I recently found a social media audit I completed for my Strategic Writing course in March of 2019, not knowing that in December of the same year I’d be offered an internship with their marketing department! The website I wrote about back then is now updated by yours truly on a weekly basis, and the new season’s promotional materials are on their socials and site. In addition, each social media platform has increased in followers and viewership! Many thanks to the team at Carolina Ballet, yet again, for this wonderful opportunity. Feel free to give my old work a read:
Carolina Ballet
Carolina Ballet’s mission statement reads “Carolina Ballet’s mission is to remain one of the top ballet companies in America, with National and international recognition, thus contributing to the enhanced reputation and ever-increasing quality of life in our community and the state of North Carolina.” The company recently updated their website after a year of testing (I found this out through contact with the company’s graphic designer, April Craig) and it is a much more aesthetically pleasing interface. The header includes the company’s logo and the name of the artistic director, Robert Weiss, and then features several drop down menus listed “Performances, Company, Support, School, Summer Intensive, Community, The Latest.” The homepage of the site is a promotional photo for the ballet the company is currently showing, which happens to be Swan Lake. If a user scrolls, they are able to click different articles about the ballet’s current season and other events the school and company are promoting. The company hosts a competitive Summer Intensive and includes a link to audition information, as well as a dancer spotlight (currently Sam Ainley, a recently promoted soloist in the company) and a link to register for classes at the School starting in the fall of 2019. As a non-profit it is also imperative the company thank its sponsors, and has a rolling list of the 2018-2019 sponsors including PNC, BlueCross BlueShield North Carolina, and about a dozen more. At the bottom of the homepage is an entry box to subscribe to their email list, and links to their Instagram (of which they feature a grid of recent photos) and clickable application icons (bird for Twitter, F for Facebook) and their Youtube Channel.
The Company’s most used platform is Instagram, with about 9,000 followers and at least one post a day. On this platform the company exclusively posts photos of performances, usually what is currently showing but sometimes but sometimes “throwback thursday” posts to recent productions. Posts average about 300 likes with their “contest” posts earning over 1,000. Contest posts require followers to like a certain photo and tag two other Instagram users (who likely in turn continue the cycle in order to enter the contest themselves). Most recently the Company performed a program called “Monet Impressions” based on the paintings of Claude Monet. The North Carolina Art Museum boasts several Monet pieces and partnered with the Carolina Ballet to increase attendance at the museum as well as promote the performance to patrons of the museum. The prize of the contest was two tickets to the museum’s “after hours” event, and in tandem the museum offered two tickets to the ballet’s performance. This was a fantastic way to utilize other local arts organizations to promote upcoming events for one another, and should be done far more often!
The Company’s facebook page has about 20,000 likes and features new posts every few hours. On Facebook the Company will share their Instagram photos, interviews with dancers and choreographers, videos of dances on their Youtube page and articles on ‘Shaping their 2018-2019 Season.’ The Company’s Twitter page has just over 8,000 followers and posts 3-4 times a week, often links to Dance magazines or the Facebook page. On YouTube the company has about 600 subscribers and posts videos of performances every 2-4 months. The Company recently launched their training institute, the School of Carolina Ballet, and have really improves their social media presence lately, likely in order to promote registration for the courses.
Rory Coleman 