“When I jumped into live streaming in 2013, I had no idea what I was doing—and my first stream featured a world-renowned pianist performing in a packed hall,” writes Adam Schumaker in Monday’s (6/4) NewMusicBox. “At the time, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra had been live streaming concerts for two years. Today, they are a leader in classical music live streaming…. At the Gilmore [Keyboard Festival], however, [there was] one major concern.… ‘If we offer the concert for free online, won’t it negatively impact ticket sales?’ … You need to trust your audience…. Most people are cognizant of the uniqueness of a live concert experience. Given a choice and with no outside barriers, most people would choose a live event…. By offering live streams … at no charge, you are trusting that the audience members you have will continue to buy tickets if they can. The benefit … becomes the ability to engage the dedicated fans who just couldn’t be there … while also potentially reaching future audience members who are not fans—yet…. After watching a live-streamed concert, viewers are more likely purchase tickets to future concerts. It’s like giving a sample of something delicious at Costco.”
Posted June 7, 2018
