CALLERLAB KnowledgeBase

Welcome to the keynote address for the 66^th National Square
Dance Convention here in Cincinnati. I want to thank you for coming.
My name is Eric Henerlau, and I live near San Francisco, CA. I’ve
been calling for nearly 40 years, and I travel extensively. I also have
an active home program where I teach multiple new dancer classes every year.

Today I was asked to talk about what’s right with square
dancing. What a great way to talk about this wonderful activity!
It’s so easy to focus on the negatives, to complain, and to
tell you all the reasons why square dancing is in decline. So many
of them we have heard time and time again. However, most people
don’t like to listen to others complain about a problem just to
complain. It drains their energy.

What people like to hear are ideas and positive responses. People
like to hear what’s good and right. It lifts their spirits and
helps them move forward in the face of challenges. So today I’m
going to talk about some of those challenges in a way that we can
meet and overcome them. I’m going to share a vision of what
square could look like in the future. And finally, I’m going
to give you some ideas of how you can attract more people in to
square dancing and build your club!

When I started calling, square dance clubs were ubiquitous. New clubs
were formed and occasionally other clubs folded, and I never paid
much attention to the overall health of the activity… until
about 15 years ago. That’s when I really started to see a
decline, not only in clubs and dances, but also in callers teaching
classes. The inevitability of square dancing continuing forever
didn’t seem so inevitable. When I talked to existing dancers,
they would start listing all the reasons why they thought square
dancing was in decline. Most people seemed to be resigned to the
state of affairs, as if nothing could change the direction. They
complained they couldn’t get younger people to try square
dancing, or that the Internet or videos or two working parents or
(fill in the blank) were turning people away from classes. However,
all of these things were really symptoms of other more fundamental
issues. Here are the issues that I see we face and some ways we can
overcome them:

• Communicating
  value. Square dancing has so many positive attributes: fun,
  exercise, and social connection just to name a few. The combination
  of these things is unique in square dancing. We need to let people
  know the great benefits of square dancing. We need to have them
  feel it’s worth their while and their money to try this
  activity. However, we often advertise square dancing in terms that
  emphasize “cheap” or “free” in big letters.
  If we made all square dancing free, do you think people would be
  lining up at the door to join in? Probably not. People value what
  they pay for. Psychologists and economists tell us that if we pay
  money for a product, we value that product to the level of the money
  we pay. The more we invest in the product financially, the more
  likely we will support and promote the product. Let’s set the
  value of our product (square dancing) to be commensurate with the
  joy we get out of the activity. Valuing our product fairly leads us
  to the next challenge we face.

• Setting
  realistic financial expectations. Halls cost money and callers
  need to earn money. Dues and dance fees that haven’t changed
  in the past 20 years are not keeping up with the real cost of
  living. Compare costs of entertainment in your area. What does a
  movie cost? What does a set of ballroom dancing lessons cost? How
  about a set of tennis lessons? Are your dance fees in line with
  other entertainment options such as a movie or bowling? Some clubs
  have done a good job with adjusting dues and dance fees to match
  expenses. These clubs usually have a treasurer who is good with
  numbers and can calculate what the club needs to keep afloat. Have
  honest club meetings to discuss finances. Setting realistic budgets
  can be empowering, and those who really enjoy this activity will
  find ways to make the finances work. These people usually have
  great attitudes towards the club.

• Building
  the club’s attitude. If the club’s energy is low,
  or members feel burned out, or if the existing dancers have little
  tolerance for new dancers, the club is struggling. Dancers may be
  going through the motions of club activities without the enthusiasm
  they once had. When this is the case, identify your members who
  have the strongest vision and call a meeting. Have these leaders
  talk about the things that make the club fun. Emphasize the value
  of new faces in the squares and what these new people will bring.
  Talk about the future of the club in one, two, and five years out.
  Inspire them to look for ideas and elicit support from the rest of
  the club. Attitude is changeable, and it starts with the leaders
  who “own” square dancing.

• Making
  more “owners” and fewer “renters”.
  Some people participate in life as a “renter”, that is,
  paying for a service or good while they want it, then leaving that
  provider whenever they want. The whole square dancing activity can
  be looked at as a provider. However, square dancing doesn’t
  happen by itself. Square dancing is a collective effort of many
  people. People with a “renters” attitude give less
  towards the support and maintenance of square dancing. They don’t
  “own” square dancing or take responsibility for the
  long-term health of the activity. They get what they want until it
  doesn’t suit them anymore, and then complain to the club or
  quit.

  On the other hand, dancers with an “owners”
  attitude see that they are responsible for the condition of the
  club. They realize that without action on their part, the club will
  diminish. Owners take initiative and encourage others to
  participate fully. Owners understand the importance of social glue
  that keeps the club strong.

  The first step in making more
  owners is to have people self-evaluate. Can they be counted on to
  step up when needed and take on some leadership? Strong clubs
  develop efficient leadership in dancers.

• Having a
  lean and effective board. How often have we heard that
  dancers don’t want to serve on the board because they don’t
  want to get involved in the politics? How about board
  members who feel they are more important just because they are on
  the board? These two attitudes are mutually exclusive, and it
  causes some board members to serve for years, while other members
  never volunteer. There is a need for administration of a club to
  keep it running smoothly. The club needs to choose callers and
  halls, advertise for classes, decide details of dances and run them.
  Is your governing body right-sized? A good board is trim and has
  only the offices it needs to run the club efficiently. A smaller
  board has fewer positions to fill.

  Make sure your board
  positions are clearly defined with a minimum of duties. Ask members
  to volunteer for the board for just a one-year commitment. Hold
  board meetings only when necessary, perhaps only four or five times
  a year. Have clear, purpose-driven agendas that make a productive
  meeting. Keep the focus on necessary club business and avoid petty
  or tangential issues. If you do this, everyone will feel the work
  is worthwhile instead of wasteful. Be sure to solicit input from
  your caller.

• Including
  the caller on the board. If your club has a regular caller, use
  him or her for advice and guidance. The caller sees many things
  from the stage that dancers don’t see and is a thread of
  continuity in the board when club leaders change. The caller
  usually has experience with other clubs and their methods. The
  caller can draw from the body of knowledge that is shared with other
  callers and provide counsel and expertise.

• Embracing
  the attitude of growth. Some people believe that when their
  club reaches a certain size they no longer need to grow. They
  believe they are big enough, and that any more people would be a
  problem (hall size, personal connections, etc.) Many years ago the
  president of a club I called for dismissed the idea of a beginner
  class because the club had 40 members and that, according to him,
  was big enough. He didn’t want to bother with growing the
  club any bigger until we lost members. In reality, we must always
  focus on growing. Marketing and recruiting new dancers
  should be a permanent year-round activity. There should never be a
  time when we decide we have enough dancers. During any dance
  season, a club is either growing or shrinking. No club is ever
  static. The moment we stop efforts to grow is the moment we start
  dwindling.

• Believing
  there are plenty of people interested in square dancing. There
  are 300 million people living in the United States. Almost all of
  them don’t square dance – yet! This is a huge pool of
  untapped potential dancers. Some club members who have scarcity
  thinking believe there is only a small group of people who might be
  interested in learning to square dance. They find themselves in
  competition with other groups in attracting new dancers. Once a new
  beginner has started dancing, the club may be reluctant to encourage
  the person to dance with other groups for fear of losing him or her.
  To these club leaders, the new dancers are a scarce commodity that
  must be protected from other groups. Scarcity thinkers have a fixed
  mindset.

  In contrast, leaders who have abundance thinking
  believe there is an endless supply of people who would like to try
  square dancing. They see that for every personality type, age, sex,
  and demographic in their club there are hundreds more just like them
  that want to join in the fun. They never stop finding ways to reach
  out to those groups of people. Abundance thinkers believe the
  supply of possible new dancers is unlimited. Abundance thinkers
  have a growth mindset.

These challenges can be worked through and overcome. The way we see and experience square dancing may change as a result. Here are some
examples of what the future of the activity could look like:

• A new group of callers steps up. They may not have all the skills of seasoned
  callers, but new and existing dancers connect with them and support
  them in their efforts.

• Groups get creative about where they dance. Beyond the customary church halls
  and schools, groups find they can dance in vacant stores, people’s
  garages or living rooms, or on patios and decks when weather
  permits. In exchange for advertising, groups get local businesses
  to sponsor them or provide dance venues.

• More Basic and Mainstream groups are created, giving dancers more options for
  dancing. Instead of pushing dancers through the programs, callers
  find more ways to use the Basic and Mainstream calls creatively, and
  dancers go to the dances because they are fun!

• Square dance clubs partner with line dance, contra dance, and other dance groups,
  or square dance evenings are shared with other non-dance activities.
  People will come to square dance and do other things, so less
  emphasis is placed exclusively on square dancing. Square dancing is
  just part of an evening’s entertainment. People create clubs
  that hold a variety of social activities, with perhaps only some
  members square dancing.

• Callers make more use of technology to reach remote dancers. Callers use Skype
  or social media to call to groups too remote to have a caller.
  Recordings of teaching modules or mini-dances are sent to remote
  groups for practice.

• The music and sound systems become more contemporary. The speakers and amplifiers
  are on par with what is used by professional DJs. Spectators
  recognize the music as current songs from the radio.

How will these changes occur? There two possible paths. The first is
that forward-thinking clubs will see the future and embrace the
coming changes. They will realize they must adapt to today’s
society to keep square dancing relevant. They will modify their club
policies about everything from dress code to lesson requirements to
callers’ participation. They will expand their idea of what a
square dance club is to include other activities.

The other possibility is that the existing clubs will continue as they
are and eventually fold. The callers and dancers will be content
with stasis, and eventually the clubs will shrink and cease
operations. In their place, new groups will be formed with new
callers and dancers who don’t have the historical context.
These groups will bring a new paradigm for square dancing without
having the institutional thinking of the legacy groups. Culture and
style will be newly created, and a new art form will arise. Either
of these paths will involve getting new dancers.

How can we get more people into square dancing? This is the question
we’ve been asking ourselves for a long time. We know there is
no silver bullet; if there were, we would have discovered it by now
and the halls would be overflowing. We do know that
marketing, promotion, recruitment, and retention take effort, and
that our results will be directly proportional to the effort applied.
However, even the best efforts can yield poor results if we are not
communicating effectively. Achieving better results starts with an
understanding of who we are and what we are willing to change in
order to adapt. Here are my suggestions to start the process:

• Decide
  what you are going to offer. What are you offering to people?
  Fun or long-term commitment to an unknown activity? Basic,
  Mainstream, or Plus destinations? Social community or academic
  lessons? If what you’re offering isn’t working,
  consider changing it. People who don’t square dance are not
  keen on making a long-term commitment to an activity they don’t
  know if they will enjoy. Connect with people on a social level.
  Build relationships around fun, and then include square dancing as
  part of the relationship.

• Target
  your audience age group. People generally socialize with other
  people who are less than five years older or younger than they are.
  If you want to bring in younger dancers, target your marketing
  efforts to people who are five years younger than the average age of
  your club. If the club’s average age is 70, don’t try
  to recruit 30 or 40 year olds – they won’t be
  interested. As an activity, we’ve been aging up over several
  decades. Aging down will be a gradual process for many existing
  clubs. It will take effort and focus. In some cases, entirely new
  clubs may need to be formed with a younger demographic.

• Focus on
  your club’s personality and strengths. Who are you as a
  club? Are you mostly working-age adults or retirees? Singles or
  couples? Do you all attend the same church? Are you traditionalists
  or casual in your approach to dancing? Does your club do only
  square dancing or also include other social activities? The culture
  of a group tends to indicate the type of people it will attract. If
  you want to attract a different demographic, have the club discuss
  the changes needed in its culture. Different groups will attract
  different kinds of people.

• Find ways
  to be more inclusive. Does your club welcome singles? People
  of different skin colors or religions? People with different sexual
  orientation? Just like other activities, many square dance clubs
  have unspoken cultural attitudes that set the social norms for the
  group. These attitudes can be helpful when recruiting people who
  fit the same norms as your group, but they can also be a barrier to
  others who would like to participate but don’t feel like they
  fit in. Look for areas in your club’s culture that may make
  new dancers feel less welcome and discuss what you can do to change
  these areas.

• Don’t
  be everything to everyone! A respected business leader once
  said, “If you’re everything to everyone, you’re
  nothing to anyone.” This holds just as true for square
  dancing as it does for business. We all like to say that square
  dancing is for everyone regardless of age or ability. It’s a
  great thing that so many people can participate in this activity,
  but when we talk about square dancing and offering it to the public,
  we need to narrow our focus to our target audience. Understand
  whom you are trying to attract. A person who hears that square
  dancing is for anyone, and anyone can square dance, is the same
  person who thinks “I’m not just anyone, I have special
  qualities and interests, so this is not for me”. Instead,
  consider focusing on a demographic that is in sync with your group:

  • People who want a social activity

  • People who want exercise

  • People who are interested in trying something unusual or different

  • People who like puzzles and games

  • People who like to travel

  • People who are single or whose partners don’t dance

Even though you are focusing on your target audience, avoid
exclusionary practices that would turn away a potential dancer that
is not part of your target. For example, if you are primarily a
couples-oriented club and a single dancer shows up for lessons, have
a plan to accommodate that person. That person may be the next
enthusiast in the group who contributes to the activity. Find a
place for everyone who expresses an interest.

• Rethink
  Plus or even Mainstream as a destination for new dancers. Last
  year Jerry Story gave an impassioned address about the problems with
  pushing people through too many calls too quickly. He advocated the
  Club 50 program and other similar programs. Some areas of the
  country are experimenting with the 12-week condensed teaching order
  and other smaller lists. Both the Basic and Mainstream programs
  have plenty of variety in their calls, and a skilled caller can use
  these programs to make an entertaining dance for everyone. He or
  she can make the choreography simple and easy or complex and
  challenging without using extra calls. Consider a destination
  program that is shorter and easier to learn, allowing new dancers to
  reach a level of proficiency more quickly.

• Shift the
  focus from calls to people. We tend to emphasize learning a
  bunch of calls to get through the list or program, just so we can
  learn the next set of calls on the next list, etc. Instead, your
  club could make its top priority meeting, socializing, and having
  fun. When the people are more important than the
  calls, groups thrive. New dancers feel more welcome and are more
  likely to return. Experienced dancers enjoy dancing with new people
  as much as being entertained or challenged by the caller.

• Redefine
  success. What is success in square dance lessons? What makes a
  beginner class worthwhile? How long must a new dancer continue
  dancing for you to consider the class a success? Some people
  believe that if the new dancers don’t stay square dancing for
  life then the class was not successful. What if a dancer learns to
  dance and continues dancing for a year or two and then leaves? Is
  that not a form of success? Are we expecting too much from people
  who don’t stay involved for a long period? While some people
  join the activity and do stay for a long time, others will enjoy
  dancing for a while, and then move on. If you consider that
  recruiting effort to be a failure because the person isn’t
  still dancing, then the club’s morale will be compromised.
  Alternatively, if you consider the class a success because there was
  a period of time when the people were in a square, then you can
  build on those efforts and tailor your program around those dancers.
  We all know that many dancers who stop dancing come back again at a
  later date. When this happens, be sure to keep that person on a
  follow up list for future classes or dances.

• Talk about
  what’s good about square dancing. Have a real discussion
  in your club. Underscore your strengths. What is it about your
  club that makes people want to return each week, each month, each
  year? People come for a reason, because square dancing fulfills
  something in their lives. Have your club members articulate those
  reasons. It will get them excited and inspire them to share with
  others who are not square dancing yet.

• Develop
  community service outreach. While square dancing is fun in
  itself, the people involved in the club can also make a difference
  in their local community. Probably some are already volunteering
  time or money to local non-profits. Is there a way to connect the
  club or local dancers with a non-profit or charity? Can you
  organize the club to contribute time or money to a charity and get
  some visibility for square dancing? Not only will your club feel
  good about what they are doing, but non-dancers can bond with club
  members on a different level. The more connections you can make
  with the public, the easier your class marketing efforts will be.

• Initiate
  cooperative marketing with clubs in your area. It takes a lot
  of effort for one club working independently to recruit new dancers.
  Instead of going it alone, talk to other local groups who want to
  grow. Working together, each club can leverage the others’
  skills, resources, and labor to attract people into dancing. The
  visibility of square dancing will increase exponentially. These
  efforts can be coordinated through your local association or
  federation. If your governing organization is not interested in a
  coordinated marketing effort (or other factors make doing so
  ineffective), then create an informal group of clubs who want to
  make a difference. Form small teams from each club who are willing
  to meet periodically to share ideas and work on joint projects.

• Experiment
  with different marketing techniques. There are many ways to
  advertise for your classes: flyers, postcards, newspapers, lawn
  signs, placemats, community outreach events, and Internet ads, just
  to name a few. Try as many as the club has energy and money to
  support. Track your return on investment, but don’t give up
  on any one method if you don’t see immediate results. What
  doesn’t work this time may work well next time.

• Think big,
  think new. Do you remember the children’s book The
  Little Engine That Could? The mantra that kept that engine
  going up the hill was “I think I can! I think I can!”
  The Little Engine took on the challenge of climbing the hill, and
  instead of letting her limitations stop her, she persevered with
  focus and commitment until she was successful. The Little Engine
  thought BIG and NEW. How can your club think bigger or in a newer
  way? What outrageous ideas can you come up with for building your
  club? When you embark on a new project, believe what you’re
  doing will work. Commit to your plans fully. The quickest way to
  failure is not having faith in your efforts. That
  subconscious message of “not believing” will undermine
  your work and almost certainly guarantee disappointment. Instead,
  commit and put the energy into your plans without hesitation.

• Think
  strategically. Where do you see the club in the future? Not
  just for your tenure in the activity, but beyond into the next
  generation of dancers? Do you have a goal for the club and its
  growth? Be willing to adapt to the 21^st century world for
  square dancing. Create a vision of your club at milestones in the
  future: 2018, 2020, and 2025. Make plans; think about what’s
  possible even if it seems impossible. Enroll other dancers
  in looking ahead.

• ALWAYS
  look ahead and avoid dwelling on the past. It doesn’t do
  any good to talk about how many squares there used to be at dances,
  how many dances were held, how big the beginner classes used to be,
  and the like. All this is just negative thinking. NO ONE likes to
  hear that yesterday was better than today. We all want to believe
  that today is great and that tomorrow will be even better.
  Suggesting anything different, whether or not it’s true, is a
  sure-fire way to discourage someone new to square dancing. That
  person will think he or she missed the glory days and start to take
  a dim view the current state of affairs. His or her dancing career
  may be shortened – after all, why learn an activity you
  perceive as dying? Instead, keep the focus on how great you can
  build on what you have: classes, activities, and fun. Inspire
  people to look forward to good times in the club, regardless of how
  many people are dancing.

• Recruit
  and support the next generation of callers. The activity cannot
  survive unless there are new callers coming up the ranks. Encourage
  every young dancer to call a tip or singing call. Create an
  environment that would foster the calling “bug” in
  someone. Encourage that person to go to an accredited callers
  school. Give him or her opportunities to call and teach. Enable
  these new callers by fully supporting their efforts. These people
  will be the leaders of tomorrow. Help cultivate them now!

• Support
  motivated club leaders. These people may or may not be on the
  board, but they are “movers and shakers,” people who are
  inspirational, have energy, and get things done. If they have an
  idea that would benefit the club, give them what they need to run
  with it. Let them lead the rest of the club in something new. Even
  if you’re not feeling like a leader, support the people in
  your group who have the energy and let them do the job.

• Partner
  with your local callers and callers association. If
  there are any restrictions on how your organizations can work
  together, remove the restrictions. Have dancers and callers serve
  together in organizations that promote square dancing. Form a tight
  teamwork relationship with your club caller. If you don’t
  have a club caller, enlist local callers whom you respect. Solicit
  their advice. Listen to the issues they see from their side of the
  microphone. Most callers have a vested interest in attracting and
  retaining dancers. They can see what works and what needs
  improvement, even if it’s not popular or goes against
  tradition. Be open to suggestions, and then partner together to
  create solutions.

• Involve
  the club caller financially. Structure the caller’s
  compensation to have some correlation with dance attendance. This
  makes the caller have a reason to attract as many people as possible
  to classes and dances. He or she is more motivated to teach and
  call in ways that retain the most dancers. Callers should take an
  active role in the club’s marketing efforts.

• Run more
  than one class per year. Running only one class each year is
  not very effective. The non-dancing public expects multiple entry
  points to any recreational activity. It’s very bad PR to tell
  a person interested in learning that he or she must wait 9, 10, or
  11 months before another class will be offered. It’s highly
  unlikely that person will return. Many groups have redesigned their
  teaching program and are successfully running multiple beginner
  classes each year. Experiment with multiple entry points and
  overlap the classes to allow the club members and new dancers to
  mix.

• Use
  technology. Technology is available in multiple forms to help
  you grow square dancing. If you are uncomfortable or unfamiliar
  with the variety of technologies in use, find someone in your group
  who can step in and do some of the work. Often the caller can help
  out as he or she may be using the various tools.

  • Website.
    If your club’s website is out of date, have someone volunteer
    to keep it updated. It’s a bad sign to visit a club’s
    homepage to find out about all the dances coming up in 2006…
    If you don’t have a website, get one! They cost from $0 to
    $1000, depending on how robust you want it. Several companies
    offer free websites and website tools in exchange for advertising
    on the side. The club’s homepage should be designed for the
    non-dancing public. When a visitor lands on the homepage, the site
    should communicate the social and fun aspects of the club, along
    with when the next class will start. All other club information
    and business can be on other parts of the site. The homepage is
    the most critical for a new prospect.

  • Facebook.
    Keep your Facebook page up to date with current and relevant club
    activities. Facebook and your club’s website are the
    public’s perception of who you are. Anyone considering
    joining your class or club will visit the website and Facebook page
    first – make sure they are attractive and inviting.

  • Email
    distribution lists. Use email group lists for communications
    within your club. Be clear, and concise with club communications
    so that everyone is fully informed. These emails strengthen social
    bonding. Your web hosting service may provide email groups; if
    not, Yahoo and Google both provide this service for free.

  • Google
    phone number. Get a unique phone number for your club that you
    can give out to people. Google offers phone numbers for free, and
    you can have any incoming call to that number redirected to a
    person who is designated to receive it. This allows the leadership
    in a club to change while still keeping the same club phone number.
    It also keeps personal phone numbers private.

  • Twitter/Snapchat/Instagram.
    You can use these to send out news and pictures about the club,
    club events, and recent activities.

  • Free or
    near-free online services. Use Craigslist, local “patch”
    news sites, meetup.com, etc.

  • Groupon,
    Living Social and other web-based coupons. Some clubs have had
    success in using promotional coupons through the Internet. Explore
    this avenue to see if it may work for your club.

  • Prospects
    database. Once you get a person who is interested in learning
    to square dance, capture that person’s name/email/city and
    phone number and put it in a database (spreadsheet or document).
    Use an email processing tool to send out email invitations to your
    prospects for upcoming classes.

  • Ads and
    keywords. Both Google and Facebook have abilities to promote
    your classes when people use certain keywords to search. Look for
    keywords that someone might enter that would make that person a
    square dance prospect. Bid on and buy those keywords, so that when
    a person enters them, your ad is displayed on the sidebar.

Finally, the most important thing you can do to grow your club: have
the right attitude!

• The number one key to success: Attitude. A club that truly wants to grow
  will find a way to grow. The members will generate enthusiasm that
  is infectious. People want to be around people who are happy and
  having fun. Capture that attitude and do whatever is necessary to
  bring people in the door. Some groups say they want a class but
  then can’t get enough beginners to justify it. Other clubs
  run successful classes and grow. What’s the difference
  between these groups? ATTITUDE! Those groups who are excited and
  happy about coming to a dance create an energy that attracts others.
  They exude fun and friendliness that make others happy. They don’t
  have to remember to smile – they are already smiling!

Summary:

So, what’s right with square dancing? Every person might have
a different way that square dancing appeals to him or her:

• Social activity with friends

• Community

• Exercise

• Mental stimulation, brain exercise

• Respite from the anxiety in the world today

There are so many ways square dancing is the right activity right
now. We all know that people would love this activity if they tried
it. The call for action is now. Get the whole club involved. Make
it fun. Seek out and find success stories from other clubs and
callers. There is a wealth of information on the Internet on
marketing ideas; however, resources are useless without action.
Inspire and motivate your club to take action. Keep emphasizing all
the reasons why square dancing is right for everyone. Your classes
will be more successful, your club will grow, and square dancing will
continue to be the best entertainment for people all over the world.