Ryan Hunter Masters is a Colorado-based musician who loves to dance. In 2015, he launched Show Her Off to teach swing dancing online. The company sells video courses – streaming and DVD – with dazzling success.
I first interviewed Hunter Masters for the podcast in 2019. In this second conversation, we discussed the origins of Show Her Off, customer acquisition channels, and his internal litmus test for building a new business.
The full audio of our conversation is embedded below. The transcript is edited for length and clarity.
Eric Bandholz: Give us a recap of what you’re doing.
Masters Ryan Hunter: I have a company called Show Her Off. I sell video lessons that teach couples how to dance. I’m not going to make you a professional dancer or put you on Dancing with the Stars, but I will teach you in less than 60 minutes how to dance with your partner and make her smile and laugh. Most importantly, couples feel closer and more connected than if they spent time staring at screens or watching Netflix without commitment.
I teach social swing dancing at beginner level. Many couples use it for their first dance. We have hip-hop, pop, classic rock and country. You can dance to any genre of music with this style, which is why it is so popular and accessible.
Many couples who have never danced will start with this program. Some people get the dance fever, the dance bug, and they think: oh, wow, this is a lot of fun. Some take it to a local studio and learn professional dancing one-on-one with an instructor. The goal of what I teach is to have fun and give couples the confidence to get out on the dance floor and look good.
I do things that I’m passionate about. I love learning and trying new adventures. That’s how I got into this profession. I ran a marketing company managing Facebook and Google advertising campaigns. I moved to Colorado, learned swing dancing, and thought, “My God, this is so much fun.” » I already had the infrastructure to make videos because I had a fitness YouTube channel called Sparta Strength. I realized I could make videos to teach people how to dance. No commercial intent. It was purely organic and fun.
Someone told me I should post YouTube videos on Instagram. These posts received a lot of response and engagement. I did more, then decided to do a full shoot. I hired a videographer and photographer, gathered some friends, and found a romantic setting for a film shoot in the Colorado mountains. This content performed well. Show Her Off is a romantic brand. I look for romantic cinematic landscapes in the background to add that extra emotion.
The company didn’t make any money for a few years. But it was fun. People liked it and I had a good time. My marketing agency paid the bills. We have finally reached a milestone. Business started booming. At the same time, I explored music and singing.
Bandholz: You seem to be following your passion.
Master Hunters: My litmus test is: “Would I do this for free because it’s so much fun?” Sometimes you don’t know until you start doing it.
This is something that traps many entrepreneurs who are just starting out. They don’t know how an idea will make money. There are so many options, but another way to think about it is if there is something you can do or are willing to do for free because it’s fun. Can you build an engaged audience of 10,000 to 20,000? Somewhere in there, as long as you pay attention and listen, there will be an opportunity to make money. You have followers who love you and your products or services. You can solve a problem for them and provide value to them.
Bandholz: How does the online training take place?
Master Hunters: We have an online appointment schedule. It started as an in-person romance tour where my friends and I would travel the country to wedding venues. We sold tickets, couples came in and we taught them three dance moves that they could mix and match. I would have a photographer on site with a cute backdrop so the couples could take their own selfie photo, and we would pose them in a dancing photo so they would have something to remember, then we would dance openly for the rest of the night.
We have always sold out these events. A California couple went to an event outside of Dallas. Our tickets were $35, so they spent 10 times that to get there. Another couple drove eight hours. I realized that if people invested that kind of time to attend, maybe I could do something else with it. That’s when I decided to offer digital education.
Bandholz: What are your busiest times of the year?
Master Hunters: The week before Valentine’s Day and the week before Christmas, we have a 400% increase in business. This is a huge increase in customer support, ad management and paid traffic. During these times, I get up at 7:00 a.m. and go to bed at midnight; most of the time I’m on the computer all day. I call this my day trading hours.
During busy weeks, I use a bidding cap strategy for Facebook ads. It’s very technical, but it’s essentially manual bidding within Facebook. I bid way more than I would pay, which shuts out other advertisers. I know that by tracking my historical data, this is the time I can do it.
It’s always a gamble. I stay up all day and refresh analytics, monitor Facebook ads, check Stripe, and make sure everything is progressing. If an ad starts showing, I will remove it immediately. Experienced advertisers advise bidding one and a half times your cost per acquisition. If your CPA is $100, bid $150. I could make three, four, five times my CPA. I’ll start with $500 to start.
Bandholz: Where can listeners purchase your program?
Master Hunters: Go to ShowHerOff.com. We are on it Instagram, YoutubeAnd Facebook. Check out my music at Hunter Masters on Spotify.