Next to Normal and the marketing of other shows- Page 2

[TheBoyDownstairs]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 12:46am

A lot of people dont like the marketing of the show, I'd love to know what some people who hate the show's marketing would do to market a show like this?

I've yet to be able to think of a truly effective way to market this show to the masses. I still think a lot will depend on the reviews, and the show obviously has great word of mouth going.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 12:51am

I just saw wonderful commercials for both ROCK OF AGES and EXIT THE KING. The producers of NEXT TO NORMAL should take a tip from them...

Edit: Just saw two great commercials for GOD OF CARNAGE.

How difficult is it to create a decent commercial spot on TV??? Good god!!!

Edit again: Just saw a commercial for SHREK that I think would definitely sell tickets.

Updated On: 4/5/09 at 12:51 AM

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 1:43am

Out of all the commercials, this is the only one I find somewhat appealing...

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 1:52am

It's a tough show to sell without giving away the best part of the show (which is the big twist). They should center it on the whole suburban family with issues and maybe avoid the whole "mental health" issue as that might scare some people away.

[defyingravity11]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 1:55am

I wish they would use clips from the show and quotes from the rave reviews. Even if they don't depict what the show is about, at least they could market it as a rock musical a la Spring Awakening. This is just too vague for those who haven't heard of N2N.

[heo1128]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 3:12am

I really like the face-doors. They have a really raw quality which I think suits the show. But the commercials need work. I also agree that they should use the rave quotes...there's plenty.

[legally_popular]

Posted: 4/5/09 at 5:28pm

Why can't they show clips like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPYGYhBOvXQ&feature=related

It still doesn't actually say what the show is about, but showing the scenes is much more appealing to me than... the faces thing. A friend of mine saw the commercials and thought they were really weird too. She was already a fan from 2nd stage though. Still, I asked her straight out if she liked them ("No.") and if she would decide to go see the show based on the ads ("No.").

When Spring Awakening first came out, I had no idea what it was about and didn't like their commercials. I hated them so much in fact that I didn't see the show until fall '08, and only because I knew it was closing and it would be my last chance.

Updated On: 4/5/09 at 05:28 PM

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/18/09 at 11:25pm

I just heard/saw a commercial for N2N using "I Miss the Mountains" - Ouch!!!! Why pick the worst song in the show for advertisements? And no offense to Mrs. Ripley as I've grown fond of her voice over the past couple of weeks, but it's not the most accessible vocal stylings!

[ZONEACE]

Posted: 4/18/09 at 11:28pm

oh look, another post by rentboy (someone who claims to like the show) bashing the show and its lead actress. I Miss the Mountains is one of the most beautiful songs in the show and Alice is phenomenal when she sings it. What's not accessible?

[snl89]

Posted: 4/19/09 at 1:28am

Am I the only one who actually quite likes the marketing they've done for the show? haha. I mean, if I am then that's not good obviously and they should change it. But I feel like the ads are very very unique, and will probably catch the eye of people who don't know of the show better than a regular montage ad would.

Definitely not denying they're a bit strange, but I just personally feel that they work because they're strange and eye catching. I think if someone were to casually be flipping through channels on TV or something and saw them, they would be likely to stop and inquire as to what the show is about.


So yeah.. I think they've done a really great job marketing, but I hope I'm not the only one haha. Because if I am that defeats the purpose. The people who need to like the marketing are the people who would be introduced to the show through the advertisements.

[Kad]

Posted: 4/19/09 at 1:30am

"I just heard/saw a commercial for N2N using "I Miss the Mountains" - Ouch!!!! Why pick the worst song in the show for advertisements? And no offense to Mrs. Ripley as I've grown fond of her voice over the past couple of weeks, but it's not the most accessible vocal stylings!"

"I Miss the Mountains" has been very consistently singled out as being one of the best songs in the show.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/19/09 at 3:04am

Last time I check this was a message board where we post our opinions, no? Not once in my statement did I say "the majority of people think this song sucks." I just think it's a poor choice to represent the show. Like I've said, I think it's a great, but I think they're going about things all wrong. When I saw it in DC I took my brother with me, and at intermission the first thing he said was "wow, ugh, her voice." And the two girls in front of us turned around and said the same thing. And, as I've stated before, her voice has grown on me and I've learned to appreciate it, but it's not exactly the most appealing voice on first listen. I think if they paired the song with a performance of the song from the show, then that would make sense, but just having it as background music is not right. They should be playing "Wish I Were Here" or "There's a World" or "Light in the Dark."

[Scott Briefer]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 10:34pm

I like the marketing. In fact, the TV spots inspired me to purchase tickets and now having just returned from seeing the show, I thought the hyper realistic images on 45 Street speak to the show's theme.

Of course, any marketing campaign is measured by how successful it is and only time will tell...

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 10:56pm

I actually thought the "face the music" tagline was very clever. But I guess that's just me.

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 11:01pm

A lot of people dont like the marketing of the show, I'd love to know what some people who hate the show's marketing would do to market a show like this?

That's not our job. We can tell what works & what doesn't.
Updated On: 4/21/09 at 11:01 PM

[TheBoyDownstairs]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 11:17pm

"They should be playing "Wish I Were Here" or "There's a World" or "Light in the Dark.""

You think "There's a World" would be a good way to advertise this show? All the grandma's who buy tickets to see the show based off that show will be in for a rude awakening once they get there.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/22/09 at 2:39am

This isn't an "bring your grandma" type show.

You target a show for its target audience. "Next to Normal" is obviously trying to bring the "hip" factor into it.

And I agree. That's not the best song choice, but a pretty song nonetheless. Though I think I liked the staging better when Gabe pulled Diana off upstage with the red background and their silhouettes.

The show has some beautiful underscoring, so I think playing some of that over clips and pulled-quotes from the reviews would be perfect.

[heo1128]

Posted: 4/22/09 at 3:08am

^Yeah I agree, they need to use the clips! The whole face ad campaign is a little to ambiguous to draw people in that know nothing about the show.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 4/22/09 at 3:33am

If they want to sell tickets they should include footage of Aaron in his boxers in the commercials and make it look like it's a bigger deal than it really is. Maybe even put up some pictures from the scene on the website. That would get butts in the seats. Get them in with the sex factor and then send them out in tears with more of an emotional and less superficial show than they were expecting. It's slightly pandering, but since when is Broadway beyond that?

[heo1128]

Posted: 5/16/09 at 3:06am

Shouldn't Next to Normal be making the rounds on TV shows? Letterman and The View and such?