The art of promotion

Hasani Walters, Gleaner Writer

You've probably been to many parties. You get dressed up, head out on to the town and enjoy a night of fun with friends and family.

But have you ever stopped to think about what goes on behind the scenes of that party? What makes so many persons come out or what makes the event a failure? Why you decided to go to the party or why you did not?

LIME All-Island Carnival (AIC) gives to patrons 12 exciting weeks of activities. The new series aims to satisfy the high-energy vibe usually exhibited during the soca season, and will see stops in St Mary, Portland, Westmoreland, St Catherine, St Thomas, St Elizabeth, St James, Manchester and Clarendon.

One of the many ingredients in the secret recipe of a successful event is promotion.

For AIC, a wide variety of promotional methods are utilised, from word-of-mouth to huge billboards, each method is vital to the promotional process.

"We use pretty much every single medium of promotion to get the event out there. There is the Internet, electronic press, print press, social networking, entertainment websites and the airwaves," said Marvin Lawrence of promotional group Tri-Star Entertainment.

However, he believes some methods are more successful than others.

"We think the electronic media is one of the best forms as we have done on-the-ground work in some areas and in others we have not really done so as yet. However, the buzz is extremely high," he said.

More expensive

He also explained that through careful and creative designing, the very flyers that you receive play an integral part in drawing the crowd.

Through the use of stand-out colours on the flyers, billboards and mini boards which are fitting for the carnival season, they hope to grab the attention of the ordinary man, who is always a prospective patron.

"The truth is, it's not much different from the other events we've done. However, it is just more expensive," he laughed.

He went on to state the extra expenses as being as a result of the series of parties being carried out as opposed to just one. He also mentioned the overseas acts that they opted to bring to Jamaica to be a part of All-Island Carnival as further expenses.

A lot of planning goes into an event of this nature, as things change and different things come up. Even with proper planning, organisers have to be on the ball. They need to be able to change with the changes.

Lawrence also pointed out an interesting fact, saying, "What's happening here has to co-relate to what is happening in Trinidad. Yes, a lot of what we're doing here is a reflection of what is happening in Trinidad. Trinidad's carnival is now off and running and will end on the March 8. One of the events we have scheduled is called The Best of Trinidad Carnival, which is going to take place on the very weekend that Trini carnival ends. So all the names, all the winners of the different soca monarchs, we're going to be bringing those persons back to Kingston, Jamaica."

And with the party in full blast don't think the work is over for the promoter.

While you're busy dancing the night away, they're still milling around trying to keep everything in order.

Dynamic team

"We have a very dynamic team, different persons are responsible for different things. It comes together pretty nicely in the end, it's just a matter of managing it while the event is going on to make certain that our bars are kept intact, drinks are always there and that the bars don't run out of stuff. We have persons of course touching base with the audience to see how it's progressing from their side of the fence," said Lawrence.

He added, "We have 11 shows left, so, if we're picking up issues from the audience, then going forward, we would certainly want to tweak that."

According to Lawrence, the success of the event does not necessarily come down to dollars and cents, especially because All-Island Carnival is in its inaugural year.

Lawrence is also grateful for the sponsors that have come on-board although he said they could have done well with more sponsorship.

LIME AIC began on January 29 in Kingston, with Soca Junkies, and will end on April 29 with a high energy J'Ouvert fete.