BRASSO Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 There's 3 key areas to focus marketing: kids. they are the future. recent age outs: keep them involved. legacy fans: the people with the serious cash to dispose of, the die hards that keep coming back the goal of kids is to make thm recent age outs, who eventually become the legacy fans. focusing on only 1/3 or 2/3 of these groups is a mistake, and has been practiced too often. I see DCI taking steps to alleviate that, but it's going to take time for years of neglect to be undone Well said, and I agree with it. DCI really does need to have equal focus to these three areas, and have thought so myself for quite some time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 touring can definitely help. more chances to perform, more rehearsal time, more feedback from the judges. Depends on what a corps is doing when not on tour. Are they rehearsing? Are they doing other performances? Surf has performed at DCA shows, for instance. I'd rather see a corps operate as it thinks best, not force itself to tour? Which corps was kept out of finals because they did not do a full tour? the number of potential band kids should be a concern. schools keep cutting arts funding....as time goes on, fewer places will have bands. Ergo, your pretty constant will shrink. You make it sound as if music programs nationwide are on the way out...just not true. Yes, it stinks when it happens, but there are 27,000 or so HS in the US. In strict numerical terms, the number of potential members and audience is...and will remain...pretty constant. And yes, DCI has been doing more for legacy fans, but they waited far too long....too much damage may be done there, because it will ###### hard to get many of them back. The nice thing is, there is a new group of legacy fans adding to the numbers each year. As for "too much damage"...care to elaborate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 so what happens to todays 50 year old in a few years...forget them? I think you're trying to target a specific age group as a legacy fan and that can't be done. Depending on who you talk to, I've heard so many different versions of WHO IS THE LEGACY FAN. There will also always be those who don't like the direction of the activity. I remember that being said back in the 70s also. JMO My dad hated it when corps no longer started in the end zone, as one example. OTL was his favorite part of a show. People said Bayonne was not a drum corps when they donned the banana unis in 76. Today...they are seen as one of the greatest corps of all time. In NanciD's website where she shows old issues of Drum Corps News, there was a letter to the editor bemoaning the addition of the contrabass as being to much like band. Heck, the editor of DCN ran an editorial that was rabidly attacking the Scouts, Cavies and Cadets for daring to have themed shows in 1971...the Year Drum Corps Died according to a t-shirt. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I think there's a mistake in believing that in order to impress and cajole the "Legacy" crowd you have to do an old school show. Nor does a show have to have a Broadway show tune and a rousing Souza march to be entertaining. Corps can be impressive and entertaining by simply making sure that at least a nod is given to the audience rather than having an entire show geared toward judges. For each corps this would be different, and as one commentator stated, 2011 was a step in the right direction. Perhaps a great example would be last year's Blue Devils show. I'm not sure I ever would have imagined the Blue Devils choosing a pop composer like Burt Bacharach as a starting point nor would I have expected an arrangement of his music to be sophisticated enough for a Blue Devils show, but it worked. It pleased crowds and judges and almost won. Year back corps learned that finances had to be managed like a business. It was a hard lesson to learn, many struggled, some corps resisted, and we lost some of our most beloved corps due to financial difficulties. Marketing may be the next big challenge. We don't have community corps anymore, and we don't have agencies like churches sand AL and VFW so we don't have a support base that renews itself. The shows I attend are usually filled. I should also add that the groups that sponsor the shows, most notably the Boston Crusaders and alums of some of the North Shore corps, make the shows feel like a reunion of anyone who marched competitively and they are very family and young person oriented. Still many of the fans are aging and most marched in the many corps that populated the Boston area. This is a crowd that will soon be dwindling. New audiences need to be found and new donors need to be cultivated. This will not happen by excluding key groups. Also it's not just about dollars and cents. It's about the health of the activity. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 My dad hated it when corps no longer started in the end zone, as one example. OTL was his favorite part of a show. People said Bayonne was not a drum corps when they donned the banana unis in 76. Today...they are seen as one of the greatest corps of all time. In NanciD's website where she shows old issues of Drum Corps News, there was a letter to the editor bemoaning the addition of the contrabass as being to much like band. Heck, the editor of DCN ran an editorial that was rabidly attacking the Scouts, Cavies and Cadets for daring to have themed shows in 1971...the Year Drum Corps Died according to a t-shirt. exactly........so many forget this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 (edited) My dad hated it when corps no longer started in the end zone, as one example. OTL was his favorite part of a show. People said Bayonne was not a drum corps when they donned the banana unis in 76. Today...they are seen as one of the greatest corps of all time. In NanciD's website where she shows old issues of Drum Corps News, there was a letter to the editor bemoaning the addition of the contrabass as being to much like band. Heck, the editor of DCN ran an editorial that was rabidly attacking the Scouts, Cavies and Cadets for daring to have themed shows in 1971...the Year Drum Corps Died according to a t-shirt. I used to read DCN in high school and remember some of the "old" cranks who editorialized as they reported, and by "old" they were probably my age now when they were writing. I recall one bashing Phantom Regiment in 1978 for playing Stravinsky and Blue Devils for not playing any "songs." Now those shows are no longer modern and would be considered from the good old days. Though I appreciate drum corps today, I'm an old schooler at heart, and if DVD's could wear out, my 76-82 Legacy DVD's would need to be replaced. I also feel that drum corps lost a great deal when 27th and Bridgemen no longer competed. I know both corps would probably be very different today if they still competed, though BAC, Madison, Troopers, and Phantom have evolved but still have characteristics of yesterday, so you never know. P.S.: What is the website address for the old issues of "Drum Corps News?" Edited May 10, 2012 by Tim K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 (edited) My dad hated it when corps no longer started in the end zone, as one example. OTL was his favorite part of a show. People said Bayonne was not a drum corps when they donned the banana unis in 76. Today...they are seen as one of the greatest corps of all time. In NanciD's website where she shows old issues of Drum Corps News, there was a letter to the editor bemoaning the addition of the contrabass as being to much like band. Heck, the editor of DCN ran an editorial that was rabidly attacking the Scouts, Cavies and Cadets for daring to have themed shows in 1971...the Year Drum Corps Died according to a t-shirt. True... but back then there were a lot more fans going to a lot more shows to see a lot more Corps. So there were both more disgruntled fans as well as more happy fans... just more fans in general back in earlier decades. Regional Shows were on TV live.... DCI Championships on TV live. The Drum Corps News you are referring too is gone. 38,000 fans in 1980 at Championships Finals in 1980 has given way to crowds at Finals less than half that size. So while we have had more change in our Drum Corps activity the last 50 years than probably any other competitive sport in the world in a similar time frame,the changes have led to thousands of lost fans, and loss of TV sponsorship. I pine for the old days where the Finals was on TV live... or if not live, at least taped for future viewing on TV. Heck, even the High School Cheeleaders and Dance Team National Championships are on TV. So while we have lost thousands of fans from coast to coast we have not been able to replenish the lost fans with new fans. And that needs to be addressed. We have not lost the talent that is available to show designers of today. Nobody believes the talent of today in Corps is any less than that of the past. So as we " evolve " and as we " change ", we need to be sure that the changes we adopt that scuttle things from the past do not ultimately lead to extinction.The good news here is that SOME of the current movers and shakers in DCI ( Cesario, Delucia, etc )understand that we need to be careful that we don't lose more fans. Thats because just about every sensible and rational person understands that this activity can not sustain itself long term without fan growth. Edited May 10, 2012 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GUARDLING Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 True... but back then there were a lot more fans going to a lot more shows to see a lot more Corps.Regional Shows were on TV live.... DCI Championships on TV live. The Drum Corps News you are referring too is gone. 38,000 fans in 1980 at Championships Finals in 1980 has given way to crowds at Finals less than half that size. So while we have had more change in our Drum Corps activity than probably any other competitive sport in the world,the chsanges have led to thousands of lost fans, and loss of TV sponsorship. I pine for the old days where the Finals was on TV live... or if not live, at least taped for future viewing on TV. Heck, even the High School Cheeleaders and Dance Team National Championships are on TV. So while we have lost thousands of fans from coast to coast we have not been able to replenish the lost fans with new fans. And that needs to be addressed. We have not lost the talent that is available to show designers of today. Nobody believes the talent of today in Corps is any less than that of the past. So as we " evolve " and as we " change ", we need to be sure that the changes we adopt that scuttle things from the past do not ultimately lead to extinction.The good news here is that SOME of the current movers and shakers in DCI ( Cesario, Delucia, etc )understand that we need to be careful that we don't lose more fans. That because just about everyone understands that this activity can not sustain itself without fan growth. Youre right..But I think just for the TV issue. It was proven to sponsors in the past our activity was not large enough, nor a sound financial investment having drum corps as part of programming. Even PBS did away with it because people who pledged never followed through. Its been said many many times we are a small niche compared to other groups. When you think back on the foundation of drum corps, what it was, what it stood for, who it was supported by, whatand who it served in neighborhoods, I'm actually surprised it's still around today. Even look at boy scouts...most kids wanted to be boy scouts and cub scouts bitd, in 2012 Boy Scouts have 1/2 the members than they had in 1972...these are their facts. I do agree something needs to be done to market and make the activity appealing , at least to those who there may be some interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 Depends on what a corps is doing when not on tour. Are they rehearsing? Are they doing other performances? Surf has performed at DCA shows, for instance. I'd rather see a corps operate as it thinks best, not force itself to tour? Which corps was kept out of finals because they did not do a full tour? You make it sound as if music programs nationwide are on the way out...just not true. Yes, it stinks when it happens, but there are 27,000 or so HS in the US. In strict numerical terms, the number of potential members and audience is...and will remain...pretty constant. The nice thing is, there is a new group of legacy fans adding to the numbers each year. As for "too much damage"...care to elaborate? performing at a DCA show is not the same as getting feedback from DCI judges Mike, and you know it. music programs are dying...i see it more and more every day on the news. trust me when i say if the economy keeps going as it is, more will continue to die out, as well as smaller schools will get merged with other small schools...and music will get cut there. damage? look at the steep drop in Friends alone as Garfield mentioned. Now look around for many faces you USED to see at shows. Once they leave, it's harder to get them to come back and check it out. I know, I'm discussing business 101 here, and we all know business and drum corps haven't always gone hand in hand.....but you lose a customer, odds are, they'll never be back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted May 10, 2012 Share Posted May 10, 2012 I think there's a mistake in believing that in order to impress and cajole the "Legacy" crowd you have to do an old school show. Nor does a show have to have a Broadway show tune and a rousing Souza march to be entertaining. Corps can be impressive and entertaining by simply making sure that at least a nod is given to the audience rather than having an entire show geared toward judges. For each corps this would be different, and as one commentator stated, 2011 was a step in the right direction. Perhaps a great example would be last year's Blue Devils show. I'm not sure I ever would have imagined the Blue Devils choosing a pop composer like Burt Bacharach as a starting point nor would I have expected an arrangement of his music to be sophisticated enough for a Blue Devils show, but it worked. It pleased crowds and judges and almost won. Year back corps learned that finances had to be managed like a business. It was a hard lesson to learn, many struggled, some corps resisted, and we lost some of our most beloved corps due to financial difficulties. Marketing may be the next big challenge. We don't have community corps anymore, and we don't have agencies like churches sand AL and VFW so we don't have a support base that renews itself. The shows I attend are usually filled. I should also add that the groups that sponsor the shows, most notably the Boston Crusaders and alums of some of the North Shore corps, make the shows feel like a reunion of anyone who marched competitively and they are very family and young person oriented. Still many of the fans are aging and most marched in the many corps that populated the Boston area. This is a crowd that will soon be dwindling. New audiences need to be found and new donors need to be cultivated. This will not happen by excluding key groups. Also it's not just about dollars and cents. It's about the health of the activity. well said Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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