As fans of certain pop stars and/or bands, we are always excited about concert tours, wishing that our idols will include our country or state in their itinerary. Once they make the official announcement, we’re on the edge of our seats, fighting for tickets that can be sold out so quickly, especially if the artist is extremely famous.
But do you ever wonder how these concert tours are planned in Utah or anywhere in the world? Surely, as an avid fan of a touring artist, you’ve fancied the idea of working as their concert organizer. If you’re serious about pursuing that, then you need to know what goes on behind the cameras as these concerts are being planned. From the venue searching, exceptional concert stage setups, up to the ticket-selling, here are the basics you need to know:
The Five C’s
The five C’s of planning and producing a concert are content, cost, culture, communication, and coordination.
Content will be the concert program. As an organizer, you need to come up with content ideas that will stimulate anticipation among your target audience, a.k.a. the fans of the performer.
The cost is your budget plan. How are you going to fund the production? Will you ask for a sponsorship grant? How much will the tickets be sold? What about traveling costs? Those are some of the questions that need to be answered by an elaborate budget plan.
As for culture, this depends on what kind of concert will you be holding. Is it a formal dinner concert? Party concert, etc.? Consider the genre of the artist, event venue, and profile of the target audience when establishing the culture of the concert.
Communication is the promotion or marketing plan for the concert. There are many ways to promote a concert, including social media postings, paid ads, press releases, and more. Choose a promotion strategy that’s in accordance with your budget.
Lastly, coordination is the legwork of concert planning. This involves meetings with suppliers, rehearsal of the performers, securing licenses and permits, hiring personnel, and all other logistic aspects.
Factors to Consider When Planning a Concert Tour
For a blossoming artist, the idea of a concert tour seems effective in spreading their music and gaining more fans. But before making that decision, consider these important factors:
- Resources – Does the artist’s management have enough of them to make a concert tour possible?
- Budget – Can the management afford the traveling expenses involved?
- Performances – Will the artist be able to perform the same sets of songs repeatedly like it’s fresh and new, and even despite their exhaustion from traveling?
- Motivation – This would be the reason for holding a concert tour, which could be a new music or album release. If so, will their album be sold at the concert venue as well?
- Fan Base – Does the artist have enough fans willing to spend on tickets?
- The concert team – Does the team work well together and have camaraderie with one another?
- Goals – Determine the artist’s and the management company’s goals for the concert tour. Is it to gain a bigger fan base, sell more albums, or to increase the value of the artist?
The Process of Concert Tour Planning
Preliminary planning would be the next step once you’ve decided to hold the concert tour. This involves forming your itinerary, listing every equipment you need, production designing, manpower needs, budgeting, and timeline. After being done with those, you’re now ready to work with a concert promoter.
A concert promoter handles all promotional material for the concert. They also work on venue-searching and even financing. After arriving at an agreement with the concert promoter regarding monetary matters, you can now set up the schedule of the tour.
The last step is employing manpower. This includes tour managers, stage crew, production crew, engineers, and backline crew. Once it’s done, your concert tour will be up and running.
Planning a concert tour is a demanding job that requires extreme attention to detail, organization, and commitment. If you’re the type who enjoys challenges and meeting lots of new people, then being a concert organizer fits you perfectly.