News and Articles

If you want to do a good job, you need to know what is going on in the world around you. That is true in any business, including clowning. I frequently check Google News for stories about clowns, the circus, and events past and present. I also read blogs and newsletters by clowns and other children's entertainers.

Blogs and Newsletters

If you want to keep up with the latest clown and circus news as well as information about new products and clown events, check out the following resources:

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Articles

Have you written an article about clowning that you would like to share on The Clown Network? Submit your ideas to SirToony@SirToonyVanDukes.com.


Website Development
Added: 6-January-2010

I have been on the Internet since the early 1990s. I have seen the technology change and grow. I built my first web pages when I was still in school. Since then, I have created and maintained many websites. Working on The Clown Network, I have visited hundreds of clown related websites. I have compiled a list of suggestions that anyone can follow to get more value out of your current website.

  • Design your website for your audience and what they want to know. They are looking for a children's entertainer in their area for a special event. Tell people who you are, where you are, what you do, and how to contact you.
  • Make sure you include all of the important information. I don't know how many websites for clown alleys or juggling groups tell the name of a school they meet at without giving the address. My closest juggling group is 25 miles away. Trust me, I don't know the location of every school in that area.
  • Make it easy for people to contact you. Don't just include a contact form, people want a real way to contact you like your email, phone number, or address.
  • Use your own pictures. I have seen a lot of websites where people have "borrowed" pictures from someone else's website. Make the time to have professional pictures taken for your website.
  • Be careful using pictures of other people's kids. You just painted a great face and want to take a picture. Ask the child's parents for permission, or better yet, have then sign a model release.
  • Include links to other websites. Search engines like Google will rate your website higher if you include links to other clown related websites. If you don't want to like to your competition, at least link to organizations like COAI, clown conventions, or small business associations.
  • Avoid the temptation to include background music. It may be cool the first time, but it is going to be hard for me to call you with that music playing in the background.

Sir Bud Productions
Are you getting the most out of your current website?
http://www.SirBudProductions.com/

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Clowns in the News

Clown in Space
Added: 13-October-2009

On September 30, 2009 space tourist and circus entrepreneur Guy Laliberte, the Canadian billionaire who founded Cirque du Soleil, began his journey to orbit aboard the Soyuz craft which blasted off to the International Space Station. He says he will make the ISS astronauts laugh during his 12-day stay, and produce a web event that highlights the issue of clean water for all.

He arrived at the International Space Station in a Russian space craft on Friday, October 2nd. "I'm adapting pretty good ... but I ain't staying six months," he said to laughter from his colleagues who will each spend several months onboard the cramped outpost.

Laliberte plans to use the trip to draw attention to the importance of access to clean water on Earth and is due to hold a two-hour webcast on October 9 featuring former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Irish rock group U2 and others.

He paid more than $35 million for the privilege of becoming Earth's seventh space tourist, blasting off from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, September 30, 2009.

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