New Facebook Page

I've been consulting various gurus about the different approaches to marketing concerts on Facebook. Short of using Facebook Ads which require money and so would not fit in to my new crusade:

Marketing Concerts Online FOR FREE! (All in the spirit of the free lunchtime concerts you know.)

My first queries have been around the difference between Groups and Pages. I think I'm correct in saying that pages are a more recent phenomenon and presumably therefore, grew out of necessity. Groups were found wanting. We (as I hope you're aware) have a nice Music at St Martin's Group which allows us to message some of our closest affiliates, give them special offers, release tickets to them before others and so on. However, the Facebook Group is by nature exclusive and the Facebook Page has a much more open and inclusive approach. While members only can write on the Group's wall (the main arena for the sharing of ideas, opinions, comments etc.), absolutely anyone can contribute to the page's wall. I've decided to make life difficult and have both. It seems to me that there are bound to be those people who prefer the privacy of the Group and others who wish the relationship to remain an uncomplicated casual and prefer therefore to 'like' or page.

Having reached this terribly unscientific conclusion, our intrepid intern has set up the new Music at St Martin's page. What I didn't realise (and what is the most difficult thing about any social media) is that setting the thing up is easy - what is tricky is to keep it going. We all of us have to strive our entire lives to be witty, charming, cheerful, helpful, empathetic and smart and here all of a sudden we have to do so in writing in the public domain where everyone everywhere can see it. It is not unlike that dream where you show up to work only to realise you've forgotten to put any clothes on. You feel - exposed!

I suppose, like the emperor and his new clothes or even like Adam and Eve, a certain level of embarrassment demonstrates a healthy level of modesty and self-awareness (interesting that the social media phenomenon now requires the use of such terms when referring to a business or organisation). It would seem to say "Bear with us, we're only human and we doing our best which means we'll sometimes do something really naff. Hopefully it will be naff and amusing and go down in the category of lovable faults."

So, at the risk of exposing myself further - here is the new 'Info' section from the Music at St Martin's page on Facebook:

When you stand on Trafalgar Square with your back to Nelson and look up at the grand frontage of the National Gallery, you may notice the Church just to the gallery's right. Nothing too ostentatious, just the Royal Parish Church, founding place of the world-famous Academy of St Martin in the Fields and one of the country's most prolific concert venues.

With over 380 evening, lunchtime, afternoon, children's, jazz and late-night events we keep busy. In the concerts department working alongside the Cafe in the Crypt, the Gallery at St Martin's, Shop at St Martin's, Brass Rubbing Centre and of course the church itself, we are dead proud of making the most of an extraordinary acoustic and exceptional location.

We are entirely self-sufficient with no government or private funding of any kind for our concert series. All our profits go toward the work of the church which naturally includes contributing to our community through supporting young and emerging talent in our Lunchtime Concert Series and the renowned St Martin's Chamber Music Competition.

Everyday is an adventure at St Martin's, you wouldn't believe the half of it and working in the Concert Department is a challenge and a pleasure from trying to get your head around auditioning and programming 150 lunchtime concerts to moving harpsichords and our beautiful Steinway concert grand to chatting with visitors and welcoming guests from around the world through the ever-open door.

We share this adventure through this page where you can see updates, latest news and offers, performers can post about their concerts and other can post their reviews. We welcome all contributions and feedback. We also share the adventure via our blog 'Ear to the Flagstone' our website and our Twitter account @stmartinsmusic.

Would you like to be part of our story?   

New Marketing Trends: Online Marketing Show at Kensington Olympia

There is always something a little bit naughty about being somewhere other than the office on a work day, or is that just me? I certainly felt that way when the train to Olympia finally arrived at Earl’s Court. I stuffed my badge and Online Marketing Show Quickguide into a pocket and suddenly felt a little self-conscious about my flip-flops and singlet. Everyone else on the train was heeled and suited, laptop bags over the shoulder and filo-faxes bulging in hand-bags. “No-one knows where you’re going” I assured myself. They won’t mind that you’re not really dressed for the occasion, didn’t bother blow-drying or straightening your hair this morning and may or may not have remembered to put on mascara.

Have you ever been to Kensington Olympia? It was my first time (obviously, otherwise I’d have known). There is only one reason all those people got on to that particular District Line train – to go to the Grand Hall – to the Online Marketing Show. Bother.

Cool as a cucumber, I flip-flopped my way out of the station and through the barriers where crowds of corporate types were waiting for the doors to open. Still cool as the proverbial cat I tossed my un-washed locks and sauntered up to a man with a large banner sticking out of what looked like a child-carrier backpack.

“I’ll take on of those programmes, thanks.”

“Oh great, so are you interested personally or for marketing and professional purposes?”

“Oh both.”

“Great!” He handed me what I imagined was the day’s programme and airily I moved on to the doors. It wasn’t until much later once inside and hunched over a safe cup of filter coffee (£2.40, seriously?) that I glanced at the ‘programme’.

"NOT THE PERSON YOU SEE IN THE MIRROR? YOU CAN ESCAPE THIS MORTAL COIL!"

Announced the cover. What on earth is a sex-change clinic doing handing out leaflets outside an online marketing show? The day had not started quite as it perhaps should have.

By the time I had obtained the actual programme and deciphered the key to the map of the exhibition hall, it was nearly 10am and the first presentation was about to begin. When you’re just starting out, a good place to do so is with an over-view: “Key trends in online marketing” sounded very promising with Justin Pearse, editor for New Media Age. The following are the notes I made from his presentation which I hope you too will find useful.

ONLINE MARKETING SHOW – June 2011

NOTES:

Session One: Key Trends in Online Marketing with Justin Pearce, Editor of New Media Age

Marketing is all one big family; there is no point in having a campaign which focuses exclusively on the following: website, search engine optimisation, content, social media, blogs and micro-blogs. They must all work alongside and support one another.

Four main components discussed are:

Website
Blog
Micro blog
Social media

First – it is important (following the point above) to note that the majority (98%) of visitors/readers/audiences for these categories do NOT want to buy your product or donate or join etc. They want information first. The third/fourth/fifth time they return is when they’ll do that. The trick is to a) provide them with the information they require so that b) the return and c) become valued members/customers/audience.

Once you pop, you can’t stop – once you launch any of the above, YOU CAN’T STOP, updating is mandatory otherwise it can have a hugely adverse effect on the brand.

If you are not a big brand like Starbucks, Levis etc. then don’t try to do what they do. They have people looking at them because they know them – people buy Levis not because they’re a great product but because they have a Levis label on them. Small brands should concentrate on becoming of value to their potential customers and slowly build up that brand reputation.

OVER VIEWS
Website:

-          Main online hub and essentially a ‘broadcast media’ i.e. Information going out from one organisation to many individuals and organisations.

-          The key is information not selling. Your website HAS to be useful and easy to use for visitors or they will not stay. Carefully consider all ‘landing pages’ (pages pointed to from any other source) – Website are multi-entry – they don’t just have one main front door, people come in to them from all directions so the virtual signage needs to be comprehensive

-          Content is key. Style, design etc all very nice but content will link to search engine optimisation etc. There is also no limit to what you can have on there – carefully organised a website can have an entire public-library worth of knowledge and detail but not be cluttered – it is just there and easy to find for anyone who needs or wants it.

Blogs:

-          Essentially ‘opinion’ broadcast. If internet were a newspaper, blogs would be the editorial or letters to the editor – opinion not necessarily fact.

-          Again blogs like website are inherently broadcast media and should complement content of website.

-          Blogs need to work closely alongside social media so that discussion can be easily taken up – that’s the point of having an opinion.

-          Drawbacks: open to criticism, not directly commercial (there is no way of measuring the direct commercial benefit from blogging) they require media support and to work alongside website/social media – not at all effective stand-alone.

Micro blog: eg. Twitter, FourSquare, Google Buzz etc

-          This is a peer to peer media – mostly it is about people talking to each other about you.

-          Limited revenue generation (as above with blogs)

-          Once started there is no stopping – it is completely ineffectual to have a twitter account you don’t use – you will lose followers very quickly.

-          Most effective if time is spent interacting with other users – re-tweeting  etc. Concentrate on the competition and their followers.

Social networks: eg. Facebook, Bebo, LinkDin, Webspace, Ning, Plaxo etc.

-          Very much a two-way medium

-          Great for customer feedback and the chance to respond accordingly

-          Integrates well with other media – websites, blogs and micro blogs

-          You can get a lot of user info through Facebook – ages of fans etc

-          There is definite potential for snowball effect with Facebook through viral (one recommends to many who recommend to many etc)

-          Facebook is NOT TO BE USED FOR DIRECT PROMOTION – it is ‘about’

-          Again, once started, can’t neglect or stop.

-          Most effective way is to put useful content on but to spend as much time commenting on other people’s content, liking, linking etc to be seen on others’ pages.

-          Target the competition’s fans! Easy place to start – you already know what they like.

Next step is where, how and why you want to engage with customers – the answer is through all mediums at all times. Everything has to be linked and promoted, each through the other.

END NOTES

As you’ll have noticed these are very much in ‘note’ form. I promised in my last blog to share the process we’re going through at St Martin’s in developing how we promote our concerts and here it is in all its gory, incomplete detail. We’ll develop this content, refine it, develop theories (I came up with a rather good fishing analogy which I’ll share with you just as soon as I have it written up) and of course, we’d love to hear yours so don’t forget to comment here, follow us on twitter (@stmartinsconcerts) or like our new Facebook page ‘Concerts at St Martin’s’. Look at me and my integration of different marketing strategies! How am I doing on the helpful front? Any good so far?