Many of our live entertainment options are being cannibalized by streaming or the in-home experience. This is a challenge for sports, concerts, restaurants, bars, and Broadway.
Right now, we are at peak in-home experience. Consumers can get all the TV and movie entertainment they want on-demand. With internet location technology such as that discussed in this expressvpn vs nordvpn article, consumers can access foreign media as well.
With such a selection on hand, consumers demand more of an experience to get them to leave their homes, look up from their smartphones, and consume our live entertainment experiences.
One of the big challenges that permeates every level of live experience and the act of selling these things to an audience is that either we aren’t doing a very good job of marketing our unique experience.
Or, the experience we have been offering up has a reputation or a perception that doesn’t make it as easy for new potential customers to take a chance on your product.
One example of this is live theatre and performing arts.
That’s why I was excited to see this recent article about Broadway shows streaming to audiences through BroadwayHD.
Which is a tremendous opportunity for people that are interested in Broadway to consume shows that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to see.
For the naysayers that start off with the “oh, but if they can stream it, they won’t come crowd.”
Wrong answer!
As a big Pearl Jam, I know that tons of people stream bootlegs, live shows, and every other manner of Pearl Jam content that they can get their hands on. It doesn’t detract from the experience of going to a live show. In fact, I would say that it feeds into it.
My concern with a subscription based service opening the doors to new audiences is that it doesn’t go far enough.
By this I mean, asking people to pay $14.95 a month for Broadway streaming is awesome.
But to capture new audiences, it is likely that you are going to need to go one step further and find a way to offer the streaming experience free to entice new people that are still apprehensive or unsure about the Broadway experience to test the water of a Broadway musical.
While I get that this might be challenging or unappealing to a show like Hamilton. But couldn’t a show like Wicked extend its audience and lifecycle with a stream of the show?
There are probably a lot of ways to maximize this opportunity as well.
Maybe you seed your marketing efforts by offering up the stream in exchange for your email address. With this email address, maybe the Broadway producers or house owners could pool their resources to offer up a chance to market directly to new customers in a wise way, using digital technology, social media, and a sense of community that could build around their shows, their clips, and the experience that you only get by going to live theatre?
As with most things, I know that their is often a reluctance to try new things, especially when it is outside of the norm.
But as the demands on our discretionary incomes becomes greater, you have to work harder and more creatively to make sure that you are talking to your potential markets in a meaningful manner.
Streaming is just one of those ways.