As summer approaches, I know my stable teaching schedule during the school year will turn topsy-turvy in a month. With vacations, football practices, and summer musicals, students are busier than ever. This summer I am trying a few new ideas to make summer lessons productive for students and worth a place in their crazy schedules.
A newsletter is a great marketing tool. You basically give free information and show your client your expertise all at the same time. The other bonus to writing a newsletter is that people take your business a little more seriously when you go out of your way to share information outside of the lesson time. Everyone’s newsletter is different. You could write articles similar to the ones found on this blog, or you could have a regular feature like a “Song of the Month” as well as a “From the Teacher’s Desk” article.
As far as format goes, you can go hard copy or online. I’ve done both. Online is far easier. It’s cheaper, more professional looking, and you can get it out to more readers. I recommend a website called Mynewsletterbuilder.com. You can include images, mp3s, and videos. I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback from my students and their parents. Whenever I feature a student, their parents usually forward the newsletter on to their friends, thus creating a networking opportunity for me.
Anyone else publish a newsletter? I’d love to hear about any other experiences or tips.
How do you give lessons online without any expenses? Yes. No expenses.
In the past I had students having to quit lessons because they were moving away from the area. I also have family on the other side of the country that asked me for lessons. Recently I have been putting together lesson plans for online lessons, using family members as test subjects. The online lessons have been working well.
Online lessons may not work well with certain instruments that need a hands on teacher. I do know it works well with guitar, but not so well with piano.
I recently thought it would be great to host a contest because:
1. It would be a fun way to get the kids thinking creatively
2. It would bring the students together, even if just online.
I love poking fun at guitarists who make those goofy rock and roll faces on stage, and I thought “Let’s see which students can make the craziest faces!” After explaining what a “Guitar Face” is to all my students, I let them take a picture with my camera all through the month of January. I let my neighbor, and local rock star, Tim judge it so that I wouldn’t seem biased. The kids were so excited to learn who the winners were and the parents loved seeing the adorable students pose with guitars and put on their best rock and roller faces. 3 winners recieved iTunes gift cards, and the rest got honorable menton.
With the help of an easy to use MAC computer I was able to launch the photo in a simple website template to share with all the parents and students. If you don’t have a mac, there are tons of other great website hosts/templates out there such as yahoo.com and moonfruit.com . If you are interested in getting a better idea about this project, check out my own Guitar Face Contest site here:
http://web.mac.com/michellepayne1/iWeb/Guitar%20Face%20Contest/Photos.html
As a beginning private teacher, I used to feel uncomfortable concerning lesson payment. Coming from academic situations where music education superceded all, I hated ending a lesson asking for money, or reminding my student about next month’s invoice due. What needed to change, however, was my view of what I do, its value, and how I convey its value to my students.
As a private music teacher just opening my studio, I found that finding private students via online lesson directories and flier mailings was slow going. However, with a few phone calls to local pubic high schools, I was able to get involved as a voice teacher in their after school music lesson programs. This was the perfect solution to my budding studio, connecting me to a large volume of interested and reliable students.
Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of teaching in an after school program, and what steps should be taken to begin teaching private lessons in the public schools.
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I have been toying around with the idea of having a contest between all of my students. I think it’s a fun idea to get all your students excited about whatever musical theme you choose to base it on. Holding a contest could serve as a way to get your students thinking more about a musical subject they normally might find boring. Here are some ideas for contests:
As I mentioned in a previous post, I use PowerPoint to present a slide show in the waiting room of my studio. Now I want to share with you what I include in the slide show.
Announcements
Trivia
One slide has a trivia question concerning a band or music. The slide that follows has the answer. Trivia questions can be found in a Google search for music trivia.
Photos
Schedule
There are many types of slides you can have. Each slide stays on the screen for 30 - 60 seconds, depending on the slide. Just be creative. Parents and students find the slide show both entertaining and informative.
Last month, I discussed ideas for finding new students. In this post, I want to talk about ways to keep students interested and loyal to you. Some of those ideas involve:
* The use of games
* Incentives
* Attitude
* The “Free Prize”
Hope you find these ideas helpful.
THE USE OF GAMES
A few years ago, I decided that I needed to make my lessons a little lighter, more laid back. I wasn’t a strict, hair pulled in a bun school marm or anything, but I felt I wasn’t having as much fun in my lessons. I don’t think my students were either. So I decided to make some games that would help teach musical concepts. Some games I invented myself, others I pulled from websites such as lessonplanspage.com and printablemusicgames.com. After only playing the games with an individual student once, I noticed that their enthusiasm for their lessons increased. (more…)
Lots of musicians I know are curious about what I do for a living. They have never considered teaching, and even if they did, they don’t know where to begin. I was there once, so I want to share with you some of the things I have learned along the way.
YOU’VE GOTTA START SOMEWHERE
Getting the word out is the obvious first step. The place to start is your local schools. Getting a teaching gig at these schools is the fastest way to gain more private students. If you can’t get an actual job on the faculty (which would really speed things up, by the way) then offer to teach after school lessons. Most schools are interested in this, and many are already doing it. Keep your price competitive to the going rate. If you want to charge more, wait until you have a few students for awhile, and then raise your fees.
Another thing you can do with local schools is contact the music teachers at those schools. I once got a big envelope sent to my school job that was filled with flyers and a letter from a local brass and wind teacher. She was looking for private students, and lo and behold, I don’t teach those instruments, nor do I know any brass and wind teachers. Her letter was very professional and her flyers were clean and easy to read. So of course I let my students know about her. That was a very good marketing idea.
Another place to find students is (more…)
