When bands come to NIU, they are brought in by one of two campus agencies.

The Campus Activities Board and the Convocation Center are responsible for booking and promoting various musical acts. These organizations go through multiple steps to assure the shows are promoted and have high attendance.

The Weekender tracked two such events — Michelle Branch, which CAB presented, and Staind, which the Convocation Center brought in.

In addition to providing a unique look behind the scenes of these two shows, CAB Concert Coordinator John Benson and Convocation Center Marketing Manager Kevin Selover offered insight about the process.

CAB

-+ Sept. 22 — First CAB meeting of the year. Finalized booking Michelle Branch, who previously had been scheduled. “Michelle Branch was a deal that came to us [early] through our connections with the industry. We had to make a decision on her in a matter of a couple days. Otherwise, we would have lost the date.” — Benson

+ Week of Sept. 22 — Began first wave of initial advertising prior to tickets going on sale. Utilized the Internet, while fliers and posters were placed around campus — kept a constant watch to make sure things torn down were replaced as soon as possible.

+ Week of Sept. 29 — Began bus advertisements on Huskie Buses.

+ Oct. 1 — Tickets went on sale.

+ Oct. 3 — Press releases and public service announcements were sent to local and regional media outlets announcing the show and that tickets were on sale.

+ Week of Oct. 11 — Began running multiple radio ads on B95.

+ Oct. 13 — Began running daily ads in the Northern Star. “We had some prior coverage here when we first announced the show.” — Benson

+ Oct. 22 — Set up promotional tables at Cole and DuSable halls.

+ Oct. 24 — Concert at the Holmes Student Center’s Duke Ellington Ballroom. Michelle Branch drew 1,247 students — the largest-attended CAB concert this year. “This is what I had hoped for. It was definitely a success. This was just crazy. We didn’t go by the exact formula because [we] were working on promoting four shows at one time. There was a lot of overlap. We usually have much more time to advertise and properly promote the show.” — Benson

Convo

-+ Nov. 17 — Contacted by NiteLite Promotions regarding a possible NIU show.

+ Nov. 19 — Meeting to discuss the plausibility of a Staind concert. Conducted market research to determine how many tickets would need to be sold to cover the cost and to determine the group’s popularity. Contacted Staind’s management with possible concert dates. “The Convocation Center is the home to Huskie athletics, so they get first priority to the building. That means that there are times that we have to pass on acts that would be a good fit.” — Selover

+ Nov. 25 — Offer was accepted by management and the date was finalized.

+ Dec. 11 — Show was announced through mass e-mails and an announcement was placed on the Convocation Center’s Web site and on the Lincoln Highway marquee.

+ Dec. 12 — Met with the promoter to discuss a marketing plan. “Every show is marketed differently depending on the act. With this show, rock radio stations were the best way to promote the show. That is where a majority of our marketing dollars were allocated, but for other shows, we use more newspaper ads.” — Selover

+ Dec. 30 — Started promoting the concert at NIU basketball games.

+ Jan. 1 — Began radio promotion on 104.9 XFM, Q101, 94.7 The Zone and the recently reformatted 96.7.

+ Week of Jan. 5 — Radio stations began ticket giveaways.

+ Jan. 7 — Began ticket presale.

+ Jan. 8 — Placed posters around campus. “Putting up posters on campus is a great, cost-effective way to let the students/faculty know about upcoming events.” — Selover

+ Jan. 9 — Tickets go on sale to the general public. “We are always prepared for a line. The lottery system keeps people from camping out overnight.” — Selover

+ Jan. 12 — Ads ran in the Northern Star and in NS*Radio promotions.

+ Jan. 13 — Created a press release announcing SOiL and Three Days Grace as the show’s opening acts.

+ Week of Jan. 21 — Tickets were given out on “WXRX & Staind weekend.”

+ Week of Jan. 20 — Tickets were given out on “Q101 & Staind weekend.”

+ Jan. 23 — Video boards at the Holmes Student Center and the Student Recreation Center started showing advertisements for the show.

+ Feb. 5 — Set up a booth at the Holmes Student Center to promote upcoming events.

+ Feb. 8 — Early in the afternoon, WXRX did a live broadcast with Staind to encourage everyone to attend the show.

+ Feb. 8 — At 9:15 p.m., Staind took the Convocation Center stage.