I have proposed a "singles night" at a hotel wher I regularly gig...the boss has agreed and I have proposed that we take all the door takings, he takes all the bar takings, provides bar staff and room and we pay the door staff. It's a rather nice 4 star cheshire hotel and the clients are generally fo a good calibre. How does this deal sound to you??

We will have to raise awareness but dont want to pump loads of cash in to get it off the ground. Have any of you guys done anything similar and can point me northwards to the money!!!

Thanks

Nick

Depending on how much you charge to how many people you can 'entertain' is very important.

Take into consideration your 'advertising' - you may have to stump up throw away money at the beginning, and not just for that!

If the venue can hold 200 people then a £5 entrance to 'members' and say £8 to non-members could be a start.
Why this rate?
Well, for the nice venue and 'secure' friendly venue and staff (exclusive setting).
Remember, you will need to follow-up on the membership and remind members of the forthcoming dates.
Professional operation from the start - feedback will spread.

You will also need to be consistant and regular for the occasion.

Once you pay out the door staff, say up to £75 each, given the time you put in plus advertising, you will find the remaining balance well earnt!

Okay a few tips for getting this sort of function off the ground!.

First get a load of flyers done, A5 size are usually the norm and can be done quite cheaply, don't skimp! 1000 - 5000 would be a start. Make them eye-catching I've always found Red Text on white paper to be the most effective.

Display your flyers in:-

Student Union Bars,
Leisure Centres
Shop Windows
Hotels (Travelling Sales People have needs too! )

Also consider posters in Video Shops (Single people rent a lot of DVD's etc), Chip shops, Off Licences

Also get to know your local pub landlords. If your function is club hours (i.e after Pub Closing Time) then most landlords (those who don't have late licence's or entertainment) are more than happy to let you advertise / publicise your event - leave a pile of flyers in Pubs / Restaurants .

Local Radio:- Most local radio stations have a free "Whats on" guide. Although usually used for scout jumble sales etc, they do publicise these events etc. I'm in Cheshire so possibly within the same Radio coverage as you, and they DO allow you to plug these events for FREE, and it can be very effective.

Birthday Mailings :- My own experience has shown that Singles Nights are more likely to be attended by 18 - 35 year olds - rather than lonely Divorcees or older people..especially in a club environment. Find out (census) the names & addresses of people about to celebrate key birthdays (18th, 21st, 30th etc) - you can also find out if these people are single from the same source!. Then mail them a birthday invitation along with a few free tickets...chances are they'll accept and appear with 10 - 20 paying guests!. Alternatively offer a "Free bottle of bubbly" for for party table.

Local Newspaper advertising is a MUST. Usually advertise each week for the month leading up to the first event , then have a big advert on the week of the event!.

If you know anybody who is a Milkman or with kids who are a Paperboy / Girl then ask them to deliver your "flyers" on their rounds .

Website:- Build a Website...for £20 - £30 a year you can't go wrong!. Find out if your local council has got a "Town & Leisure" website and link your own website from their "Whats On Guides".

Is your town planning a large even before your first gig? Carnival, Funday etc?? - if so then use it to hand out the remainder of your flyers, or even a Saturday spent in your town centre handing them out can work wonders.

Approach your local press...they like to cover new business idea's and events and even perhaps may run a "special" feature on your venture, often payed for by other businesses paying for advertising on the same page as the feature!...i.e "Sam's chippy would like to wish Broken Hearts singles night all the best on their opening night".

Great advice there Chris...you read my mind on a lot of the points. I'm in the web design game so I will be able to knock something cool up pretty soon. I'll let you have a look once I do.

My local radio station do have a whats on guide I'm sure.

We have spent a few quid on new gear recently so would like to recover some of the costs pretty quick.

The hotel has a partner hotel so we have a bit of a double edges sword there..and I do all my own graphics so flyers wont be a problem.

By the way, if anybody is looking for real quality flyers at the right money, have a look at here - they are really glossy and on a nice weight of cards. If anybody needs any further info or assistance just mail me.

Thanks

Nick

It sounds like you're well on the right track, both with your own ideas and those above.

Some thoughts from me... not solutions, Im afraid, but lets face it, you could get quite a few replies from the DJsUnited Community.

I used to help out at a singles night, I'll admit that this was a good few years ago, but much of it probably still applies. And as you'll see below, my thoughts are mostly about whats going on inside the Gentlemen and Ladies who attend. (No gags about a buzzing noise being heard over the speakers everytime that girl with the smile walks past...)

The name of the night...Some people who choose to attend the night might HATE thinking of themselves belonging to the part of society who are labelled "Singles". One person who I talked to after such a night thought the term "Singles club" and "On the shelf club" were two descriptions of the same thing. So think up a good name - or even better get the forum members to post up suggestions...Guess I'd better start... "One plus One" or "Unlimited Company"

or "FORD M.O.T. Centre" suggests that good regular servicing is due. But I wouldnt recommend this name for the night. Dont choose anything smutty.

Secondly, lighting...Hopefully they'll be some people there that will want a slow dance or two. Maybe not many on the first week, but in latter weeks. So make sure you've got some lights that will add to the mood rather than flash gobo's off of high speed barrels throughout Spandau Ballets "True". Also, avoid using a UV tube/light, I've found that most girls are wise to its effects now and treat them with contempt, as if you'd installed upward facing camera's under the dancefloor. For some reason, they dont want others seeing their white undies, under a black skirt. I cant think why.

Check out the "rules" of what they are paying for. If they are paying to become members of a singles club, you might have to pay "dating agency" fees etc. Similarly, if you plan to keep their details in an electronic format, you may invoke Data Protection Registrar fees...its something silly like 20p per name per year from what I remember from my college course, but it might be worth looking into now, to avoid any surprises. Safer to make sure that people understand that the fee paid on the door is simply admission.

Also, as my friend found out, the advertising might need to be on-going at a low level, after the first SURGE of promoting the night. Why? Well, consider this question...

What makes a Singles Club successful?

2 single people meeting up, falling in love and not needing a singles club anymore?...

The opposite side of the coin is, what makes a Singles club unsuccessful? 200 people jammed into a room, but no-one talks to each other? Youch.

Think of different ways of breaking the ice...(Yes, I know thats the Barstaffs job, with the ice picks etc)...perhaps mention on the mic about "turning to the nearest person to you, of the opposite gender, and say HI.....now choose someone else and do it again..".

Not quite so cheesy is either an 10 question, or single question quiz...with plenty of emphasis on conferring with each other (but only with members of different genders)...."Pssst! Do you know the answer to number 3?....great, thanks, can I buy you a drink?"...

I hope that none of the above has put you off, it wasnt supposed to. Just things that have cropped up before and some of which, you may not have thought of yet.

Have fun...and dont forget to tell the ladies that YOU know the answer to number three...

And of course the unspoken question is.........Does Admin get an invite??

Purely for Educational purposes of course, in order to try our some of Gary's chat lines!.

Well I had to ask didn't I!

oh no! Dont get me started on chat up lines...please...


Like walking up to the girl at the bar, and saying "Hi there!, apart from excited, what can I get you?"

or..."Do you come here often, or mainly in the bedroom?"

or..."Your hair looks so natural, especially from the left nostril"



If you're still standing, and unbruised after that lot...have a drink.

Hope the nites go well - give CP a VIP ticket .....

And a very long leash!
oh! Suits you Sir!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrfffff!

I used to do a singles night years ago, be prepared..some weeks fill up and the next empty (No gags please Gary !), most of my 'clients' were over 35 so made it a lot easier for me (to play music Gary !!)

AH! ARGH! Character assasination...

Were the empty nights due to late Clinic appointments, after the successful nights had by all the previous week?

The name of the night will be "Temptation".

I posted in the web design forum but for those guys who dont go there, here is the link to the initial web design I have done. click here

Thanks

Nick

Hi,

I regularly DJ at singles nights, don't make the mistake of playing too much ol stuff, they like to think they are still trendy, and some oldies can remind them of things best forgotten

Just like to say Naughty Dog i love the web site very nicely done..
I see you said you do web design, do you do it for others?? as i am looking to update mine (its about time)..
If so please let me know and a rough price guide.Cheers

Be selective on your flyering! If you want to go for a more upmarket crowd then I suggest you leave the S/union bars well out of it.
Try local Health clubs, golf clubs and anywhere where the membership fee is quite high. I would also add a few things to the evening... have a speed dating session..... make sure your singles night has a few things that others dont. You could also flyer windscreens of the more prestigeous cars around.

I did a wedding fayre once where all the cars parked in the car park had a flyer put onto them, nobody was happy about this, as we had all paid to be at the fayre, so I took every flyer I could find, off every car, and out of every bin, and added a few stones to the box, marked it urgent and sent without a stamp, or rather stamps as it was a little heavy, back to the place who were advertising on the flyer with a short note stating if I wanted a : I would call them.

JOB DONE I HATE FLYERS

I agree that flyers could do more harm than good. When I first got my postcards printed it was all I could do to stop a very well meaning friend from visiting every supermarket in the area to stick them on cars.
Once I explained the negative feeling this could create the put the six boxes down

One of the first rules of marketing - exposure! Flyers are often chucked after being found lodged in ya windscreen wiper - but in many cases, before they are chucked.. people do often read them... just in case they are offering something.... for every 100 that is chucked there is every chance that 1 person will actually find just what theyve been looking for!