HOW TO PUT ON A BENEFIT SHOW
posted in: Music News
World hunger, homelessness, disease, baby sea turtles”most of us have donated to a charity of some sort in our lifetime. There may come a time when you are inspired to organize your own charity event, and putting on a concert can be one of the most cost-effective ways to raise money. Whether you’re in a band or just a music fan, a benefit show can be as fun as it is altruistic. And it sure beats giving blood. Here are some tips on how to put together a successful event.
¢ Come up with a concept for the show. That includes creating a catchy name and designing a logo for it. If you’ve got an interesting theme going on, you can attract more people to your show. Make it a green event, make it a costume party¦ just make sure it sounds like a blast.
¢ Book a venue. Look for places that are willing to give up their cut at the door and leave their profits to bar sales. Or, even better, contribute a percentage of their sales to the charity. There’s a tax write-off in there for them, plus the promise of great exposure and a packed house.
¢ Put together a bill with 3-4 bands. Think quality ” you want the show to be cohesive and enjoyable. But also think quantity ” you need bands who have a large draw to attract as many attendees as possible. Let the bands know they’ll get great publicity, free booze and maybe even a tax write-off for participating.
¢ Create merch to sell at the show. If you’ve got a logo, why not put it on a t-shirt or mouse pad and make more money than you would simply with ticket sales?
¢ Set up a PayPal account for donations. Not everyone is going to be able to come to your show, but that doesn’t mean they still can’t contribute. Setting up a PayPal account will make donating easy, and you can create buttons to add to blogs in the hope of spreading the donation efforts virally.
¢ Market. Once you’ve got your venue and bands, it’s time to get the word out. That means invites through your social networking sites, email blasts, fliers, even mailed invitations. Make sure you allow at least a month in advance of your show date for marketing and publicity. Write a press release and send it to newspapers, Web sites and blogs. Make sure you follow up. See if you can get media outlets to donate ad space for free.
¢ Educate the masses. People want to know who they’re donating to. Set up an information booth at the event and include literature on your organization so people know how to get more involved.
¢ Collect as many email addresses as you can. Two reasons: you’ll want to send out a thank you to everyone who donated and you’ll want a mailing list for your next charitable venture.
Rock on, philanthropists!
