How many shows should I plan to do each year, and why does that number matter?

Think of shows as a game of archery—you need multiple arrows to hit the bullseye. If you only do one show with one arrow to fire, the odds of hitting the bullseye (say, a 5x return on investment) are never good. When you realize this and give yourself three to five shows per year, you stand a much better chance of success. Before you even plan which shows to do, shift your thinking to commit to a minimum of three to five shows. When you approach each season this way, your success will follow. If you only do one and it’s a dud, you’ll be upset about the lost money and Saturday. But when you do multiple shows, some will be great, others bad, and on balance you’ll generate positive ROI—especially covering for the ones that don’t work well.

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Asked by synthesized from teaching · Answered by Patrick Shanahan · art-marketing-podcast · 2022-07-28