More Micro-Survey Results

We have received more responses to our Micro-Survey and this survey is now closed. It's great to have all these ideas seeing the light of day, even greater if we can turn them into us helping you to help us to increase bush dance participation. Come what may we have a public resource to help dance organisers and callers etc.


Thank you everyone, for your ideas and actions that they may inspire in you as well as us.

Here are the responses in full, with [our comments].

11. Encourage families to come along, bring the children and have fun as was done in the earlier days of Yarralumla woolshed. Stop separating the children and adults.

Less couples dances. More drongos, Troikas etc

Create a more welcoming friendly atmosphere - bush dancing is about fun, not whether you get the steps right.

Less of the dressups - bush dancing can be done in jeans.

12. make it a family night, then you have young clientele for the future.Ads in regional centres and queanbeyan might also help.

[We would appreciate ideas on how to get publicity out there in all areas, remembering that we generally use free publicity opportunities]

13. Make the first half of bush dance classes - always very easy so beginners can start at any time. My husband and I went to bush dance classes Monday hoping for simple dances, but even though we had both bush danced a lot in the 80s, we found the dances too complicated to be enjoyable. When they were too hard we dropped out and didn't bother going to the dances because we thought they would be even harder. However we went to New Years eve at the Woolshed and the Sydney band taught simple dances - the kind we wanted to dance.

So - my suggestion -

1) make bush dance classes very simple dances and slower rather than faster.

2) Advertise as being for all beginners.

3) Instead of having to ask for a partner, line up in lines of men and women and take the person who matches - like they used to do in square dancing. The fear of course is that there won't be a partner.

3) Tell everyone participating to ask two friends. If I knew the dances were always simple enough for beginners in the first hour I would encourage everyone I meet-and i meet many people.

4) Have slow, simple dances also for people with injuries.

5) Have some dances desigend for same sex - such as some international circle dances are.

Thanks for asking.

New Years eve advertising worked well - perhaps try that again?

[We are working on something similar for the Shearers' Ball at the Yarralumla Woolshed.]

14. I no longer go to bush dances unless I am playing music. I get some satisfaction out of playing and occasonally from calling. I get almost no satisfaction from being on the dance floor.

The reason is that the standards of dance have sunk so low in Canberra that the dances are no longer worth going to. The attitude of the people who run the dances seems to be that it does not matter what people do on the dance floor, as long as they are enjoying themselves and go home happy. It is for this reason that most of the Society's experienced dancers now go elsewhere. There is no pleasure in dancing with people, some of whom have been dancing for many years, who simply do not make any effort to improve their behaviour on the dance floor, or their abiity to follow the music or the dance instructions.

I accept the criticism of the good dancers forming their own sets, but these people have paid their money too, and have a right to escape the nonsense that passes for dancing in other parts of the floor.

The situation is different in Newcastle, the Central Coast, Sydney and Melbourne. Here much higher standards are set, and people are expected to put more effort into what they do.

Several groups of interstate dancers have asked me recently what has happpened to the dances in Canberra - they used to be worth going to. Hardly anyone from interstate in town for the weekend comes to MFS dances now. They have heard reports like "I saw some Canberra dancers at the Forbes weekend, and they were an embarrassment to watch...." and "Canberrans do not dance - they amble."

"Lowest common denominator dancing of the form we have in Canberra has been a recipe for failure!

[Here is a short video clip from Forbes so you can form your own opinion. Not bad considering the cramped conditions on stage, if we say so ourselves :-). After the show, we were approached by an event organiser in the audience for a weekend festival booking, which unfortunately clashed with the National Folk Festival.

However I am sure that all readers will appreciate the reminder - “Poetry is to prose as dancing is to walking" (John Wain)]

15. Be friendly to each other as well as newcomers. Keep the prices more affordable - they are much more than comparable venues. Encourage younger folk and be prepared to admit that there are new and better ways to attract and retain newcomers.

16. Have good bands, different dances, callers who 'get on with the job' less walk throughs, some easy dances and som dance for the more experienced dancers, less Posties and more Love 'm and leave 'em or Arkansa traveller etc. Introduce a new and different dance from somewhere else or a differnt version ie. NSW, instead of ACT. etc.Try a theme night or 50/50 dance, old time, and bush, scottish/bush let people experience the variety that can be had in bush dancing. All beginners need to feel that they have progressed to the enxt level of dance and be proud that 'they did it'!

17. Plan and promote a variety of dance - music, styles ie a theme or country. Include more challenging dances and the experienced dancers might return. One dance per month.

18. Encourage dancers from your scene to attend dances from other scenes - they will make friends and bring them back to your dances. Unless you mingle you will isolate yourselves. Be inclusive of others. Support other organisers, not just your mates or your favourites, and the scene will strengthen.

And finally, teach your men to dance. How many know how to do a proper Australian waltz, pre-1900? Good dancers do not stay - they join other dance scenes to get more challenges. Doing the same old thing does get boring over time.

Bush dancing is a modern 1970s term coined by the band Bushwackers. The original term was country dances.

19. Make them more interesting, do more waltzes and learn to polka.

20. the Bush dance news (the email version) needs to be a simple straight forward document about the coming events. it does not need a contents list or all that continual info about shoes, partners etc, the receivers of this list already know all that.
all it needs is a simple list, with bold text for the name of the event & details.
scrolling up & down trying to fine the event you want to go to & you've forgotten the date is a pain.
the quip of the day is also unnecessary.
i usually just delete it now.

21. Have more "dancing" in the dances - less "walking around". People seem to have lost the ability to "slip-step" when circling or to "skip-step" in lively dances like Dashing White Sergeant. The mill in the Tivoli Gallop should be a high-stepping lively can-can not just walking around.
Also some men are like wet dishrags to dance with - they don't turn you properly with any strength, when they waltz they flop about, and the dance leaders do nothing to improve this.
Bush dancing should be lively, not just walking through the steps.

Canberra Dance News Micro-Survey Results

We received 10 responses to our micro-survey in Canberra Dance News. They are shown in full and unexpurgated below. Because the survey was anonymous we cannot contact respondents for more details, but we have shown our comments and calls for more details in square brackets below. Maybe you could leave further comments against the points, on this blog?

If you have not responded to the micro-survey then it is not too late, just surf along to:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BMZFLGR

and let us know what you think about the subject "How can we help you to help us to increase bush dance participation?".

That's all - you won't be asked any other questions or for identifying information. Please have all your household ideas ready for one response, or you can email your response or afterthoughts to dance@pcug.org.au.

Here are the responses so far, with [comments]

1. Provide me with vouchers for first-timer free entry for my friends.

[First-timers are offered free entry to the classes starting next Monday 7 February at All Saints Ainslie. First-timers will have more confidence that they have understood the offer if they have a voucher to present, so we will have some vouchers printed.]

2. Offer 2 for one entry price on their first night or bring a friend along for free

[There is also the thought that if you can get a new person along for a second time then they will be "hooked" and keep coming back after that]

3. Reduce thse prices

[The Monaro Folk Society is a non-profit organisation and prices are set to break even, with a small surplus to cover contingencies. Sometimes events run at a profit and sometimes at a loss, indicating that on average the prices are about right. We are very fortunate to have excellent musicians who are willing to perform for our dances even though entry fees and band remuneration has not kept pace with inflation. There has been a marked increase in the cost of the Albert Hall, Woolshed and St John's, but we have been able to keep costs down by using All Saints Ainslie and the Cook Hall.]

4. More couples dances perhaps, but it's readily available and very well organised as it is.

5. Dancers be more inclusive with newcomers. There's a definite sense of the incrowd at some dances. No use going to a dance to sit watching others having fun.

Also, SOME men need to be advised about hygiene. SOME are very smelly. Don't want to dance with them. Women make an effort to look and smell good - how about it men? This is what puts me off coming to dances.

6. Run a regular session in Goulburn!! Yay!! That would be Wonderful!!!

7. Have one bush dance per month only.

8. Simple Firstly, Get the word "Music" back into the societies' title. "Monaro Folk Music and Dance Society" for instance. Secondly, Do not use the word "Bush Dancing" or "Bush Dancers". What you are talking about is either "Australian Folk Dancers" or Austrailian Heritage Music and Dance". Just because the venue for many of these traditional dances was a woolshed in the Bush does not mean that those involved should be called "Bush Dancers" which seems to infer some sort of rough group of would-be dancers. They were in fact just "Dancers" who were performing all the latest dances of the period to just as high, if not a better standard than the good sophisticated folk in the cities, and with all the grace and style of the well dressed city folk. Lift your sights, The words Traditional, Heritage, Original, Pioneering, Historical, Australian Folk Music, all have some meaning to the wider English-Speaking Community out there. (to many of whom, English is not their mother tongue) Perhaps "Bush Dancers" to many of those good people conjures up an image of some Red Necks having a good time. So lift your sights, use the right wording, try to appeal to a much larger section of the great Australian Populace, you might get more people through the door.

[Bush Dancing is a fairly well recognised name for the dancing that we do, see for example http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_dance. It's a short word and comes out near the top in alphabetic newspaper listings etc. The essence of bush dancing in 2011 is the social nature of the dances, the accessibility to all, and the variety of formations and traditions that are included in a "bush dance" evening. We couldn't think of a better label so we decided to go all-out promoting "Bush Dancing for fun & fitness". It has had a lot of media exposure and so to re-badge would be to start again to build public awareness.]

9. Discourage the FIGJAM inf dancers, callers and musos. Discourage bad musicians and weak out of town bands, callers, bands from a long way to drive and their callers.

Support and build on the local product. Nothing is a bigger turn off when we get a flustered caller holding up good dancers and musicians. Encourage the local musicians and callers by remuneration levels covering more than costs. Make sure there is a core of dancers there to mix in and assist new recruits. Encourage a culture that does not scare away timid new comers. The ethos should be the dance. It is not a lonely hearts club.

[In case the acronym has you stumped, we think it stands for something like "Figjam I'm Good, Just Ask Me". We are accepting and tolerant of all and want to encourage diversity and a wide mix of folk participating and sharing their unique talents. Big crowds and development and growth for as many as will. We try to remunerate the musicians as well as we can, but it is in no one's interest to have dances closed down because they are not financially sustainable. Dancers want to dance, musicians want to play, and volunteers want to volunteer.]

10. better layout for the canberra dance news 

[We have total control over this one. We chose a plain text format to minimise bandwidth and compatibility and security issues. But we would love to know, how can we improve the layout?]

Public Accusations

It is beneath our dignity to respond in kind to the wild accusations published on MFS-Announce.


As far as we know the MFS Committee has not been meeting. How can there be obstructionism when there is no MFS Committee request under consideration by Bush Dance Group or End Of Month Dance Committee, and only the most minor of outstanding matters of MFS Committee consideration involving us personally, being a request to disclose a third-party publicity password.

All correspondence from us has been prompt, polite and business-like.

We are astonished at the public outburst and Barbara and I wish the ex-president well in her future endeavours.

Loose Ends

I received a "leaked" email blaming the previous committee for some problem or other, even though this is January and the previous committee handed over last September, and reporting verbal abuse.

For the record, all of my conversations with the incoming committee members have been friendly and polite, with no abuse either way.

The handover to the incoming committee was thorough and time-consuming, but I did receive a suggestion that in the interests of fairness, the outgoing president and treasurer should have continued work on the books until they were ready for the auditor.

I don't think it would have been fair to have a past-president dabbling in committee business from outside the committee. Nor would it be constitutional, as I had no power to request an ex-Treasurer to do further work on consolidating the accounts.

The previous committee made decisions about improved financial reporting, and the Treasurer and I implemented those policies to the best of our abilities. The Treasurer and I reported on our progress with implementing those policies at the Annual General Meeting, and answered all questions. I reported on the overall slow progress in implementing new financial reporting standards, and the outgoing treasurer reported on the outstanding matters preventing us from providing the consolidated accounts for audit. My understanding is that these matters were not related to the accounts kept by the Treasurer, but rather were related to obtaining information from activities that keep their own books. This information had not previously been included in the MFS Accounts.

The rules and usual practice are clear. Everything that was in progress on 23 September 2010, all books, records, partly-completed reports, and so forth, were handed over to the incoming committee on that date and the incoming committee then took responsibility for further work. The immediate past president has no powers or responsibilities under our rules.

As far as I could see, what the Treasurer handed over was fair and reasonable, with more information than in previous years, but a few loose ends to be tied up to meet our new higher standards.

The activities that I have been involved with since 23 September have responded promptly and efficiently to many requests concerning the books, even though in many cases the information requested was already included in the documents.

I guess there is bound to be a bit of a learning curve during a handover, as the new folk become familiar with the work-to-date, but by now the new committee should have everything in hand.

Wrapping It Up

Thanks to those who responded privately to the post below, and even greater thanks to those who posted their comments below.


The responses that I have received confirm that, by and large, the members who decided not to attend the Monaro Folk Society AGM had no idea that there would be a second presidential candidate, and that the result was not representative of their views.

Allowing for family memberships each having two voting members, there were about 300 folk eligible to vote. Needless to say, only a fraction of this number attended the AGM.

However the response also suggests a lack of interest in the subject. If someone is willing to do the work then does anything else matter?

I can see this point and I think we should all be appreciative of the significant role that has been undertaken.

The response has not shown strong support for changing the rules, so best not to worry about it I reckon. Let's Dance!

Cheers
Lance

An Unrepresentative Election

I thought I would write because a number have people have asked me why I stepped down as MFS President. The answer is that I didn't.

I would like to make it clear that I had no idea that there would be another candidate for the Monaro Folk Society president position.

In my opinion the attendance at the AGM did not reflect the membership at large, and appeared to me and to others that I have spoken to, to be largely made up of people associated with two groups within the society. The election results reflected this.

Just for the record, I would have been happy to continue in the role.

The unrepresentative election process should cause concern about our rules.

I feel that members have the right to know before the meeting (when they are deciding whether or not to attend) who the candidates are, what their background is, and what they stand for. Just the same as members know what motions will be put, at least 14 days before the meeting.

In other organisations that I have been in, candidates declare their intention to stand, provide a photograph and short statement about their background and what they stand for, and voting takes place over a few weeks with all members having the opportunity to vote.

As a minimum, I think that nominations should close say two weeks before the meeting with candidates' names published, with further nominations on the night only if there were vacancies left by the formal nomination and election process.

Do you agree? If there is a lot of positive response I will draft an amendment to the rules.

Please add your comment below. If you see a link marked "x comments" you can click it to add your comment.

Regards
Lance

Price Points

We will have decide on our membership fees at the annual general meeting on 23 September 2010, and so I thought I might share with you some generally accepted ideas on price-points.


I have studied marketing for years when working towards Fellowship of the Australian Insurance Institute and in Executive Development Programs, and have a degree in Economics and diploma in Business Studies. That doesn't mean I have the only right answer any more than anyone else, but it does mean I have come to many conclusions that I think are soundly based and that I hold firmly.

I think I can reasonably expect fellow members to consider those views, not in a one-minute discussion at the AGM, but carefully and with time to think things through.

Price is not a major problem for us, and our activities represent excellent value-for-money. However we would all have noticed that the folk community is at the price-sensitive end of the spectrum, a long way from Yves Saint Laurent buyers who will buy more if the price is higher.

For us, there is always "elasticity of demand"; higher price = lower demand. People fall along a spectrum, and some will be on the margin between paying and not paying. More of them will drop out at price points like $30, which is why you hardly ever see anything priced at $30 at Woden shops (they would go to $29.99 but that's a bit too contrived a price for us to use).

There will be unengaged folk who don't think about it, they just see the price that they perceive as in the next $10 price bracket and we're gone. Buying decisions are initially based on a quick emotional reaction to our price and whether we are speaking to the customer's needs.

People then rationalise their decisions but we and our product have to achieve that initial interest before they will go on to think about our offer.

So, the bottom line is that I think our prices should be figures like $29, not $30. I am more concerned about the extra members that we are likely to get at $29 than at $30, than I am about giving change, and when you go from prices like $29 to $30 you are likely to lose more from lost "sales" than you gain from those who remain.

I have these firmly held convictions that I would like you to consider, but in the end I will of course go with the majority opinion.

Regards
Lance