Question

Topic: Taglines/Names

Tagline For Indian/western Music Organization

Posted by reena.esmail on 12/17/2014 at 6:47 PM ET 500 Points
I co-direct a music organization called Shastra, and we are looking for a tagline for the organization. The mission of our organization is to promote music that crosses over between Indian and Western musical traditions. Our mission statement is:

"Shastra is a community of artists dedicated to creating meaningful, cross-cultural music that connects great musical traditions of India and the West. Through festivals, recordings, educational events, and commissioning initiatives, we are a nexus for musicians to share their artistry and bring this music to the world."

Our website is here: https://www.shastramusic.com

We are looking for a tagline that will help potential artists, audiences and donors understand our mission, and want to get involved in this growing community (while there are many established Indian and Western musical communities, we distinguish ourselves by being a community that specializes in high-level Indian/Western crossover music) — we also fall into the area of cultural diplomacy (just thinking of possible frames for a tagline)

Additionally, "shastra" essentially means "treatise" in Hindi, and we picked it because we are looking at this community as a way to build a solid foundation and context for (as well as a hub of information about) Indian/Western cross-cultural music.

This community seems to have some wonderful suggestions, and I would be so grateful for your ideas!
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 12/18/2014 at 8:23 AM Accepted
    The Sound Of India & the West Meeting
    The Leading Edge Of World Music
  • Posted on 12/18/2014 at 11:26 AM Accepted
    I enjoyed a nice visit to your website. It looks like you devoted a lot of time and effort to that. Good work.

    The need for a tagline, however, isn't really clear. For starters, you have three different target audiences, each with different needs: artists, audiences and donors. What you say to each one is probably a little different from what you'd say to the others. Certainly the call-to-action would be different.

    There is also no clear "what's-in-it-for-me" that you would feature in a tagline. Why should anyone who isn't already part of the group be interested in supporting or participating in the group's activities? What benefit would they realize? How will they be better off? Great taglines promise a clear BENEFIT -- a compelling reason why someone in the target audience should care and become engaged.

    This is often a major stumbling block for not-for-profit organizations that are committed to their cause/mission. Step outside your own passion for the organization and its reason-for-being, and see if you can define your target audience more precisely and identify their fundamental need that you address. Starting with that kind of direction will probably help you in a number of ways -- from the marketing plan to the tagline (with several stops along the way).

    Also you might ask yourself how you will select a "winning" tagline if we suggest 12-15 alternatives. What criteria will you use to evaluate the suggestions? What exactly do you want the tagline to communicate -- and to whom?
  • Posted on 12/18/2014 at 11:43 AM Moderator
    Shastra
    Connecting Cultures Through Music
  • Posted by reena.esmail on 12/19/2014 at 1:29 AM Author
    Thank you all for your replies -- as I'm sure you can tell, I'm not a marketer, and perhaps I clouded the mission by trying to provide too many angles. The main mission is that we want to create awareness and interest in music that connects the musical traditions of India and the West.

    @mgoodman -- I really love your tagline -- I'm wondering, is there any way to get something about Indian/Western music in there without making it clunky? I love the way it flows, but the two specific cultures it connects are so important... and there are many other organizations that might do a similar thing with other cultures.

    @Jay Hamilton-Roth -- I like the term "leading edge", because that is definitely how we are positioning ourselves, but maybe it could be something more than just "music" -- something that specifically deals with the cross of the two types of music.

    Thank you all for your prompt replies! We certainly have a lot to think about re: marketing strategies for our organization, but your advice is really helpful!

  • Posted by Mike Steffes on 12/19/2014 at 8:53 AM Accepted
    Here's something:

    Shastra
    Connecting the Music of Indian and Western Cultures
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