In case you’ve been completely ignoring us, you’re probably aware that Lauri’s List does offer a few special discounts on memberships, events and services during the annual post-Thanksgiving extravaganza. This shopping-crazed weekend has grown enormously since the internet changed marketing so profoundly. Not including the actual day of Thanksgiving (where we hope you ate well and got some rest), the annual calendar now includes three post-turkey days of consumerism and fundraising, where Americans can shop for Christmas, support their favorite charities (and get those last tax deductions before the year ends), and (hopefully) in our case, find something useful for the upcoming year:
- Black Friday: Named for being “in the black”, this day of weird hours and crazy sales has been around for a long time, and in some families, has become part of the ritual.
- Cyber Monday: Once web sales started to take over, retailers staked another claim on the calendar, with a day supposedly devoted to online deals.
- Giving Tuesday: With wallets flying open everywhere when nonprofits and charities of all sorts are normally fundraising, cause marketers came together in 2012 to create a focused opportunity to support a favorite organization. Now in its fifth year, more and more orgs are taking part, with, we’ve been told in an informal poll of local arts administrators, mixed but promising results.
Our own efforts to make various activities with the List a little easier to dive into has shone the spotlight on what other arts orgs are doing as well, as every organization and individual artist strives for the attention they need to be heard in the noise.
The Broad Stage is offering a 30% discount on all tickets, which is one of the best deals we’ve seen in the arts, and with their ticket prices, can make a serious difference. Just be sure to use the promo code BFCMSALE when you order your tickets online — their sale goes through Monday. (BTW, Piotr Beczala is coming 12/12!)
Medici TV, an online source for live-streamed and archived performances, masterclasses and more, is offering 40% off regular rates for their memberships and gift cards, but this is a Black-Friday-only deal: catch it before Nov 26.
UPDATE: This offer has been extended through the weekend. Yay!
Some organizations are offering alternatives to a straight discount, like the LA Master Chorale: they’re waiving service fees on ticket sales through Cyber Monday, which can certainly add up.
One more… Pacific Opera Project chose today to announce their next season. An unusual choice, but for a small organization that tends to sell out their performances on a regular basis, giving potential ticket buyers a heads-up at any point is a good idea.
That’s just a sampling from our inboxes, of course, and we’ll have to see what happens on Giving Tuesday… well, you’ll just have to guess when. 😉
If you have a promotion that you’d like us to post or share, or a marketing idea that you’re particularly proud of, please Contact us. We’re always keeping an eye out for innovative ways to promote the arts, and would love to help.
Featured image by R. Dinx / FreeImages
