Big bang for big band website
Client: GRAB, Grantham's Big Band
Project: Website Design & Development
Date: October 2023
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The Challenge
For over 10 years, GRAB (Grantham’s Big Band) had relied on a Facebook page as their only online platform, but were missing out on reaching more audiences outside of the social network.
The Solution
A new website for the band which encapsulates their energy, passion and professionalism, promotes their upcoming events and encourages more bookings.
Key Results
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The website was delivered within nine working days
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Visited by over 130 people in less than a week* (the band operates in a small market town with a regional following so this is very high relative to the catchment area)
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Visitors are spending over 4 minutes on the site on average*
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10% of visitors are signing up to the mailing list to hear about upcoming gigs*
The Full Story
GRAB is a community music project made up of 20 skilled musicians based in Lincolnshire Their passion is to provide a fantastic night’s entertainment to the local area by offering high-energy, upbeat live music. Their repertoire includes classic jazz tunes and more modern pop songs performed in a big band style, making them stand out from other swing bands who focus solely on the 1940s era.
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The Musical Director told me how they have relied on their Facebook presence to promote the band for over 10 years, but that he was aware there are many people who don’t have access to the platform. As a result, he was worried they were missing out on attracting new audiences for their events and getting more bookings.
He already knew he wanted a website and had bought a domain, but needed professional help in building an online presence that communicated the unique essence of the band, promoted their events and drove up their bookings.
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After the initial briefing call, I suggested a website that took inspiration from classic jazz culture, while applying modern, bold and fun design elements to communicate the blend of musical styles. As they also had an extensive photo and video library I recommended using this throughout the website and introducing background video to bring the band to life, in lieu of audio recordings.
The Musical Director was also keen to communicate the reputation and professionalism of the band and so alongside the high-quality photography, I introduced a carousel of quotes from audience members across all pages to showcase the standard of the band.
As the Musical Director’s main goal was to attract new audiences to their events, I promoted their events page as the primary call-to-action across the website. Alongside the event listings page, I recommended adding a sign up to their mailing list to the footer and key areas of the website to encourage as many sign ups and future attendees as possible.
And the final challenge - getting the website live for a big event in just two weeks’ time!
The Results
Deadline hit!
The website was designed, built, tested and live nine working days after the initial briefing call
It's attracting visitors!
Over 130 people have visited the website in less than a week (that’s better than 61% of other UK music websites)*
It's engaging!
On average, people are spending over 4 minutes on the site (better than 69% of other UK music websites)*
It’s driving new audiences!
10% of visitors are signing up to the mailing list to hear about future gigs
Contact me to discuss getting an impactful website for your business
* Wix platform statistics and benchmarks, October 2023