Have space in your schedule you’re trying to fill? Looking to increase your studio teaching hours? Just simply need more piano students to make ends meet?
When you are self-employed the success of your business rests in your hands… and your hands alone. This can either feel extremely liberating… or completely terrifying! In either case, you want to have some real strategies to rely on to get the ball rolling and your studio growing. Today we’re sharing a collection of our most helpful piano studio PR tips. Everything from the initial creation of your ad materials to the moment that a prospective student calls…
10 Steps To Landing a New Piano Student
Today we’re sharing a collection of our most helpful piano studio PR tips. Everything from the initial creation of your ad materials to the moment that a prospective student calls…
Follow the 10 steps below and you’ll be well on your way to finding that brand new student (and likely students!)
1. Feel hopeless when it comes to designing print materials? Not everyone is a genius graphic designer. Here are 4 ways to “spruce up” your piano studio advertising materials that will help you look professional and put you on the right design path.
2. After completing Step 1 you now have the right materials, but you need to know when you to use them. Did you know that there are 3 critical dates that piano teachers should never miss when it comes to advertising? Avoid wasting your hard-earned money and be sure to keep these dates in mind.
3. You have your materials, you know when to use them… but you still need an advertising plan. Here are 5 essentials of any piano studio advertising campaign.
4. After Step 4, your advertising plan should be in place. Now, you need to know where those materials should be distributed! Check out why finding your niche is so important to rapid studio growth.
5. While some teachers may choose to sit back and wait for their phone to ring, after the completion of Step 4 it is now the perfect time to check in on first impressions that prospective students may have when contacting you. Here are 8 piano studio details that are so small you might not think they matter… but think again!
6. After you’ve completed Step 5 and spruced up what needs to be changed, this is the perfect moment to really hone in on what makes your studio different. Do you have a piano studio mission statement? Could you clearly communicate what it is that makes you unique… in just one word? This will all be very important when those initial inquiries come in from interested parents.
7. The phone rings! Yippee! Here’s how to close the deal when parents call to inquire about piano lessons.
8. in Step 7, did you receive an email instead of a phone call? We can help with the success of your sign-ups using the piano teacher’s ultimate response to inquiry emails.
9. Hey! You have an interested student! It’s time to have a meet-and-greet. And you want that to go well. If you hold interviews, make sure you check out our tips for initial piano student interviews. If you have a trial lesson, you want to make it a lesson to remember! Here are some fun ideas for making that first lesson truly amazing.
The Final Step
Now that your piano student is in your studio door, it’s time to wow them over and over again with amazing lessons… and we LOVE to help with that too!
The WunderKeys books set your students AND their parents up for success with engaging materials that are easy to follow and eliminate the common frustrations for newbie piano students. Find out more at www.wundekeys.com.
Robyn says
Andrea,
Love the Christmas ad! Question: When or how do you let them know they will need a piano or keyboard to practice on?
Thanks so much,
Robyn
Andrea says
Hi Robyn – it depends on the age of the student. If they are signing up for WunderKeys (ages 3-5) then I let them try lessons for 3-4 weeks without a home instrument. After that they know (in advance) that they’ll need to purchase one. For students who are not preschool-aged I require them to have an instrument to practice on right away. No one is going to like lessons if they don’t progress… and we all know progress is difficult with no practice. Typically people who sign up have a piano at home already and were looking for the push to take lessons. The 6 lessons for $99 sometimes is that push for them.
barbara williams says
I love your idea of going to the homes of stay-home moms, and I love the idea of postcard size pieces instead of flyers What kind of places would you recommend leaving the post card ads if I want to locate stay-home moms?
Andrea says
Hi Barbara – anywhere where moms of young children congregate. Think community centres, playgroups, indoor playgrounds, dance studios that cater to young children etc. Lately I’ve heard of a lot of teachers having success positing an image of their flyer on their local Facebook Mom’s groups (Moms’ swap and shop etc.) Every town usually has one and, if you have a great offer, usually the admin lets you post it.