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Ballet Nouveau Colorado PR Campaign Alanna Eaton, Madison Strouse, and Shannon Willison
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Table of Contents
Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………….. 3
Basis of Research………………………………………………………………………….. 4
Situational Analysis……………………………………………………………………….. 4
Organizational Analysis…………………………………………………………………… 6
Internal Environment (including story audit)……………………………………… 8
Public Perception………………………………………………………………….. 10
External Environment……………………………………………………………... 11
Analyzing Publics…………………………………………………………………………. 12
Positioning Statement……………………………………………………………………... 14
Goals………………………………………………………………………………………. 15
Objectives…………………………………………………………………………………. 15
Strategy……………………………………………………………………………………. 16
Proactive Strategy…………………………………………………………………. 16
Spokesperson……………………………………………………………………… 16
Endorsers……………………………………………………….............................. 17
Rational Appeal……………………………………………………………………. 18
Emotional Appeal…………………………………………………………………. 19
Love & Virtue Appeals……………………………………………………………. 20
Tactics……………………………………………………………………………………... 21
Budget, Schedule, & Evaluation…………………………………………………………... 25
References page…………………………………………………………………………… 28
Appendices (see tabs)……………………………………………………………………… 29-33
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Succeeding this quick summary is an integrated communications plan for Ballet Nouveau
Colorado (BNC); specifically, the school of Ballet Nouveau Colorado. This plan provides a
thorough process of ways to approach the key publics in order to enhance results and fulfill the
goals of BNC. Their goals are:
1. To increase their annual revenue.
2. To increase the enrollment rate at their school; specifically for adult classes.
3. To increase awareness of the school of BNC
These goals, alongside our awareness and action objectives for our key publics, are explained in
further detail in the STRATEGY section of this plan.
In the FORMATIVE RESEARCH section, our key publics are identified as women ages 50-
75, families with children, and disabled students; all key publics are located with in the North
Denver/Colorado area. This section will further explain why these are the chosen key publics,
and why the location is specific to the goals of BNC.
The TACTICS section provides a detailed list of how we plan to reach our publics through
specific PR tactics. Tactics include interpersonal communications, organizational media, news media, and Advertising/promotional media. Here is a small example of our central tactics:
1. Offering a free week to all new participants and mandatory survey for new
students and current students.
2. Publicity stunts include flash mobs on Pearl Street in Boulder and the Fourth of
July parade in Broomfield.
3. Entering the school of BNC into the Boulder Creek Festival, here they will do a
performance and reach a large group of our key publics.
4. Social media; creating new uses for each BNC’s facebook, twitter, and blog
outlets. For example, making their blog specific to the school and interactions
with those who go to the school. A personalized blog containing two way
communications with the school, instructors, parents, and students.
After these sections, we have mapped out a comprehensive SCHEDULE for the success of this
campaign. Within this section we have charted the costs of each proposed tactic in accordance to
the allotted BUDGET. Following the budget we communicate a plan to EVALUATE the
success of the campaign. This includes measuring revenue, enrollment rates, and online
engagement.
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1. Basis of Research
In organizing our formative research, we focused on primary and secondary research
outlets. As a result, we have come to a better understanding of what BNC is all about. On
February 9, 2011, Alanna met with Ashley Burns, Communication Manager for BNC. From this
interview, our group gathered information pertaining to their performances, afterschool
programs, and community engagement activities. After the interview, we moved on to secondary
research. Here we focused primarily on the BNC website and their social media outlets,
including twitter, facebook, and their personal blog. BNC has been recognized and printed in
major Colorado publications; The Denver Post, Denver Business Journal, The Denver Magazine,
The Gazette, and more. These publications gave us a strong understanding on the community’s
perception of BNC. Following this secondary research and as well as further communication
with the organization, we aimed to focus primarily on the school of BNC in this campaign. We
conducted a small survey and gave it to current adult students at the school to get feedback about
the school and classes. (See appendices for survey)
2. Situational Analysis
BNC is a non-profit organization founded in 1992. BNC’s company, school, and
community programs have the mission of enriching lives through innovation in dance. The
company’s vision is to be recognized as an international leader in education, development, and
presentation of dance. BNC has become known for presenting work that is artistically rich and
accessible. The company values collaboration, creativity, and innovation in all of their pursuits.
In relation to the marketing and PR, BNC aims to build awareness about the full picture of who
they are as an organization.
Currently, they feel they do a good job of creating PR interest about their professional
productions but, are lacking interest with their school and community programs. For the school,
BNC’s biggest goal is to build more awareness about the vast variety of dance and fitness classes
they offer that reach far beyond ballet. They have many specialized programs for toddlers
through senior citizens that need more recognition.
BNC serves more than 300 students every year and is committed to every student
regardless of age, education, or financial status. The school provides a professional environment
for students of all ages. BNC offers classes not just in ballet, but also in pointe, jazz, modern,
contemporary, and Pilates. If a student cannot afford to pay for classes, BNC will provide
scholarships and tuition to those who cannot pay themselves.
There are also many community programs BNC offers that serve more than 20,000
people annually. BNC has an elementary partnership program that brings year long arts
experience to four public schools that are located in high-need neighborhoods. BNC offers 60
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performances every year in various elementary schools to entertain children and get them
interested in dance and theatre. These performances are an interactive way to get people
involved with the company. BNC has many community partners that help to fund and sponsor
community events. BNC partners are Kansas City Ballet, Lighthouse Writers Workshop, Cleo
Parker Robinson Dance, Oregon Ballet Theatre, The Colorado Ballet, The Washington Ballet,
and many others.
BNC wants help bringing more awareness about all of these programs and also about the
level of quality they provide. The situation with the school right now is that not enough people
understand that BNC is trying to provide people of all ages with a place to harness their
creativity though dance. It allows people to express themselves in an innovative way furthering
the organizations vision to become a leader in the facilitation and presentation of dance. Many
students within the organization go on to be students in some of the top ballet and dance
academies around the country. Recently, two of their advanced ballet students were accepted to
one of the countries’ top dance programs at Harid Conservatory in Florida. Doing more
promotions and advertising about their events could bring more students to BNC and help
stimulate revenue.
Ashley Burns aims to use PR to help generate more students to come from around the
country to BNC’s advanced summer intensive program. She would like students on a local level
to come as well. She wants to get students of all ages and ability to come to BNC’s programs,
even if it’s just for their adult fitness classes. BNC needs this PR to help generate revenue.
With their school and community programs, their goal with PR is to build awareness and
find people, corporations, and businesses that want to donate to the cause.
Overall, BNC wants more awareness and recognition from people/businesses around
their area that can help. Every year $70,000 worth of tuition is given to students who cannot
afford the school otherwise. There are 4,700 classes offered in 1 annual year. BNC offers free
dance and fitness weeks as well as various summer camps and programs. PR will be used to
raise awareness about all BNC has to offer and all the good it brings to the community.
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3. Organizational Analysis
Strengths
Performances
Current PR for the company alone.
Community engagement- Serving
more than 20,000 individuals
annually.
Elementary school programs
Free ticket programs
After school dance classes
Pre-post production discussions
(allows community to engage with
professional dancers).
Website – informative, contains
testimonials, emotional appeal is
good.
Facebook page- very active, and
contains frequent updates
The summer “free week” event
Weakness
Twitter posts
Not focusing on the school
programs as much as the company.
Outdoor marketing (flyers and
posters)
The BNC dance school site- more
informative
Awareness- people don’t know who
they are besides a dance company.
Blog is exactly the same as their
Twitter account- needs some
spicing up.
Opportunity
More cross partnerships
Gaining awareness of all their
community engagement.
The school of BNC – has great
offers, like a summer intensives
Threats
Their tight budget with
marketing (internal)
Staff capacity (internal)
Free after school programs that
already exist
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Critically speaking, BNC is an established organization. They are a well-rounded, not for
profit organization that impacts the fitness and well-being of their target community. With their
after school programs and their free services, BNC does a good job accommodating a varied
amount of incomes and lifestyles. They have strong social media activity (Facebook) and their
website is well branded. The website contains tutorials that have a strong emotional appeal.
BNC has a lot of potential that they are not taking advantage of. There is a lot of opportunity
for the organization once they reach out to the specific audiences and markets they are trying to
incorporate into their school. They have their social media sites set up but, there is a lot to be
done with them in terms of personalization, and two way communications with followers. They
also have a lot of events and performances throughout the year; gaining awareness for them will
create opportunity for the school and will help fill up audiences, increasing revenue.
camp, and Day Off Day Camp
Enhance the blog
Enhance twitter
End of year Gala
Target audience beyond
mothers
Appeals to younger girls vs.
boys and girls.
Other dance schools- there are
over 50 dance studios in the
market they are reaching.
Other well known dance
companies in Denver. The
Colorado Ballet.
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BNC has two key weaknesses. First, their outdoor marketing is weak; they’re currently
relying on posters and flyers about the company, not the school. They want to increase
awareness, and part of doing that would be improving their outdoor display. Second, they are
using the same posts for both their twitter and blog accounts. This depicts a lack of interest in the
use of social media, even if that is not the case. We want to give specific roles to each of the
social media outlets, this way they reach out to the consumers that are active on those specific
outlets. Last is their website, though their branding is good, it represents BNC’s dance company
more than BNC’s school. Since the school is what brings in the most revenue, they should make
it more prominent on the site.
With BNC being a small organization, they are facing a few threats, some of which are
internal. First, they do not have a large staff; this can put strain on the time it takes to implement
a solid PR campaign. Internally, they are also dealing with a very small communications budget;
this makes the campaign less malleable because it has to be budgeted tightly. Externally, BNC
offers free after school dance classes, but they are still competing with other afterschool
programs. After school dance classes seem to appeal more to younger girls, verses other
programs that appeal to both sexes. On top of that, there are many other dance studios in their
area. We have to make our target see why BNC is the dance studio to choose. The last real threat
would be other ballet companies, such as The Colorado Ballet, who have similar community
engagement programs. Currently, BNC is ranked number three when it comes to ballet
companies in Denver, following Cleo Parker Robinson, and The Colorado Ballet. They are,
however, the only professional ballet company located in Broomfield, which could be used to
their advantage.
Internal Environment
The school of BNC is currently offering classes in ballet, point, and jazz, modern, contemporary,
capoeira, and pilates. Among these styles they offer specialty classes, highlighting, Dance with
me, Ballet Expressions, and adult specialty classes. Dance with me is a program designed for
toddlers and their parents to come to class together. It promotes family involvement and
interaction not only with the school but, with the classes as well. The Ballet Expressions class is
geared to students and children of all abilities. The teacher is trained in special education
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physical movement and tailors the class to the abilities of those involved. BNC also offers over
11 adult classes, all of which are geared towards dance and fitness.
As of right now the school has 300 returning students, however only 25 of these students are
adults. As a result to such a low number of adult students, most of the adult classes have an
average of three to five people, besides the more popular classes like ballet and jazz, which
contain fifteen to twenty people.
Internally the school has a good amount of instructors. Some of which are performers in the
company. The organization has a small staff and would highly benefit from a comprehensive PR
plan. With such a small staff capacity, the only individual that does the communications is
Ashley Burns. She is in charge of the marketing, PR, and advertising for the entire organization,
and because of this, it is very difficult to do certain campaigns and projects. The company rarely
has interns, which would benefit them given their close proximity to the University of Colorado
Boulder campus.
Ashley also mentioned that BNC’s budget is very small. With a tight budget BNC is limited in
what they can do to meet their PR objectives. Most of their costs are in printing of flyers and
posters. Currently they do most of their communications through social media, websites, email
blasts, and word of mouth.
STORY AUDIT
The school of BNC has a very strong connection with their audiences, students, and community;
because they need to be reaching out more and telling their stories. Story audit list includes:
1. The “nature of our challenge” story
a. The entire organization was under financial scrutiny last year. They were saved
through fundraising, because they pleaded out to the community for help. As a
result they got a lot of negative news attention. If they turned their challenge into
a story it would have gotten less negative attention and more positive attention
from the public.
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2. The story about “people in the organization / performance”
a. There are hundreds of possible testimonials within the school of BNC that could
tell great stories regarding achievement, growth, self-confidence, family
involvement, and more.
3. The “striving-to-improve” story
a. This would have been appropriate to do right after their community bail out and
even now. Touch base with the community and explain through a story what they
are doing to make sure they will not be in financial trouble again.
Public Perception
In our small sample survey we concluded that current adult students are happy with the BNC’s
school. When asked on a survey to rank their experience, 95% of adult students ranked between
a 9 and 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. The majority of the participants would not change anything
about the school and feel it is worth the price of the classes.
Through secondary research, we are finding that overall people are very happy with the school
and company. BNC is well loved with in the community and has a solid reputation as both a
ballet company and an organization.
When it comes to their reputation, we perceive that BNC is coming out of a rocky phase. A
Denver Post online article uncovered that the company was under financial scrutiny in the
summer of 2010. To relieve their financial stress they sent out an email blast, over the summer,
to the community of north Denver that has been apart of the organization or has shown interest in
the organization. This includes donors, families, friends, students, audiences, and more. In a
sense, this entire effort was considered a bailout and got a bad wrap from some of the media.
However, it did have two-way communication and addressed measures they were taking to make
sure they were never in that financial position again. It seems that their honesty and bond with
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the community paid off; at their fundraising performance over that same summer, they were able
to raise enough money to stay functioning.
Their current reputation is strong, they are well recognized with in their community through their
pairings with elementary schools and tuition assistant programs. The Denver Magazine wrote an
article about their 8th
annual luncheon, and praised the organization on their passion for dance
and audience participation.
External Environment
Their supporters include donors, customers, partnerships, and community members. BNC is the
second largest ballet company in the Denver Metro area. The largest is The Colorado Ballet, who
is celebrating their 50th
anniversary this year. Both companies are very similar in their
community engagement. They both have schools for student dancers, after school programs,
scholarships, and they are both non-profit organizations. The big differences are their dance
styles and reputations. BNC has a much more modern and unique style of dance. They appeal to
a large audience base, and welcome all levels of dancers.
Through research no real opponent has been disclosed. We have been unable to find any real
opponents. BNC is an organization devoted to enriching lives through innovative dance. We
have not uncovered anyone who has harsh feelings for the organization.
When it comes to external competition, BNC is fortunately the only organization of its kind in
the northern Denver region such as the Broomfield, Boulder, Arvada, and surrounding areas.
They do however compete with other Denver companies which are, The Colorado Ballet and
Cleo Parker Robinson.
The Colorado Ballet has been present for over 50 years and has a long standing reputation in the
state of Colorado. Their mission, similar to BNC’s, states, “Colorado Ballet's mission is to
present superior quality in classical ballet and innovative dance through performances, training
and education programs that enhance the cultural life of our community while remaining
financially sound.” The Colorado Ballet reaches their audiences in similar ways to BNC. They
are also a not for profit organization, they engage with the community, and run a well known
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ballet academy. As a result, it is vital that we target the specific north Denver community for
BNC to reduce competition with The Colorado Ballet.
Cleo Parker Robinson is also a well known dance company that is located in the Five
Points area of Denver. Their mission states, “Cleo Parker Robinson Dance is an international,
cross-cultural, dance-arts and educational institution rooted in African American traditions, and
dedicated to excellence in providing instruction, performances, and community programs, for
intergenerational students, artists and audiences.” The organization is devoted to cross cultural
dance arts. It engages with schools within the community and is devoted to the arts. They are a
for-profit organization, which separates them from BNC, and they have a very diverse use of
dance. This competition doesn’t seem to have the potential to be as significant as the Colorado
Ballet, but it is in the top three dance companies in Colorado.
4. Identifying and analyzing publics
Customers:
Families with small children interested in ballet
Adults interested in staying in shape
Families with disabled children
Adults with limited movement abilities (ex: bad hips, joints)
Targeted toward elder adults (ages 40+), also smaller children (preschool, elementary
school)
Women who want to be active & healthy, alternative ways to exercise
Producers:
Employees of the company: professional dance teachers, marketing team, office support,
etc…
Volunteer parents/people of community helping with events, etc…
Families of already enrolled children in dance school
Enablers:
Professional dance companies (set examples/influence)
Professional dance schools (set examples/influence)
Butterfly Pavilion – cross promote each other
Local media
General media availability
Print media: newspapers, mailers, magazine ads, newsletters
Electronic media: e-newsletter, e-mails, social media (blog, FB, Twitter)
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Limiters:
Other competitive dance studios
o Ones that offer classes, schools, day camps, etc…
Other professional dance companies
The key publics for BNC are disabled students, older women (50-75), and families with children.
With these key publics, BNC will be able to fully meet their goals as an organization.
1. Disabled Students
a. Opinion Leaders/Intercessory Publics
i. This key public’s opinion leaders are mainly their parents or
caretakers. These people highly influence this key public because
they are around them during their day-to-day activities. Their
intercessory public would be the media because their parents or
caretakers would most likely be influenced by the media to engage
with BNC.
b. WINs (Demographics/Psychographics/ Geographics)
i. The wants, interests and needs for this key public are to have the
ability to feel a part of an activity, no matter their ability, and to
broaden their interests as far as activities go in their lifestyle. The
age for this group ranges from 5 to 21 and the socioeconomic
status of this public is middle class. There aren’t any specific
gender/cultural/ethnic/religious traits among this public. The
geographic area for this key public is Brighton, Thornton,
Northglenn, Arvada, Westminster, Boulder County, Louisville,
Superior, and Lafayette.
c. Benefit
i. The benefit for this key public would be that BNC would provide
an opportunity for disabled students to participate in an activity not
usually offered at other ballet schools.
2. Older Women, ages 50-75
a. Opinion Leaders/Intercessory Publics
i. The opinion leaders for this key public would be people who are
friends with these women that aren’t in this specific group. They
may influence and encourage them by word of mouth about the
programs that BNC offers. The intercessory public for this group is
definitely the media.
b. WINs (Demographics/Psychographics/ Geographics)
i. The wants, interests and needs for this key public is that they want
and need to know about a different ways they can exercise. It
would also be an interest to them because of the other classes
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offered that is specific to some of their needs. The age range of this
group ranges from 50 to 75 years old. The socioeconomic status of
this group is middle class. There aren’t any specific
gender/cultural/ethnic/religious traits among this public. The
geographic area for this key public is Brighton, Thornton,
Northglenn, Arvada, Westminster, Boulder County, Louisville,
Superior and Lafayette.
c. Benefit
i. The benefit for this key public is that BNC has the ability to offer
programs and classes for these women who are looking for
alternative, fun ways to exercise that won’t jeopardize their health
in any way.
3. Families with children
a. Opinion Leaders/Intercessory Publics
i. The opinion leaders for this key public would be other families
involved with BNC and also those who aren’t among the key
publics by word of mouth. The intercessory public would be the
media as well.
b. WINs (Demographics/Psychographics/ Geographics)
i. The wants, interests and needs for families with children would be
the want to have their children involved with some sort of activity
that they would like. The interest is to be involved with other
families and have an impact on the community. The need is to
have families socialize with other families that have similar
interests for both their children.
c. Benefit
i. The benefit for families with children is that BNC is able to offer
classes and programs that will enable familial involvement year
round.
POSITONING STATEMENT
BNC aims to be the leader in innovative dance in Colorado. With their passion for community
and education, they engage their audiences in the discipline and benefits of dance. They are
dedicated to enriching lives through dance.
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GOALS
Based on BNC’s mission and vision, the organization has three main goals. The first two are task
management goals, followed by a relationship management goal.
1. Their first goal is to increase annual revenue. From our primary research we found that
the BNC School earns the majority of the organizations revenue; grossing approximately
$374,000 over the last twelve-month period. In the next 12 months, we want to increase
the school revenue by 10% or approximately $35,000. This advances their desire to be
recognized as an international leader in the education, development, and presentation of
dance, as stated in their vision.
2. Their second goal is to increase the enrollment rates at the BNC School; specifically for
their adult classes. According to current rates, the BNC School has 300 students and only
25 of them are adult students. They are currently offering 5 regular adult classes, and 6
power hour classes. Ultimately, we want adult students in each adult class. This will
continue the organizations desire to enrich lives through innovation in dance, as stated in
their mission statement.
3. Their last goal is to increase awareness of the BNC School, to continue their pursuit for
leadership and desire to enrich lives, as stated in both their mission and vision.
OBJECTIVES
1. Awareness
a. To have an effect on the awareness of North Denver women, ages 50 –75, toward
the BNC School; specifically to increase their understanding of the benefits the
school offers for adult students. (Evaluate through measured reach; frequency of
media impressions, and social media)
b. To have an effect on the awareness of North Denver disabled students;
specifically to increase their knowledge about the opportunities BNC has for
disabled students. (Evaluate through measured reach; frequency of media
impressions, and social media)
c. To have an effect on the awareness on families with children in the North Denver
community; specifically to increase their understanding of the BNC school.
(Evaluate through measured reach; frequency of media impressions and social
media)
2. Action
a. To have an effect on the action of North Denver women ages 50-75; specifically
to increase the enrollment rate of adult students and increase school revenue.
(Increase adult enrollment rate by 50 % in the next six months; 13 new adult
students).
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b. To have an effect on the action of North Denver Disabled students; specifically
for more disabled students to enroll in the classes specified to their needs.
(Increase the number of disabled students by 5 over the next six months)
c. To have an effect on the action of families with children in North Denver;
specifically to increase the family involvement at the BNC school and increase
enrollment in all classes. (15 % enrollment increase in six months; total 45 new
students)
STRATEGY
BNC’s key message is to appeal to our key publics and to ensure they are getting the care and
services they deserve. Our main three key publics are families with children, disabled students
who need scholarships, and older women (50-75).
Proactive Strategy
Proactive strategies for BNC would be the best approach to achieve their ultimate goal. BNC’s
goal is to increase revenue, increase enrollment in their adult classes as well as build an overall
awareness of who BNC is to the public.
In order to accomplish these objectives, BNC should participate in some of the suggested tactics
that we have provided. For instance, BNC should use organizational, interpersonal, advertising
and news media to increase the overall awareness about their organization. After utilizing these
important tools, adult participation in classes should increase and BNC’s revenue should increase
as well.
Another great tool for BNC to use is a mandatory survey to give at the start of their involvement
with the school of BNC. By handing out these surveys, with basic questions geared towards
students, students will be able to aeffectively think about their experience with the school and
have a voice concerning what they would like to see done differently. In accordance to giving
students a voice, BNC’s school will be able to adjust their programs to the liking of their key
publics and eventually increase enrollment in their programs.
Spokesperson
Christin Crampton Day is the new executive director at BNC as of January 2011. Not only has
Day operated her own business for twelve years, she has danced professionally for 25 years of
her life. She is experienced in the public relations field; with credentials ranging back two
decades. Day has received many awards such as being named the Denver Business Journal’s
“Power Book” as one of Denver’s top newsmakers in 2007, and the “Forty under 40” business
leader’s award. Day’s enduring passion of dance has led her to this position at BNC and she
hopes to bring to life the company’s mission and vision. With her specific experience and solid
credentials, she would be a great spokes person for women ages 50-75. She is relatable and
passionate about BNC.
Julia Wilkinson Manley, the school director, is highly recognized by the BNC community.
Parents of students state she is “personally invested in the growth of each dancer.” Julia’s
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extensive background in dance includes performing in many professional ballet companies; she
is also an award winning choreographer. Her charisma and passion for dance makes her a great
spokesperson for families with children in the North Denver community.
For our last public, disabled students in North Denver, the spokesperson would be Heather
Sutton. She instructs a class called Ballet Expressions that is designed to meet the ability level of
all students participating. She is a registered dance/movement therapist and with degrees in
Special Physical Education & Development and Somatic Counseling Psychotherapy. Her class
offers a therapeutic dance experience; designed to increase body awareness, help to develop
fundamental motor skills, build self-esteem, learn focus, and let students have fun expressing
themselves creatively; as stated in the class description.
Endorsers
Our most affective external endorsers will be third party advocates for each of our publics.
Specifically, for families with children, testimonials from parents or children who attend classes
at the school is the best way to appeal to other parents and children. This kind of endorsement
could take place in video form or just merely a quote on their website. Currently, they have a
testimonial posted stating;
“We keep coming back to BNC (5 yrs) because we’re part of the family. The talented and
experienced BNC staff can keep my 7 yr old ballerina focused and my 49 year old body
in shape. They really have something to offer everyone. We also LOVE the professional
company and see every show. You can feel their synergy when they dance. They are all
beautiful and excellent role models for our children.” – Adult student and parent of a
Ballet A student
We want to continue getting testimonials like these but, we want to personalize them with the
actual names and ages of the students they are quoting.
These same kind of endorsements are vital for our two other publics, women (50-75) and
disabled students. Relating to the specific publics through personal experiences of others within
that same public is significant for obtaining the goals of BNC. Specifically, a disabled student is
more willing to attend Ballet Expressions after hearing another student similar to him/her speak
highly of it. The same goes for women; if they can relate to the women who love the adult
classes they are more likely to sign up for them.
Beyond students, we can look at possible third party endorsers who participate in the North
Denver dance community. Below is a list of seven possible endorsers within the greater Denver
area
1. Bethany Cagle director of Denver Independent Choreographers Project- an organization
aimed to reveal unique technique and choreography in Denver.
2. Jane Monreal- TV Newsperson/Host. She is a local dance expert who currently does a
radio segment called “morning after’, providing expert feedback on the hit show So you
think you can Dance?
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3. Shalee Horstman- created a company called Dance for the Soul, Inc . She believes in
therapeutic healing through movement; a one woman company.
4. Onye Ozuzu – she is the Director of Dance at UC Boulder and an associate professor.
5. Chelsea Pierotti is the poms Varsity head coach at Broomfield High School.
6. Pamper yourself Denver- is a beauty blog that recommends fitness places and salons in
the greater Denver area.
7. The Denver Mom’s Blog- a blog for moms around Denver. They discuss ways to get fit
in 2011.
Rational appeal
The rational appeal presented in this campaign has three different propositions; factual,
conjecture, and value. The factual proposition is based on primary research, a survey, conducted
to discover current client satisfaction or dissatisfaction. The conjecture proposition is based on
the notion that there needs to be more adult students to fill the adult classes. The value
proposition is based on the fact that all of the main three key publics will be fully serviced to
their needs no matter age or disability.
The rational appeals for women
o A factual representation of the school;
Fair cost
Fun
Good exercise
Adaptive programs
Nice people
Flexible class schedule
Large studio space
First week free
o Conjecture proposition;
Increase adult students
Good environment
Comfortable for all levels
The rational appeal for families with children
o A value proposition asserting the schools best interest is for the students;
Safe
Whole family involvement
Repeat customers
19
Individual growth
Recognition
Self – confidence
Self –expression
Motivation
A rational appeal for disabled students
o A factual representation of how the school incorporates disabled students;
Therapeutic practice
Learning
Engaging
Increase motor skills
Trained instructors
Adaptive
Peer support
Family engagement
Emotional appeal
There are two important emotional appeals involved with our message: love and virtue. Our
message contains an emotional appeal because it provides the key publics comfort in knowing
BNC is flexible to each client’s needs, no matter what disability or what age. The love appeal
will encompass feelings of family togetherness, nostalgia, compassion and sensitivity. All of
these feelings may be evoked by participants involved with the different types of classes. The
virtue appeal is involved with the message because of the societal values embedded within. For
instance, the Ballet Expressions class that’s offered helps disabled children have the ability to
participate in a dance class, no matter their disability. Also, for older women or women with
injuries, there’s a class offered that will tailor itself to medical need with in the class, which
provides more opportunity for older customers.
Love appeals
Families with children
20
1. Family togetherness- a mother and her little girl getting their hair done in dance buns in
the mirror. Dad walks in and says “look at my two beautiful girls” then we see mom and
daughter walking out of house in their ballet attire holding hands. They are leaving to go
to the Dance with Me class featured at the BNC sschool for parents and toddlers to dance
together.
2. Nostalgia- a mother looks at her 18 year old daughter and drifts back to her first dance
recital. The little girl has a wide smile and big bright eyes; she is glowing on stage. We
see the moms eyes focus on the young woman in front of her now and her eyes water
with memories.
3. Love- an image of a dad hugging his daughter after a dance recital. His face appears
relaxed and prideful, the daughter is around 6 years old and has her entire body wrapped
around her dad. Her eyes are closed tight she seems relieved by her dads embrace.
Disabled students
1. A warm image of a disabled child engaging with the instructor of the dance class. The
image is of the two dancing together, the teacher showing the student with one hand,
while her other hand holds on to the disabled student’s hand. Both are smiling and
activity engaged in what they are doing.
Women ages 50-75
1. Togetherness -Pleasant image of older women in dance attire warming up on a ballet bar
and on the floor. Some are stretching while others are doing technique. They are all
smiling and looking towards each other as if they are engaging in conversation. Everyone
appears relaxed and comfortable.
Virtue Appeals
Families with children
1. Esteem appeal - this image depicts two parents watching their younger daughter dance
through the looking glass outside of the studio. The mother is pointing at the daughter,
and the dad is watching with pride as his little girl does a double pirouette.
Disabled students
1. Social acceptance- a disabled student is at the front of the dance studio bowing, the rest
of the students in the class are looking his way; their faces exude excitement, they are
cheering and clapping. The bowing student at the front is smiling and seems thrilled by
the acceptance and peer support he is receiving from the class.
Women (50 -75)
1. Esteem- An image of an older woman posing in the studio mirror. She is prepping for a
pirouette in her stance. Confidence exudes her as she watches herself; her back is upright,
pelvis is tucked under and her feet are turned out. She is in perfect form.
21
TACTICS
Tactic Details Public Type Objectives
Adult classes
survey
New Student
Survey
Students fill out a general survey about
what they want to see more of from BNC.
Gives insight to the faculty on new ways of
teaching/programs to implement.
We want every new participant at the school
to also fill out a survey. Each new student
will receive a free week after doing so. This
will allow the school to learn where their
consumers are hearing about the school and
why they chose the school, enhancing
opportunity for growth and stability.
Women
(50-75),
and
families
Organization
al media
O2, a
Promote free
adult weeks
Offer free adult classes 2 X’s a year to get
potential students to visit BNC.
Organization can oversee deliverance of this
message. Provides a direct way to promote
BNC. The adult free weeks will be
advertised by email notifications, an
entertainment ad, as well as be included on
the BNC home page two months prior to
when the free weeks take place. These free
weeks will also be tweeted and blogged
about as well as mentioned and encouraged
on facebook.
Women
( 50-75)
Interpersonal
media
O1,a
O2,a
Social Media
interaction;
Blogs
Blogs on news, videos and photos of BNC
students/performances. News will include
upcoming performance information and
student achievements in dance. Videos will
be posted of students rehearsals so that
parents and students can go on the blog and
check it out. Highlight one student every
week to tell their story on the blog to make
the page feel more personal.
BNC will join facebook causes, a place for
non-profit fundraising. Here they can talk
about the events coming up and the
Women
( 50-75),
families,
and
disabled
students
Organization
al media
O1- a,b,c
22
fundraisers taking place which will generate
more revenue. This will be a place for BNC
to talk about the classes they provide and
the new classes that will be opening.
Use twitter to talk about BNC promotions,
spur student, potential student, and
community interactions. BNC will use
twitter to promote their company and start
conversations with their followers. Their
goal is to get feedback from the people
following them to better understand their
audiences. BNC will encourage students to
retweet about special offers.
Boulder Creek
Festival special
event
Student performance during the Boulder
Creek festival. Take BNC to a family
public to conveniently showcase the
company to its audience. This event brings
in 450,000 people annually and BNC will
take place in the event in 2012. The event
takes place in late May every year and
application forms are due by the February
prior to the event date. The event allows
local talent to perform on one of five stages.
BNC will submit an application this next
February with a $250 application fee to be
entered and advertised in the festival. The
$250 dollar fee will be raised through
company performances put on throughout
the year.
Women
( 50-75),
families,
and
disabled
students
Interpersonal
media,
Promotional
Media
O1-a,b,c
O2- a,b,c
BNC shadow
day
Invite potential students to shadow a BNC
student for the day. Will be effective in
generating future audiences. There will be
an email blast encouraging students to get
involved in the shadow day by handing out
goodie bags for those participating.
Potential students can pick 3 classes that
they would like to shadow someone in for
the day. These shadow sessions can take
place all in one day or, the potential student
can do the three classes on separate days
and shadow someone different each time.
These will appeal to families who have
children but also disabled students.
Families
with
children,
and
disabled
students
Interpersonal
media
O2- b,c
23
Brochure/flyers
Families with
children
Women 50-75
Disabled
students
Promote company awareness, membership
services, and features to generate support
for the organization. The flyer and brochure
will be redone quarterly to allow the
company to update any classes or summer
programs being changed. These materials
will be placed in public school offices,
coffee shops, grocery stores, restaurants,
Targets, salons, and children’s hospitals in
the Broomfield and Boulder areas.
The example brochure and flyer appeal
specifically to the entire school and what it
has to offer to everyone.( see appendices)
Beyond the broader versions of flyers and
brochures that we have examples of, we
recommend creating a flyer and brochure to
appeal to each of the public’s. For women
the brochure and flyer would highlight why
women should come to BNC’s school and
depict the qualities of the organization
through images of women just like those we
are trying to reach.
With this target it is important to have a
separate brochure and flyer that appeal’s to
their needs. We want to show images of
disabled students dancing in studios and
having a good time.
Women
( 50-75),
families,
and
disabled
students
Organization
al media
O1- a,b,c
O2- a,b,c
Dance-a-thon
Press release
Highlight an event put on by the company
that benefits the community and the
company. Dance-a-thon to raise money for
a BNC student scholarship fund. This event
will be a fun competition for students to see
who can dance the longest. Parents will
sponsor their child by agreeing to donate a
set amount for each hour their child dances.
Those left dancing at the end of the night
will receive prizes such as tickets to a BNC
company show, movie tickets, mani/pedi
gift certificates, etc.
Women
( 50-75)
and
families
News media O1- a,c
O2- a,c
24
Flash Mob Students will correlate doing a flash mob at
different local sites. Middle school aged
students will do a flash mob at Broomfield’s
4th
of July parade and BBQ. They will be
wearing a BNC shirt with a pink tutu and
will get up and dance when a certain song
comes on at the BBQ. The older, high
school aged students will perform a flash
mob in downtown Boulder in the high
traffic area of 16th
street mall. One student
will walk down the mall with a boombox
gathering other student followers and the
students will perform when they reach the
most crowed area of the mall, at 13th
and
Broadway.
Families
with
children
in the
boulder
and
Bromfiel
d area.
News Media O1- b
Entertainment
section ad
Adult free week
Disabled class
Place an advertisement in the local Boulder
county paper highlighting current classes
and performance updates.
One ad should be specific to the adult free
week. Highlighting the event and the classes
offered.
One should be geared to the class that is
offered to students with disabilities.
Women
( 50-75)
, families,
and
disabled
students
Advertising
and
Promotional
Media
O2- a,c
Print Ads
(optional)
Women 50-75
Families w/
Children
Disabled
students
Collateral to put in local magazine and news
papers.
An ad that displays our target women
dancing and enjoying their time. This ad
will stress the concept of “getting fit while
having fun.”
This stresses the family environment that
takes place at the school. It depicts children
from 3-18 performing and being a part of
the school.
This ad directly illustrates what we want the
multi-ability classes to look like. We want
to stress that “ability is limitless” at the
school because they offer this kind of
opportunity.
Women
( 50-75)
, families,
and
disabled
students
Advertising
and
Promotional
Media
O1 &O2 –
a,b,c
25
BUDGET/SCHEDUAL/EVALUATION
Schedule
The adult class survey was conducted by the PR team and took us about a day to do. The
social media tactic is planned for April 16, will be administered by Ashley Burns
(Communications Manager), and is expected to take about 3 days to do. The BNC Shadow Day
is expected to take place on April 23, will be carried out by one of the school’s dance teachers
and will take one day. To promote the free adult weeks, we expect this to be done by May 1, to
be executed by the PR team and will take about a week to carry out. We would like to see the
brochures and flyers out by May 14 which will be handled by the PR team and is expected to
take about a month. The Dance-A-Thon press release will be handled by the PR team and is
expected to take two days to execute by May 14. The entertainment section ad will be conducted
26
by the PR team and is expected to take one day to be finished by May 14. The Boulder Creek
Festival falls on Memorial Day weekend and we have chosen May 29 to be a part of it. A team
of students will perform at the festival and this performance is expected to take about a month to
prepare.
Budget
Personnel Cost (assumed)
N.A
Estimated Materials
(paper, printing,
postage, etc…)
$750-2000
Media (advertising rates)
$350
Online 50
Magazine 200
Newspaper
100
Miscellaneous $100-900
TOTAL $1,200-3,250
The total project cost will be between $1,200 and $3,250. Let’s assume at our Dance-A-
Thon event and at the Boulder Creek Festival, that we get 65 donors that donate $50 each. That
will be our break-even point. If we assume that we receive about 57 new adult students from this
campaign, that take 1 class a week at $57, then we would also reach our break-even point.
Evaluation
To measure our campaign’s success, we will take several steps to evaluate each of our
presented objectives.
Our primary objective is awareness. First, we want to have an effect on the awareness of
North Denver women ages 50-75 towards the BNC school; specifically to increase their
understanding of the benefits the school offers for adult students. Second, we want to have an
effect on the awareness of North Denver disabled students; specifically to increase their
knowledge about the opportunities BNC has for them. Lastly, we want to have an effect on the
awareness of families with children in the North Denver community; specifically to increase
their understanding of the BNC School.
There are several different techniques to use to measure this first objective. One of the
main techniques is to focus on the message exposure. A way to do this is to assess the amount of
hits BNC receives on their website, Facebook page and blog. Another way is to track the
possible size of the audience is to analyze the message content in our advertising and to survey
customers about the message recall.
27
Our second objective is action. Initially, we would like to have an effect on the action of
North Denver women ages 50-75; specifically to increase the enrollment rate of adult students by
50% and increase school revenue. Then, we would like to have an effect on the action of North
Denver disabled students; specifically to increase the number of disabled students by 5 to enroll
in the classes specific to their needs. Finally, we would like to have an effect on the action of
families with children in North Denver; specifically to increase the family involvement at the
BNC School by 15% and increase enrollment in all classes.
The techniques that will be used to measure our second objective are audience
participation, direct observation and relative media effectiveness. For audience participation, we
will figure the number of people who acted on the relayed messages about the programs at BNC.
From there we can figure to see if we made our increased enrollment goal. For direct
observation, we can observe at an event, Boulder Creek Festival for example, to see how well the
audience receives the student’s performance. We can observe if the crowd is asking for more
information about BNC and their offered programs. For relative media effectiveness, we will
measure how the newly enrolled students at BNC heard about the classes being offered. We will
ask them how they heard about us and from there we will know whether they heard about it from
social media, news media or from advertisements.
28
References
Type of
Source
Reference
Person Ashley Burns , BNC , Communication manager
Person Stephanie Moir , Administrative assistant at the school of BNC
Text Book Ronald D. Smith (2009). Strategic Planning for Public Relations, 3rd ed. New
York: Routledge
Websites http://www.coloradoballet.org/about/history-
http://www.cleoparkerdance.org/about.htmly
http://www.bncdance.com/
http://www.facebook.com/bncdance
http://twitter.com/#!/bncdance
http://www.youtube.com/user/balletnouveau
http://www.linkedin.com/company/ballet-nouveau-colorado
Online
articles 1 . W enz e l , J o hn . "Ba l l e t No uv eau C o lo r ad o app o i n t s n ew
ex ecu t i v e d i r ec to r . " D en ver po s t . com (2 0 11 ) : 1 -2 . W eb .
3 M a y 2 0 11 .
<h t tp : / / w w w. denv er p os t . co m/ en t e r t a inm en t / c i _1 70 88 56
8 > .
2 . E y l , E r y c . " T h e M i l e H i g h M a k e o u t : B a l l e t N o u v e a u C o l o r a d o t u r n s
t o l o c a l s i n g e r - s o n g w r i t e r f o r i n s p i r a t i o n . " R e v e r b . N . p . , 2 2 A p r
2 0 1 1 . W e b . 3 M a y 2 0 1 1 .
< h t t p : / / w w w . h e y r e v e r b . c o m / 2 0 1 1 / 0 4 / 2 2 / t h e - m i l e - h i g h - m a k e o u t -
b a l l e t - n o u v e a u - c o l o r a d o - t u r n s - t o - l o c a l - s i n g e r - s o n g w r i t e r - f o r -
i n s p i r a t i o n / > .
3 . W e n z e l , J o h n . " D a n c i n g a s f a s t a s t h e y c a n : B a l l e t N o u v e a u ' s d i r e
d a n c e f o r s t a b i l i t y . " d e n v e r p o s t . c o m . T h e D e n v e r P o s t , 2 3 J u n 2 0 1 0 .
W e b . 3 M a y 2 0 1 1 . < h t t p : / / w w w . d e n v e r p o s t . c o m / e n t e r t a i n m e n t / c i _ 1 5 5 8 0 5 1 1 > .
4 . W e n z e l , J o h n . " J u s t I n : B a l l e t N o u v e a u C o l o r a d o p l e a d s f o r n e a r l y
$ 2 0 0 K b y J u l y 3 1 . " d e n v e r p o s t . c o m . T h e D e n v e r P o s t , 0 8 J u l y 2 0 1 0 .
W e b . 3 M a y 2 0 1 1 .
< h t t p : / / b l o g s . d e n v e r p o s t . c o m / a r t m o s p h e r e / 2 0 1 0 / 0 7 / 0 8 / j u s t - i n - b a l l e t -
n o u v e a u - c o l o r a d o - i n - d i r e - s t r a i t s - p l e a d s - f o r - f u n d r a i s i n g -h e l p / 1 0 8 5 / > .
29
Appendix A.
Organizational media including a brochure and flyer. The brochure and the flyer will be
used to promote awareness, membership services, and other features to help increase revenue.
Appendix B.
Advertising and promotional media that will include entertainment section ads. These
ads will highlight current classes and performance updates. This section will also contain a few
print ads that can be placed in local papers and magazines.
Appendix C.
This section will contain News Media. BNC’s Dane-A-Thon press release will be
included. The press release serve as a mechanism to get other community members involved in
the BNC school by letting them know about a fundraising contest.
Appendix D.
This section also includes organizational media. The survey’s will go in this section
which served as our primary research and new surveys will be produced for each of our target
audiences in order for BNC to improve what they offer their clients.
30
Appendix A
31
Appendix B
32
Appendix C
33
Appendix D
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