Marketing and Advertising for the Reluctant Violin Maker

(And Luthier and Shop Owner and Bow Maker…..)Dixie and Anna Huthmaker,Huthmaker Violins

Why do we Market/Advertise?

• To create an audience

• to create a connection with that audience

• To promote/sell your work

Define your Marketing Goals

• What are you hoping to accomplish?

• How will you measure your progress?

• TOM: Top of Mind

Define Your Customer

Who is your customer? Where do they live?How old are they?What do they do?How long have they been playing?

EVERYONE IS YOUR CUSTOMER Everyone is

either a direct customer or within several degrees of separation from your customer

Seriously- EVERYONE!!!!

(Really……everyone!)

What is the Cost of Marketing?

All marketing is subject to the rule of

Time vs. Money

The cost is in direct proportion to your time. The more time you spend, the more money you will save. The more money you spend, the more time you save.

VS

Types of Marketing

• Website

• Print Media

• Email Marketing

• Mail Outs

• Exhibits

• Social Media

• What are the Pros, Con’s and ‘Cost’ of Each?

Web Site- This is the most important marketing platform. It is today’s business card/Yellow Pages

• PROS

Searchable by any potential customer

Information Central

You have complete creative control over appearance, content and story

Can be used to drive customers to all other marketing platforms

COST

• Time- You must create content and have a design plan

• Money- purchase of domain name, yearly hosting fees, and optional extra costs for web designer/builder

CONS

It must be well thought out and attractive and must catch the customers attention quickly

Website-Content• Contact info-Needs to be visible

on every page

• Photos

• Educational Info-How to’s-take care of your instrument, polish your violin, change a string, etc

• Videos- of you, happenings at your shop, local musicians

• Resources- IPCI, VSA, Local Organizations, etc

Print Media- Ads in magazines, programs, newspapers, etc

PROS

• Large, targeted audience

• Repetition creates Top of Mind

• COST

• Money-Media advertising is expensive

• Ad design cost is either your time, or payment to graphic designer

CONS

• One viewing• Advance planning is

required• Structured scheduling

Content Ideas and Hints

Print Media/Mail Outs

Keep It Simple

Include contact information

Consider a Call to Action or Coupon

Map/Directions

Make it eye catching- Use color

Photos

Email Marketing-Newsletters and Email Blasts

PROS

• Relatively affordable

• Targeted Audience

• You can mix content-photos, video, surveys, etc

COST

• Money-Paying for a newsletter platform, purchasing email lists

• Time-creating content can be VERY time consuming

CONS

• Spam folders are sophisticated- your percentage of ‘opens’ will typically be low

• These are already your customers

• If you do not have a platform in place with contact info, you need to purchase mailing lists

Email- Content• Divide content into sections

• Mix content- photos, text

• Include things of interest to your customer-what do they want to know??

• Funny or heartwarming stories

• Feature local musicians/school programs/students

• Keep ‘selling’ to a minimum

Mail Outs- Post cards, brochures, letters in a mass mailing

PROS

• One of the most effective marketing tools available

• You have the option to blanket a geographical area

• Targeted Population

COST

• Money-Postage, printing costs and mailing lists

• Time-Creating content, printing production and Uncle Sam’s schedule

CONS

• File 13- Where most unsolicited mail goes

• Creates a lot of trash

• Requires a great deal of advance planning

• If you do not have a platform in place with contact info, you need to purchase mailing lists

Exhibits• VSA• Music Educators Association• NAMM• ASTA• Mondomusica• Musikmesse• Local Events

PROS

• Concentrated audience

• One on one connection with customer

• Fun for extroverts

CONS

• Expensive

• Exhausting

• Time Consuming

• Less fun for Introverts

Social Media- The Holy Trinity-Facebook, Instagram, and You Tube

PROS

• 77% of American adults are on social media and 2.3 BILLION worldwide

• Can be done at no cost

• Very flexible targeting

• You have complete creative control over appearance, content and story

• Each platform can be used to drive customers to all other marketing platforms-Complete connectivity

COST

• Time- You can create your own accounts and content but the time cost can be extensive

• Money- You can hire someone to do it for you

• Money-you can take all manner of classes, workshops, etc to educate yourself

CONS

• All content must be well thought out, attractive and thoughtful…..catching a customers eye on social media is tough and keeping it is even tougher

• The social media world is constantly changing and you have to stay abreast of those changes

• To do this well, it can take a LOT of time

The Goal- To Start a conversation and Engage

Using Stories to Create Engaging Content

What makes you different/unique?

What makes your Instrument different/unique??

The Answer? The STORY you tell

Your Tool Box for Telling StoriesEmotions- what feelings do you want your work to evoke?

History-Is there a story behind the instrument or bow?

Romance-Is there an emotional narrative?

Camaraderie-Does owning your instrument make them a part of a tribe?

Personalize-How can you make the instrument uniquely theirs?

Vision-What kind of future can you paint for the person that buys your work?

Potential/Possibility-What can they achieve with your instrument or bow?

Don’t be afraid to use humor!!

Pick One or Two….

So what makes great Social Media Content?

Great Ideas for VSA Social Media

Monthly feature of maker

Photos- Old Tools, workshops, varnish making

Events

Videos of making

Social commentary regarding the violin world

News of competition results

Get to know your Board/VSA Staff

Photo contests

Resource Sharing

Other Arts Organizations on Social Media

Metropolitan Museum of Art

National Endowment for the Arts

Consorzio Liutai “A.Stradivari” Cremona

Study them!! Use them for inspiration!

Great Examples of Social Media Use

“As of this Spring, we have become the Better Business Bureau’s, "Best Violin Shop" in Lincoln”-Marilyn WallinGame on! Day one at the 15th annual Oberlin Violinmaker's Workshop.

60 participants from 17 different countries sharing their knowledge withcolleagues, raising the bar of our profession.-Christopher Germain

“Ooooo better than scabs.I got the whole thing in one pick!!! Goodbye glue.”-Sarah Gray

“Come celebrate 15 years with us!”-Joyce Miller

“I think I'm going to start collecting pictures of incorrect rehairs.This one was just glued in place no plugs....”-Katherine Mohr

#takeyourdogtoworkday ”-Ryan McLaughlin

Common Pitfalls of Marketing• Limiting the definition of your

market/customer

• Believing that what you want, and what your customer wants is the same thing, or what you know and what your customer knows is the same thing

• Believing that content that is available elsewhere doesn’t belong in your marketing

• Believing that your customer will find you on their own and that your instrument should ‘speak for itself’

ResourcesEvery Door Direct Mail- USPS.com

Mailchimp.com- email newsletter platform

Hootsuite.com- Social Media

Canva.com- Graphic design tools

Smovemoblie.com-smart phone stabilizer/video shooting tools

Animato.com- video creation/production tools

Asana.com-Project management tool

Squarespace.com- Website creation tools

Wix.com-Free website builder

Allwebco.com- Website design and hosting, gorgeous templates

Socialedge.co-social media education and management

QUESTIONS??

You can find us on:

Huthmakerviolins.com Instagram

Fiddlefolk@aol.com You Tube

Contact us anytime!!! Facebook