Free Ways To Advertise Your High School, College, Community, or Professional Production

Written by Ashleigh Gardner

December 11, 2018

Is your theatre company on a shoestring budget? Pinching pennies wherever you can? Take a look at our tips for advertising your shows for free and getting butts in seats!

1. Create an Instagram or Facebook page just for your theatre group.

This tidbit of advice is more for the long-haul for your theatre company, but it’s always a good idea, especially if you want to keep eyes on your organization/production company  — both now and into the future. Creating a page on Facebook or an Instagram for your company will establish that you’re serious about the art you make (and serious about getting people to come and see it). Post at least twice a week with updates to keep your followers in the loop. Some ideas include season announcements, cast announcements, cast bios, photos and videos of the rehearsal process, facts about the show you’re doing, interviews with the cast, special sneak peek photos or videos of the design or direction process, any events you do to raise money for your show, and/or photos and videos expressing your thanks for those people who follow your theatre’s page. (You can even ask followers to click the “See First” option on Facebook so that Facebook’s algorithms don’t bury your page’s posts on their feed.)

2. Create an event page on Facebook to advertise your show dates.

This step is essential when you’ve got a production coming up. Post a Facebook event no more than two months out and no fewer than three weeks before the first show. (More than three months? People are likely to forget that they RSVP’d. Fewer than three weeks? People may already be booked with other events by the time they see your event.) Then, after you’ve created the event, ask every member of your production (staff, performers, techs, designers, choreographers, etc.) to invite their friends and share the post on their own pages. You can even post about the event on Instagram with a graphic that shows the dates, times, and location. Bonus? Make the “link in bio” address the Facebook event page. This helps spread the word about your show across social media.

3. Start a hashtag on social media.

Just like you use hashtags like #selfiesunday, #wcw, and #theatrekidproblems to bring attention to your post and gain followers, you can do the same with hashtags that apply to your theatre company and the show you’re doing. If your company is called The ABC Theatre Company and you’re based in Kansas City, MO, then your hashtag might be #abctheatrecoKCMO. (This is a very specific hashtag, but if yours is more simple, make sure other people aren’t using your hashtag first. If they are, change yours up.) If you’re producing Annie, try #annieatabctheatrecoKCMO. Then, to cover a more broad range and attract followers, use general hashtags like #theatre #instatheatre #musicaltheatre #annie #missouritheatre #midwesttheatre #thespians #missourithespians. (There are tons of others out there. Experiment!)

4. Offer a chance to win tickets via a contest.

If you have the budget to sacrifice a couple of seats, start a contest for two free tickets to one of your performances and gain some publicity. Ask followers to like the post, interact with the photo or video by responding to a question you ask of your audience, and then tag a friend (or more  — maybe for every additional friend they tag, they’re given more chances to win.)

5. Have a bake sale.

This is perhaps not as free as the above options, but it does make quite a bit of return for a high school theatre department. After making the sweets, place them in bags that can be tied at the neck. Then, make small tags that advertise your show and tie them around the necks of the bags. Every time a person buys a baked good, they’ll also see the show title and the dates and times of the production.

6. Tell people about your show!

Word of mouth is the most powerful advertising strategy because the anecdotes we tell of theatres and shows are so close to our hearts. People are more likely to remember a story their friend told them about a theatre company or production than remember a post they scrolled by on Facebook. Though word of mouth and social media presence are effective tools, word of mouth always has that personal touch that is so essential in theatre.



Need some advice? We’ve got you covered.

Ashleigh Gardner received her M.A. in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies (with concentrations in Contemporary Film, Psychoanalytic Theory, and Gender Studies) and her B.A. in English Literature (with concentrations in Early American Literature, Victorian & Gothic Literature, and Feminisms), both from the University of Central Florida. She is a playwright, a Shakespearean trained actor, a dramaturge, and a photographer.
Photo credits:
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