Marketing for arts events

If you are organising a local community event or arts project, there are many marketing resources to help with publicising the event to the local community once all the planning has been done. However please remember that an event on offer to the general public or a targeted audience must always be covered by relevant insurance and properly risk-assessed.

What can Woking Borough Council do to support an arts activity / event?

The Community Services Department can assist with distributing A5 fliers, A4 and A2 posters to local Centres for the Community, The Leisure Centre, Civic Offices, Rhoda McGaw Theatre and Woking Library.

A rota for 14 Borough Display Boards and 5 Drive-by Boards is also operated by Community Services and is currently provided free of charge. Slots for a maximum duration of 3 weeks prior to your event can be booked but are subject to availablility and are particularly popular throughout the Autumn season.

Entries can also be added to the 'Window on Woking' Community Website, a free facility for local organisations who can design their own web page.

Local Press

Issuing a press release to the local papers can provide strong support for an event or arts project, but please bear in mind that Journalists are busy people who need accurate and complete stories, with pictures in an electronic format if possible. Please plan the issuing of your press releases as papers will rarely print information months in advance. It is best to issue your first release 3 weeks in advance with a reminder 1 week before your show / event. Copy deadlines vary depending on the paper. Think of an angle for your story that will make it stand out and try to submit an interesting picture or offer to arrange a photocall. Finally, always provide contact details of the person who is best placed to answer any further questions Journalists may have.

Paid advertising is another useful method to publicise your event or project.

Radio Stations

Two major local radio stations are 96.4FM The Eagle and BBC Southern Counties.

It is worth sending a fax or email to these stations with a poster or flier attached, as they may choose to mention your event.

Mailouts

Try to build up a mailing list of supporters for your group or organisation but consider data protection laws.

Further Distribution

Woking Library are happy to take A4 posters and fliers but this is subject to space. Display boards positioned in the entrance way are also available for use but need to be booked in advance for a weekly slot.

Most villages and areas in the Woking Borough have community notice boards and poster sites so a day spent distributing leaflets is worthwhile.