10 Tips for Relocating Music Teachers
I was on the phone with a piano teacher who had just relocated to the Philadelphia area from out of state and having some difficulty starting from scratch, as it were, building up her teaching studio. Back in her previous home, she was well known and had students approaching her for lessons. What to do when you don’t have the luxury of name recognition in a new locale? Here are 10 simple tips to jump-start your studio in a new location.
1. Plan for 5. I’ve heard and observed anecdotally that it takes a musician about 5 years to become fully integrated into the musical network of a new location. If you can anticipate this, you’ll be less frustrated during the first few slow months and can plan accordingly.
2. Join groups. It goes without saying that you should get in touch with the local chapter of MTNA (Music Teachers National Association) - join up if you’re not currently a member. Attend chapter meetings and even competitions to get to know other teachers and students - and to get them to know you! Also try tapping into your school's alumni association to share resources and tips with.
3. Offer substitute services. This might be a bit dicey, but worth a try if you can be careful to maintain good lines of communication and trust. With summer just around the corner and teachers possibly going on vacation, I tend to see a lot of students atrophying from lack of lessons. Why not approach vacationing teachers and offer substitute teaching to help keep their students in shape? I would propose a 50/50 fee share, put down in writing for a defined period of time. Obviously, you want to be careful not to give the impression that you are out to siphon students away from other teachers! I would make sure that you are upfront about that with teachers and students alike. If, even after clarifying your temporary-only intentions, a student 'defects' to you, you should offer 3 months of the continued fee split to the original teacher, and offer that teacher first dibs on substitute teaching your students whenever you’re away.
4. Visit schools. Offer free music education assembly presentations to your local elementary and middle schools. Even if you don't get the opportunity to give a presentation, you could always come up with your own take-home activity sheets/booklets (with your studio contact info) as an educational donation to the school's music program (if they have one). If your local schools don't have any music ed, offer your services on an ad hoc basis. Be prepared to present credentials and references.
5. Establish a web presence. Musicteachershelper.com is one example of an excellent online resource for not only setting up and managing your studio (scheduling, billing, repertoire tracking, and many other studio services) but also for setting up an easy website template to make it easier for potential students and parents to find you. Blogger.com and Wordpress.com are also great resources for setting up your own blogs - completely free!
6. Sign up for online music teacher referral services. GetLessonsNow.com and PrivateLessons.com are two terrific resources helping students find music teachers in their area. The services are free for students - teachers have to pay a subscription fee to be placed on the site's database roster. Takelessons.com (formerly clickforlessons.com) is another online referral service that actually requires criminal background checks for teachers that sign up.
7. Measure your market. How many music stores are in your area? Music schools? University programs? Adult education programs? Senior activity centers? Where are the local instrument repair shops/resources? Are there any music/listening clubs at your local library? Could you start one there?
8. Make a newsletter. We have a local realtor that distributes a wonderful monthly newsletter to homes all around my neighborhood. Filled with fun-to-read tidbits, humorous anecdotes and inspirational quotes, that little newsletter is a powerful tool to keep that realtor's name firmly in our front-and-center stage of attention. Come to think of it, I'm actually hard-pressed to think of any other local realtor's names! That's how powerful an attractive newsletter can be if you can take the time and creative energy to put one together on a regular basis. It doesn't have to be a 50-page tome - even a single page will do, as long as it's peppered with articles that are actually fun to read. Show how much fun taking music lessons can be! Share the long-term educational and cultural benefits! Sprinkle in some funny anecdotes from your own teaching experiences!
9. Become newsworthy. Write reviews about local music events and performers. Fill your website with newsworthy content. Submit articles to local newspapers. Even if the local papers don't pick up your articles, look up the names and contact information of the paper's art/music/culture section editor(s) and make a point of sending them content on a regular basis so that they eventually get to know you. Of course, you can always use your materials in your own self-distributed newsletter! For extra networking bang, interview and write up articles about the local teachers and their students in your area - you'll be sure to spread a lot of goodwill and perhaps pick up some extra student referrals!
10. Invest in advertising. No one will know about your teaching services if they can't find you. Explore ad placements in local publications and storefront windows. In addition to local newspaper ads, try using Google, the world's most powerful online ad service - they have a terrific ad budget system where you only pay what you want. Google's ad service will work within any budget, no matter how small (granted, the more you invest, the better your ad placements will be!)
Hope this helps - be sure to share any additional tips you may have, as well as success stories!
tags: music, teacher, studio, setup
[ 07 May, 2008 ] • [ Hugh ] •[ 1 Comments ] •[ Link to this article ]
1. Plan for 5. I’ve heard and observed anecdotally that it takes a musician about 5 years to become fully integrated into the musical network of a new location. If you can anticipate this, you’ll be less frustrated during the first few slow months and can plan accordingly.
2. Join groups. It goes without saying that you should get in touch with the local chapter of MTNA (Music Teachers National Association) - join up if you’re not currently a member. Attend chapter meetings and even competitions to get to know other teachers and students - and to get them to know you! Also try tapping into your school's alumni association to share resources and tips with.
3. Offer substitute services. This might be a bit dicey, but worth a try if you can be careful to maintain good lines of communication and trust. With summer just around the corner and teachers possibly going on vacation, I tend to see a lot of students atrophying from lack of lessons. Why not approach vacationing teachers and offer substitute teaching to help keep their students in shape? I would propose a 50/50 fee share, put down in writing for a defined period of time. Obviously, you want to be careful not to give the impression that you are out to siphon students away from other teachers! I would make sure that you are upfront about that with teachers and students alike. If, even after clarifying your temporary-only intentions, a student 'defects' to you, you should offer 3 months of the continued fee split to the original teacher, and offer that teacher first dibs on substitute teaching your students whenever you’re away.
4. Visit schools. Offer free music education assembly presentations to your local elementary and middle schools. Even if you don't get the opportunity to give a presentation, you could always come up with your own take-home activity sheets/booklets (with your studio contact info) as an educational donation to the school's music program (if they have one). If your local schools don't have any music ed, offer your services on an ad hoc basis. Be prepared to present credentials and references.
5. Establish a web presence. Musicteachershelper.com is one example of an excellent online resource for not only setting up and managing your studio (scheduling, billing, repertoire tracking, and many other studio services) but also for setting up an easy website template to make it easier for potential students and parents to find you. Blogger.com and Wordpress.com are also great resources for setting up your own blogs - completely free!
6. Sign up for online music teacher referral services. GetLessonsNow.com and PrivateLessons.com are two terrific resources helping students find music teachers in their area. The services are free for students - teachers have to pay a subscription fee to be placed on the site's database roster. Takelessons.com (formerly clickforlessons.com) is another online referral service that actually requires criminal background checks for teachers that sign up.
7. Measure your market. How many music stores are in your area? Music schools? University programs? Adult education programs? Senior activity centers? Where are the local instrument repair shops/resources? Are there any music/listening clubs at your local library? Could you start one there?
8. Make a newsletter. We have a local realtor that distributes a wonderful monthly newsletter to homes all around my neighborhood. Filled with fun-to-read tidbits, humorous anecdotes and inspirational quotes, that little newsletter is a powerful tool to keep that realtor's name firmly in our front-and-center stage of attention. Come to think of it, I'm actually hard-pressed to think of any other local realtor's names! That's how powerful an attractive newsletter can be if you can take the time and creative energy to put one together on a regular basis. It doesn't have to be a 50-page tome - even a single page will do, as long as it's peppered with articles that are actually fun to read. Show how much fun taking music lessons can be! Share the long-term educational and cultural benefits! Sprinkle in some funny anecdotes from your own teaching experiences!
9. Become newsworthy. Write reviews about local music events and performers. Fill your website with newsworthy content. Submit articles to local newspapers. Even if the local papers don't pick up your articles, look up the names and contact information of the paper's art/music/culture section editor(s) and make a point of sending them content on a regular basis so that they eventually get to know you. Of course, you can always use your materials in your own self-distributed newsletter! For extra networking bang, interview and write up articles about the local teachers and their students in your area - you'll be sure to spread a lot of goodwill and perhaps pick up some extra student referrals!
10. Invest in advertising. No one will know about your teaching services if they can't find you. Explore ad placements in local publications and storefront windows. In addition to local newspaper ads, try using Google, the world's most powerful online ad service - they have a terrific ad budget system where you only pay what you want. Google's ad service will work within any budget, no matter how small (granted, the more you invest, the better your ad placements will be!)
Hope this helps - be sure to share any additional tips you may have, as well as success stories!
tags: music, teacher, studio, setup
[ 07 May, 2008 ] • [ Hugh ] •[ 1 Comments ] •[ Link to this article ]