The New Fan Campaign is essentially a marketing initiative that will incentivize long-time fans and community “influencers” to recruit new, first-time fans in 2024. Community influencers include business partners, destination info centers, volunteers, camp hosts or anyone who wants to participate.
“At the heart of this effort is your basic, grassroots, word-of-mouth, person-to-person marketing,” stated Managing Director Holly Feldman, “We know from past surveys that word-of-mouth is the primary way that folks hear about us. All we’re doing is finding unique ways to say ‘thank you’ for spreading the word about Northern Sky.”
Incentives range from free popcorn in the park to the chance to join Northern Sky’s Jeffrey Herbst and Katie Dahl on a Northern Sky Fan Cruise on the Rhine River in 2025. The grand prize cruise is available to folks who not only refer new fans to Northern Sky but who also volunteer in 2024.
“The goal with this campaign is to get back to basics to build future generations of Northern Sky fans and theatergoers,” added Marketing Director Sophie Widman. “Northern Sky would not be the company it is today were it not for the support of the volunteers, who have dedicated their time, love, and loyalty in sustaining the company over the years. By utilizing these astounding volunteers and community, the hope is that the same dedication that has made the company thrive for decades can continue for generations to come.”
The main drive of this campaign is based on referrals. Long-time fans and community influencers who connect with a potential new fan will simply ask the new fan to mention their name when they call for tickets or order online. The person referring the new fan will earn “points” when their name is mentioned. If a new fan purchases 5 tickets, their referral will earn 5 points. In the case of the cruise, volunteers will earn an entry for the grand prize drawing for each new fan.
Incentives
- Returning Fans
- Points program – a certain number of points gets you certain things from our gift shop, or, if you’re not in town for an extended stay, we will send you a Northern Sky Mystery Bag!
- 3 points – Free popcorn
- 5 points – A Northern Sky button
- 8 points – A Northern Sky t-shirt
- 11 points – A Northern Sky tote bag
- Points program – a certain number of points gets you certain things from our gift shop, or, if you’re not in town for an extended stay, we will send you a Northern Sky Mystery Bag!
- Camp Hosts
- If you are able to get 10 new fans to come to a Northern Sky show, you will receive a free t-shirt, of your choosing, from Northern Sky.
- Door County Businesses
- Every ticket that is purchased with your business as the referral will turn into “points” for your business. The more referrals, the more tickets, the more points.
- At the end of the fall season – we will tally up how many new fans each business referred. The business with the most referrals will receive a free quarter page ad in our Playbill for the 2025 season.
- Info Centers
- Whichever Info Center gets the most referrals (points) at the end of the 2024 fall season, will receive a jingle written by our very own Doc Heide or Matt Zembrowski all about your town.
- Volunteers
- In addition to the returning fans incentives, volunteers will also be in the running for our grand prize. At the end of the 2024 fall season, we will pull one lucky volunteer’s name from a drawing for the opportunity to go on a river tour in Europe with Jeff Herbst and Katie Dahl in 2025. The number of tickets that a new fan buys and are attributed to a volunteer, will be how many times that volunteer’s name will be put into the drawing. Click here to find out more info for the Rhine River Tour.
- (The fine print: Suite will be an Avalon Deluxe Stateroom – Category E. Airfare and taxes not included. No purchase necessary)
- In addition to the returning fans incentives, volunteers will also be in the running for our grand prize. At the end of the 2024 fall season, we will pull one lucky volunteer’s name from a drawing for the opportunity to go on a river tour in Europe with Jeff Herbst and Katie Dahl in 2025. The number of tickets that a new fan buys and are attributed to a volunteer, will be how many times that volunteer’s name will be put into the drawing. Click here to find out more info for the Rhine River Tour.
Frequently Asked Questions
This is Northern Sky Theater's New Fan Campaign! At the heart of this effort is your basic, grassroots, word-of-mouth, person-to-person style of marketing. We know from past surveys that word-of-mouth is the primary way that folks hear about us. All we’re doing is finding unique ways to say ‘thank you’ for spreading the word about Northern Sky and building up our fan base for future generations of Northern Sky fans.
No problem! While that original person who referred you might be sad, there is no penalty for not remembering. You could either find a new person to give some points to, or even a business in Door County or one of our Info Centers. You will still be able to get your tickets to the shows and enjoy your time at Northern Sky Theater, regardless of remembering who referred you!
Nope! Don’t worry about participating if you don’t want to. This is our way of proactively thanking our community for all they have done for us. No requirement necessary to still enjoy our theater and shows.
Your points will expire at the end of our fall season after October 26th. If you are a returning fan, be sure to get your prize from our gift shop or if you’re not in town, let us know and we will send you your Northern Sky Mystery Bag! The following week, after our last show of the season, we will tally up all the participating groups and announce winners later in the week.
At the end of our fall season, after October 26th, we will tally up the referrals from your business/info center and be in touch the week of the 27th with the results of our winners.