Marketing = Recruiting + Retention
by: William W. Gourley
If providing a quality product was all it took to survive in the business world there would a lot fewer commercials on television and billboards along the highways. Business understands the competitive environment in which it exists and spends billions of dollars each year to promote products. We are constantly bombarded with the benefits of a certain vacuum sweeper, the superior taste of one cola over another, the safety features of a car, etc. The consumer continually needs to be sold on the value of the product, the benefits of using the product, and reminded of what the product has done for the individual. Before, during and after the sale the consumer must be constantly convinced of the value of the product. Marketers call this TOM – Top of Mind. Their hope is when you think of a product theirs comes to mind first.
Music educators face the same challenges that any business does in surviving in a competitive environment. Our customers are the students, parents, communities, faculty and administrators who we encounter each day. Competing with us for students’ time, parents’ and community dollars, and the value of music are a plethora of academic requirements and elective options, escalating educational costs amidst shrinking budgets, and a plea for more emphasis on academics to name a few. To complicate things, these issues are constantly being talked about in the news, and school board and PTO meetings giving them TOM status. Consequently, when budgets or curriculums are discussed these issues gain priority over non TOM products such as music education.
As music educators we understand the rewards of expressing ourselves through music performance, joining with others in an ensemble to recreate the composer’s art and the spiritual benefits we derive from playing our instrument. We understand that the only way to fully appreciate music’s value is to experience it through performance. The survival of music depends on our ability to pass this experience on to as many people as possible. To do this we must market our product in order to draw people to it and continue marketing “after the sale” so people remain aware of the benefits they are deriving from music.
This does not have to be as daunting a task as most people perceive. With so many resources devoted to advocacy all one needs to do is get on a web site and download an article every now and then, obtain an advocacy kit from the American Music Conference, SupportMusic.com, or any of the instrument manufacturers and put it in the hands of your parent group along with any number of simple strategies.
With this in mind here are a few ideas you can put in place this year.
Get a Publicist - Find a top journalism student (they don’t have to be from the band/orchestra) or parent and have them research advocacy articles or write short (150-250 words) articles about what the music program is doing. Put an article in every administrative school publication. Elementary, middle and high school principals and superintendents are always asking faculty for articles for newsletters. At least one article should mention that the students will have a chance to take band/orchestra and invite them to attend a concert or stop by the music booster table at open houses and parent teacher conferences. Include an advocacy article at every concert inserted in the program.
A Picture is Worth 1000 Words - Include pictures (close-ups of two or three students are best) with the articles or just with a small caption (a sentence or two). On game days when athletes and cheerleaders are wearing their jersey or uniforms take pictures (close-up) of them in rehearsal. A few words such as, “Trumpeter and Rocket linebacker, Joe Smith, prepares for Einstein High School Band’s/Orchestra’s Halloween Concert.”
Be Where the Parents Are – Have a presence at every elementary or middle school open house, parent teacher conference and elementary music performance. This can be as simple as having a music parent at an information table with advocacy materials or a simple brochure with a few of those pictures you took of students having fun playing their instruments. A looped video presentation can be effective playing the Tim Lautzenheiser tape included in the Einstein Kit (available from NAMM.org, or SupportMusic.com) or find someone who can put together a 4-6 slide PowerPoint presentation with pictures and a few bullet points from advocacy articles or text you create. It does not have to be elaborate just quick, clean and eye catching.
Get Their Eye – As you go through your day signs are everywhere. Ask the elementary music teacher to put up a poster promoting playing in the band/orchestra. Two or three weeks prior to recruiting put posters in the classrooms of the grade you start beginners, the cafeteria, the hallway and by the administrative offices and wherever parents will be visiting. Again, just a couple words or catch phrase (Uncle Sam Wants You) is all you need. Again, incorporating the pictures you took of your school’s “celebrities” playing their horns with other students are great messages.
Link It – Most instrumental programs have some sort of web site. Ask the elementary and middle school principals to put a link to your site on their page. Consider links on your page to sites such as: www.themusicedge.com, www.supportmusic.com , university band and orchestra sites, local professional symphonies and community bands or orchestras. You may even ask if the football and basketball coaches would link the band site to theirs since the band is a part of their events. At least try to get a picture of the marching band and pep band on their sites.
The degree of effectiveness of a marketing campaign is debatable but one thing is undeniable, the corporate world is spending billions of dollars on marketing to survive in competitive markets. In the educational environment there are many forces proclaiming the need for “academic emphasis” and very few promoting the value of music as part of this emphasis. It must our mission to maintain a Top of Mind mentality in the community so every child has the opportunity to experience the magic of music making.