If you're looking for ways to grow your teaching studio, it's probably not just because you want to teach more students. It's that teaching is how you make your living, and more students means more money.
But there's a bit more to it than that, and getting more students isn't the only way to make more money teaching music. I'm going to go over a few tips for growing your music studio, some that will help you get more students, and some that will help you to make more money without getting more students.
Before doing any other work on building your studio, you first need to figure out what sets you apart from other music teachers. What makes you...well...you! This is a key part of developing your positioning strategy.
Your teaching studio is a business, and you're competing with everybody else who is also offering music lessons as a business. So before you tackle any student acquisition efforts, you need to understand exactly how you want folks to perceive you as an instructor. And to do that, you need to develop a Unique Value Proposition.
Let's start by figuring out what sets you apart. Are you a jazz pianist with years of touring experience? Or maybe you specialize in helping students excel in music exams with a track record of high achievers? That's your gold right there. Your UVP could revolve around your teaching style, your niche expertise, or even the success stories of your students.
Think about it: when students or parents are searching for music lessons, they're overwhelmed with options. Your UVP acts as a beacon, guiding them to your studio. It answers the question, "Why should I choose you?" And in a world where everyone is bombarded with choices, your UVP cuts through the noise, making their decision easier.
Remember, your UVP should resonate with your target audience. If you're aiming to teach busy adults, emphasize the flexibility of your schedule or the relaxing atmosphere of your lessons. Targeting young beginners? Highlight your fun, engaging teaching methods that make learning music a joy.
When we think about word of mouth marketing, we generally think of it as something that just kind of happens. That it's something that's out of our control. But this isn't totally true.
Sure, the idea behind word of mouth is that it happens naturally, but it's absolutely something that we can cultivate. Think about word of mouth like a plant. Sure, plants spread seeds naturally, and over time they will grow all around. But you can also grow a plant for seeds, harvest those seeds, and then plant those seeds on your own.
What happens next is that the seeds you planted will start to grow, and push the cycle forward. What you want to do is cultivate these word-of-mouth plants!
Testimonials are one of the most underutilized marketing techniques out there. But they can be absolutely key in helping to cultivate word of mouth. They can be so key to growing a studio that I wrote a whole blog post just about the importance of collecting testimonials in teaching studios.
The trick: just ask. Like Nike says "Just Do It," the only way to get a testimonial is to ask for it. And it's not as scary as it sounds, I promise.
They can be a great way to cultivate word of mouth, because they give your students (aka your customers/clients) the chance to think about how great you are! After writing a testimonial, you'll be fresh on their mind in any conversations they happen to have with folks at school, work, or soccer practice.
The end goal of word of mouth is essentially this: referrals. You're hoping that a student will tell a friend how great you are, and that that friend will in turn contact you for lessons. But you don't have to just sit there an hope this happens.
Again, the trick: just ask. Ask your existing students for referrals. Tell them that you're working to grow your studio and take on more students, and see whether they:
Ask specific questions that can lead to your student referring you directly, or that could lead to targeted outreach campaigns. Maybe you can give your student some of your business cards or fliers for them to pass along to others.
Just think about the ways that word of mouth actually happens, and then take action to plant those seeds.
This one is short, but it ties directly back into the idea of cultivating word of mouth through referrals. If your students like taking lessons with you, they're going to be happy to recommend you to others. These supercharged folks are sometimes called brand evangelists in marketing circles.
One way to supercharge folks is to provide incentives for them to refer you to others. What if you gave away two free lessons to somebody who refers a new student to you?
Think about how long a student generally stays with you for. If you were to take on another student for just one month, that's four lessons worth of income that you didn't have before. Some simple math here, 2 is more than 4. I know, shocking.