Thread: please, talk to me about: marketing

Books, blogs, websites, Bhuz threads - please point me in the right direction. I'm not specifically thinking dance-related, but it can be. I'd like to have a variety of resources actually.

I would like to think more strategically about my marketing efforts. I never had to take Marketing 101 or anything like that, so I think that there are a lot of things I can learn.

Thank you...

go to your local library, there will be a lot of books on marketing..you can use a lot of the info presented in the books and 'translate' it over for bellydance whether you are marketing yourself as a dancer or a teacher..read a variety of books (they are free)

there are also a a lot of free resources on the internet..think outside the box. go to the etsy chat forum, yeah we all sell handmade items in there but if you listen and read, you can use a lot of the marketing strategies as a dancer

be very visible in your community and have business cards taped to your wallet. word of mouth has proven to be my most valuable way of booking gigs

good luck!

Originally Posted by jesennia

go to your local library, there will be a lot of books on marketing..you can use a lot of the info presented in the books and 'translate' it over for bellydance whether you are marketing yourself as a dancer or a teacher..read a variety of books (they are free)

thanks... i'm actually going over there this evening... wondering if there are specific titles that are really good...

Originally Posted by jesennia

go to the etsy chat forum, yeah we all sell handmade items in there but if you listen and read, you can use a lot of the marketing strategies as a dancer

thank you so much! this is a great idea and let me think of other things to get "outside the box"...

books on marketing such as marketing for dummies, advertising, online advertising and believe it or not, BRANDING helped me a lot

think of your dance style as your BRAND ...promote brand awareness

I did a lot of work and research on this and that's why a dancer can recognize an A'Kai veil across the room..g.:

What Jes said!

Marketing isn't something most people master overnight, but there are some great resources to get you started. Don't get discouraged if it takes you a long time to try different approaches and figure out what works for you.

Believe it or not, those Marketing for Dummies type books can actually be a great place to start. So are classes at your local community college. Your local Chamber of Commerce might also offer some helpful lectures.

Marketing is what I do for a living. So if you have any specific questions, please feel free to drop me a PM.

Marketing is about selling a product, or rather how you position yourself/product in the market place. It includes branding, merchandising and sales. Is this what you mean by marketing?

This field however, is changing rapidly. Now the term Integrated Marketing or Integrated Marketing Communications more closely resembles this idea of "getting yourself/product out there". You may want to look up those terms in your search.

[ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_marketing_communications]Integrated marketing communications - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

[ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_marketing[/ame]

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

Marketing is about selling a product, or rather how you position yourself/product in the market place. It includes branding, merchandising and sales. Is this what you mean by marketing?

Yes. In particular I think about branding - what is my brand? I hear that used a lot but I don't feel like I'm really conceptualizing what my brand is.

Let me look at these links and the book I got at the library and see if I can get more specific with my questions. Thank you Andalee and Satin.

Originally Posted by dancingstar

Yes. In particular I think about branding - what is my brand? I hear that used a lot but I don't feel like I'm really conceptualizing what my brand is.

Well, to put it into easier terms: why does a rancher brand a cow? To set it apart from the rest of the herd

That being said, start thinking about what makes you unique from the other dancers in your area - think looks, style, customer service, any area of specialty that you offer. If you can't think of anything off the bat, then you've got some soul searching to do. Not that this is a bad thing - it's just something we all have to do at one point or another.

I don't like to spill all my candy in the candy store, but you can always e-mail or PM me if you want to know specifically how I approached my own branding.

always always leave your crowd wanting more :)

Originally Posted by jesennia

always always leave your crowd wanting more :)

....and never leave them wishing that you'd go away

Can I pm you too satin?

On my web site: Marketing Yourself As A Dancer

We've been doing Facebook ads with a client and have discovered they are cheap and focused. Google ad words is another way to focus on online sales at a particular audience. Basically, if you are a bellydancer in Whoville, you can focus on grabbing folks who search for bellydancing from Whoville on Google or who mention bellydancing on FB.

What they all said about branding... it's basically specifying exactly what services you offer, figuring out your target market, and then differentiating yourself from the competition.

Originally Posted by gayiii

Can I pm you too satin?

Sure, fire away! Or e-mail me, Carrara Nour (at) gmail (dot) com. I'm kinda flaky when it comes to checking my PM's ,r:;