Dance & Social Media!@theballetbag!

•  Blogging has transformed journalism in the last 10 years!

•  Blogs are breaking important news!

•  Some have become mainstream media companies (Mashable, HuffPo, etc)!

•  Dead or alive? Their functions are increasingly being fulfilled by other media (FB, Instagram, etc). Yet, good blogs (those w/ good content to deliver) still alive and kicking!

http://cargocollective.com/jaskinder/The-History-of-Blogging-Infographic!

Trends!

Tech Talk!•  How much of a techie are you?!

•  What’s your budget?!

•  How much control do you want on functionality and design?!

•  Will you be using non standard tools?!

Easy Blogging!

via ghost.org!

(Paid)!

What’s your budget?!•  Cost of platform/design!

•  Cost of domain!

•  Cost of hosting!

Custom domain & custom design: from US$12/year (depending on type of domain)!

Hosting in your own space: around US$100/year!

Finding a Voice!

•  Think about your ideal reader: what does he/she like? Write it down!

•  Write as if you were writing to this person!

Creating Good Content!

•  Your analysis should be original !

•  Copy should be engaging, coherent in structure & well researched!

•  Mix it up: lighthearted/think pieces!

•  Don’t forget the layout: people judge the covers!

Mixing it Up!

Degree of Objectivity!

•  How personal with dancers, choreographers, etc.!

•  Bloggers are often conflicted!

•  A post or a tweet is forever (equivalent to talking about it in a public forum)!

•  Beware your inner fanboy/fangirl!

Multiplatform!

•  Why? To build an audience and drive traffic!

•  Twitter: breaking news, links, discussion & POVs!

•  Facebook: image sharing, procrastination & competitions!

•  Tumblr/Instagram: images, video, images!

Top Tips!

•  Display your social media icons prominently!

•  Use your blog name consistently across!

•  Be generous & share content (esp. FB!)!

•  Play ball (NB: time considerations)!

•  Short & sweet, but authentic!

Images: what to share!

•  Ballet is visual, so photography is a great asset!

•  Unfortunately difficult to source & lots of bad pics out there!

•  Dancers are very sensitive!

•  Important to pick good images: influence & educate!

Video: what to share!

•  YouTube footage: often bootlegs so quality not great (find favorite channels & sub!)!

•  We often share links via Twitter / FB!

•  As with images, it is a matter of taste. People appreciate being pointed out to good content!