The Pocket Planner:  SLO County's premier guide to live music!

Pocket sized and distributed DIRECTLY into the hands of SLO County's most avid live music consumers!

Advertise in the Planner & get more people out to your events!

*** update: there will only be two editions for 2024:

Summer planner: Starting Distro on Memorial day weekend

  • fall planner: Starting Distro on labor day weekend ***

*** ALERT: NEW SIZE - 4.25” WIDE (FORMERLY 4”!) ***

Ad sizes:

  • Full page: 4.25" wide x 5.5" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

  • Half page: 4.25" wide x 2.75" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

  • Quarter page: 4.25" wide x 1.375" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

The Pocket Planner is a monthly, pocket-sized magizine featuring the best live music on the Central Coast. Advertising your events in the Pocket Planner gets your message placed directly into the hands of the people you want to reach most: people who actually go to concerts!

These are distributed exclusively by hand at concerts, so none go to waste. And since they’re packed with tons of shows, people keep them handy all month and plan to get out the shows.

About the pocket Planner:

Summer 2024 Pocket Planner

BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!

  • NOT ONLY do you get your message delivered straight into the hands of the most avid music supporters on the Central Coast, all Pocket Planner advertisers get:

  • Exclusive distribution at the biggest & best venues around: Vina Robles Amphitheatre, Avila Beach Golf Resort, the Fremont Theater, The Siren, SLO Concerts in the Plaza, and many, many more!

  • Proactive distribution at Boo Boo Records

  • Featured event listings on Big Big SLO's online web calendar, used by hundreds of local music lovers every day! (It also syncs with all of the Estero Bay News & Estero Bay radio station websites.)

  • Paul Irving talking up your events as he attends tons of events and is always taking up all the upcoming shows!

  • Your Facebook events added to Big Big SLO’s Facebook event feed

How much does it cost? 

Great question:

  • Full Page(s) - $250 / Page

  • Half Page - $145

  • Quarter Page - $100

The Big Big SLO Live Music Pocket Planner is a high quality, full color pocket-sized magazine dedicated to promoting live local music events in SLO County. Published monthly, it is delivered directly to music consumers at major music venues. In addition, the planners are distributed to top hotels, visitor centers, chambers of commerce, and select retail locations throughout the county. And they're always available at Boo Boo Records in San Luis Obispo and given to every concert ticket buyer (approx. 800/month).

With a solid three decades of local music marketing experience, we find that one of the most effective ways to reach music lovers and event goers is right at concerts. Many people enjoy the simplicity of a paper guide as a refreshing alternative to the mass digital messaging we all experience daily.

Big Big SLO works with most of the major venues on the coast and has authorized distribution at Vina Robles Amphitheatre, SLO Brew, Good Medicine events, Fremont Theater, Otter Productions events, Avila Beach Golf resort, and many more.

This guide is small and portable and will have a high retention rate, living all month on coffee tables, purses, and other places to be referred to over and over. Leverage the Big Big SLO Street Team distribution and get your message out there!

What does the Big Big SLO Pocket Planner look like?  It features: 

  • The perfect size: 4.25” wide by 5.5” tall. Slightly smaller than a typical 4 x 6 postcard.

  • Full color offset printing on all pages & cover, full bleed on all pages

  • 100# Gloss cardstock cover & 80# gloss book paper for the inside pages

  • Looks & feels great - a very high quality printed piece

How do People get it?  Great question!

  • 7,000 total will be published monthly (each month is a new publication)

  • 6,000 of these will be distributed directly in to the hands of music consumers as they exit concerts, festivals, and other music events.

  • 1,000 will be distributed to select hotels and visitor centers retail locations around the county, including cafes, restaurants, etc.

How do I get in on this?  Here’s how it works: 

  • Ads are available by full page, half page, quarter page, or just simply having your events included in the calendar listing section.

  • ALL ADVERTISERS RECEIVE COMPLIMENTARY LISTINGS FOR THE SAME MONTH'S EVENTS IN THE LISTINGS SECTION OF THE POCKET PLANNER AND THE BIG BIG SLO ONLINE MUSIC CALENDAR AND THE MOBILE WEB APP!

WHAT ELSE SHOULD YOU KNOW: 

  • Deadlines for art will be on the 14th of each month.

  • Publication and distribution will start 1 week prior to the 1st of the month, to make sure you have plenty of marketing time for your events.

  • SPACE IS LIMITED, and we are accepting commitments for all future issues now.

  • We will design your ad at no additional cost. If you prefer, you may submit your camera ready art. If so:

    • Please submit in .pdf format

    • 300 dpi

    • Full color

    • Ad sizes:

      • Full page: 4.25" wide x 5.5" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

      • Half page: 4.25" wide x 2.75" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

      • Quarter page: 4.25" wide x 1.375" high. Please include 1/8" bleed on all edges.

Questions?  Please call Paul Irving at (805) 441-3344.