Tied in with the service and entertainment industry, the need for street team work in New Orleans has busy seasons and slow seasons. It can often be super easy to considerately leave promotional material at places depending on how many events are happening in a given time. Or this can take a little finessing once the real estate starts getting claimed.
Ever go somewhere and notice an organized bulletin board area where it is super easy to see what is happening nearby currently? What about another place where all the ads are pinned on top of each other, distributed without care as to what it looks like or could be covering up? Imagine what could be the most pleasurable visual experience to promote in at every place.
Street team etiquette benefits everyone involved. Promoters take care of the space businesses let them advertise in, which keeps those promoters coming back and gives guests information on local events. When businesses support each other they make it easier to share in giving back to the community.
Eight suggestions to keep in mind when doing street team work:
Take down anything out of date to make room for new material.
Do not cover up current promotions, especially if dated.*
Take time to fix at least one thing that could look better where ads are left at each place. Do more things if possible.
Get permission to flyer. Many places allow to drop and go, but at others it is important to speak to a worker. If not sure always ask.
Do not interrupt customers at another business.
Be friendly to anyone who asks about what is being promoted.
Never spam a given advertising space with a bunch of fliers next to each other.
No littering or putting material on any street posts or public spaces.
Got extra material? Then too much is being ordered. Pay attention to the timeframe given and make a reasonable estimate as to how many businesses can actually be distributed to. Next time either order less (go green) or make more time. With leftover material, instead of spamming try getting the artists to sign for sale or even just giving away at event.
It is on street team members to take responsibility for the waves of handbills and posters that shore up city businesses. Why should someone else clean up after the messes promoters make? When has a business charged to leave material there? Street teams need to use these waves to make sand castles before they allow their potential revenue streams to wipe out.
*Sometimes if doing a last minute campaign with a day or two left that is going to happen soon, it might not be rude to cover up a poster if it is for something such as an album or song release that has no date and is an ongoing promotion. If it is just for a day or two with a time sensitive ad should not be a big deal since that other ad has a bigger time frame to be seen and the last minute campaign will be taken down quick. But even in this situation still never cover up something dated. And take care not to damage anyone else’s work.