Remember Your Summer Camp Experience?
A consistent challenge in marketing summer camp programs is finding new and exciting ways to attract significant attention to your camp's message. Camp marketing packages almost always involve two primary tools, the brochure and the video. Over the past several years, many camps have added a web site as a third significant technique to reach prospective families. Some camps also rely on direct mail. However, when you want to add a unique strategy to your package, consider the audiocassette. The cassette remains a strong conveyor of the spoken word.
If you add an audiocassette to your marketing package, the uniqueness of the medium itself will set your camp apart from competitors. In addition, this surprisingly cost-effective item can help solve the common marketing problems that many camps face.
Producing a professional-sounding audiocassette is not for the uninitiated. But if you or your staff members have had experience with recording, the following guidelines are suggested to help you add this new medium to your package without excessive effort or expense:
* Use high-quality recording equipment. There is no substitute for capturing quality sound, and you need a good quality portable recording device to do it.
* Take control of interviews. When you go for effective testimonials, do not be afraid to ask respondents to say it one more time. Coach them about the things you might have heard them say before and record multiple versions of their statements for later editing.
* Make sure to record enough information for efficient editing. For a superior finished product, you will need to be able to choose from various statements and various expressions of those statements.
* Review your recordings to confirm you set the volume controls correctly. Listen for clarity and expression. If you aren't pleased and if the speaker is still available, do not hesitate to re-record.
* Watch carefully for excessive background noise. Do not hesitate to bring an important respondent into the quiet atmosphere of a cabin or your office.
* Use camp songs and cheers as excellent sound effects. You will be delighted with the real sound of your camp, as long as you remember to capture it while it is happening.
* Rely on a professional to help you edit and prepare the master tape. Check the Yellow Pages in your local telephone book under the subject Recording Service - Sound and Video. These studios can edit your tapes and then add music and sound effects to give the tape a professional image. Make sure the service specializes in recording and editing of spoken-word tapes rather than music.
* Order a large quantity of copies of your tape from a professional duplicating service. The professional recording service can recommend a duplicator who will make your tapes sound and look very professional. The duplicator adds a label to each tape, either on paper or by printing directly on the tape cassette. You have several options as well, including color labels, foil labels, various types of cassette boxes, and shrink wrapping of each boxed cassette.
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