A particular pageant director sought me out several months ago to ask me how he could market his pageant. Now, he had a great name, professional website and a good package so what else do you need, right? So, I gave him a few ideas on how he could increase his ticket sales, company exposure several months before which I am unsure of whether or not he did. Around the time of the pageant I found myself in the city where the event was taking place so I decided attend to support what he was doing.

Miss Grand Indonesia 2019. Photo: Miss Grand International Instagram

Then I learned why he was having problems marketing his pageant. The event was very poorly run…very. The pageant was supposed to begin at 7pm but at 7:25pm the curtains were still drawn and the Emcee was still apologizing. Then as the event made way the production was cut rate and the script was in shambles. I was embarrassed for him. It was really awkward. You know the feeling…because I have come to find out that this happens ALL THE TIME in the world of pageantry. If there is one thing that I have learned by having 5 sisters is that, girls talk…especially when there is drama involved. And you know as well as I do that the world of pageantry is not that large that you cannot hide behind a bad performance. So here are my suggestions on how to market a beauty pageant.

How to Market a Beauty Pageant

1. If you own/run a beauty pageant know that this is a long-term investment.

Girls will come to you once you have a proven track record of being professional and treating the girls right.

2. Be on time.

If you have 100 people in the audience and your pageant is not on time those 100 people all have an average of 500 friends on FaceBook and around 100 friends on Twitter…of which ALL are pageant people! So in their idle time what do they do? Or I should ask, “What do you do?” You pull out your smart phone and begin text, updating your status, and tweeting. And if you were the one waiting in the crowd you would begin telling the world that the pageant your daughter is attending is unprofessional and late. Girls remember pageants like that. 3. Pay up. When you crown your queen who will be the marketing piece for your organization for the next year pay her the rewards that she won without her having to follow up with you countless amounts of times. I hear this from girls and honestly it is sad because they have invested money in your organization and they won, so they deserve what they won without having to beg.

And again…if they are telling me, “Pageant Planet guy” best believe that they are telling their friends. Again it’s bad marketing for a beauty pageant. All of the above beauty pageant marketing strategies are centered around word of mouth marketing and this can be the best form of advertising when it is working for you…and the worst when working against you. Want more publicity for your pageant? Register your pageant on our directory!