I was chatting with the manager at Ironshield Brewing in Lawrenceville, Georgia about how to promote my monthly shows. I'm not good with social media. He shared what's successful with them. They tag artists and use hashtags to get that extra bit of visibility for shows. He suggested I do the same.

That got me thinking. One of the things that I find so difficult about social media promotion is how to generate attention in part because I'm so overwhelmed by all of the options. So I came up with this idea for Carol who is leading the charge of spreading the word for shows in Atlanta. I figure others might be able to use it as well.

I'm playing at Tucker Brewing Company this Friday. Here's how you can help promote the event.

Try Promoting Your Next Show with Facebook Groups Like This…

STEP 1. Pick just THREE Facebook groups related to the show.

One for the largest city nearby (in my case Atlanta). One for the local city, in this case, Tucker, Georgia. And one that is theme related. I play at Dragon Con, so that could be one option, or perhaps an Irish community group, or it's pretty close to Star Wars Day, so why not a Star Wars themed group.

Stick with just three to avoid overwhelm.

STEP 2. Write up THREE sort paragraphs to talk about the event.

Success on social media is all about engaging people. A LIKE is the weakest form of engagement. You really want people to talk. Only one of these should be anything like shamelessly promoting the event. So let's try this:

I'm going to @TuckerBrewingCo this Friday to see @celtfather. He plays Sci F'Irish music. It's so much fun. Anyone here heard his music?

I'd suggest writing something a little more unique for each group. But I *think* that's a good start one the first one. Here's the next post.

Hey @TagAFriendHere, are you gonna be at @celtfather show this Friday at @TuckerBrewingCo ? The show starts at 6:30 PM. I'm hoping I can get over there in time. Who are you inviting?

I like this idea. If you tag friends or other fans who may or may not be able to attend, you can possibly start a discussion to generate more interest. Do it well enough and friends will tag friends who tag friends, etc.

One of the things I've been doing for the local breweries I'm playing is call attention to their beers. Most of them have menus online. So let's try this one.

@celtfather is playing at @tuckerbewingco tomorrow. If you're looking for a beer, my favorite is the Radler. Especially during the summer. But I do LOVE their Sir Doppelbocks. I can't wait to explore what's new. Do you have a favorite beer there?

STEP 3. Keep the Conversation Going

Again, Facebook is all about engagement. So the final step is to keep people talking. With only three Facebook Groups, that SHOULD make it more manageable. Then you just have to help keep the conversation going.

There we go. I scripted up what I'm gonna say. I'm gonna use a slight variation of these for my Fan Page to promote the show most every day.

I realize I'll need to get more creative with other shows. But at least it's a start. I feel like it worked fairly well at my last Ironshield show. Let's see how it goes here!

Oh! And please let me know if you try this and if it works.