Open Class Audience Estimates?

[oldschooldbc]

Yes Open Class gets paid to be in mixed shows, but they don't get a choice of what and how many shows they get to go to. For example you have a OC corps that wanted and was willing to do every show at the end of the year FOR FREE, and DCI told them no. Now as a promoter of a show I say go for it, it’s another act, a free once at that, and it makes my ticket price that much stronger. But DCI says no go do the OC show and not get paid. No one wants a purely OC show. Why not use the model of the old DCM....Get one or two headliner and mixed the rest with OC corps..... This will even out the spread and heck then you can at least pay everyone a little something. But then again people wouldn't get to see the WC corps in Dallas, San An., Huston, Murf, Atlanta, and Allentown..... LOL that’s alot of "previews" where OC has NONE..... And everyone knows who is going to win because my god they've all been together 6 times before they ever pull into championships..... Break them up and spread them out, let them all come together for the first time at Quarters like they do the OC.

Obviously, the OC participants would want to go to every mixed show they could get their hands on - so they can get paid!

And I suspect that they would skip out on most or all OC shows - since they are not paid for those shows!

I also believe that the current rules restrict OC corps to only one mixed show in their home state. That means that Revo and Forte cannot do all the shows in SA/Dallas/Houston/Denton - even though Texas is their core recruiting base. They can only do one of them. So instead, we have to drive to Wisconsin, to do shows that a) pay nothing, and b) provide no recruiting basis.

OC corps actually do need to recruit - they don't cut hundreds of kids each January, unlike the WC corps. If they can't perform in front of their recruiting base, how are they ever going to grow and expand? They won't.

The more and more I know about DCI, its current rules, and administration, the less I like.

p.s., I have been experimenting with paper towels as food tonight. I felt like some Asian food. If you take a roll of paper towels, and soak it down with soy sauce, it almost tastes like Ramen noodles.

[Jeff Ream]

not enough midwestern OC corps to draw fan interest anymore. Even Mich. City's attendance was way down (from what I have heard from people there) from last year. Some of that could be expected...economy, novelty has worn off, some people, no doubt heard "drum corps" and thought Cavies and Regiment and maybe Madison last year and didn't see those corps so they were more informed consumers the second time around.

Even in 2002, there were many more Midwestern II/III corps.

How many today that could draw a decent audience. And I say this after being in a half filled stadium and seeing Racine Scouts perform and literally seeing the stadium fill to overflowing for Colt Cadets on up. So, what gives?

with some markting, they COULD draw. but thats just it Tom...the directors and the DCI office don't market them.

and doing your main tour, when the corps are at their best, in areas where there's more livestock than people doesn't help.

[Tom Brace]

with some markting, they COULD draw. but thats just it Tom...the directors and the DCI office don't market them.

and doing your main tour, when the corps are at their best, in areas where there's more livestock than people doesn't help.

DCI markets their product.

OC doesn't market.

Stadium choices are what can be afforded to be sure.

However, I was in DeKalb not that too long ago. This was a DCI II/III show on the way to Madison...had to be 1999 then, tickets were $10 General Admission. 12,000 on show side. 40 minutes west of the Chicago burbs, 30 minutes south of Rockford. Less than 200 people in the stands. The place was a ghost town. Many of the top II/III corps were there. Ghost town. So, this level of corps has NEVER been able to draw a crowd when the big boys weren't involved. And that's the rub. Drum corps may become a 15 corps activity because, that may be the only number people in any great degree will pay to see.

And, in case this doesn't make sense...how much of DCI's annual budget is based on ticket sales for their events?

[Jeff Ream]

DCI markets their product.

OC doesn't market.

Stadium choices are what can be afforded to be sure.

However, I was in DeKalb not that too long ago. This was a DCI II/III show on the way to Madison...had to be 1999 then, tickets were $10 General Admission. 12,000 on show side. 40 minutes west of the Chicago burbs, 30 minutes south of Rockford. Less than 200 people in the stands. The place was a ghost town. Many of the top II/III corps were there. Ghost town. So, this level of corps has NEVER been able to draw a crowd when the big boys weren't involved. And that's the rub. Drum corps may become a 15 corps activity because, that may be the only number people in any great degree will pay to see.

And, in case this doesn't make sense...how much of DCI's annual budget is based on ticket sales for their events?

this level of corps has never...and by their own fault...been marketed to where they could draw a crowd Tom. that's my ####### point. they dont do a thing to help themselves, and DCI, who will gladly take any money they can make off of them...and they have to be making some with those Fantastic 5 packages getting people to pay that money to sit on the 20.

DCI markets the World Class yes. but they claim OC is theirs too. so which is it?

[Tom Brace]

this level of corps has never...and by their own fault...been marketed to where they could draw a crowd Tom. that's my ####### point. they dont do a thing to help themselves, and DCI, who will gladly take any money they can make off of them...and they have to be making some with those Fantastic 5 packages getting people to pay that money to sit on the 20.

DCI markets the World Class yes. but they claim OC is theirs too. so which is it?

I believe DCI is doing exactly what they have been directed by the OC corps directors to do. Michigan City...some contests leading up to that. Supply judges and two days in the big stadium.

As far as DCI goes, they are fulfilling their end of the bargain.

[Jeff Ream]

I believe DCI is doing exactly what they have been directed by the OC corps directors to do. Michigan City...some contests leading up to that. Supply judges and two days in the big stadium.

As far as DCI goes, they are fulfilling their end of the bargain.

how can DCI answer to the OC corps when you yourself has said DCI only answers to themselves?

[Tom Brace]

how can DCI answer to the OC corps when you yourself has said DCI only answers to themselves?

see...my point exactly. The OC directors ask nothing. Because they can't. Even one of their biggest inside operative now has taken his corps to WC.

OC directors left are trying to move to WC (see Teal Sound) or are banking on a miracle that is never going to arrive.

I just don't see the fiscal sense in it. But, I have seen many a drum corps who did not understand the fiscal sense of much.

[Jeff Ream]

see...my point exactly. The OC directors ask nothing. Because they can't. Even one of their biggest inside operative now has taken his corps to WC.

OC directors left are trying to move to WC (see Teal Sound) or are banking on a miracle that is never going to arrive.

I just don't see the fiscal sense in it. But, I have seen many a drum corps who did not understand the fiscal sense of much.

then wny not make everyone WC and end the charade?

[bobjacobs]

see...my point exactly. The OC directors ask nothing. Because they can't. Even one of their biggest inside operative now has taken his corps to WC.

The operative may have taken "his" corps to WC, but the operative ain't necessarily going anywhere, in terms of supporting the efforts of the OC... particularly in trying to find answers to the marketing challenges addressing the unique needs of the OC while trying to help support the mission of the whole shootin' match as well. I can tell you first-hand that the marketing efforts of Drum Corps International are designed to promote ALL of the corps of Drum Corps International. Yes, it's sometimes difficult to explain the differences in the i-before-e-except-after-c world of what constitutes a World Class corps vs. an Open Class corps... but we do think globally as we craft our message.

I've been a part of the OC for quite a while... and I can provide some background perspective that few others can, based on how long I've been sitting in the room taking it all in. There is a tremendous amount of passion for promoting OC by many folks... but what does that really mean? How much "promotion" is enough promotion, and how do we craft a strategic message and supporting tactics that will position the Open Class corps in such a way as to celebrate the diversity across the division without confusing the message? [Just for the record, it's 1:48 in the morning as I write this, and I would still be thinking about this kind of stuff tonight even if I wasn't writing this. I'm obsessed with it, and I'm not the only one thinking about it by any means].

How do we address the challenge of many companies: trying to put forth a visionary marketing plan without having a lot of cash to really achieve some sort of meaningful penetration?

For example: The cost of designing, printing and mailing a simple post card mailing can run into the thousands of dollars once we start really opening up the mailing list to be all-inclusive... and will a post card cut through the clutter of a band director's desk to motivate him to engage his or her students to attend a show or participate in a corps this fall? How many times do we need to mail that post card to the same address before it gets noticed? Can we afford to do multiple mailings? How can we bypass the director and speak directly to the students? Should we even be trying to go down that road?

Perhaps we produce a glossy magazine several times a year and distribute them into more than 60,000 classrooms in the US, three times a year? [pssst: we do]

Perhaps we advertise in other music education publications where band directors are likely to read and understand our message? [we do this, too!]

Perhaps printing a descriptive bulletin board poster will do the trick? At a cost of over two dollars to print and mail, how many can be sent out and what effect will they have? What do we want the recipient to do when they get it? Get kids to join? Attend a show or a workshop? What if when they arrive at the show, they're expecting a big, loud drum corps that they've seen on the DVD but are met with a smaller, younger, somewhat quieter cousin? [we print posters... we find folks to help fund them... they're great... but they're expensive]

Perhaps we should invest in creating a DVD specifically for music educators to use in the classroom, explaining the drum corps activity and sharing some of the tremendous personal success stories that have come from within our ranks? [we do this through our "Commitment to Excellence Program" for music educators]

Perhaps we should invest in attending trade shows around the country and discuss ALL forms of drum corps with music educators? Perhaps we should engage in partnerships with other entities who share our commitment to providing outstanding opportunities for young people to achieve great things through involvement in marching music? [we do, and we do]

Some seem to envision an iron fortress with three big iron letters riveted to the drawbridge: DCI. It's not. From a marketing standpoint, there are two ways of looking at it:

1. The DCI marketing department is made up of 1 full time person, 1 part-time consultant, 2 folks who have other responsibilities in addition to marketing, and a few seasonal interns.

OR

2. The DCI marketing department is made up of tens of thousands of deputy evangelists, each of whom has the power to share the passion for drum corps and to prospective new fans in the process.

It is a personal goal of mine to serve as an "agent of change" to be able to share information, truly for "the good of the order." I hope that folks will be able to use the information to assist with the effort of creating a new generation of drum corps fan, which will grow into a new generation of drum corps participants... which might just lead into a new generation of drum corps. But... this stuff takes patience... which is something often in short supply in these here parts. Go ahead... say it... "Patience? DCI has been a blight on the planet for 40 years now... yadda yadda." Ok, I get it. Let's move on.

There are a few things you need to know about some of the back-story that has led to some of the thought processes you're witnessing today, relating to the Open Class:

– We (the OC corps directors) decided years ago that it was better to move the World Championships later in the week, rather than having our season end in an empty stadium on Tuesday or Wednesday night. This was most certainly NOT forced on us by the World Class nor by the DCI office. The rationale behind the decision was (and is, presumably) several-fold. In no specific order:

a. consolidating to later in the week saves additional days of stadium rental, enabling us to come closer to covering the expenses of staging an OC Championship since some of our costs would be absorbed into the existing event budget.

b. the audience – including many of the parents of participating OC corps members – had (and have) an easier time taking off a few days to make for a long weekend than they do/did taking off the additional days earlier in the week to attend a Tuesday or Wednesday finals. We knew that not everyone who would already be in town would be attending our championship... but we knew that our chances of getting die-hard drum corps fans to come see us was markedly better on Saturday than it was at any other point in the week.

c. With the competitive season previously ending on Tuesday or Wednesday, corps' supervisory resources were stretched thin as there was no longer a reason for rehearsal, and as such, many instructors returned home to start band camps, etc. This translated to having to keep corps members engaged in something positive – yet inexpensive from a sightseeing standpoint – for four more days until finals was over and the trip home could begin. Some corps opted to leave as soon as competition ended, but disappointed corps members in many of these units wanted to stay to see the WC finals... putting the corps in a difficult situation, as they didn't want their members to feel that they were missing out.

d. we liked the concept of having all of the champions crowned on the same day.

e. we put an end to the tradition of competing at WC Quarterfinals because we had fought long and hard to have our own adjudication standards. We didn't see the logic in aspiring to a level of achievement that would not recognize excellence within the Open Class. Without a long dissertation on the intricacies of judging, we wanted to reward the very best of the Open Class based on standards which we developed in a partnership with the adjudication community, using educational language that gave all of the corps in the OC what we felt to be a blueprint for success. This was our decision, and we were thrilled that finally our best corps would end the season in our own "Box 5" and our least experienced corps would go home with a score and judge commentary that would give them a great starting point for the following season.

Footnote: the Madison Wednesday night phenomenon was a one-shot deal. The "Opening Ceremonies" which were held that year, were designed (if my memory serves me correctly) to replace what had traditionally been the parade around the capital which was pre-empted that year due to some sort of logistics issue (construction or some such thing). The audience that resulted in having a Wednesday night event, coupled with thousands of free tickets distributed into the neighborhood, was something that was an incredibly happy surprise. I'll never forget the look on corps members' faces as we turned the corner (before it was filled with a new building) and walked down the "tunnel" driveway onto the field... looking up at a virtual wall of people. The logistics and expense involved in staging a Wednesday night event in subsequent years in other cities caused the one-shot deal to remain just that.

Enough for tonight.

Seriously, here's the deal: from this point out, before picking up the rock or molotov cocktail to hurl in the direction of the marketing office, send me an e-mail with your question or concern. I'll do my best to get back to you as quickly as I can... or I'll be happy to post stuff here for everyone to see. Although some of the statements on this board are really entertaining to read, too many of them of late are nothing more than total fabrications. I'm pledging to do my part to be the SNOPES.com of as many of these pieces of folklore as possible. The drum corps activity has enough challenges these days. Having to constantly defend half-truths, rumors and outright fabrications is a drain on the already overtaxed resources. I know some may not want the truth to get in the way of a good rant... but I'd rather harness the passion in a different direction.

Seeya on the 50.

[bobjacobs]

Precisely. Apparently, OC corps can make more money doing 4th of July parades than OC shows. How asinine is that?

Old School... I've gotta tell ya that you're a riot, dude.

Here's the big secret of the day: WC corps can make more money doing 4th of July parades than WC shows. I don't think it's asinine... I think it's FORTUNATE! That's why my corps does (at least) 3 of them every July 4th!