Putting Up Flyers & Advertising

Putting Up Flyers & Advertising

Before my city went broke we would occasionally have concerts at our city auditorium. One day my Mom read that a guy by the name of Johnny Rogers was going to be putting on a Buddy Holly concert so we went down and picked up tickets. The show was wonderful and because I was named after the song “Peggy Sue” my Mom and I became friends with both Johnny and his manager Bruce.

A few days after the show we (mostly Mamma) were bragging to everyone how we ended up hanging out with the guys after the show and what an awesome show it was and so forth and they were like, “What Buddy Holly concert?” No one in town had heard anything about it since apparently they hadn't read the paper and no one had seen any posters anywhere in town.

So I decided to take matters into my own hands and contact his manager; needless to say with a name like Peggy Sue it wasn’t as if they had forgotten me. I told Bruce that I was kind of between jobs so if they needed someone to put up posters for the next concert to let me know. But what I ended up learning was invaluable!!! Bruce taught me how to sell sponsorships for concerts! I’ll never forget that first phone call I made after we got off the phone that day. I don’t think I breathed all the way threw it. I don’t think I got the sponsorship, well that one, but I learned about selling sponsorships and advertising. So here ya go, take it for what it’s worth.

I would literally get out the phone book and just start calling businesses all over town. I told them about the concert, who Johnny was what all their $200 sponsorship would get them and if they were on the edge I knew that they it would be a sale. I’d always end my part of the conversations with something like, “This is going to be a lot of fun for Altus and I was just wondering if you would be interested in being a part of this with us?” Then I’d stay silent b/c the ball would be in their court, as Bruce would say.

So in between calling sponsors my Mom and I were out covering the city with concert posters. We would start at one end of town, go all the way down that side of the street, make a loop and go back up. The next day we’d do the same thing an the next street. Since the two main streets are Main and Broadway I’d hit the side streets a day or two later.

Poster / Flyer Hanging

When you’re setting out to put up posters, or in our case flyers, that’s what you want to do, start with the two main streets in your city and start down one side, back up the other and keep going for the next few days until all the main streets are done.

Things To Take With You

When setting out to hang up flyers you need to take a few things with you.

Thumbtacks

Clear Tape

A file folder with your flyers to keep them neat

Information packets with everything people will need to know about the film

I usually put the tacks and tape in a small basket or zip top bag so that they’ll stay together. And put the tacks in a small plastic bowl with a lid so that they’re not just loose in your bag. Always be prepared b/c you can’t just assume that the bulletin board will have thumbtacks so take them with you OR take a stapler and extra staples with you. And don’t be afraid to re-arrange the bulletin board if you have too. Just make sure everything that was up there stays up there, you wouldn’t want someone bumping your poster or card so don’t bump theirs either. (Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you. – Not preaching just a simple ‘be nice’ reminder.)

Where NOT To Go

There are places you shouldn't bother to go when putting out posters; I know b/c I speak from experience.

Fast food chains

Cell phone stores

Retail stores like Walmart (tried them they turned me down!)

Some convenient stores

Stick To

Book / video stores

Locally owned restaurants, donut shops or bakeries – anything that is LOCALLY owned

Furniture stores

Dress shops

Antique stores

Church – in the bulletins or the bulletin board (get permission)

Flower shops

Radio stations

Newspaper office

Lawyer’s offices

Banks

Libraries

Any college or vo-tech – make sure you ask if they need to be stamped first. When I put up posters at the college I had to have them officially stamped to show that I had permission to hang them up. W/O that stamp they would be taken down.

Advertising

Always be polite when hanging up posters / flyers but when you’re advertising you have to be aggressive. Contact now only your newspaper but if you’re if you’re city gets two or three different newspapers contact all of them about advertising your Chapter. Every time you have a meeting contact the newspapers. Every time you get a sponsor or a donor contact the newspapers and make a big deal out of it, show people that they’re important b/c the truth is, THEY ARE!!!

If you’re city has a non-profit channel to advertise local events call them and ask them if they have a line or character limit.

If you have your own website for this project put it on your flyers along with your name, pone number, meeting place and time.

Make business card with a DW logo, “Doctor Who Fan Film & your chapter name”, your phone number, email address and the link to your website.

Remember to add a “Links” page to your website so that you can post a link back to the main DWFF website.

When you talk to people about the film ask them if they know anything about DW, if they don’t just give them a BRIEF history. “It’s a British science fiction television series and 2013 is the show’s 50th anniversary and as a way to celebrate the DWFF organization has written a script that the fans are going to film. Basically wherever you open a chapter you get to make part of the film where you life. The larger your chapter the larger your part of the script will be, smaller chapter smaller part of the script.”   And that’s usually it for me.

After you tell me about the film hand them a business card and a small notebook with a pen so that you can get their name, phone number and email address. When you get home send them a greeting email with an “about us” and the link to your or the main Who site. Don’t wait for people to come to you, you go out and find them. I know that’s now what we’re supposed to do, it’s kinda backwards but the other day my Mom got me TEN (10) names, phone numbers and email addresses and four of them called me about it!!! I sent them an email like I said and if their email bounced I called them, sometimes I’d have to leave a message and sometimes I’d get to talk to the person directly.

Contact your local Chamber of Commerce and or Arts & Humanities Council to see if they are willing to help you promote the project.

When setting up your chapters, make sure you have an “Advertising Help” option on the participation form. See my website for a more complete list of needs.

http://altus-ok-who-chapter.jimdo.com/participation-form/ 

Information packets are a different story for a different post but when you’re putting up flyers you need to have a nice stack of them with you as well.

Okay I guess that’s about it for now. I hope this was helpful. Oh, and make sure everything is spelt correctly. – Spell check, it goes for all written material and websites. Word also helps with punctuation.