More than a Gig!
How Annual Events Build Your Venue Brand and Community Legacy
🌟 Don’t Just Run a Venue — Build a Cultural Destination
There is no better way to build your brand, grow your audience, and unite your local community than with an annual event.
Think mini music festival.
Think Fiesta.
Think Sunday Sesh meets Street Party.
Not Caloundra Music Festival scale (yet), but something uniquely yours — in the car park, the paddock next door, or across your venue and outdoor areas.
These events become brand-defining moments.
They extend your offering beyond the bar and into the heart of your local community.
And trust me — once you run one, they’ll be begging for the next.
📊 The Stats Are In: Local Events Are Big Business
You don’t need 20,000 people to make an impact. Events with up to 2,000 attendees can deliver massive ROI — for your venue, your partners, and your patrons:
According to Australia Council for the Arts, 67% of Australians attend live music or cultural events to feel more connected to their community.
A Live Performance Australia report notes that community-based events under 2,000 capacity contribute over $300 million annually to Australia’s local economies.
Local festivals and family-friendly events are shown to increase venue brand recall by 44%, and social media engagement spikes by up to 200% on the day.
71% of regional and suburban event-goers say they’re more likely to return to a venue they discover through an outdoor or all-ages community event.
In a post-COVID world, where people crave connection more than ever, your venue has the power to become the beating heart of that revival.
🎉 The Secret Sauce: Make It A Local Fiesta
What sets a community event apart from a regular gig is inclusivity and immersion. Here’s how to create your own high-impact, high-reward Mini Festival:
🎶 Live Music Is the Headliner
Book multiple Pushworth bands, duos, or soloists across the day.
Feature a variety of genres — cover acts, tribute shows, original artists.
Use an outdoor stage and sound setup to project energy into the street.
🕺 Entertainment For All Ages
Kids’ Zone: face painting, balloon animals, jumping castles
Roaming performers: stilt walkers, jugglers, dancers, fire twirlers
School showcases: invite local school bands or dance troupes to perform
Community displays: martial arts, cultural groups, vintage car clubs
🍔 Market-Style Experience
Food trucks: burgers, bao buns, crepes, wood-fired pizza
Craft stalls: local makers, artists, wellness vendors
Local distillery/brewery pop-ups: build sponsor relationships and feature signature drinks
Offer "Festival-Only" specials to create urgency and exclusivity
📸 Maximise Content Creation
Set up a branded photo wall or arch
Create a live event hashtag
Run live giveaways on social (tag to win, best selfie, etc.)
Get performers to post behind-the-scenes content and tag your venue
📅 Start With Capacity, End With Culture
After a decade managing the Caxton Street Seafood and Wine Festival, we learned one fundamental truth: your capacity shapes everything.
Your first step? Know how big you want to go.
Events over 1,500 capacity in Brisbane require an Entertainment Event Permit
You’ll need to engage with Council regarding safety, stakeholder notifications, and traffic plans
Smaller-scale events still require thoughtful planning — toilets, security, staging, insurance
📍 Click here for Brisbane City Council's Event Planning Toolkit
Once you’ve confirmed your capacity, build backward from there:
Map your budget
Lock in the date
Secure artists and vendors
Engage local schools and businesses
Start the 10-month planning cycle — yes, it’s worth it
💡 Why It Works
Annual events:
Boost brand equity — you become a place where people make memories
Increase local media and influencer attention
Strengthen community ties — essential for long-term venue sustainability
Attract sponsors and suppliers eager to tap into your audience
Provide off-season revenue and content to repurpose all year
They’re not just about one day.
They’re about building a legacy.
📞 Ready to Go Big (Without Going Broke)?
Your Pushworth booker isn’t just your talent curator — we’re your event strategist, too.
We can help you:
Build your entertainment roster
Source themed entertainment (like stilt walkers, fire twirlers, circus acts)
Coordinate with vendors and stallholders
Advise on marketing, timelines, and council approvals
Let’s turn your venue into the place your community can’t wait to return to — every year.
Written by Nichola Burton. I work in partnership with Agents, Artist Managers and Event Producers, who juggle a diverse range of relationships in the Musoverse, to curate, manage and measure data in systems, experience, creative and content to support the entire Musoverse operation in my enterprise A Little Pitchy Copyright 2025