BenSpark
Today I am joined by Nichelle and she’s got some really interesting things to tell us in this interview. Nichelle, why don’t we start with you telling the readers about yourself?
Nichelle
I am Nichelle Strzepek and if you read over that and thought it was a word scramble, I wouldn’t be surprised. Nichelle is like Michelle with an N. Don’t hurt yourself trying to figure out the second part.
I live in Houston, TX but grew up in the agricultural center of Pennsylvania. I became a dance student, a dance teacher, a dance artist, a stay/work at home mom, and then a dance writer, in pretty much that order. Some people experience career transition but I seem to just cut new facets into the same diamond. When I’m not contemplating dance, I love reading fiction, watching movies, and enjoying my family. I’m also a computer and technology enthusiast insofar as I like to learn and tinker. Blogging appeals to two somewhat contradictory sides of my personality. I’m a bit introverted yet I get really excited about connecting with people from different parts of the world, especially to share a common interest.
BenSpark
I like how you describe your appeal to blogging. I’m sort of like that as well. I’m not a very extroverted person but love meeting new and exciting people. Could you please tell us about your blogs?
Nichelle
Dance Advantage (danceadvantage.net) is my primary blog. I’ve been writing, and writing, and writing for over two years about dance education and training. I never run out of things to talk about, in fact sometimes it feels like there is too much to cover. I provide dance students with physical and mental tips to improve their dancing which I consider supplementary to their training. I prepare parents for their role as advocates and sponsors for their child’s dance education. I support and inspire teachers in their work with tools, tips, resources, and discussion. You almost can’t talk about any one of these roles without addressing another so I just embrace the juggling act of connecting and communicating with a diverse audience. I really don’t think there’s anything else quite like it within the online dance community and I’m proud that I had at least the vision to jump in, even if I wasn’t sure where the current would take me.
Dance Advantage is not my first blog. I started a blog back in 2003 to keep in touch with family and friends. It was rarely updated until I became pregnant with my son in late 2006 and I still maintain that one, though I’ve moved it from blogspot to wordpress.com. I also maintain a blog at http://nichelledances.wordpress.com that is essentially my online portfolio and includes my reviews and coverage of Houston’s dance scene.
BenSpark
Sounds like some really great information. But why did you start blogging?
Nichelle
Dance Advantage was conceived a few years before it was born as a blog. As my personal use of the Internet grew, I was searching for ideas and tools for teaching dance and found it mostly in forums, however the quality of responses there can be inconsistent. I also thought it would be cool to be able to send my students to a reliable source of information but was coming up empty-handed. At one point I started a free bravehost site, and began putting some articles and images up. The name Dance Advantage started there but, I was teaching too much to really devote any time to it. Blogging was still very new when I made that first attempt.
A few years later, after my son was born, I glimpsed how blogging had moved beyond journaling and how I might utilize the platform to finally create the resource for dance teachers and students I had imagined. I was taking an extended sabbatical/maternity leave from any kind of teaching and used the time to just start writing one post at a time.
BenSpark
So it looks like timing, knowledge seeking and passion worked together to make Dance Advantage happen. Do you monetize your blog? What are some companies that you work with?
Nichelle
Making money was never the motivation for creating Dance Advantage. I think I just had the naive thought that I could put up a few ads and it would pay for itself. It was long before I realized that continually putting out content for which people want to come back takes quite a bit of effort, time, and I think some unique skills. As the blog gained momentum, I realized that what I’ve built and the standard of quality I strive for isn’t sustainable without monetizing and that I would not be able to give readers the kind of value I’d like without taking it to another level.
I have a lot of respect for those willing to read and so I’m not willing to throw something up on the blog I can’t stand behind. It has been a real learning process and a step outside my comfort zone to look at what I’m doing as an entrepreneurial venture but I’ve had some wonderful support. My first step into monetizing was a natural one because I met Suzanne Blake Gerety on Twitter shortly after her launch of DanceStudioOwner.com. It’s easy to partner and recommend what she offers at the membership site because I’m totally a fan. I look for that kind of relationship in all of my affiliations and partnerships.
BenSpark
Suzanne is awesome. I love working with her. I work on her husband Ed’s blog at Ed Gerety Blog.com. I’ve learned so much from them as they from me. It is great to work with great people. Okay, back to the questions. What is a Blogging Tip that you would share with the world?
Nichelle
People want to know how to do things. Give readers something they can use, apply, or act upon in every post. It’s something I strive to do. It is beneficial to have opinions and a unique perspective but the problems you choose to solve and how you choose to solve them expresses these and fills a need in the reader as well.
BenSpark
Great advice, I think that is why blogs like copyblogger and problogger do so well. What do you wish you knew when you started blogging?
Nichelle
One of the most difficult things about starting without much of a plan (as I did) is I almost never feel caught up, especially while chasing after a toddler. If I had it to do over, I would have written ahead of myself more in the beginning when the activity on the blog was slower (not to mention my little one less mobile). As traffic and attention began to snowball and in those times when real life got hectic, it became more difficult to keep up without a vault of already produced content from which to draw.
BenSpark
I was just reading a blog post over on Chris Brogan’s blog titled With a Little Planning. It is a practice I should get into as well but since my posts are daily, based on the things of the day it is hard to do unless my prognostication skills get much better. What is the first thing you do when you fire up your browser?
Nichelle
E-mail. I get through as much of it as I can while my son is eating breakfast and I’m downing the coffee.
BenSpark
E-mail is my first priority too, I go through all of it till I have an empty inbox, save the stuff I need to complete. Everything is answered and I use the send and archive function. I need to write a blog post about that. What is your best blog post ever?
Nichelle
Dance Advantage has over 300 posts and sort of specializes in creating “evergreen” content so I’m finding it difficult to choose. It is not the most viewed or most talked about article but Helping Dancers Deal With Disappointment exemplifies my goal for blog content. It offers practical guidance to parents of dancers while also saying a lot, I think, about my values in both dance education and parenting.
BenSpark
I just went and read that post and that was some powerful stuff. I have a daughter who is two and a half now but soon we’ll be getting to those places where she is joining teams and playing sports or dancing and I’ll have to go back and read that when the time comes. Changing gears let me ask a strange question. What are some odd keywords people use to find your blog?
Nichelle
Overall, I’m pleased that people are finding the blog with pretty relevant searches. A few curious ones I noticed recently are ‘carrier indance’ which I think was supposed to be career in dance, and ‘how to find space inside the body.’ If that is not meant in a figurative sense, I have to wonder what exactly the searcher would like to put in the space he (or she) finds.
BenSpark
Time for the lighting round. Ipod or other music player?
Nichelle
iPod or iPhone on the go and at home we use AppleTV.
BenSpark
Ah someone who is using Apple TV. I was thinking about getting one especially as we are big fans of the iPod, iPad and many podcasts. So speaking of Apple TV what is you Favorite Movie? TV Show? Book?
Nichelle
There is a gaping hole in my TV watching since LOST ended. I like The Office, 30 Rock, and Glee. I don’t watch much TV anymore but when I do, it’s likely you’ll find me watching Yo Gabba Gabba or Ni-Hao Kai-lan with my preschooler. It is my dirty little secret that I am actually not an avid watcher of dance contest shows.
BenSpark
Well, you won’d get any admonishment from me for not watching reality shows. Do you play Facebook games?
Nichelle
No. I can think of better ways to waste my time.
BenSpark
Do you have some Favorite Blogs?
Nichelle
I like and read regularly a lot of great dance blogs which are mentioned on my site if anyone reading is interested in dance. I’ve been reading Deb Vogel’s Body Series blog (http://blog.thebodyseries.com) the longest. Essentially an advice column on health and injury for dancers, her newsletter was a beacon back when I was doing all that searching for quality dance information online. She transformed a lot of that newsletter into a blog which I continue to read and apply to teaching. It is really a techie blog… but for dancers.
In my blogging toolkit, I like Problogger (problogger.com), Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/), and Copyblogger (copyblogger.com).
BenSpark
Do you have any Favorite Podcasts?.
Nichelle
I have yet to get into podcasting. I don’t know that I will, honestly, because I learn better visually and kinesthetically. I have trouble digesting auditory input that isn’t musical. Maybe if someone sung their podcasts?
BenSpark
A singing podcast, that might be interesting. If I find one I’ll let you know. Speaking of getting in touch with you, how does someone connect with you online?
Nichelle
Twitter is a great way to connect: twitter.com/danceadvantage or visit DA on Facebook: www.facebook.com/danceadvantage
BenSpark
Nichelle, thank you very much for taking a break from dancing and dance blogging to speak with me on this interview. I appreciate it very much and love your style of blogging.
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