By Ryan Thompson
A young Swindon Digital Marketing agency has built a big reputation with its successful global Facebook advertising campaigns in the film industry. Having seen this first-hand, two months ago a major player in the event film business, Trafalgar Releasing, handed Digital Marketing Specialist’s Tom Davenport, the contract to handle a global Facebook ad campaign for the rock band Muse, which is the world renowned multi-platinum selling and multi-award-winning band. The campaign to promote Muse’s one-night only concert on Thursday July 12 has so far exceeded client expectations in terms of ticket sales.
The New York Times described the Muse live experience as “An endless build-up, heading for one peak after another. …. Here, we find the band at the height of their powers …. creating an unforgettable fan experience that demands to be seen on the big screen”. The cinema event is a “one-night only” screening of their “Drones Tour” concert in 2015-2016 which includes previously unseen special effects.
Muse played “in-the-round” giving concert-goers a 360-degree view of the stage. Several autonomous Drones flew above the stage and across the audience interacting with band members alongside giant projections on screen. The film’s also introduction includes exclusive insight from the band, making it a “must-see” film for fans.
The film will be viewed by thousands simultaneously all around the world on July 12, with the nearest screenings being Swindon, Bath, Bristol and Southampton.
As a mainstream British hard rock band, Muse has over 16 million fans on Facebook and topped the charts for several years in the early 2000’s. The unusual thing about a Wiltshire-based company being awarded this high-level contract, is that such large music moguls would usually turn to big media buyers in London to handle online advertising. However, Tom Davenport observes that “Our strategies deliver exceptional results for the music business, from our first campaign with Passenger’s last album to Nick Cave’s one-night only cinema event in April this year. Whatever we’re doing is working and it seems that our clients appreciate our ongoing optimisation and attention to detail when running these accounts, unlike big media buyers who seem to set-and-forget a lot of their digital marketing. We respond to the results, and build on what the audience responds to, and it’s doing wonders for their ad spend.”
Tom says it is particularly satisfying to be involved because “I was a huge fan of Muse growing up as a drummer and rock music fan. It’s thrilling to know that a small Wiltshire-based company is bringing so many Muse fans together to share this unique, worldwide experience.”
Asked why Trafalgar Releasing sought him out and trusted his small company with a campaign of this size, Tom says “We worked with them on the Nick Cave campaign and they were delighted with international ticket sales. Whereas it’s difficult to monitor Return On Investment on traditional advertising, we always strive to set things up so our results are instantly measurable. This means we know what drives the ticket sales, the client knows what return we’re making them, and we get to reach more of the fans who want to see our ads in the first place.”
Tom insists “Social media advertising platforms are unbelievably powerful. We can trial different approaches and see which works best with a very quick turnaround. We adjust the message, or refine the targeting, and if the audience keeps responding positively, you get very affordable results. Sometimes you’re chasing a moving target, but we seem to have developed an intuitive strategy doing for this.”
So, if you’re a Muse fan, the advice is to click below to get your tickets NOW for a screening near you on Thursday July 12. Please book early to avoid disappointment. See www.musedrones.film to see your nearest screenings, including in Swindon.