For Eugene and Corvallis (Oregon) we do something different.
First time dancers pay the regular admission fee for their first time.
But at the door, they then receive a coupon that gets them into the NEXT
dance for free. This coupon is good for a year. Many dance organizations
do this. But here is the real difference: when these dancers come to
their free dance, they then receive a SECOND coupon that gets them into
the next dance for a 50% discount.
These coupons are good for both the Eugene and Corvallis dances, which
are only 40 miles apart. Since the Eugene dances are held on the 2nd and
4th Saturdays and the Corvallis Dances are held on the 1st and 3rd
Saturdays, and these coupons are good for either dance, newcomers have
opportunities to attend a dance every weekend of the month. This system
is in place for all our regular dances (which are held between September
and June). There are sometimes ride pools between the dances.
We've designed this double-coupon system to encourage newcomers to
attend three dances. We all know that lots of newcomers come to one
dance, have a great time, and then never come back. We think, however,
when someone goes to three dances, they are more inclined to keep
coming. After attending three times, things are not so new or confusing
or intimidating. Our hope is that they begin to get to know folks and
also become more comfortable with the moves.
Although we have no statistics or formal reports, we've observed that
this system does seem to work or at least contribute to the obsrved
growth. Our dances have gradually grown in attendance, and younger
people (and others) are attending more often.
Woody
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Woody Lane
Caller, Percussive Dancer
Roseburg, Oregon
http://www.woodylanecaller.com
home: 541-440-1926 cell: 541-556-0054
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On 4/8/2014 9:27 AM, Martha Wild wrote:
We have had a continuous promotion here in San Diego where we give all first
time dancers a free pass for the NEXT time they come. This has worked pretty
well for us, and we do get people bringing those passes back for the second
time free - and sometimes they use them to bring a free guest. It's an
incentive for them to come back - and I think that if someone dances twice they
may have a chance the second time when it is isn't as overwhelming to relax and
to really really enjoy it. Overall we have kept this promotion going for about
2 years? now and feel it is successful enough to continue.
Martha
On Apr 8, 2014, at 9:00 AM,[email protected] wrote:
2. "First Time Dancers Get in Free" Promotion (William Loving)
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Message: 1
Date: Mon, 7 Apr 2014 12:18:30 -0400
From: William Loving<[email protected]>
To: Caller's discussion list<[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Creating a CDSS dance depository
Message-ID:
<[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
"First Time Dancers get in Free" Promotion Results:
For five weeks this winter we ran a special promotion at the Downtown Amherst
dance that all First Time Contra dancers get in free. The results were
impressive:
Jan 29 -12
Feb 26 - 10
Mar 5 - 20
Mar 19 - 8
Mar 29 - 9
Total new dancers: 59 Avg: 11.8 Median: 10
Overall attendance was normal meaning the variations in "Free" numbers was not
affected by the band as far as I could tell.
Many of the new dancers said they would be back and in fact I saw quite a few of them both at subsequent dances in Amherst and at
Greenfield. Some came early in the promotion and then brought friends the following week. Our organizing committee has discussed
various options to draw new dancers, primarily "First Time Free" and "Second Time Free". The "Second
Time Free" option gives you more feedback about how many returnees you are actually getting; the "First Time Free"
simply lowers the bar to the ground and is harder to resist (friend to friend). (We also included the option for anyone who might
have tried contra once or twice a long time ago to be considered "First Time" but I don't know that anyone came in
saying that.)
Our series averages 75-85 total each week with a range of 60-160 depending on
the band. The median is definitely under 100 but has gradually increased over
the last almost four years.
I think the promotion was a tremendous success and we're having an ongoing discussion about whether
to try "Second Time Free" for a while or just implement "First Time Free"
periodically. For programming reasons, I don't think it makes sense to have it for every dance,
especially dances that will be extremely full, such as if Elixir or PeM play or if it's a techno
contra (which has other issues for beginning dancers). However, we might pick a month or a block of
dates and do it again periodically.
Sincerely,
Will
