Spotlight On: DanZING App & Its Remarkable 16 Year Old Creator

Hosted by: Tara Christensen PT, MS, DPT

Guest: Prisha Sasikumar

In this episode:

We explore how young innovator Prisha Sasikumar is transforming the dance community with her tech-savvy approach, launching the app danZING specifically designed for dancers and studios. Tune in to hear her inspiring story and the future of dance technology.

About danZING by DanceVibes

danZING is a new app built specifically for competitive dance studios to replace the chaos of group chats, emails, and scattered schedules—so dancers, parents, and teachers can stay fully organized in one place. Corrections (synced to timestamps), file storage, packing checklists, and more in one app!

We’re currently preparing for our official June launch and opening early access to a limited number of studios.

For Studio Directors & Teachers
Streamline communication and team organization without the back-and-forth.

→ Join early access: growithdancevibes.com/danzing
→ UNTIL JUNE 20TH: Onboard your studio to receive one month free and 25% lifetime discount + direct input on features

For Dancers
Know exactly what’s happening—rehearsals, checklists, videos—all in one place so you can focus on performing, not scrambling.

→ Get early access: growithdancevibes.com/danzing

For Dance Parents
Stay in the loop without the stress—no more missed updates or last-minute confusion.

→ Sign up for access: growithdancevibes.com/danzing

Learn more about DanceVibes and danZING: growithdancevibes.com

Follow Prisha: instagram.com/prisha.sasikumar

Submit your questions or topic suggestions! This podcast is for you, let us know what you want to hear more about:  doctordancemompodcast@gmail.com

Follow us on social media:

Instagram: @drdancemompodcast

YouTube: @Dr.DanceMomPodcast

TikTok: @doctordancemom

Join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1aPGZP9TAo/?mibextid=wwXIfr

If you’re looking for a dance medicine Physical Therapist in northern New Jersey, check out my practice!  Performers Edge Wellness is located in Sparta, NJ and serves artistic athletes such as dancers, cheerleaders and gymnasts as well as active individuals looking to eliminate pain and sustain an active lifestyle. 

Follow:  

Instagram: @performersedgewellness

Facebook: Performers Edge Wellness

TikTok: @performersedgewellness

Subscribe to our newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/performersedgewellness/socials-and-quick-sign-up

To explore other services we provide, check out our website at www.performersedgewellness.com

If you enjoyed this content, please leave us a review and tell your friends!

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:01

Welcome to the Doctor Dance Mom Podcast, your guide to strong dancers with a bright future. I'm your host, Dr. Tara Christensen, doctor of physical therapy, dance medicine specialist, and proud dance mom. Let's dive into today's episode. Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the Doctor Dance Mom Podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Tara Christensen. I'm joined today by um a dancer who has developed some projects. I'll just call it that to start for um other dancers. So uh I'm gonna introduce our guest. This is Preesha. She is 16 years old and she has developed um a couple different projects. One is an app that she's been working on to help dancers stay organized and on their game. And uh I wanted to, you know, kind of bring her on here to talk about her projects to get them out into the world a little bit. Um, but also I think it's really cool that there's dancers at such young ages working to develop tools for other dancers and who better to create some of that support and content than a fellow dancer. So um welcome, Preesha. Happy to have you on the podcast.

SPEAKER_00 1:29

Yes, I'm so excited to be here. And I was really grateful that uh we were able to get this organized after I reached out.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

Yeah, of course. So um first I want you to introduce yourself, tell me and our audience a little bit about yourself and your background and um kind of how you started getting into developing some of these things.

SPEAKER_00 1:50

Uh yeah, for sure. That's actually one of my favorite questions. Like whenever someone asks me to like talk about myself and like share about dance vibes because I'm just so passionate about it. Um so yeah, I'm Precia, I'm 16. Um, I've been dancing competitively, especially within hip hop. So like I've only competed um ever like hip-hop and jazz funk routines um for I want to say at least five or so years, like since I was about, I think 11, I started competing. Um, and you know how right, like the comp world is so like big. And like when you first get started, you just like don't really know like what you're even doing. Um, and then at some point you get more experience in it and you're like, oh, okay, in a convention class, I need to do this. Um when I'm like competing, I should do this and I need to like be this early and like do this much preparation um to get ready for it. But when you're first starting out, like nobody really tells you those kinds of things, or like when you're going through that kind of self-doubt of like, oh, am I even like supposed to be here? Or like just you know, having those like negative thoughts because dance, especially, like, you know, it's like an amazing art form in the community can be amazing, but the community can also come with a lot of like um comparison and negativity, just like to other dancers who maybe like are not even on your same level, but like you just compare yourself as if you're on the same level.

SPEAKER_01 3:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

Um, so that was really where I came in with dance fets about a year ago. Um, because I was like, you know, like there's like so much like comparison and negativity going on in the community, but also so many dancers that need help with organization. Because um, I swear, like when I like when I was a freshman, like right now I'm a junior, um, my freshman year during comp season, I swear every single comp we went to, we went to like four or five comps that year, someone always forgot something. Like whether it was like a half or a costume piece, like bobby pins, and they're like stealing mine or like my hair ties. And I was just like, because at least for me, I was super organized. Like I always made a packing checklist before every single competition. And I was just like, guys, like, how can you just like keep forgetting? Like, one, like inconsistently, it was like one different person, every comp always forgot something, like 30 minutes before we have to go on, and it actually drove me crazy. And then I also had other these other dancers who were kind of coming to me as like the dance mom of the team, like, hey, like I'm like really stressed before my solo, or like, can you help me out with this eight count for the group routine? Like stuff like that. Um, and then I was like, okay, I need to put my like dance mom energy like out into the world, like out on Instagram. Um, and then I came up with Dance Vibes, and my mom and I worked really hard on that name. Like it was like me and her for like an hour, just like thinking about names, and then she was like, dance vibes. I'm like, okay. Um, and it was literally like just content for dancers. Like, I had a website with some like free templates and packing checklists for dancers, but it was literally like just content, um, like featuring dancers who maybe had lower Instagram followings and just like putting their content out there, um, you know, like dance quotes, like um things like that. Um, but then after a while, like a couple of months, I was just like, no, like I can do more for dancers, like I can do more for the community. Um, and then I started um like working with my like friends who were also into coding and also some like freelancers for like um like interfaces and stuff like that um to create like actual apps for dancers. Um and so we did develop like the first version of the Dance Vibes app, which is literally just goal setting. Um but then a couple of months ago, we took that off the app store just because like at least like for me, I had knew that it could be so much more. And I was like, I just don't want people to get this as their first impression of Dance Vibes. Um, so there's that. And then um now within a co and now in a couple of weeks on June 6th, we are officially launching, launching Danzing um with a Z, which is at least to my knowledge, the first app out there designed like by dancers like me and like my other dance friends with like their feedback and testing um for other competitive dancers and comp teams. So it's literally like corrections, like timestamped based on your routine music, um, files like videos and audio, um, packing checklists, like dance quotes, tips, literally all of that in one app. And it's like super easy to use. Like whenever I onboard a new studio, they're like pre-show, like my kids make fun of me because I don't know how to use technology. But like this app, like the way you just showed me how to like use these buttons, like it all makes sense. Um, right, because especially technology for dancers is a very like iffy thing, you know, whether it's like Dance Studio Pro um or Glow Fox, like any of those other apps out there, it's like kind of like very hard for a dancer or a director who's maybe not exposed to technology to use. Um, but dancing is very easy in that way and very intuitive, and I'm very proud of that. Um, but yeah, that's just a little bit about me. Basically, you know, like I'm just at least for me, like I just don't really like like school personally. So, you know, I just keep myself busy with all these other things. Like that's what everyone always tells me, like, Briesha, don't you have school? And like, yeah, sure, but it's boring.

SPEAKER_01 6:20

So well, it sounds to me like you're kind of a natural-born leader and you kind of attract people that are looking to you for again, like advice. And um, this sounds like a very natural project for someone like you to step into. I am very similar to you in the sense that I overwhelm myself with things sometimes just to keep busy, just because I always feel like I need to be doing more. Um, maybe that's like a personality flaw, but um at the same time, I can totally relate to that. Um, and definitely wanting to create things that help people. So um I think it's great what you're what you're doing and and just the pursuit of something, you know, useful, a good tool that dancers can use. So um is this for studios for dancers or both, like the dancing app that you just described? Because it sounded like you said something about onboarding studios. So I'm curious, how exactly does the app work?

SPEAKER_00 7:25

Yeah, for sure. So um currently, like right now for testing, because I've been testing for a couple of months, um we have, I think, currently like two big test studios, um, but a lot of just like independent dancers who just want to like keep track of their corrections and like files, and they just want to like use the app for those kinds of things. Um, but it really is designed like completely for studios or like huge like dance groups to use. Um, so the idea is like one director creates an account um and it's super secure with like um on with like completely randomly generated um like login pins. So like no one other studio is gonna like access like your studio's information. Um, and then basically from after the director creates an account, then they can onboard um like other teachers, dancers, and parents in the studio. Um it's kind of designed for like basically one app for everybody, you know, like no more like asking randomly in the group chat, like, hey, can I get the video? Um, because actually it's kind of funny. Like I was going through my other team group chats and I just like filtered like for the word video, and it was like over 200 times everyone's asking for the video, and I'm like, no, like this just cannot be my dance team works. Um, so yeah, it's designed so that mostly like dancers and directors have most of the functionality where they can actually like add in their corrections, create routines for like their solo, do a trio, um, or small group, add files. Um, and then parents, it's it's literally just so they can like view things, like they're literally just there to see like, okay, this is what I need to tell my junior to practice, or this is what they need to pack for the next competition. Um, and then for teachers, they can obviously um, you know, like have their dancers like add in corrections after rehearsal, things like that. Um, so it's kind of designed to be just like an all-around um studio tool just for a comp team, you know, like maybe after rehearsal, instead of everyone just like going off to leave like right to their cars right away, you know, like you can like sit down for like two, three minutes, log your corrections in the app, like so get to timestamps, um, and then go. And then that way you'll like remember it better. You can like listen to it, um, stuff like that.

SPEAKER_01 9:20

So in terms of, okay, so let's give an example. So if you have a, let's say a small group, does it only work for like up to small groups, or can you do like large groups, like bigger groups, lines, things like that?

SPEAKER_00 9:32

Yeah, good question. Um, I have not tested it with um more than at least 50 dancers. Um just because like the system is kind of designed for that way, but obviously like it would get to a point where you can literally just like drop in like an Excel or like a Google Sheet file, and like, you know, you have like a hundred dancers or something, things like that.

SPEAKER_01 9:48

Okay. Um, yeah, so so let's say there's like a small group, large group, whatever. Um, so a video I'm assuming of the routine is uploaded, and then because you were you were talking about timestamps, so I'm really curious how that works. So is the the video of the routine uploaded, and then based on that video, you can like insert comments at certain timestamps on the video for the dancers to then view like what those corrections may have been. Is that how it works?

SPEAKER_00 10:19

Or um, so yeah, that is actually one of the updates that we are working on for post-launch, um, like that feature where they could just like watch the video and then like add in comments for stuff. Um but in terms of like chem chimps right now, it's based on where if you just upload like the audio file for your routine music, um, it's like saved in the set system such a way that now every time you log in a correction, you can just like drag and drop um like which like part of the music that that correction is. Um, because especially like at least on my team, whenever we took notes, um, we would have a comment that was super specific, like uber specific, like sharpen your arms on this part. And then we're all like, wait, what's this part? And then like from my experience of talking to like other like my other dance friends from like other states and other studios, like it was like a similar thing for them of how like most of the time they wouldn't even take notes. But when they did take notes, like it wasn't in a very um organized way or in like an easy organized way for them to keep doing it as a habit. Um so that's what I've worked like pretty hard on. Um, like working like closely with other dancers to make sure that that corrections feature was like super easy. Like anybody can just like tap the buttons, type in some stuff, drag and drop, and then it's settled. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 11:24

Um so that both the dancers and the like studio owners or the teachers or whoever is at has access to that can add that information, or is it like in an a certain dancer's account? Is it or is it like something where like all the dancers in the group are like linked to that file or something?

SPEAKER_00 11:43

Um yeah, so it's basically um in terms of like how like all the information in the app is organized, it's based on like a routine basis. So you just like create a routine, I don't know, like Audrey solo, and then from there, like only Audrey and her like dance mom um in the account has access to that information. Um and then like Audrey and like be like her director or her um solo teacher can like add in corrections, um, upload files, stuff like that. And then you know, Audrey's dance mom is like, oh, okay, I can see my kid's um solo performance from Star Power, or I can see her latest private with her teacher, um, stuff like that. And then for a group routine, it's like every dancer and teacher who's involved in that group routine just can automatically see all the corrections, files, stuff like that. And then, like, you know, like the dance parents of those dancers can also just like keep tapped on that stuff. Um, because it's actually kind of funny. I didn't like when I was coming up with the idea for the app over a summer ago, um I was just talking with other teachers and dancers about what they'd want in the app. And then one of the teachers who I talked to was also a dance mom, and she was like, you know, like at my um kids' studio, like they never give me like videos or like um corrections or anything like that for my dancer, but like I still want to keep tabs on her, so it'd be nice if I could do that. Um, so it's kind of like a feature I just added as an app, I thought, like just for her. Um, but I'm very proud of that feature and my kind works well, and like parents like it, dancers like it. Um, so yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:58

Yeah, it is helpful. I know in at least our situation, um, we use the band app a lot. So same thing will like kind of upload videos and things, but it does get really messy, especially when there's like, you know, they're doing choreography and there's like multiple iterations of the same routine in the in the in the chat. Um so yeah, I could see how something being organized by routine could be really helpful in order to keep all of that like organized by routine and being able to find it easily, because I think that's the one thing that we struggle with a lot too. Um what are some of the other features of the app? So you mentioned there's a checklist for like packing for competitions. Is that something that's like a standard checklist or you know, based on the studio, obviously there's different things that dancers might need to bring or require depending on like their hair requirements, makeup requirements, costumes, etc. Is that something that's customizable by the dancer in the app, or is that or the studio, or like how does that work?

SPEAKER_00 14:01

Um, yeah, so actually um I'm on I launched an update um a couple of days ago where a dancer where it's like a preset checklist, um, but then dancers can also like add and delete stuff as they need to. Um but I also made sure that it was a preset checklist because there's also um some dancers that just really like do not know what to pack, or like some dance parents just like don't know what to pack, or you know, like that first-time dance parent who's like, Are you sure that my kid needs like that much hairspray and that much hair gel? And it's like, no, yes, they do. They're in five routines today. Um, you know, those kinds of things. Um, so it's also um customized in that way where it's like preset, but then you can also add stuff. Um, and another one of our feature updates for the summer, like along with video, is having like a full-on like hair and makeup dashboard kind of where you can literally see for each routine like this is the hair, this is the makeup, because I think that also gets lost in translation a lot, especially in group chats or in emails when the director is like, make sure that you bring red lipstick, and then nobody brings red lipstick, um, right? Like those kinds of things.

SPEAKER_01 14:57

Yeah, and I think studio dependent probably with that as well, just because I know, like generally speaking, where my daughter dances, we have like standard hair, standard makeup. We don't change it a whole lot. Sometimes the for like a routine um something will change, but for the most part, they keep everything pretty uniform, usually just for quick changes and things like that. But um, I could see where that could be really helpful, especially for um, you know, situations I've seen other studios that do really cool, elaborate things with their hair and makeup. And so I could see that being like a really important feature for those parents as well. Um so tell me like uh tell me why you think dancers should utilize the app. What how what do you think they how do you think they will benefit from it?

SPEAKER_00 15:48

Yeah, for sure. Um are you talking about like dance studios overall? So like teachers and dancers or like just like dancer specifically.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

I think both because I I would I could see from the studio perspective, from an admin perspective, it might create a little bit more work to to kind of input a lot of that information um for them versus like you know the kids kind of just sharing on their own. I I could see the organizational aspect of it, but then there's also that like administrative portion that will definitely, you know, add a little bit of time to like what they're doing. So um I would say for on both sides, like an independent, like individual dancer versus like a studio, like how like why how would they benefit from using the app?

SPEAKER_00 16:33

Yeah, for sure. Um, so actually what's kind of funny is like sort of the way that like at least like the app has kind of like spread organically, like reached like growth potential, even just like among dancers, is like I get one dancer and one studio on it, and then they're like obsessed, they're like using it um after every single rehearsal, stuff like that. And then they tell like their best dance friend, and then they send the link. And then now they're also getting it. And now I have like maybe like five or ten dancers from one studio, like on one senior team using the app. Um, and a lot of the benefit that they've told me is like before using the app, they didn't really have a structure um in terms of how they were organizing their dance information, or like even like for solos too, like they would like get all these feedback during privates, but they just wouldn't put it anywhere. And then in the next private, it's like, oh, the teacher's like, didn't I tell you to work on this last week? And then, you know, they just forget. So it's a really big, um, I like to say accountability approach where like it's super easy to use. So it's like if by the next rehearsal, like you haven't watched the video from last week that was in the app, it's like, like, what are you doing? You know, like it was literally like in the app. We uploaded it right after it was in the folder, you let you got notified. Like, why haven't you watched the video? Um, same thing with corrections too. Like, you literally just like tap some buttons, text, drag and drop the audio section, like you have your feedback. So it's also very easy to use in that way. So at least that's the benefit that I've seen from a lot of dancers who are using it. Um, and then from a lot of teachers who are also using it at their studios. A huge thing that I've seen is like now their dancers are, you know, like more accountable and more organized. Like they're not showing up to comps forgetting things anymore. Um, in fact, actually, the week a couple of months ago, when I actually released that checklist feature, I didn't even think it'd be that big a deal. I'm just like, okay, they've been asking for it. Like I just uploaded it, like updated the app. And then they're like, oh my gosh, Priceha, this feature changed my life. And now when I look back at like my um like user dashboards with like Kylie been using the app, it's like, it's like the um checklist features actually use the most, and then the corrections feature, and then like the files feature. And I'm like, oh, I just like added an update in like an hour, but I guess they like it. Um, so really like accountability is the huge thing in terms of like dancers and directors like being able to see that that their dancers like are actually using the app to log in their corrections, video storage, things like that. Um, especially just like creating like a bunch of little organized, like like a huge like organized like dancer army that like knows what to do um to stay on top of their dance seasons, stuff like that. Um I've seen from a lot of like dancers and teachers who are using the app. And that's also just like my greater goal um overall with the app, right, to make it easy because I do also know like some dancers from other studios who use things like Band app or Paperball and stuff like that. But it's just like they kind of use it on like an on and off basis, um, right? Like I know a studio um that my friend goes to um in the East Coast, and they only use Band App, like just for videos. Like they won't do anything like but put in videos. And then when I showed her like the dancing app and she made an account, she was like, Oh, okay, I think this is like a lot easier, at least for me, because it's like everything dances in here and it only danced too, and like the features are designed based on like a routine basis, so it's super easy for me and my director. Uh, whereas Band App, it's you know, just based on like a group chat kind of style, which can work for some studios, but also um, at least personally for me, and what I've seen from some other dancers who are testing the app, like having things on like a routine basis or on organized in a way that is literally designed by and for dancers, it it just makes sense. You know, like it just makes sense because also dancers are so niche in that way, right? Like five, six, seven, eight, um, like coming to a comp five hours early, right? Like, there's like just some things that we do. Like it's just a dancer thing. Um, so it only makes sense to have an app designed like for dancers in that way.

SPEAKER_01 20:09

Yeah, definitely. Um so tell me a little bit about any obstacles that you've had to face while developing this app and just kind of going through and creating these ideas. And what is the hardest part of the process for you right now?

SPEAKER_00 20:28

For sure. I think the hardest thing for me right now is I just have like so many ideas, right? Like I was actually um like on a flight yesterday back from my um school trip, and I just like opened my iPad and I was like writing down like every single idea that I had for dance types, like app feature updates and then also just like other apps, and I was like, whoa, that's a lot. Um, right, because also like I just like talk to like my other dance friends about like these ideas that I have. Um, like something that I've been obsessed with for a while is like this is completely random, but the idea that whenever a dancer goes to a convention, they don't need like their mom or their best friend or like themselves like holding up a camera to film themselves. They can just put on like a little device that'll like automatically like follow them and they can like film themselves and stuff like that. But I just have all these like random ideas for technology for dancers because I feel like dance is very traditional and like you know that's amazing, it's a beautiful art form. But also, like if we can use technology in a way to stay organized but also stay true to the art form, then like you know, we would see so many more music videos, so many more like top 10 comp teams, um, stuff like that. So I think just like keeping like my ideas and like myself centered too, right? Because like also, for example, like I'm in AP season right now with my AP tests, and just trying to tell myself that like I can study, but then I also do have to like work on this update and I do have to work on this content, like just trying to kind of keep it together. Because I also am like a one person team. Like I do have some friends helping me out and like some freelancers that I've worked with for like the interface designs, but it really is just mostly me. So trying to stay true to that. Um, and then also obviously the age barrier, I feel Like we kind of have to address that. Um right. Like actually, what I used to do is whenever I was getting calls with like prospective freelancers um or studio directors, is I would like turn my camera off and I would try to like deepen my voice so that I would sound older and I would say that I was like 21 or something. But that didn't let that that didn't really get me anywhere. I found out that people actually liked the fact that I was 16. And whenever I sent emails or like DMs to directors, like, oh yeah, I'm 16, and I worked on this, they're like, oh whoa, you're 16. Like, okay, I gotta meet this kid. Um, right. So in terms of like, at least in my experience, the age barrier has been um both like a positive and a negative, because there are also some people that have like been like, oh, she's 16, like she's so young, why do I want to work with her? But then there's also been some people who were like, oh whoa, she's 16, like, and she like had the guts to email me, like she had the guts to get started. Like, I gotta meet this kid. Um, and then that's actually how I was able to work with some pretty cool partners like Jason Pickett. Um, I got his studio, um his um mentorship kids like our dance planners. Um, I've worked with Michelle Legan's to get some content out there. Um, I'm trying to think who else, like I am dance to get their top placing studios um discounts and early access to the dancing app. Like all just because I said, hey, I'm 16, like I built this thing, can we work together? And they're like, oh, you're like you're 16, you had the guts, you started. Like, just email me. And that's the thing too. Like, everyone always says that like getting started is the hardest thing. And like that's true, it completely is the hardest thing to get started. But I think it's also hard to keep going, especially when you're not seeing any traction, right? Like when my Instagram page only has like two reels and 50 followers, like of course it's so hard for me to keep going, but like, you know, I have to keep going. And now I'm finding like those trending series of like mine on the account that are trending, um, and like getting lots of engagement, like lots of dancers who are DMing me, like asking specifically if they can get access to the app, stuff like that. So, like it's like I totally agree it is hard to get started, but it is also very much harder to keep going and like keep doing something even when you're not seeing like any growth whatsoever.

SPEAKER_01 23:58

Yeah, and I can tell you from personal experience. So I own a business. I started this podcast very similar to how you got your start, right? Like, I just had ideas. I was actually on a plane as well, like had this thought and jotted down like a bunch of ideas, no joke. So I went to um it's like an international um conference for dance medicine, and it was in Las Vegas, and I was just I've I've been to that conference a couple times. Um, but just I think after a few days of networking and just being kind of rejuvenated by just like lots of inspiration from other people that are helping dancers, I just had so many ideas. And so that's really what led me to start this podcast because I realized I'm really terrible at creating content on Instagram through my business page. Um, and I don't enjoy it at all. So I was like, well, I can have conversations with people, like that's what I'm good at. So I was like, maybe a podcast would be a better way to create content because I can, you know, talk to people, have conversations, record content that way, and then just take bits and pieces of that and use that as my social media content. And so that was really kind of what inspired me to start the podcast. Um, but it it is. So I've definitely had multiple experiences where you do, you get to a place where you're like, oh, this feels like it's really stalled. I think the important thing in the advice I would give you is like never really take that as a failure. It just means that you you need a little bit more time. Um, because if you give up, you're never gonna reach your destination. But sometimes there is a little bit of a stall, but just keep going and eventually, you know, you'll kind of beat the curve. But I am very impressed by all that you've accomplished and put together at your age. And I think it's really inspiring to hear because I think people do use age as a barrier or a reason why they think they can't accomplish or achieve something. But the fact that you're so motivated and so driven and so inspired at this young age, like for me is so inspiring to see. And I really think that like this is just the like a drop in the bucket of what you're gonna accomplish. So um I think it's really very cool to see. So don't ever let anybody tell you that your age is a barrier because I think I think you're amazing in terms of what you're doing, just the fact that you had the courage to start and get this far. So um keep reaching out. People will say no. Don't use that as like a negative, just use it as more fuel to keep going because you're always gonna have that. So I think that's just part of the journey. Um, but I think you have a lot of great potential. And if it's not even this app, it might be something else you develop in the future. You're learning as you go. So every little thing that you learn along this way is a lesson that you'll take with you in the future. So I think that's amazing. Um, I was gonna say, how did you acquire some of the skills that you're using? Because obviously, like you have some some skills, some background. You're obviously, you know, kind of a diligent student. You said it's an AP season, so I'm assuming you're in a lot of honors and AP classes. Um, so you have the work ethic. It's it's in you. Um, but like how did you how did you acquire some of the skills that you're using? Because obviously, like some of the stuff is, you know, like it's pretty difficult to put together. I know you said you had some freelancers that are helping you, but um, like how much of that is like freelance help and how much of it is like you on the back end actually putting this stuff together?

SPEAKER_00 27:27

Yeah, for sure. Great question. Um, so actually there's also like this thing in business that I've learned about recently, which is the idea that like as you scale a business and like you get like you hire more people to help you, um, it's really good to first like do all the jobs that you hire for yourself. That way that when you're interviewing and when you're like training, you know exactly what to look for. So I do try to do that a lot. Um, and when you're talking about like work ethic, I think dance, oh my gosh, like also like I swear there's like studies out there that say that like people who do dance or do sports are just like built differently or they like go on like this huge like career trajectory. Because truly, like the work ethic, you're not gonna get that from anywhere else. Like, unless you like strive something like a business or like a podcast or like an Instagram page, or like you do a sport like dance, like you really are not gonna get that work ethic like anywhere else. Like it's just I don't know if you like get what I was saying, like with like your daughter, obviously, but you know, like like the way that like teachers train you and like the way you have to like show up to competitions, like do the group warm-up, like it's kind of like like this like amazing community, but also this amazing work ethic. Like, I swear you were not gonna get that kind of work ethic and that kind of hustle like anywhere else. Um, so I think that's obviously where like a huge part of that came from. Um, right, like my teachers were always like on me about like taking notes, filming videos. Um, and since I was like the dance member of the group chat, like they were always like, if Preisha didn't send the video, like like one of my teachers would be like, Preisha, like why don't you send the video? And I was like, Oh, I forgot. They're like, No, you can't forget, like you're the one who always sends the video. Okay, I got that now. Um, but yeah. And then in terms of like other things like content and stuff, um, I think quite honestly, like at least like now with like everyone being obsessed with like Gen Z, you're like, you know, like there's so many brands who are like figuring out like how do we target Gen Z. It's literally just by being relatable. And I think that even took me a while to figure out too. But really, it is just by being relatable and like sharing your journey. Um, so actually something that I started, like like a little Instagram series, Esther on Dance Vibes, called Reasons You Are a Better Dancer Than You Think. So it's literally Reasons You Are a Better Dancer Than You Think. And then it's like a little like voiceover reel where like I share like reasons you are a better dancer than you think, and like me dancing. Um, and then usually that series has done very well because it's also just me being relatable, like me just like seeing things at my studio and whenever I go to comps. And I'm like, oh, like you know, like that girl over there, like she seems like so like um like not confident or like really sad about how she did, but she was amazing. Um and then I kind of just like share some tips through that way. Um, but yeah, I think content is like a huge skill, obviously. It's like you kind of um just like have to understand content marketing, whether it is like through a podcast like this, um, or through Instagram or through like a substack blog. Like you just kind of have to know it. And at least right now in the age of like, you know, Gen Z, like everyone like being obsessed with Gen Z, it's literally just being relatable and being you, even if it is like being very vulnerable. Like that's literally it. It's like just about being you. Um, and then obviously in terms of like coding and stuff like that, I did have to I do have to know like a little bit of that. Um, but like I do have some friends, like I have like some friends who are like much better than me at coding. Um, and I literally just like like give them like the app back end, and then within like 30 minutes, they're like done like adding in this feature. Like it's gonna be that easy. And then from I'm like, that's the thing that took me like five hours, but they did it. Um and then like my freelancers are amazing. Like I just send them like literally a like a sketch of like what I want a certain page to look like, and then within like an hour or show they're done. Um right, and then obviously I don't want to be like that person about like AI, but really truly like AI is amazing, like Claude Code is also amazing. Um, and right, and I think also like I've run into a lot of conversation with conversations with teachers, especially, and like um about AI, and I think that they like especially teachers have very differing perspectives about like dance in AI. Um, like I won't go too much into that, but in terms of just like coding and like getting a business out there, like AI is definitely like amazing for that. It's literally just like one prompt and like boom, like something is out there. Um yeah, I think that the big skills is obviously like the work ethic, um, content creation and just being able to use the resources available to me. So whether it is AI or like a business podcast or like um business blogs, like things like that.

SPEAKER_01 31:23

Yeah. So, but you seem to know a lot about like the ins and outs of marketing yourself. But like, how did how did you learn those skills? Because that's again something that you come into this with no knowledge of, right? Like, did you take a class at school? Like, is that just something you've learned along the way?

SPEAKER_00 31:41

Yeah, for sure. So, in terms of like um marketing as a whole, I did take a business and marketing class my freshman year. Um, like I'm mentioning right now. Um, and it was actually really inspiring because the teacher of that class um used to do marketing at Microsoft and she was on like all the big launches, like all the new like Surface Pros, things like that. Um and she was always sharing like these like random stories about how like like apparently um they were like a bunch of like really bad names for the surface before they finally agreed on surface, um just like things like that. And um I think through that I did learn a lot, right? Like how you want to be like minimalistic in your marketing, but also have a very clear like action. Um, always have a post with like a CTA or a call to action, things like that. Um, but most of the time it I really kind of just have in the like content on my own. Um like I do um obviously follow like a bunch of influencers, especially in the dance space, um, like Gabby Roberts, Jason Pickett, and I kind of see how they go about their videos, right? Like Jason Pickett just has an example, like you know, like it's literally just like like him talking about his opinions for dancers. Like that's literally his content, and it like goes viral every single time. Yeah. Um and it I just kind of watched that and I'm like, okay, so like this is how he articulates his thoughts to like articulate his thoughts, but also not be offensive in any way. Or like Gabby Roberts, like this is how she styles her carousels so that it looks aesthetic, but also you can just like scroll through and you'll get the message right away. Um things like that. And also, I do truly believe that you learn a lot more by doing than by reading. Um, for example, for me for studying, like I learn more by doing practice questions than by just watching like a tutorial or like a YouTube video. Like, at least that's my learning style. Because also it's kind of just like you're literally like throwing yourself in deep water. Like you just have to get this. Um, or even with dance too, right? Like, if you're in like a really hard masterclass, like you literally just have to like you like just have to do the dance. You can you won't learn by watching the choreographer or watching the choreographer's assistant. You can only learn the dance by truly like trying to do it yourself, even if you're marking it, like that's the only way you're gonna learn it. That's why so many teachers recommend that you learn the dance full out, and then only when you're like listening to music, you can like start marking and like making creative choices, things like that. Um, I think that dance has also been huge in that way for me. Um, and then in terms of content, it's literally just trial and error. Like, I have this rule that if a post doesn't perform super great within the first 24 hours, I'll just delete it or I'll archive it. And like people that realize that like, but like with social media, it really is that easy. Like, if you don't like something or if people on the internet give you a lot of hate about it, like control all delete, honey. Like it's really that easy. That's literally all you have to do. Um, like I think I was going through like my Instagram like archives, and I have like literally like hundreds of reels that I've archived and deleted. What? Like just because they haven't performed that well, or like at least like by my perfection standards, within the first 24 hours they didn't perform that well. Um I give myself 24 hours, otherwise I'd be deleting reels every like five hours, like at school. But gosh, yeah, no, so like every 24 hours. And I think just like giving myself like those guidelines and those kinds of rules, um, because I'm also a very like naturally disciplined person. Like I never realized that. But earlier this year, I was like complaining to one of my old like mentors and teachers about how I'm taking like so many hard classes, but I also want to like grow dance vibes, um, and like I want us to like be dancing at the studio like five hours a week. And he was like, Preesha, what are you complaining about? Like, you're so disciplined, like all together because your age or like scrolling or like studying, like what do you mean you can't do it? And I'm like, Oh, okay, then I guess if he believes in me, like you know, I just gotta do something. Um, that's a very long way to be using that like for marketing, it's literally just like have a message and like just post and try stuff. And if it doesn't perform well, like you literally can't always just click those three dots on Instagram and delete it. Like it's really not that serious.

SPEAKER_01 35:14

So that's a great point, but so do you benefit by deleting those posts? Like, what's it so if it's not performing well, right? But you still had a message that you wanted to convey, what's the benefit of deleting or archiving it versus leaving it there and just being like, okay, that one just didn't do as well? Is there a benefit to that?

SPEAKER_00 35:34

Or I'm just curious. For sure. So um at least like what I found specifically on Instagram, because Instagram was like really where all the dancers are at. Like you can post on like X or threads, but really like Instagram, that is where all the dancers are at. So something that I found is I have to if within the first like one or two minutes, if I don't post a reel to my story, it's not getting any engagement. I don't know why I've tested this so many times. I just have to post it to my story within the first like 30 seconds. And sometimes I will like forget to do that, like because I'll be like at school and I'll be like busy. Um and then at those scenarios, unfortunately, I do have to like just delete the reel, but then I'll like repost it like right when I'm like right in that moment, and then I'll add it to my story, and then it gets like all these likes and engagement. Um, but also sometimes like if a reel doesn't perform that well, before I archive I delete it, I'll just like watch it a full time through and I'm like, okay, the message was there, and I had like my like my editing was good. Um, but maybe this would perform better as a carousel, or maybe it would perform better if I used this trending audio. So I do like repurpose my content in that way. Um and also like an idea that I've been obsessed with recently is um there's like a term for it, I'm forgetting, but the idea where like if you scroll through an Instagram page, like all the way that like the thumbnails fit on the grid, it looks like a cohesive picture. Um I've been obsessed with that. So um something that I also put a lot of effort into is in every single one of my reels, at least on like the dance vibes and dancing accounts, like not on my personal account, but on those accounts, I have like a similar, like dark, neon, minimalistic cover. So that way if someone were to just like scroll through my account, because like at least like people my age, they do that. Like before they follow something, they'll watch at least the first three reels that they just happen to tap on. And then if it's legit, they'll follow it. I make sure that all of those have the same cohesive thumbnail so that when someone is scrolling, it's a very like satisfying effect in that way. Um, because like also visual clarity is everything. Um, but yeah, whenever I delete something, like I'm never just gonna like delete it and like leave it there because it could have been like a really amazing idea, but maybe I just didn't post it or like articulate it in the ideal way. So yeah. Interesting.

SPEAKER_01 37:36

Yeah, that's amazing. You figured out so much at like I said, such a a young age and involved in so many other things. So I do you you mentioned discipline multiple times, and I do think that that's a good point because there are some people that are naturally more disciplined than others, and I definitely think that you it's very evident that you you do possess that. And I think that you know, as a result of that, you'll definitely be very, very successful. Is there anything else that you can think of that you want to let the audience know about the app? Does it do you have to pay for the app? Like, how does all of that work? Where can they download it? Is it for like just um, you know, Apple versus Android? You know, how how does all of that work?

SPEAKER_00 38:18

Oh my gosh, yes, the Apple versus Android debate. Um, it's funny because like I'll literally like like send like some potential like testers the Apple link and they're like, I have an Android. I'm like, oh okay. And then I send them the Android link within like the next minute. But yeah, so the app will be available on both App Store and Android. Um, they both have like different requirements. So for Android, it's a little like harder for me to get the requirements, but I'm very determined to like get those requirements in time for the June 6th launch. Um so it is um, and we're actually doing a huge launch discount where basically the first 10 studios that we fully onboard will get the first month of the app free if they come before um June 20th, June 20th. And then um after that it's a 25% lifetime discount. So regardless of like what other features or like anything that like at least we add within um the next couple of months or years, like 25% off lifetime, that's guaranteed. Um, but only to the first 10 studios, and currently I'm in conversations with about three. So, you know, there's really only like six or seven spots left. Um, sorry, I just had to make that joke. Um and then um, yeah, just in terms of like the app itself, um, it is on like a feature basis. Um, where really you know, like on like the first plan, it's like completely free, but you have like minimal functionality, um, few briefings that you can add. And then on the second plan, you can add um there's like some more features, some more file storage, um, and then on the third plan, it's like it's like completely everything, but also you get priority support. So you can kind of pick and choose, but really only the director is paying. Um, but if they want to, I don't know, like charge like each of their dancers extra and like use that money for the app, like that's completely their decision. But we're not like but it's like truly just like based on like a charging the studio director basis, like we're not like asking dancers or parents or teachers um to pay anything. Um but yeah, and I would just like to say like if there's any like teachers or even like dancers my age or like directors who are listening, and like you know, like if you see at your studio that like you're constantly like muting your group chats, or if you're getting like 500 word essays, emails from your studio director, like to just open grow with dancefabs.com and just check out what we're working on at dancing because it literally can mitigate just about all of those random occurrences. And if you're also seeing at your studio that um, especially for dancers, like if you find yourself to be the only one who is really like motivated um or like disciplined on your team to keep taking notes and to keep like doing the things that you should be doing, like filming and sending videos, making packing checklists, things like that, but you wish that other dancers at your studio were also doing the same thing and having that kind of um accountability accountability and discipline baked in, then definitely again check out girlsdancewebs.com or our Instagram page to learn more about how you can get your studio on the dancing app, because we actually do have a wait list going where basically um like the most dancers from one studio who have signed up to be on the wait list um are gonna get dancing first for our like top 10 studio launch discount. Um, so yeah, I'll also send you more information about that to put in the show notes and also the link to um our iPhone and um like Android Play Store beta. Um but yeah, if you just want like overall more like accountability and organization at your studio and you want to help like get more dancers and dance studios on technology, because unfortunately there are also many studios that won't even teach their dancers how to like edit music or like edit videos or like choreograph or like use these certain apps that can really just like make dance easier. Um, then again, like dancing is a great start because it's like super easy. You're not really like doing too much or learning too much, you're literally just like logging in stuff um from your rehearsals. Um, but yeah, that's pretty much just all I had to say about dancing. And then we do have lots of other cool projects that are launching this summer, but I'm trying to like keep that all under wraps because it's like a whole summer launch. Um, but yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_01 42:12

So more to look forward to. And will that be on your Instagram? So people follow you on Instagram, are they gonna find out about these new upcoming projects as well?

SPEAKER_00 42:21

Oh, of course, yeah. So um I'm mostly active on the Dance Vibes account. It's just at dance vibes, all one word dot official. Um, and then also on my personal account, um Preisha, so P-R-I-S-H-A dot sasikumar, S-A-S-I-K-U-M-A-R. Um, that's kind of a harder one to find just because of my last name. But I also do post a lot on there. Um, and I have like a lot of my rules that I post on dance vibes, I like add myself as a collaborator. So you can also find me that way. Um, but yeah, that's where's where you all can find me. And then in terms of website stuff, just grow with dance vibes.com, all one word. Um, and then you'll immediately see a bunch of links to like danzing, um, our annual summer planner, stuff like that.

SPEAKER_01 43:04

Great. Sounds perfect. Well, thank you so much. I appreciate you joining us today. And um, it sounds like you've got a lot of really cool projects in the works. So if anyone's listening who thinks that they can benefit from dancing, or you think your studio can benefit from it, definitely send them the link to this podcast so they can learn more. Or visit uh Preisha on Instagram or her website and uh check it out.

SPEAKER_00 43:32

Yeah, and you can always DM me. Like that's actually like like the greatest thing for me. Someone DMs me and they're like, hey, can I check out dancing? Or like what like what is it that you actually do with dance vibes? Or like how do you start dance vibes? Like, I genuinely like I I think on my Instagram it has that thing where like I respond within less than an hour because I genuinely do. Like, even when I'm in class, I have like Instagram open on one tab and then like checking it every five minutes because I'm like, did someone DM me? Like, did someone like my reels? Like, seriously, I'm always on Instagram. So if you ever want to reach me, like you can email. Me, but also like Instagram, like I will respond within the next like 30 minutes if you DM me or something. So, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:06

Amazing. Well, thank you again. And um, to all of our listeners, like I said, go check out dancing, check out dance vibes on Instagram and let Prisha know if you have questions. I hope you enjoyed today's episode and learned something. Please be sure to follow or subscribe so you don't miss a thing. Also make sure you head over to Instagram and YouTube and follow us there. Send us your listener questions, topic suggestions, and feedback at Dr DanceMomPodcast at gmail.com. That's Dr. Fully Written Out Dance Mom Podcast, also fully written out at gmail.com. Thanks so much for listening.