My good friend Eugene Loj of Event Promotion SystemsTM fame shared the formula he uses to explain how he generates demand for events worldwide.
$D! = A * I3
He’s used this approach to sell $100,000 of tickets to an event in 1 hour and over $1.2M of VIP tickets to events people could attend for free.
And if that’s not enough, Loj is the only person I know that’s sold a $4000 specialty ticket to an air show.
The formula also explains how Rock Concerts manage to sell out within hours of tickets going on sale.
BUT THE BEST THING IS…
None of this is exclusive to event industry or Rock Concerts.
Any business that sells products or services can take advantage of the fundamentals found in the formula above.
Let’s break this down.
$D! = Demand which represents the potential revenue you could generate.
A = Awareness. After all no one is going to buy from you if they don’t know you exist.
The problem with most of the marketing I see is that the formula for Demand ends with Awareness. Most businesses spend a ton of time and money just “getting in front of people”.
They focus on impressions, reach, subscriptions, eyeballs, population, traffic, visits, etc. but never actively work towards facilitating an ACTION or CONVERSION.
I’m not talking about a CTA (call to action) that’s a trigger and it’s not what I3 represents.
I3 = Interest (I call it tension) multiplies the impact of Awareness in generating Demand.
For example…
- While most people put tickets on sale as soon as possible, Eugene holds off until almost the last minute while constantly sharing details of the event. The tension (interest) he creates results in record sales. (I know it’s counter intuitive and probably goes against every instinct you have but it works)
- Cell phone companies regularly announce a new product launch with no ability to actually buy the product. (Sometimes for months)
- Limiting an offer to a select segment of your customer base. (Special editions or customer appreciation)
I3 is the reason people line up and even camp out before Black Friday. But it’s not limited to a specific industry or a certain time of year.
What can you do in your business to create more Interest (tension) to multiply Awareness and generate more Demand?