There are numerous variables that reflect a successful promotion of your dance, two of which are online networking and website publishing.  For your assistance, here are some tips when promoting your dance through web communications:
 

• Provide your name, address, phone number, website address, and email.  If you teach out of your home, then provide your city and state only (for safety reasons).  A phone number is needed in addition to the email.  (I’ve had people send me emails only to find their email addresses are not accessible.)
• State your purpose for the communication.  What special service and/or products are you providing to others?
• When promoting upcoming events, provide complete information:  event name, street address, city, state, country, time, date, price, special guests, and who to contact for more information and/or directions.

• Build in stages to avoid burn--out as well as eye strain.  Mistakes are commonly overlooked when fatigue sits in.
• Utilize Spellcheck, but also edit as if you didn’t have Spellcheck.  Shut down the computer and take a break.  When refreshed, edit again.
• Keep graphics to a moderate amount.  Graphics and backgrounds slow down the computer.  Rotating graphics are great attention-getters, but they may impede the visitor's ability to really view your graphics.  If you have several pictures to post, then split the pictures up among several pages.
• Make sure your text isn't overshadowed by the background.  Texture is important.  However, too much stimulation is distracting.  Also, if the background is similar to the text in color, then the visitor may not be able to view your text.
• If you publish an article or a piece of art, register it with the Library of Congress.
• Background music should reflect products or information offered on site.
• Make you point clear.  Passive language jumbles the message.
• Keep frames in check.  Although employing frames can be useful, a frame may limit the visitor’s ability to see the desired page or picture.
• Make sure your background doesn't overpower your text.
• Free websites keep the investment cost down.  However, the expense of pop-up ads may be costly.  Determine what is more important to you before choosing a web-hosting package.
• Check your website as if you were a visitor after you have uploaded your work.  What may look good on your web- building software may not have transferred so well to the WWW.  Also, some pages may have disappeared into the Black Hole or your links may not have been entered correctly.  In addition, how see how fast/slow it takes for the pages to completely load.  A lengthy loading time illustrates a need to reduce the number of graphics on the page.
• Periodically check your site even when you haven't worked on it.  The web-hosting company may make changes that mess up your formatting or erase your most current pages.  Some of your links may have grown obsolete as well.
• Keep your site current.  Numerous dancing sites list upcoming events that took place six-twelve months ago.  Many teachers have advertised last year's classes.

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