How to increase attendance at your metal concert

Rock Concert

Metal music has some of the most dedicated fan bases in the world with millions of listeners around the globe. Metal music has been around since the 60s and since then it has expanded and evolved its sound.

Despite its reach and history, it has a smaller piece of the figurative pie compared to some mainstream genres such as pop or hip hop. As an event organizer or a band, you will need to put in some extra effort to ensure that your metal show brings in crowds. Thanks to the power of the internet and some planning, you can easily make your next show a hit.

Radio Appearances

Despite it being considered old and somewhat obsolete in the age of the internet, radio still has considerable reach and a large listener base. Most of the audience consists of commuters and drivers who tune into their favorite radio stations as they drive around in their vehicles.

By making an appearance on your local radio stations, you can potentially reach out to all these people. You can talk about your music and band in detail, get your music played on these stations and discuss your upcoming show in depth. The audience will get to know you better and are likely to attend your concert.

Metal band Spiritbox made an appearance on a famous online and satellite radio network SiriusXM. The show was broadcasted live on the station and a recorded video of the whole segment was then uploaded to the band’s official YouTube account. In this way, people who were unable to listen to the original interview were able to tune in at a later time.

Get Active On Social Media

An active social media presence is a must-have for any business in the 21st century. For your band, it’s where your fans can receive updates regarding any upcoming content, and shows, and interact with you.

It will bode well for you if you focus on one or two main social media platforms to reach out to your audience rather than make a lackluster effort on all. Instagram and Twitter will allow you to reach a large number of users and are more fast-paced. Thanks to crossposting, you can also post on Facebook when you make an Instagram post basically killing two birds with one stone.

You can create concert posters for this purpose to inform the public regarding the show, the bands and artists performing, the date and the venue of the show, and any other information relevant. Doing so will deliver the necessary information in an eye-catching way. You can attempt to make them yourself by using the various graphics designing services on the internet. PosterMyWall is one such service that will allow you to create a concert poster in a much easier way. PosterMyWall has hundreds of pre-made posters which you can edit and repurpose for your poster. Or create something of your own from scratch.

A metal festival named Hellfest created a poster for their event sharing logos of the bands performing along with the dates of the show. A simple but effective ensign that delivers the necessary information to the audience.

Hellfest Instagram

Share Demos And Teasers

Your main act is typically reserved for the show but you can give some teasers on social media leading up to it. If you have any demos for the songs you would perform laying around then you can share them on social media platforms and even streaming sites, potentially.

The idea is to build hype, you want to create the impression that the attendees will receive a one-of-a-kind experience that they wouldn’t be able to get anywhere else. Give them a taste of what they can get in your shows and they will be compelled to attend.

Progressive metal band Tesseract posted some demos and teasers for their concert titled ‘Portals’ on their Instagram. The short video contained a series of performance snippets, some artwork, and of course short clips from one of the band’s songs. The post was successful in creating hype and anticipation for the concert with many fans expressing excitement for the show.

Tesseract Instagram post

Giveaways And Special Offers

People love to receive free stuff, a fact which is also true when it comes to concerts and shows. To boost engagement and attendance to your show, you can hold contests and giveaways. In these, you can offer things such as tickets, merchandise, or even meet and greet with the band.

You can advertise these contests on your social media channels and offer these prizes or some others for a limited time. People are likely to engage with the said contest and even encourage other fans in their circles to sign up as well. If you have made some original music, create a package on offer with the band’s poster, a CD with your music, some stickers, and other items.

Most bands conduct contests for limited edition merchandise such as branded shirts, jackets, bands, stickers, and patches. You can go one step further and include autographed posters for your band which they can put up in their rooms and such. PosterMyWall is one such tool that you can use to make such metal posters in a matter of minutes. It’s as easy as putting your band’s photo, its logo along with some other artwork, and you’d end up with your required poster.

Progressive Metal band Monuments held a special limited offer where they sold special packages with the release of their recent album. The package contained an autographed album, a CD, a vinyl record, a poster for the band, and other related items.

Monuments Instagram post

Go Live On Social Media

Conduct a few live sessions on social media leading up to your upcoming show. Obviously, most of your time will be spent on rehearsals and preparations for the main event, but try to carve out a few hours here and there. You can answer questions from fans, offer updates on upcoming content, and of course talk about the concert.

If you can manage it, then you can perform a few of your songs to further tease your fans and build anticipation. Facebook and Instagram are great for this purpose in a pinch, but if you can manage it, consider streaming on Twitch. It is a dedicated platform built for live streaming and you can stream other content as well aside from music.

Progressive metal band Tesseract regularly goes live on Twitch streaming performances, demos, rehearsals, recording sessions, and even some video games here and there. This gives the viewers a peek into the band’s life and feel like they connect on a deeper level than others. Fans also catch some exclusive content as well that is not otherwise available elsewhere. The band’s lead singer Daniel Tompkins streamed a vocal performance session on Twitch. He later shared the video of the show on his YouTube channel allowing people who were unable to catch the live stream to experience the performance at a later time.

Metal music has consistently held a passionate fanbase for decades. This means that the expectations will be high and you would have to be at your A-game to make sure your concert is a success. You can try every other trick in the book to promote your show, but if the main event is weak, then your show will be a flop. Ultimately, it is up to you to deliver a good experience to your fans. Make sure they have a memorable time and have fun and your concert will be a hit.