Case study in using video to market an event.
I joke that these days, every DJ is now a content creator. Let me tell you a story on why that matters …
When I started in event promotions, the format was this:
You learned Photoshop
You made fantastic flyers
You had a list of all hot spots that allowed a stack of flyers
And then a street team to distribute all 2,000 of those flyers
Repeat process
I did all of that, and it was a blast. I made some amazing artwork that I still have hanging on my wall today.
But these days, I almost never make a flyer. Instead, I make a video.
In the spring of 2024, a new nightclub had opened and asked me to be a resident DJ. But I had two problems.
My Millennial and Gen X followers weren’t interested in staying out until 2 am.
Me. I wasn’t interested in staying out past 2 am.
So I decided to launch a day party. Instead of 10 pm to 2 am, we’d do 2 pm to 7 pm.
No one else in Omaha (that also played house music) was doing this. Based on my demographic and trends I was seeing online, I knew I was in the midst of a cultural moment to seize the day.
But here was my next problem.
I didn’t have any footage of me DJ’ing during the day. Being a new concept in my market, how was I going to introduce this?
Here’s what I did: I used flash cards in sync with a song and a bit of silliness to grab their attention.
I drew a contrast between dayparties and nightparties, and why dayparties are the better option.
It worked.
The video got 239 likes and 46 comments.
Along with subsequent promotion, it was enough to meet our goal of selling 120 tickets.
Next, we “show” instead of tell.
After that, I had actual footage from an event to show the concept for the next one.
We literally followed someone standing outside during the day and then walking into a dark nightclub filled with people going off to the music in the middle of the day.
According to Shaan Puri, you start with the end in mind before making content. What do you want this message to make them feel? He suggests five core experiences …
LOL
WTF
Aww (that’s cute)
Ohhhhh (now I understand)
Finally! (Relief; finally someone said it; you put my feelings into words, etc)
But I would argue there’s a 6th core experience … FOMO.
So that’s what I went for. And the result was 561 likes and 77 saves.
Next, invite them to experience magic.
By the Summer of 2025, day parties had caught on in my area. People had options. So how do we distinguish ourselves?
Highlight the magic. Find that one moment of bliss and make them yearn to be a part of the next one.
So with that, I made this, which got over 5,000 views and 85 shares.
Then, make the video immersive.
Since the music was core to the experience, I started recording the DJ set laying on top of the live recording.
This added a nice layer of bass while maintaining the sounds of the crowd, giving you a more immersive experience than just choosing a song natively within the app.
And one of the best way to do that? Go for an epic drop.
This creates tension and release, making them feel like they were in the space.
Here’s an example …
Here’s how that made the next event even better.
To be honest, some of the first day parties we did took up to two hours to get people dancing.
As a DJ, this is super awkward.
People weren’t entirely sure what they were getting into. Was this an actual dance party or just one of those experiences where people stand around and talk?
But after the videos kept coming one after another, showing the product (getting lost in music), everyone eventually understood the assignment.
The result? People went straight to the dance floor.
By the last day party in September of 2025, the dancing started as soon as they stepped foot in the venue.
We had them locked in so well that when a rainstorm came, it made the experience even better.
It’s the power of video marketing.
Do I miss the days of making amazing flyer artwork and visiting all the record shops to drop them off? Of course I do.
But flyers don’t “show” the experience.
So next time, ditch Canva and show, don’t tell.