Event Marketing to the Horror Film Genre

Q: I am planning a major event for June 2008. I was curious when I shoud start advertising for this event. In september? January? March? Would you have any tips in regards to strategy? This will be a ticketed event. It is for people interested in the horror film genre. It will be located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and we hope to have close to 200 people attend. We would like to sell tickets in advance but will also sell tickets at the door.

A: Typically, your advertising for an event of this nature is "much like a Rock Concert" where advanced ticketing is going on should be comprised of two or three "flights" depending on your budget and the cost of the medium you were planning on using.

The first flight is called the Pre-Sale. These ads should be timed to coincide with the on-sale date of the tickets. at least 2-3 days in advance, but no more than a week prior. The Ad's will say "tickets on sale (Date)". Now the on sale date(if you've not already released the tickets) should probably be no more than 8-10 weeks ahead of the event. Which would be sometime in Late March, or Early April.

The Second Flight (optional) is called "on sale now" This optional flight is for selling tickets between the time you release the tickets and the week of the event. If you have already released your tickets for sale, then this replaces the "pre sale" and is no longer optional. Again it should probably take place between the 8-10 weeks prior to your show and last no longer than a few weeks if that long. (depending on your budget and medium)

The Third Flight is called "Week of". This flight is ordinarily neccessary for most events, the exception is if you have sold out to capacity prior to the week of the show. This flight is designed to tell people that the event is going on "This Saturday" and to let them know tickets are available at the door. The timing of this you need to think of starting from the time of the start of your event and working backwards, and running as many ads backward into time as you can until you run out of budget.

As far as media are concerned my suggestion (assuming it's affordable) is to do the "presale" in print and radio and MAYBE TV (Cable may be an affordable option) This is your major push. Do your "on sale now" in print and maybe either TV or Radio. Then your "Week of" should be maybe be print and definately be Radio (think of doing a give-away promotion with the radio station)


When selecting a print medium, look to one that serves your "Horror Movie Genre" person. Here in the states some movie theaters offer slides ads before the movie... if this is an option in Ottowa it could be a great option.

When selecting a radio station pick one with it's core demographic the same as your typical attendee would be... My guess is we're talking about teen to mid 20's guys. Find a radio station that serves them and use it exclusively.

For TV or Cable. Find shows that appeal to that demographic or even better see if you can advertise during any Horror or Suspense movies that are going to be airing during your flight times.


I hope this has helped.