Last spring, I was contacted by a local family photographer who was interested in setting up a little marketing trade with my studio. I had never done such a thing with another small business, so I jumped on the opportunity. The photographer's proposal was that she would include my brochures and business cards in her clients' packages, and in turn, she would provide me with canvases...
Read MoreBy Julia Kossuth As the first month of lessons has passed, for this school year anyway, it’s been interesting to watch the interest, progress, and motivation for each student take shape. Here at the Studios of Sarah Strout, we use a point system in which each student can earn points for practicing, memorizing, performing for family, and more, all going towards getting as big a trophy...
Read MoreBy Patrick Fritz Almost all of my most successful motivational ideas are borrowed, stolen, or are a modified version of another teacher’s idea. “Listen Like a Maniac” is no exception. Michelle Horner and her daughter were practicing daily. Together, they were carefully following the advice of her daughter’s violin teacher. But even though Michelle is an accomplished guitar teacher, her daughter’s progress on the violin was slow...
Read MoreBy Julia Kossuth As the school year gets underway and both old and new faces begin to arrive in the studio each week, the individual—yet ever changing—dynamic with each student and their teacher begins to set in. One situation that tends to occur at least a few times with every new set of students is this: Mom or Dad wants to sit in the lesson, every...
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I have been blogging for a couple years, and I really feel like this is a valuable part of your marketing plan. Blogging does a few great things for your business. It lets current students and potential students who you are. You have a chance to post updates when your studio does something great like a performance or a festival. You can also provide “free” bits of instruction. For example, during black history month, I will post an article about Blues music or if I see a really cool Youtube video on music theory, I will post that. The blog is an extension of my studio. My hope is that current students will go on and read my posts and learn more than I have time to teach them in the studio. For readers who are not yet students, it hopefully gets them thinking that I am the kind of person they would love to study with.