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The Power of Data in Event Promotion
Concert promotion is competitive. The difference between a successful venue and a struggling one often comes down to data-driven decision making.
Few understand this better than Ashley Dawson, Senior Marketing Manager at White Oak Music Hall in Houston, where they’ve achieved impressive results: 25% of shows sold out and 30% of shows exceeding projected ticket sales as of April 2025.
In a recent conversation on the Event Promoter Podcast, Ashley shared insights into how her team transformed their approach to marketing by letting data guide their decisions, prioritizing high-potential shows, and building team morale through measurable wins.
Past Projections & Sold-Out Nights: Scaling Show Promotion with Ashley Dawson [Podcast]
White Oak Music Hall: A Multi-Room Venue with High Volume
White Oak Music Hall operates three distinct performance spaces:
- A 250-capacity upstairs room
- A 1,400-capacity downstairs hall
- A 5,000-capacity outdoor lawn
With this multi-room setup, the venue hosts an impressive 350-400 shows annually. Approximately 150 shows on sale at any given time. This volume creates unique marketing challenges that require systematic approaches.
“We love all our shows and give the same love to all of them,” Ashley explains, “but we use data to figure out which shows to prioritize so that we can keep that sold-out percentage and past projection percentage up.”
Key Performance Indicators That Drive Success
The White Oak team focuses on two primary KPIs to guide their marketing decisions:
1. MROI (Marketing Return on Investment)
“Our benchmark MROI is 10,” Ashley notes. “What that means is for every $1 we’re spending on marketing, we’re making $10.”
Shows performing above this benchmark indicate high potential for exceeding sales goals.
2. EDP Conversion Rate
The team targets approximately 4% EDP conversion as their benchmark. When combined with strong MROI, shows exceeding this threshold become prime candidates for additional marketing investment.
From “Dog Shows” to Strategic Prioritization
The team’s approach represents a significant mindset shift in event marketing.
“Where we used to kind of focus on ‘dog shows’… if a show isn’t doing well, we would just rack our brains. What can we do? How can we fix this?” Ashley explains, “And then the shows that we could have sold out, or we could have got past projection, they don’t get there because our focus is elsewhere.”
Now, rather than pouring resources into underperforming shows with limited potential, they identify and capitalize on opportunities with the highest likelihood of success. This data-informed prioritization ensures marketing resources generate maximum impact.
The Marketing Playbook for High-Potential Shows
When a show demonstrates strong performance indicators, Ashley’s team implements a multi-channel strategy:
- Refine and boost paid advertising: “If they’re working, I’m going to throw more money at it. If they’re not doing that well, I’ll refine the targeting.”
- Engage through competitions: Running contests to build excitement and engagement.
- Leverage partnerships: Working with local businesses like coffee shops that will create special themed drinks for shows.
- Collaborate with artist teams: “We’re the experts in our market, but they’re the experts in their show. So we tell them what’s working well and ask what they’ve seen work in other markets.”
Beyond Digital: Tracking Success Across Marketing Channels
While digital marketing provides clear attribution metrics, Ashley acknowledges the challenge of tracking impact from partnerships, radio promotions, and community engagement initiatives. Their approach includes:
- Running isolated promotions during periods without other marketing activity to measure impact
- Using tracking links and promo codes where possible
- Observing sales spikes correlated with specific initiatives
For paid advertising, Meta platforms remain the strongest performers due to their refined targeting capabilities.
Data-Driven Culture: Team Morale and Professional Growth
Perhaps the most significant impact of White Oak’s data-driven approach has been on team culture and professional development.
“It helps us have kind of a light at the end of the tunnel. It gives us something to be excited about,” Ashley shares. “Instead of just every Monday talking about all the shows that are coming, we’re able to talk about all of our successes.”
The team maintains running lists of sold-out shows and those exceeding projections, complete with celebratory emojis creating a culture that recognizes achievements and builds momentum.
For Ashley personally, data has transformed her professional confidence: “I’m more confident now in talking to the artist teams and our talent buyers because I can tell exactly what is wrong with the show or exactly how to push it based on data.”
Tools That Support Data-Driven Event Marketing
Critical to White Oak’s success is having the right technology infrastructure. Ashley highlights two essential tools:
Sparrow: The Venue’s Central Platform
“Sparrow is a godsend,” Ashley enthuses. “It keeps all of your data in one place, all of your assets in one place. It automates graphics, it automates marketing plans. It shows us our KPIs. It’s just incredible.”
TM-1: Ticket Sales Insights
This Ticketmaster tool provides important information about EDP (Event Details Page) metrics and other valuable sales data.
Key Takeaways for Event Marketers
What can other venues and promoters learn from White Oak Music Hall’s approach?
- Establish clear KPI benchmarks specific to your venue and market
- Prioritize shows with the strongest potential rather than struggling to save underperforming events
- Create systems to celebrate wins and maintain team morale
- Foster cross-departmental collaboration using data as a common language
- Invest in tools that centralize data and streamline workflows
What next?
You can catch the full episode on our YouTube channel or your favorite podcast platform.
Check out some of our other podcasts and resources for event promoters below.
