The document compares the marketing strategies of two theatre companies:
The Mayflower Theatre is a large receiving house that uses various digital marketing strategies like websites, emails, and social media to advertise their performances to a wide audience. They also use radio, print marketing, and signage near the theatre.
Forest Forge is a smaller local theatre company that focuses on educational performances. They use grassroots marketing like posters, flyers, and word of mouth within the local community. They also use social media and a company blog to engage audiences.
While both use similar tactics, the Mayflower's larger budget allows them to advertise on TV and radio to more people, whereas Forest Forge relies more on local, low
3. MAYFLOWER
The Mayflower is a large receiving house in “Southampton” which perform different musicals and
shows.They have a large multipurpose space at the theatre where they can perform a range of
different shows.
A big theatre like the Mayflower will most commonly use cross-media marketing to advertise their
performances.They use their website to advertise what shows are being performed at that
moment, there homepage consists of a “What's on?” section which potential audience members can
use to see what performances attract them.
They also use close range marketing to advertise to potential audiences within a radius of the
theatre to attract to audience members that will be able to attend the performance. Radio adverts
will be played on local radio stations to attract a target audience within a distance that is acceptable
to travel to a performance.
4. MAYFLOWER
The Mayflower also uses database marketing to attract an audience.They will have buttons and
icons that customers can click on to receive emails and newsletters from the Mayflower about new
up and coming shows that may be performed at the theatre. This a great for marketing as it means
that audiences can receive updates personally on their own computer.They also send booklets in
the post to houses, this is so that previous visitors of the theatre receive new information about the
theatre.Therefore this pinpoints there target audience and means they can attract the people that
are most likely to return to the theatre.
Another useful marketing strategy that the Mayflower uses is the use of drip marketing, they do this
through social media, by occasionally posting reminders and countdowns of when a show will be put
on at the theatre.This is to raise excitement for the audience members.
Finally a common use of marketing for theatres is the use of call to action marketing around the
theatres perimeter, this is to attract people to purchase tickets for musicals and shows being
performed at that current moment.
7. FOREST FORGE
Forest Forge is a theatre company in the south coast that perform shows in their own theatre in
Ringwood as well as touring around the local area.They focus on “Theatre in Education” which
means that they perform theatre to teach people how to perform and become part of a production.
They work with young people to put on the performance and raise money through ticket sales to
fund their productions.
They use Cross-Media marketing to promote their productions by handing out posters and flyers to
potential customers.This can also be considered a form of close range marketing as they will only
supply these to previous audience members and people within the local area.This means that they
are advertising to the people who are most likely to attend the performances.
8. FOREST FORGE
Forest forge will use viral marketing by promoting their performances on social media, this
modernises ticket sales by advertising their productions for free therefore meaning that they are
able to appeal to their audience from the comfort of their own home.They use many different social
media platforms meaning that they can appeal to as many people as possible.They also use their
website to show up and coming events and performances that audience members can attend.
They also have a blog which records and updates what's been going on behind the scenes, this
means that the audience will feel more connected to the performance and will mean that they will
enjoy watching the performance more than they would if they attended the performance without
any knowledge of how it was put together
10. MARKETING COMPARISON
Both “The Mayflower” and “Forest Forge” use similar techniques to promote their productions.The
Mayflower have more money and a higher budget for their marketing strategies and therefore
mean that they can appeal to more people by producing large amounts of newsletters which can be
delivered to the target audience directly.They can also afford to place adverts onTV and on the
radio to promote to a wider variety of audience members, this is something that Forest Forge would
struggle to do.
As Forest Forge is a smaller, more local company they use more word of mouth marketing within
the local areas and commonly produce posters to promote their performances. As they have a
smaller budget it will mean that they will not be able to appeal to as many people as big receiving
houses such as the Mayflower.