For good or bad, COVID changed how County Fairs were conducted in 2020. While many counties had to cut back on concerts, carnivals and other large gatherings, the “meat and potatoes” of most County Fairs still went on.
While there were smaller crowds, young 4-H and FFA members still had the opportunity to participate in livestock and other shows. While many counties did see a decrease in their Junior Livestock Sale receipts, business across many counties stepped up to do the best they could
Another “new normal” from COVID was the use of video. How many of us (or our kids) got very familiar with zoom meetings! It was under this backdrop that Stormy Productions decided to enter the “ring” and stream County Fair Livestock Shows and Sales.
Jeremy Weathers has been producing live video streams of high school sports playoffs for almost 10 years and the viewership was well established. But the question remained, “would anyone want to watch their county fair?”
The answer was a resounding, YES! Stormy Productions streamed County Fair events for Phillips, Morgan, Yuma and Logan counties. As of August 11th, 2020 the combined views of the four counties’ events is just under 40,000!
Most County Fairs operate on tight margins and just hope to break even every year. Stormy Productions was able to provide coverage to those four counties through video sponsorship. This took the burden off the Fair Boards for having to “round up some more sponsorship dollars”.
There was concern that putting these events online would diminish the in-person attendance, but that did not hold true. Many of the comments from viewers during the live coverage came from family members that lived far away, or local viewers that were able to watch while they were still at work.
By posting the events, it also gives show families the opportunity to go back and watch the events later. Several parents commented that they were able to watch a complete show for the first time because they could watch later.
As video continues to become a larger part of our lives, let Stormy Productions help your County Fair to leverage this opportunity to help your County Fair reach well beyond the county line!