Vocal Adrenaline Performing Arts

Name: Danielle Lo Passo
Position: Director
Website: www.vapa.com.au
Location: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia

We train artists of all ages and abilities to be the complete best versions of themselves so that they can confidently achieve their unique goals whether professional or personal.

What products/services do you offer?

Singing, piano, guitar and drama lessons

Why did you start your business and how long have you been running it?

I was lucky enough to literally fall into it – my mentor and teacher at the time gave me the opportunity to teach for her studio and when she sold, she told me to just keep my students and go for it! That was in 2010.

What struggles do you think most businesses face in your industry and what would you say they need to do to overcome them?

Staying relevant is a big one!

What has been your greatest accomplishment?

Organising our international songwriting tour to Nashville in January 2019 was a huge highlight of my career! The fact that people trusted me enough to actually travel across the world was so surreal. To sit here and listen back to the tracks they recorded there brings me so much joy!

What has been your biggest ‘fail’ so far?

my own worry and anxiety to be honest. If I make a mistake I am very hard on myself and it can definitely cause me to lash out because I’m embarrassed! I need to stop and think before I reply to messages hahaha!

What do you love most about your business?

Seeing the improvement of each of our students 100%!

• watching an incredibly shy kid finally have enough confidence to get up on stage
• sending that student (who never ever thought they’d make it into the competition team because they weren’t naturally gifted) an official invitation because they have worked so hard and improved so much
• getting to see our students release music and achieve their dreams.
  There really is so much happiness at the studio!

What do you find most challenging?

Keeping the parents happy haha! I used to find admin really challenging just due to how time consuming it was, but I’ve got some amazing tools and people to help with that now!

How do you promote your business (please include as many details as you can)?

I advertise wherever I can. Google, facebook and anything else that comes my way. I hire a marketing expert to handle the digital marketing because she knows more than I do. I’m also a big merchandise lover so our studio has a lot of merchandise which helps promote our brand too – you should see our cool jackets!

What business skills do you have (eg. graphic design, customer service)?

ZERO. I have a business coach, Peter, who guides me now because I realised I was just winging it and that was no way to grow a business! Peter has taught me a lot about using systems and freeing up time to work on my vision so that we can grow.

What software did you/your designer use to create your website (eg. WordPress, Wix)?

I hired an incredible company called CSQD and they designed my website using WordPress.

What are some of your favourite business tools and apps?

Oh my gosh….we use a lot!

• Acuity
• Dropbox
• Xero
• Asana
• Team App

What do you like about your website and what’s not working for you?

Oh I just love my website! It’s so beautiful! I can’t complain about anything with it.

What lessons have you learnt during your time as an entrepreneur?

I’ve learned that is important to not get complacent. You always need to work hard and stay ahead of the trends. Always need to add new options so that your clients don’t get bored. And that customer service really is invaluable! It’s important to make your customers happy.

What key tips for success in business would you like to share with others?

I don’t think I’m successful enough to actually answer this question yet! But maybe ask me in 5 years haha maybe just don’t be afraid to ask for help and always ask people who know more than you do!

What is the one thing that you want everyone to take away from this post?

Business can be so much fun if you find something you’re passionate about!