Growing up, my piano teacher was a bit of a legend. If you got an “entrance interview” with her, you were the talk-of-the-town. She had, for lack of a better term, a cult following; an army of Super-Fans who promoted her to an almost untouchable level in music teaching circles.
She owed much of her success to the so-called Super-Fans. Of course, she would never have had Super-Fans in the first place if not for her brilliance as a piano teacher.
What Is A Super-Fan?
Super-Fans are the students and parents who just can’t stop talking about how wonderful your piano lessons are. They sing your praises to everyone and anyone. They are your most valuable advertising tool.
How Do I Get Me Some Of These Super-Fans?
Super-Fans are not easy to come by! Even parents and students who love everything you do will not necessarily sing your praises to the high heavens. Growing an army of Super-Fans takes careful planning, and a lot of hard work, but if you follow the 7 steps below you will be well on your way to legendary status 🙂
1. Brand Your Business
This absolutely MUST be your first step. To be instantly memorable, you must have a name and logo that is easily shareable, and easily recognizable. Super-Fans will tell everyone about you but if “everyone” forgets your business name, that awesome endorsement is kaput!
2. Share Your Success
Don’t be afraid to give people a reason to talk about you. If you or your students achieve a fantastic goal, win an award, or earn recognition in any way, pass that along to all of your students. Parents want to know that their children take lessons from the best-of-the-best.
3. Random Emails of Kindness
We wrote an entire blog post about this last year… because it deserves an entire blog post! In short, take a moment out of your busy schedule to email or call a parent just to let them know how wonderful their child is. Happy parents are your best friend.
4. Plenty O’ Performance Opportunities
Music is meant to be shared, so make sure your students have the opportunity to share it beyond Christmas and Spring recitals. You can’t have Super-Fans unless people actually see how super you are.
5. Create A Sense of Belonging
Build opportunities for your students to work towards a common goal. Super-Fans need to feel like they are a part of something; preferably… something big. How can you build a sense of belonging? Support a charity through the efforts of your studio. Get your students on board with using their music to help others. Example: Have students collect pledges based on the number of piano pieces they complete in a year, with all pledges working towards raising a specified amount of money for your studio’s charity.
6. You Must, Must, Must Teach Group Piano Classes
Super-Fans are all about connections. Super-Fans don’t want to be Super-Fans unless they know there are other Super-Fans. Group piano classes facilitate connections among peers who attend your studio. It is important that your piano students feel like they’re playing team sport.
7. Orchestrated Spontaneity
Super-Fans love to be surprised. Same-old, same-old piano lessons simply won’t cut it! Sit down with your yearly schedule and create a series of “spontaneous” days where your piano lessons will shock your students with fun and excitement.
Find Super-Fans Over the Christmas Break
This Christmas, take the time to sit down with a rum and eggnog and read our guide, Piano Hands Shouldn’t Flip Burgers. Implement the hundreds of piano teaching and business strategies we share, and you’ll be on your way to Super-Fan stardom!
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