Our Top Mascot Performer Tips

Being a mascot performer goes far beyond simply putting on a costume — you need to create a personality for your character and interact with your audience to make a lasting impression. You can’t just stand there like a statue but you also can’t just be overly rambunctious either unless of course your character calls for that in their personality. At Hogtown Mascots, we have compiled this list of tips to help new mascot performers get started and veteran performers improve their act.

Communicating

The combination of the oversized costume and the fact that you never speak means one thing: you must be over the top in all your gestures and movements. There are several standard gestures you should master including laughing, waving, blowing kisses, “aww, shucks!” (kicking out one foot), and shaking your knees (to show that you are afraid). In addition to these, you may like to create some movements of your own to develop your character’s specific personality traits.

Interacting with the Audience

How you interact with your audience will depend on the type of event in which you are performing. If you are making contact with individuals, you can engage with people by hugging, shaking hands, and blowing kisses. Always ensure that the person is happy to engage with your character to avoid a confrontation.

At events with large crowds, such as sporting events and shows, you have a very different role as a mascot performer — your job is to encourage audience participation and add to the overall entertainment. If a dance squad is present, you may be able to join in their routine and make the audience laugh with your clumsy antics. Just make sure it is obviously intentional if you decide to fall in order to maintain a sense of professionalism.

In other cases, you may need to motion to the audience to have them cheer on cue, or you may be required to throw freebies into the crowd. In either case, add to the act by exaggerating all your movements.

Another situation you may be in as a mascot performer is a parade. If music will be playing, plan a dance that mainly involves your arms. When music is not playing, or if you prefer not to dance, keep moving all the time by waving to the crowd, shaking hands, or using other gestures that fit with your character’s personality.

Interacting with Children

A giant mascot may seem intimidating or even a little frightening to children. Keep your distance and wave, allowing kids to approach you to ask for hugs and photos. Your movements should also be slower and less dramatic than when performing in front of a large crowd. As much as possible, try to get down to the child’s level – shrink to their size so that you don’t seem too overwhelming.

Contact us at Hogtown Mascots to find out about our performer training, tips and tricks  or to purchase a custom mascot costume.

 

Top 5 Uses for Custom Mascots

Top 5 Uses for Custom Mascots

A company or team mascot can be great for morale, and can help get attention when you need it most. Whether you're trying to stir up publicity for a promotion, awareness of your brand, charity event or big game, a fun, colorful and friendly mascot can make a huge difference. 

Why have a mascot?

The good thing about custom mascots is that the sky's really the limit when choosing one. Many companies and teams like to go for an animal, such as a leopard or fuzzy bear, however you could choose a usually inanimate object (like a slice of pizza or a heart) or made-up character that is unique to you and sets you apart from everyone else. 

There are also plenty of other benefits that come from having your own custom mascot, including: 

• Allowing people to see instantly what your company is about
• Helping your brand connect with a younger audience
• Having an ageless spokesperson
• Increasing your brand name recall 

If you're considering investing in a custom mascot, but aren't sure if you'd get much use out of it, then think again. Here are just five great ways you'll be able to put your custom mascot to good use, plus you'll probably find there will probably be plenty of other opportunities that crop unexpectedly too! 

Event promotions

Say you've just launched a new product and are trying to raise awareness. Custom mascots are fantastic when promoting your product to people on the streets or at special targeted events like business fairs or conventions. A convention is a fabulous time to get your mascot out there promoting your brand, and as long as you pick the right mascot, it should only take one look for consumers to know what your business is really about. 

Charity events

If your business is some way involved in charity, why not put on a fundraising event where your mascot can really shine? Otherwise, your mascot could participate in local charity events, or even take part in a charity marathon! People will see your mascot participating and know that your business is involved and cares about the cause, which also sends out a great message about your brand that people will remember. 

Company games

If you have a company football match or baseball game, it's the perfect time to get your mascot out on the field to boost your team's morale! This is especially important if you're competing against another business, but even if you're going with internal teams, it's still a fun way to enhance team games. 

School spirit

Custom mascots are also great for schools, and can in fact represent school spirit at whatever event or games happen to be taking place. Everyone will look forward to school sports days; the kids will love it, and the parents probably will too.

Meet and greets

If your business has formal or informal meet and greet events, and you know there's going to be publicity there, it's a great chance for photo ops, showcase your mascot and further raise your brand awareness. You could be presenting a cheque to charity, or participating in a local event along with other businesses, but whatever the case, you'll be sure to leave a fantastic impression with your colourful, cuddly mascot.

Mascots can make all the difference when it comes to promotions and boosting your company or team's morale, and you can choose your own custom mascots to represent your brand to the world and give your audience a better idea of what your company is about. The only question is, which mascot will you choose? Hogtown Mascots can help your make your custom mascot idea a reality. Call us today at 1-877-622-8422 to find out more.

Convincing Your Boss You Need a Mascot

Convincing your boss that you need a mascot to represent your company might not be the easiest thing to do. Still, once you have some co-workers on your side and once you’ve let your boss moll it over for a bit, there is no way they won’t be able to go for your idea! Mascots are fun, show company pride, engage your customers and really let your business tap into a whole other market while still remaining true to your core brand. 

 

Here are 6 great business points to convince your boss that you need a mascot.

Youth: Being able to tap into the youth demographic which will then grow up with and around your mascot idea is one point to make. Being able to bring in customers for a product or service they may not even know about yet is a great way to build a brand legacy. Kids will love your mascot and they will one day grow up to be the consumers you’ve been hoping for all along.

Trust: If their kids like your mascot then the chances are their parents are going to give your company a chance. Even if yours is a product they didn’t think they had a need for; if their kids like your mascot then you will have built in a level of trust on behalf of the parents. 

Identity: One more reason you need a mascot for your business is so that you can establish and cement your brand identity. How often have you asked yourself what your business stands for? When you have a mascot, you will be able to better channel that brand identity into a great and relatable corporate image. Consider some of the best mascots through time; from sports teams, television shows, and more; now imagine your company with that same level of brand identity. This is the type of recognition you can have with your own mascot. 

Custom: One final point about your business’ need for a mascot is the fact that this will be custom. When you create your own mascot with an excellent design team, your mascot can be literally anything you desire! We can create your mascot from sketches or drawings of your own, or you can work with our design team to create a unique character that we create for you based on the needs of your business.

A Great Return on Investment: Though a custom mascot means a large, up-front financial commitment, it offers the ultimate return on investment when it comes to spending your advertising dollars. Mascots are long-term investments that allow the initial cost to be amortized over several years, unlike other forms of advertising which can have very limited lifespans. And the number of impressions per dollar spent can far exceed anything you would get with print, online or other.

Skilled craftsmanship, attention to detail and a tenacity which just won’t quit are just some of the reasons why Hogtown Mascots has been creating some of the best mascots for companies around the world. If you need a mascot, or you’d just like to hash out some ideas, visit the Hogtown Mascots website, browse our past mascot designs and then give us a call!