for drinks. It breaks up the chaos.

Have LOTS of small demonination bills handy, everyone will bring $20s.

cosmosuave · Post by **cosmosuave** » Thu Jun 22, 2006 11:53 pm

Thanks for that tip on the spandex DKFU.... Was your Spandex a sell off from the last Poison Tour?