Yes, it’s true.  This is NOT an October Fools’.

I am giving away two FREE tickets to see Bruce Springsteen on Broadway.

I could probably stop right there, give you a link and be done with this post.  And you’d probably be happy.

But the whole point of this blog isn’t about what I’m doing, it’s about why I’m doing it.

And it has to do with toasters.

Let me start at the beginning . . .

In addition to announcing the free ticket giveaway for The Boss, today I also announced that single tickets for Gettin’ The Band Back Together will go on sale to the public on Thursday, November 2nd.  That’s a good eight months before we start previews, and a good 2-3 months before most shows go on sale.  But, as you probably know, I like to get a head start on things.

Sweet, right?

Since we’re not some King Kong of a show with millions of dollars to spend on media, I’ve got to find other ways to get the word out about the show and that on sale date.

And so, I’m doing a giveaway for the two tickets to see The Boss on the Gettin’ The Band Back Together website.

At first, when we were brainstorming this idea, we went through the usual suspects of giveaway options:  opening night tickets, backstage tours, blah, blah boring.

I mean, they’re all fine, but nothing new.  And, as you probably know, I like to do new things.

And then I remembered the toasters.

What the eff do toasters have to do with the price of Bruce Springsteen tickets on Broadway?

Good question.

Better question . . . does it matter?

See, at a recent marketing conference  I attended, the subject of contests and giveaways came up.  And the speaker asked if any one of us knew what one of the most successful giveaways in any industry was over the last 50 years.

The answer?

It was Banks giving away toasters and steak knives in the mid to late 80s with new accounts.

And what does a toaster or a set of steak knives have to do with banking?

NOTHING.

And it didn’t matter.  It still worked like bank-busters, all because of the perceived value of the prize.

When running a contest or a giveaway promotion, we almost always turn to our own product, and what we can get our hands on for free.  But, if you really want them to do something for you (like sign up for a list or promote your brand on social), then you need to think about what they really want.  (Marketing is more about your customer than it is about you.)

And that, my friends, is two tickets to Bruce Springsteen.

On top of that, there is a pretty sweet demographic crossover for Bruce and my show.

• A majority of Bruce fans are the same age as the traditional theater-going demographic.
• Bruce is from Jersey and has a lot of fans from The Garden State.  Gettin’ The Band takes place in New Jersey, and we want a lot of fans from The Garden State.
• In our story, our protagonist (Mitch Papadopolous) always wanted to be Bruce Springsteen, and The Boss even gets a couple of mentions in the show.

So by giving away these two super valuable tickets, we’ll expose ourselves to exactly who we think will enjoy the show, and we’ll collect some info on ’em so we can market to them later.

In fact, if you think giving away the tickets is fun?  Just wait until you see the fun we have, and how we market to the people who enter.  (In other ways, make sure you enter.)

Now, how did we get those tickets?

We bought ’em.  And yes, they were expensive.  But when you enter the contest, you’ll see why it will be worth every bitcoin we spent.  (Secret surprises that I’m not even technically allowed to do coming your way.)

So . . .  takeaway #1?  Giveaways are great, when the prize is something your audience sees as having more value than you!

Takeaway #2?  WE’RE GIVING AWAY TWO FREE TICKETS TO SEE BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN!!!

Enter here.

And make sure you pay special attention to how you can enter multiple times!