Increase Dance Student Registration With a New Website

This is the age of the internet. Most people around the world are now using this tool for just about anything you can think of. This includes buying and selling services , paying bills, banking, social networking, doing research, marketing, and using it as an educational platform. The internet is popular with people of all ages and this is why it is important for business owners to use it to their advantage. Having a great dance web design is an important part of spreading the word if you own or manage a dance studio.

The first thing to realize is that a website can literally reach millions of people on a daily basis. Not that you really need that if you run a local studio , but this gives you a good idea of the power of online marketing. Building a dance studio website can help you advertise the business and increase new student registration .

You can basically use the website for all types of promotions and advertising as well as posting articles, blogs, photographs, and videos, to let potential clients and current students know about all of the studio happenings. However, if you want the site to be noticed and successful, there are a few things you will want to be aware of.

Remember the website should represent professionalism. This means it should be well written, edited, and proofread. There should be no spelling or grammatical errors if possible. The images should be crisp and sharp and all of your links should be in perfect working order.

It is also important that your dance studio website design is attractive, pleasing to the eye, and is easy to navigate. Many people will lose patience with a website that is complicated to use and there is a good chance they will leave the site and look elsewhere. If you keep it simple and attractive then you will have the best chance of converting the visit into a sale!!

Now that you have built a website, you will need to attract visitors to it. You may want to advertise it on other sites or join an affiliate program and have others advertise it for you. You can also write blogs and articles on various websites and then link them back to your site. You can also do this by joining various social media sites and advertising and linking to your site.

If you do a little bit of research about search engine optimization (SEO), you will learn how you can get your website ranked higher in  local search engines. This means when somebody searches for a dance studio, yours will be one of the first ones they see on the list, this will definitely increase dance registration.

A new website design can do wonders for your business if it's done properly. It will let people know that you exist and what exactly you have to offer the community. It's a good idea to put some relevant information to the art of dancing on the site and not just marketing and advertising material. This will attract more visitors to the site who want to learn about dancing.

The right balance of nutrition

Just as a car runs best with a full tank of gas, your body needs the right kind of "nutritional fuel" for peak performance. Eating well for your sport can be very simple. You do not need special foods or supplements. It is important to fuel your body with a balance of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins, and water.

Carbohydrates or "carbs" (found in pasta, bread, cereal, rice, potatoes, fruits, milk, yogurt, etc.) are especially important for athletes because they supply the body with glucose (blood sugar) for energy. Extra glucose is stored in the muscles and liver as glycogen, your energy reserve. During short bursts of exercise such as sprinting, basketball, gymnastics, or soccer, your body primarily uses glycogen for energy. If you don't have enough glycogen you can feel very tired, which will affect your athletic performance. During longer exercise, your body uses the glycogen stores first and then uses fats stored in your body to fuel performance.

Fat is an important source of energy used to fuel longer exercise and endurance activities, such as hiking, cycling, and long-distance running. Eating a diet that is too low in dietary fat may decrease athletic performance and cause other health problems.

Protein is needed for your body to build and repair muscles. Small amounts of protein may also be used for energy.

Vitamins and minerals are not sources of energy, but they have many important functions in the body. For example, vitamin D and calcium are needed for strong bones, and iron is needed for blood cells to carry oxygen throughout your body. Certain minerals, like potassium, calcium, and sodium are called electrolytes. They are important during exercise because they affect the amount of water in your body and muscle activity. Athletes should eat a balanced diet with a variety of foods to make sure they get enough vitamins and minerals. It is fine to take a regular multivitamin, but supplements with high doses of vitamins and minerals do not improve performance and may actually be harmful.

Water is essential to keep you hydrated (when your body has enough fluids). Dehydration (when you don't have enough fluids) can cause muscle cramps and keep you from performing your best.

Healthy Eating Tips for Athletes

• Eat a variety of foods. Because different foods have different nutrients, you should eat a variety of foods to get all the nutrients you need to stay in peak condition. For example, oranges provide vitamin C and carbohydrates, but not iron or protein. A steak provides iron and protein, but not vitamin C or carbohydrates.
• Eat regular meals and snacks. Skipping meals will weaken your performance. Eating regular meals and healthy snacks is the best way to fuel your body for athletic events.
• Eat enough calories. Calories fuel your body for exercise and replace energy that is used up during competition. Cutting calories keeps you from performing your best. Exercise and athletic training demands extra energy, and it is essential to meet your body's energy needs if you want to compete at full strength.
• Drink plenty of fluids. Athletes need more fluids than non-athletes. Do not wait until you are thirsty to start drinking water, because thirst means that you are already dehydrated. Remember to drink even more in hot and humid weather.

What fluids should I drink and how much do I need?

Before exercise: The goal of drinking fluids before exercise is to be well hydrated before you are physically active. If you have rested for at least 8-12 hours before activity and eat and drink regularly, extra hydration may not be needed. If you have lost fluids from sweating prior to exercise, have not been regularly drinking, or have dark, concentrated urine, then you may need 1-2 cups four hours before you begin exercising and another ½ - 1 cup two hours before.

During exercise: Fluid needs during exercise depend on how intense and long your workout is, weather conditions, and how much you sweat. If you are going to be exercising for more than one hour, then it is recommended that you drink 2-4 cups of water per hour. If you are not exercising for more than one hour, then replace fluids according to your thirst and the weather (more fluid is needed in hotter, more humid climates). Sports drinks, such as Gatorade® or Powerade® help replace water, carbs, and electrolytes. Avoid sodas and drinks that contain caffeine, because they can actually dehydrate you.

After exercise: After exercise, drink 16 ounces (2 cups) and return to normal eating and drinking patterns. Calorie containing drinks (like juice or a sports drink) can replace water and glucose. You can figure out if you are well hydrated by looking at the color of your urine. A clear color is a sign of good hydration. However, if you see a darker yellow color, this means that you need to drink more fluids.

What should I eat to fuel my exercise?

Fueling - Before Exercise:
The food you eat before you exercise greatly affects the quality of your athletic performance. These tips will help you plan your pre-exercise meals to prevent low blood sugar, to keep you from feeling hungry, and to fuel your muscles for training and competition.

• Eat a larger meal if you have 3-6 hours before you begin your exercise. Smaller "mini" meals are better if have 2-3 hours before your workout begins. Meals that are high in complex carbohydrates (foods rich in carbohydrates that have long lasting energy power) are best because they fuel your muscles. Pasta, bagels, baked potatoes, rice, and fresh fruit are all good sources of complex carbohydrates.
• Avoid high-bulk (high-fiber) foods such as broccoli, baked beans, or bran cereal right before exercise. These foods may cause stomach pains during exercise. High-fiber foods are loaded with good nutrition though, so be sure to include them at other times of the day.
• Avoid sugars and sweets, especially soda and candy, less than 1 hour before training. High-sugar foods will give you quick energy, but won't last long enough.
• Limit foods that are high in dietary fat such as fast food, eggs, meat, and cheese that you eat for your pre-exercise meal. These foods take much longer to digest and may make you feel sluggish and tired if you eat too much of them.
• Do not try new foods before a competition. You may have trouble digesting a food you have never eaten before. Choose foods that are familiar to you.

Fueling - After Exercise:

It is very important to refuel your body after a hard workout. Because your body replaces glycogen stores in your muscle within the first few hours after exercise, it is important to eat carbohydrates and some protein soon after your workout. Follow these tips when planning your post (after)-exercise meal.

• Even if you aren't hungry, you should eat a snack that contains carbohydrates within 30 minutes after your workout (such as a yogurt or half a sandwich). This will help your body recover quickly.
• You should eat a larger meal that is high in carbohydrates and has some protein within the next 2 hours to replace your muscle glycogen stores that were used up during exercise.

What is carbohydrate loading?

Carbohydrate loading is a technique used to increase the amount of glycogen in muscles. It involves eating extra carbohydrates during the week before a competition, while at the same time cutting back on your training. Carbohydrate loading is intended for marathon runners and other elite athletes.

Should I eat extra protein or use protein supplements?

Although some extra protein is needed to build muscle, most people get plenty of protein from food. Getting extra protein from supplements will not have any added benefit. Eating enough calories is actually more important for building muscle. Without enough calories, your body can't build new muscle.

Should I eat energy bars?

It depends. There are many different energy bars you can buy. Some are high in carbohydrates and others are high in protein. They do not contain any magic ingredients that will help your athletic performance. Regular foods that have some carbohydrate and protein in them like yogurt, cheese and crackers, or cereal bars are just as good and usually cost less. However, energy bars are convenient and may taste good. Energy bars are usually pretty dense and low in moisture, so make sure you drink plenty of fluids when you eat them.

**Remember: Athletes and dancers need more food and fluids than non-athletes. Regular meals and healthy snacks will help fuel your body before and after exercise. It is important to give your body enough of the right fuel in order to feel good and have the energy you need to be the best athlete you can be.

Article found at http://www.youngwomenshealth.org/nutrition-sports.html  

Staying grounded in the ever changing world of dance...

I am now in my mid twenties, danced professionally, trained at OCU and have been teaching for the past 2 and a half years.  As I am working with my students I notice how they seem to always wait for me to tell them to fix their abdominal or to tell them to keep their weight forward on their supporting leg.  These corrections are given to them on a daily basis in hopes they will start to do these things on their own.  Yet, I still feel as if I am waiting around for them to take the initiative.  If you keep doing the same thing over and over again the wrong way, eventually you will get really good at it wrong.  But, if you practice some thing the right way, it will feel good right and you will see improvement. 

I hope I can inspire my dancers to want to get better, to not take their plies or tendus for granted, to really use their body and muscles to develop the strength necessary to be a really good dancer.  I can only try to instill these things...but at least I am encouraging to learn to really dance versus just learning steps.  Anyone can battement or pirouette, but not anyone can do it with the right alignment and body placement designed to protect the body and create the most aesthetically pleasing line possible.  It is much harder to get your dancers to do a correct grand jete then to just let them flick it and wack it out....

I say this because in the dance world (ie. competition world of dance) it seems as if dancers are learning steps and choreography that appears to be done correctly however, they have no body placement or any idea that they are lacking it.  The core training of the dancers is gone and yet the steps are getting harder, more turns, higher leaps, insane tricks that cause injuries in 13 year olds.  A 13 year old should not have a reoccurring injury.  At this rate these kids will be cripple by the time they are in their mid twenties.  Let's not forget the true technique of dance, the body placement, the conditioning and training of the muscles.  This cannot be forgotten or missed....it is an injustice to the dancers and the art form it self.

Dance Studio Marketing: Staying Competitive Through the Internet

Dance studio marketing is a topic of interest to many studio owners and managers today. Operating a dance studio, just like any other business, requires a lot of hard work and determination. Internet marketing has been taking on an increased role in many of the studios' marketing programs in recent years due to its lower cost and higher levels of reach as compared to direct mail.

Studio managers have a wide array of dance advertising to choose from in the quest to stay competitive and reach more customers . These include operating a website incorporating SEO, utilizing social media marketing, sending out email promotions, writing articles about the dance studio, and running banner ads on websites relevant to dancing.

Another approach to entertainment marketing is to hire an SEO firm. SEO stands for search engine optimization. This is a tactic whereby a website, through the use of rich keywords and phrases, achieves a higher ranking in the results sections of the major search engines. Higher rankings will equate to more site hits , which hopefully will translate to more conversions. Dance studio managers can consult with an SEO firm to help out with this difficult and technical task. It should be noted that SEO must be joined with website content that is of the highest caliber and constantly updated. Without fresh and updated content, SEO service alone will not be effective.

In addition to operating a website incorporating SEO, a dance studio manager can use the various social media networks to promote his or her dance studio. Social networking websites contain millions of fresh leads for marketers, and it is possible to target extremely specific demographics through such media. For instance, dancers within a certain age group who are interested in ballet could be targeted. In addition to the many fresh and targeted leads that social media sites are capable of providing, it is also cost efficient to promote dance studio activities on them. Social networking websites continue to experience rapid growth and are a relatively new phenomenon, which makes them an attractive vehicle from which to promote dance-related activities.

Next, owners of dance studios can send out emails as part of their marketing plans. Emails can also be sent to current studio customers and prospects. On top of making sure that the emails are sent out to the appropriate lists, care has to be taken to ensure that effective email subject lines, text, and images are used. There are so many emails already flooding' peoples inboxes, and it is critical that emails stand out from the competition. Furthermore, there are rules to follow to ensure that emails do not end up in their recipients' spam folders. Some tips to avoid spam folders include not using exclamation points in the subject line and not utilizing the word free anywhere in the promotional text.

Studio managers can also write articles about their dance studio that contain hyperlinks to their companies website within the articles. These articles can be distributed to various article websites throughout the Internet. Such article sites are accessed by thousands of people. Well-written articles furthermore have staying power and can be passed on to a constant source of new leads. When people read the articles, they can click on the hyperlinks and visit the studios website.

Last but not least, studio owners can place banner ads hyperlinking to the studio's website on targeted sites. The intent of course would be for people to click on the banner ads and then hopefully sign up for dance lessons. A dance magazine, for example, would be a good place to purchase banner ads promoting the studio.

In conclusion, dance studio owners have increasingly relied on Internet marketing to promote their businesses and increase registration. Some of the advertising activities that they have been engaging in include operating a website incorporating SEO, utilizing social media marketing, sending out email promotions, writing articles about the dance studio, and running banner ads on websites relevant to dancing.

Improvisation Inspiration

I took a really cool improvisation dance class today with dancers that are less experienced and I felt very inspired after.  The way that they moved was more "pedestrian" like however, sometimes I find that to be the most interesting and unique.  As a dancer, when you are training your body for all of those years, sometimes the will to let go and just be natural can get lost.  These dancers were younger than I, but their readiness to try anything was so cool to watch.  It reminds me of why I dance and I hope some of their natural feeling rubbed off on me...

Dance is the only art of which we ourselves are the stuff of which it is made.  ~Ted Shawn, Time, 25 July 1955

A DANCE, ROCK MUSIC & ART tribute to Pink Floyd Volusica County Daytona Beach Summer 2010

Another Brick In The Wall


July 9 & 10th

A DANCE, ROCK MUSIC & ART tribute to Pink Floyd
Volusia County Summer 2010


Volusia County’s resident professional dance company, Surfscape Contemporary Dance Theatre, presents “Another Brick in the Wall” at The Coliseum on July 9th & 10th. Back by popular demand, this rock opera features a full-scale professional dance performance and highlights live music and ideas from Pink Floyd’s, The Wall. Dance enthusiasts and rock music lovers alike will enjoy an engaging evening of live music, light shows, videography, and professional dance. Presented in a night club setting, “Another Brick in the Wall” features the company’s highly trained dancers, compelling choreography by the company’s two founding Artistic Directors, Rachael Leonard and Kristin Polizzi, and music by Pink Floyd cover band, Earthbound Misfits. In addition, the multi-media show will include videography by Doug Ratcliff, artwork by Orlando's prodigal son-Morgan Steele, the Organic Lightshow and performance art by PeregoLive with music by Rob Real. Own a Perego original painting! His Pink Floyd's "the Wall"- inspired piece will be auctioned off at end of each show!


Although different from the company’s highly acclaimed repertory dance performances, Surfscape’s ground-breaking Pink Floyd tribute show is a "don't miss" event!..Although anyone is welcome to attend the performance, it is recommended for people over the age of 12.


Performances of “Another Brick in the Wall”, held at The Coliseum, are set for Friday, July 9th at 7:00pm and Saturday, July 10th at 7:00p.m. Tickets are $20 for general admission and $15 for students/youth and can be purchased through the SCDT box office: 386-366-5108.


In addition, the company will perform new choreography this fall/winter.


For more information about SCDT, please phone 386-233-4885
or log on to http://www.surfscapedance.org for photos and a calendar of events.


To see PeregoLIVE videos checkout- http://www.youtube.com/user/ArtArmyFILMS

New Choreography Reel Shannon Johnson Thomas

Hey guys!! Check out my new Choreography Reel! I will be editing and adding more choreography to it soon but, am excited in the mean time!









http://www.dancebrought2u.com