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. And over just a few week’s time, these students were also grasping the concepts a lot faster than just doing worksheets and practice! Games are a teacher’s best friend, and they also help to set a friendly tone for kids. Try adding a game to the end of each lesson as a “reward”. You’re student doesn’t have to know that he’s also learning.
INCENTIVES
When I was in music school, no one had to tell me to practice. I was obsessed with music. I practiced an hour before school on the piano, then practiced my guitar for about 2 hours after school, and of course I made sure to practice singing some of those broadway tunes I needed for auditions. So naturally, I expected my students to embrace the same kind of rehearsal ethic I once did, right? Yeah, right! Kids today are so busy with their sports, homework, afterschool activities, and video games that they need more reasons to practice and stay in these lessons. Let’s face it. To a kid with so much on her plate, a dry music lesson that’s mostly work is like signing us for an extra hour of school. That’s why they need incentives. Now I’m not saying that music isn’t a reward itself. It is, and when a student finally masters a piece that she has been working on for weeks, that is a smile that candy or toys will not equal up to, ever. But, sometimes they need more reason to stay in your lessons. The games are an incentive, but what about offering something each time the student wins one of those games? Perhaps you could give stickers each time your student claps 5 rhythm cards without any mistakes. Or maybe you can offer a prize to the first student to learn all of the major scales. Here’s an example of a new incentive that I just started with one of my 12 year old voice students. She loves fashion and is always complimenting my clothes. I happed to clean out my closet monthly and usually donate my clothes to a thrift store. Instead, I put the clothes in a bag and each time my student makes 2 breakthroughs, she is aloud to pick out a piece of clothing from the bag. She loves this! An example of a breakthrough is a major improvement on pitch-matching or the ability to harmonize better.
ATTITUDE
What can I say? This is an easy one. If you act like your having a blast, your student’s will have fun and just want to be around you. If you are a fun person, they would hang out with you if your job was just to cut shapes out of construction paper. Just have as much fun as you can possibly muster up and act like their lesson is the absolute coolest place to be at that moment and that you absolutely love being with them. People, (kids AND parent) love being around nice people and will be happy to give you their money if you make them feel good.
THE “FREE PRIZE”
There is a book by Seth Godin titled “Free Prize Inside”. The title is an allusion to the free prize that comes in cereal boxes and the idea that most kids could care less about the actual cereal, it’s the prize they want. The “free prize” in your business is anything you do that you technically don’t have to do. Compassion in a person is a free prize. The games and incentives are free prizes. One free prize that is great to give away is free information. Posting a newsletter or blog to your students and parents with information about music history and practice tips shows that you love what you do and are happy to go the extra mile. This says a lot about your character. It show parents and students that you are not just some musician who needs to pay the bills because gigs are slowing down. It shows your clients that you actually care about their kids and you value your job as their teacher.
I hope some of these ideas will be helpful to you as your continue to grow your business. Please share your thoughts with me and let me know if you have any questions.
by Chad — Wed Nov 21, 2007 @ 11:56 am
I'd like to add something on this topic. Fun games a sense of humor really do make an impact and it was proven again to me last night. I had to have parent teacher conferences at the school I work at yesterday, and several parents asked me if I teach piano lessons. A few of them complained that they had hired piano teachers before, but they were just too strict and a wee bit boring for thier kids to stay motivated.
by Michelle Payne — Wed Nov 21, 2007 @ 12:13 pm
by Cindy Q — Thu Feb 14, 2008 @ 9:42 pm