Offers at classes - do they persuade you to dance more?

[emmylou25]

I've seen a lot more offers coming round recently on email from various ceroc venues & independent venues, be they money off, 2 venues a week for discounted price, BOGO 1/2 price, etc. Many of them seem to be trying to get dancers to up their frequency of dancing, but wonder whether they actually work? Also, I'm also wondering how much of it is a response to lower numbers of dancers due to the credit crunch and warmer weather recently.

From my point of view I dance 3x a week anyway, so it would be a bonus to get a discount for somewhere I already dance. It may encourage me to try a new venue if it didn't mean extra travelling over and above what I'd usually do.

So what you do think - do you think they work? Have you changed the amount you dance in the last year compared to previously?

[Twirly]

For me, they have some effect. If I get an offer I will try and use it if it fits in with what I’m doing anyway. A couple of weeks ago Ceroc London sent me a free pass for the week. I went to Clapham on the Monday which was extra, and would have gone to Greenwich the next day if I hadn’t gone down with a cold. Greenwich is a different franchise, so I’d have paid, and it’s become a regular night for me.

However, I assume that franchises are attempting to get you to dance regularly at their venues by sending these out. I have to admit that I do go to Ceroc Greenwich more than anywhere else now, and that is mostly because they sent me a free pass for 5 weeks last year. I learnt in this time that this venue suited me more geographically, and I’d got a bit bored of my old venue having danced there most Wednesdays for 3 years – also just after this, the teacher left, and so did most of the regulars! I do go back occasionally, just to see who is there.

What I’ve noticed about getting free passes though is that they tend to come from franchises where you only dance occasionally – if you dance somewhere regularly, they don’t need to attract you, so you don’t get freebies. But if you switch your allegiance, then suddenly you start getting freebies! So pop into as many franchises as possible on an irregular basis to maximise your opportunity…

[emmylou25]

What I’ve noticed about getting free passes though is that they tend to come from franchises where you only dance occasionally – if you dance somewhere regularly, they don’t need to attract you, so you don’t get freebies. But if you switch your allegiance, then suddenly you start getting freebies! So pop into as many franchises as possible on an irregular basis to maximise your opportunity…

True. Ceroc London seems to do a few of these (unheard of in my area, although they do regular passport offers), and i heard people recently getting them from Ceroc Central (those hadn't been to the venue for years as the venue day now didn't suit them so now only go when there're freestyles). The ones for London seem to try and get people who attend freestyles - all very well, but unless you're visiting by fluke on that evening, most people I know are unlikely to travel 2 hours to get to an evening class on a work day, however good the venue is.

[bigdjiver]

Ceroc should be able to use their database to identify dancers that should be ready for a second night elsewhere and target those. Empty dance floor space can be given away to people wanting to try MJ for the first time, or to keener dancers who want to travel for the first time. Keener has some correlation with better, and that ups the experience for all. Such offers, if constructed right and based on good stats, are a no-brainer.