By Megan Mooney
Exciting news! I’m joining forces with Sweat Equity Productions to teach a one-day seminar at Second City in Toronto this weekend. It’s on how to effectively publicize yourself and your events.
I’m able to offer a discounted price for folks who book through Mooney on Theatre today (Thursday) and Friday, and would love to get lots of takers on the offer. So, I’m looking for your help, hoping you might be willing to spread the word to folks you think might be interested in the seminar.
The teaser blurb is:
The Second City presents a revolutionary new seminar from the award-winning publicists of the 2008 SCTV reunion and the Canadian Comedy Awards… Personal Publicity
The Shehori Brothers teach everything you’ll need to know about promoting your shows, events,– and most of all, your career – like a professional publicist. Full money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the value of this seminar.
I heard about it for the first time last month and immediately thought it might be something I’d be interested in being involved in by giving the perspective of someone in the press. I floated the idea with the Shehori Brothers (Daniel and Steven) and they agreed to let me sit in on the June offering of the seminar to see if it felt like a fit.
As I suspected, these guys have their shit together, the course was great.
This weekend they’re running another session, and we’ve agreed that it would be a good opportunity for a trial-run. Since it’s my first class and I’m looking to make an impression and am hoping to maybe stack the deck a bit in my favour.
I did a bit of negotiating (it didn’t take much, they’re really nice guys) and managed to get them to agree that I could do a two day blitz offering a discount to folks who book through me on Thursday or Friday for the Sunday session.
The cost of the session is usually $185 (+GST), but they’ve agreed to let folks book for $150 (+GST) if they come to the seminar via me.
In return, you’ll let me me send you an anonymous online survey a month after the session. I want to be able to ask a bunch of questions that are all about my role in the seminar. The catch is, this is only valid for Thursday and Friday registration.
I’m hoping that folks will spread the word far and wide for me. The more people I can bring in the better – it’s a win/win. Not only will people benefit by saving money, but it will make me look like someone the Shehori Brothers should REALLY keep on board because I bring folks to the table.
I’m not entirely sure how many spots are still available for Sunday, but if you try to register for this one and it’s full up, I’ll make sure you are eligible to still get that $150 rate for a later instance of the seminar. But, only if you actually try to book for this one, I doubt I’m going to be able to convince them to let me offer this rate again in the future.
Information on the Seminar
Daniel and Steven Shehori are award winning publicists. The course is their baby. They take all the things they’ve learned over many years of being publicists for others, and being their own publicists for their many productions (“I’m not only the president, I’m a client!”), and they pull it together into one uber useful day of information.
These guys have qualifications and impressive resume points up the wazoo. Seriously, not only have they done publicity for a bazillion shows and events, including the publicity for Second City, but they’re also writers and directors and producers. I find it exhausting just to read about the award nominations (and wins) combined with writing for national awards shows, The Huffington Post, The Hour with Goeorge Stroumboulopoulos, and working as creative consultants/producers for this year’s Toronto Just For Laughs festival.
As you can imagine, they have a vague inkling of how to work with media and get the word out there.
All of this experience and knowledge came through beautifully in the seminar. Like I said, it was a great day, full of really useful information. Luckily I saw a place where I could actually build on their experience. I offer the perspective of the *receiving* end of all that publicity.
Now, the nitty gritty –
Who the course is aimed at:
The course is aimed at anyone who has something to promote. Anyone who would benefit from media attention will get a lot out of this course. It doesn’t have to be the entertainment industry. Product launches, website launches, hell, even new businesses looking to get some press – all of them would find the information in the seminar useful.
That said, since the class takes place at Second City, it’s not a surprise that a number of the participants come from the entertainment industry in some shape or form. The day I attended, there were people promoting books, a few stand-up comedians, someone promoting an improve troupe, a puppeteer, a theatre producer, a mucician, just to name a few.
What participants learn:
The atmosphere was such that there was actually a reasonable chance to ask questions, so you never know what you’ll learn on top of the general stated ‘curriculum’, but among other stuff you can expect the seminar to:
- Guide you, step by step, on the dos and don’ts of creating memorable press releases & kits
- Teach you how to make your products/shows stand out to newspapers, radio, TV and web
- Give you the tools necessary to increase your media profile in Toronto, Canada, the U.S., or elsewhere
- Provide guidance in getting an agent, or on how to help your current agents get you more work
- Help you with obtaining government grants and garnering a U.S. Work Visa
- Show you how to optimize your show’s success + be nominated for national awards (although this does get pretty showbiz specific, there is certainly transferable knowledge in this part)
Specific tools provided to participants:
Everyone in attendance will receive a publicity booklet, which includes numerous sample press releases & templates as well as key Industry contacts for photography, poster services, editors, videographers, graphic designers, etc.
Participants will also be given access to an entertainment media list (nearly 350 media contacts). This includes access to quarterly updates of the list, providing information that is as accurate as possible in an industry with reasonably high turnover rates.
Logistical information:
- Personal Publicity Seminar is taking place Sunday, July 26, at Second City in Toronto (51 Mercer St. at Blue Jays Way, next to Wayne Gretzky’s)
- Runs from 10am to 5pm
- To register, call 416.340.7270 during business hours. Be sure to mention ‘Mooney on Theatre’ in order to get the $150 rate (and then drop me an email at megan@mooneyontheatre.com to let me know you’ve registered and that I can send you a survey after the seminar is over)
- You can also register online at www.secondcityregistration.com. Make sure that you put ‘Mooney on Theatre’ in the “How did you hear
box, so that when it gets sent for processing with the $150 total it doesn’t just get dismissed as not enough. - Refreshments will be served, but lunch is not provided. There are lots of places around Second City, but also feel free to bring your own lunch.
For additional information on the seminar and the Shehori Brothers, pop by www.SweatEquity.ca
Due to some massive flooding and a bit of structural damage during yesterday’s torrential downpour, the seminar has been postponed. :(
I’ll keep you up to date on when the next one is…