Looking Back at First Friday

Introduction

My year-long project of preparing to host a booth at First Friday in Downtown Bentonville came to pass last night. It was geared to increase enrollment at Shepherd Music School, where I teach. Note: Shepherd Music School no longer exists, but I continue to teach where it was located. I won’t lie, it was a tough process and I was near the breaking point a few times along the way. Our booth was very simple, yet coordinating all of the pieces and people consumed time and energy beyond any prediction.

Marketing Blitz

I decided to do a marketing blitz, posting to a variety of sites in short- and long-form. I posted to the Shepherd Music School Website, then to Facebook and Instagram, as well as this commemoration on my blog for posterity.

Results and Conclusion

It turned out that this was not a good venue for us, though we did the best we could with limited volunteers and resources. We didn’t get any enrollments for the school, but we talked to plenty of parents of young children who may think of us when it comes to taking lessons in the coming years. And I learned tons as well, including that you can really entertain young kids with inexpensive craft projects!