Sunday, October 16, 2016

Perception Is Persuasion

"A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is - it is what consumers tell each other it is."
            -Scott Cook

Humans are social animals, and singing is a social activity. Our success as choral directors depends, to a large extent, on our ability to convince people that the activity we're offering is worth their time. Usually, in order to accomplish this, we need to also demonstrate that other people are engaged in our activity (and the more, the better). In the study of persuasion techniques, this is known as "social proof"- people want to get to know you, if they feel like everybody else already knows you.

Therefore it's imperative that we constantly work to build the social proof of our "brand". A successful conductor usually has multiple people singing his or her praises to their respective social circles on a daily basis. This kind of social proof is money in the bank (i.e., it "works for you while you sleep"), but it doesn't happen by magic. We have to constantly work on enhancing our own reputation in order to maintain and build our brand. By doing so, we can increase excitement and membership in our ensembles.

This takes thoughtful planning, and a bit of showmanship. It's a variation on "act as if"- the ability to run our organizations and ensembles as if they're already as wildly successful as we hope they'll be.

In practice, this means first and foremost getting folks in the door, by hook or by crook. But a successful approach requires a bit more nuance and creativity. Here, then, are some practical tips for enhancing your brand.


1. GET THE RIGHT PERFORMANCE VENUE

Expecting an audience of 200? Book a performance venue that seats 175. You want a "standing room only" crowd at your concert. We've seen performances where the presenters boast via e-blast that "tonight is sold out!" or "last night we had to turn people away!". They neglect to mention that the venue only seats 75 people, but hey, give them credit for successfully "framing" a small crowd as a capacity audience.

2. GET THE RIGHT REHEARSAL VENUE

In our work with church choirs, we've become absolutely persuaded that rehearsals in the sanctuary are a bad idea. Rehearsing every week with a small group of 16 or even 24 singers in a dark, cavernous space is a morale-killer. Instead, opt for a small room that feels crowded even if there are only 12-15 people present. And no matter what kind of ensemble you direct, if at all possible opt for a highly visible rehearsal space- one where non-choristers will be walking by and eavesdropping on what a great time you all are having. In fact, during particularly raucous rehearsals, make sure to leave the door open.

3. MAKE SURE THERE'S A LINE AT AUDITIONS

We've run countless auditions, and have never regretted having too little time to hear individual singers. Downtime is the worst thing that can happen at your auditions. You want there to be a line out the door, and a steady stream of people coming and going. Therefore, you should invite anyone who's interested to come audition, even if you suspect they may not make the cut. And if you're only expecting 10 singers to show up for auditions, schedule them all within the same half hour. Would you want to sing for a group if you felt that you were the only one auditioning?

4. HAVE A CAP

"Accepting new singers until October 1st!"
"Only 3 new singer slots available this season!"
People want what they can't have. Creating a hard and fast line or rule for new singers gives auditionees or new registrants the idea that their participation would be special and select. The "come one, come all, at anytime" approach works only to an extent. If people believe that they can join at any time, they may put it off forever. Giving deadlines for new singers allows them to feel a small amount of good pressure. Good pressure is better than no pressure!

5. FRAME YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA POSITIVELY

Social media provides us all with an unprecedented opportunity to manufacture our own marketing juggernaut, at no financial expense. But we need to use social media strategically in order to see results in this area. Posting 20 pictures from a rehearsal may do as much harm as good; in addition to that one great shot, you've got images of people looking bored, staring into space, singing with bad posture, etc. Instead, find that one great picture where everyone is singing with a unified "ah" vowel and looking out of their music (crop out the one guy who isn't doing it), and let that be your rehearsal photo. *One* picture says a thousand words!

**

In his book "Me, Inc.", rock star Gene Simmons of the band KISS relays several amusing anecdotes about his manipulation of perceptions to achieve stardom. In one of these stories, Simmons tells about how, when they were still unknown, KISS landed a gig opening for a successful local punk act called The Brats. Knowing there would be a big crowd there to see The Brats, Simmons sent out several press releases saying "Heavy Metal Masters Kiss Perform 9:30-10:30pm". There was no mention of The Brats in the press release. This being in the days before the internet, several talent scouts responded to Simmons's press release, and showed up to see a huge crowd present (unaware that the crowd wasn't there to see KISS). Immediately after their set, Simmons grabbed the talent scouts and whisked them away to another venue, so that they could speak in private. KISS ended up getting several takers that very night.

As we work on the humdrum day-to-day tasks of our profession, it can be easy to forget that as conductors, we're also entertainers. Perceptions matter, and they have a real effect on our success. There's nothing wrong with faking it as you work toward making it.

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