We all know we need to spend some $$ before we can make some $$. But the reality is that not all bank accounts are overflowing. So here are 5 hot tips for promoting your event on a budget:

• Facebook Groups – running ads/boosting posts are not the only ways to promote your event on Facebook. Identify who may be interested in your event and contact the interest groups via DM or leaving a post on their page. For instance, if you are performing Hamilton, reach out to the Broadway Fans Group (clearly a made-up group, but you know what we mean). Just be careful not to hit up a large number of pages at once, or you may get flagged as spam by Facebook. Not ideal before your season opens!
• Community Outreach – there’s nothing more effective than a personal message. Reach out to the communities/organisations that you think would fancy your show by sending them a lovely email. How do you find their emails? This is when Google becomes your best friend. For example, if your exhibition offers a tactile tour to audiences who are blind or with low vision, we’re sure Vision Australia would be thrilled to receive your warm invite.
• Giveaways – when you reach out to the groups above, sometimes you are more likely to get their attention by offering them a couple of free tickets, whether it’s for them to run giveaways on their channels or for a couple of their members to see the show for free (they may come in a big group of 10 so by giving away 2 tickets, you sell 8 extra!).
• Word of Mouth – believe it or not, the old school tricks really work. We’ve had artists in the past selling their shows to their Tinder match (not sure if they got a second date). The take-away is: tell everyone about your Fringe event. Your mum, your Uncle Jerry, Anya in the office, your barista, the cute masked person sitting next to you on the tram… EVERYONE.
• Cross-Promotion – Fringe is a community built by artists, so people are usually happy to help each other out. Reach out to an artist who may share the similar audience with you and see if they can promote your event on their channels or give you a shoutout at their performances, and obviously you will do the same in return.

Don’t forget you can also consult our resource Putting a Marketing Plan Together for more help with promoting your event.