By all counts (with the exception the Chicago Tribune), the recent Elton John / Billy Joel concert in Chicago was a huge success.  It was a sellout at Wrigley Field, the “boomer” place to be and the crowd left satisfied, yet wanting more.  It was everything you would hope your next marketing event could be– great program, great audience, and great sales.  Speaking of sales, this week the AP rated EJ/BJ Face 2 Face the Top Concert Tour with gross ticket sales per city of over $2.7 million and an average ticket price over $125.

This concert was successful because it followed the magical marketing formula that starts with knowing the audience and their interests.  EJ and BJ weren’t playing for the music critics.  If they had been, I’m sure they would have created a different playlist.  They also got the three “hots” right, hot program, hot talent, and a hot place.  If you do this with a long enough lead time to effectively plan, you’ll have nearly always have a great event.  And if you stop talking (or singing) when you should, you’ll have mastered the first rule of follow up.

I wonder how many people were driving home to the suburbs listening to Captain Fantastic and The Stranger…  You can get each album at Amazon for under $8.  Wasn’t that about what the record cost?