{"id":4288,"date":"2018-10-15T03:39:23","date_gmt":"2018-10-15T10:39:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coyotecommunications.com\/coyoteblog\/?p=4288"},"modified":"2019-01-20T13:41:29","modified_gmt":"2019-01-20T21:41:29","slug":"itshouldwork","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coyotecommunications.com\/coyoteblog\/2018\/10\/itshouldwork\/","title":{"rendered":"Something New & Innovative? How about something that WORKS?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"So often – TOO OFTEN – I hear nonprofits, government initiatives, NGOs, charities and other mission-based programs complaining that they aren’t getting good attendance at their events or program activities, or aren’t getting any press coverage, or don’t have enough volunteers, and so they are looking for something innovative<\/em> and new<\/em> in marketing.<\/p>\n

But is\u00a0something innovative<\/em> and new<\/em> really<\/strong> what they need?<\/p>\n

In my junior year at Western Kentucky University, a million years ago, one of my professors proposed an idea to me: for one of my senior year classes, to fulfill my minor in theater, I could be in charge of marketing the Fall Children’s Theatre series, a then-annual event where three to four student-directed productions were presented, all focused on children audiences. I would get credit for a full senior-level class for such. I had also been working at the local arts center as a marketing intern outside of classes and had a wonderful mentor there who had taught me a lot about getting press coverage – combining this experience with my journalism major and newspaper experience, it was an offer I couldn’t refuse!<\/p>\n

I was oh-so-successful at getting kids and their parents to the plays. One performance had to be delayed a few minutes because there were so many kids pouring in from an area kindergarten. We consistently\u00a0sold out of intermission snacks, filling the coffers of our student theater society. Of course, I got an “A” for my efforts: my professor said they had never had\u00a0so many full houses for the Fall Children’s Theater series.<\/p>\n

Was I innovative in my approach to marketing these shows? No. All I did was the basics:<\/p>\n