http://www.forgottenplague.com/tips-for-forgotten-plague-screenings/
Tips for Forgotten Plague Promoters
1.) Have local doctors, advocates, scientists, patients, etc serve as guest speakers after the event for Q&A sessions
2.) Pick a “cool” venue. If your screening is at a place people see as “special” that will definitely help drive attendance up and make it seem like an exciting event to go to. (Maybe an historic independent theater in the town square, for instance…But you’ll know where the special places in your town are)
3.) Make it a fundraiser for a charity (Phoenix Rising, ME Association, crowdfunding campaign for OMF/Stanford or Columbia)…This helps with “branding” so your event has more sexiness because it’s connected to a high-brow group. Besides increasing your “brand” appeal, it’ll help defray costs. If you raised $2,000, for example, then you could subtract the cost of the screening license and then donate the rest to the charity you pick
4.) As far as driving attendance, find 5 friends as your core “planning committee” and then have each of them invite 10 people or being accountable for finding 10 more attendees. Or conversely, have 10 friends in your core committee and have each of them be accountable for recruiting 5-7 people. Divide and conquer so you don’t have to feel like you personally need to find 60-70 people.
5.) Corporate sponsors. A local company or storeowner that you have a relationship with could set up a table at your event. Call it a “gold sponsorship” and charge 100 bucks. Offer smaller “bronze” and “silver” sponsorships as well. They could advertise their products/services, give out free samples, coupons, etc. A couple low-cost sponsorships is another easy way to cover your costs. And bonus points if your sponsor is a pharma company, massage therapist, acupuncturist, or some other health company whose services directly cater to chronic illness patients.
6.) Use our Media Kit and our trailer on our website to get local media coverage in advance of your event.
7.) Use the promotional flyer template that our volunteer screenings team sends out. Post Forgotten Plague posters/flyers in and around your venue a few weeks before your event.
8.) When creating your core planning committee, think about who you can partner with. A local support group/doctor’s office/hospital is obviously one way to start. Groups like this would have a strong vested interest in seeing your event be successful. Another good example might be a church or another NGO concerned with social justice and equality issues.
