Why Didn't I Think of That?

......from Sharon

I know, I know, you are a music teacher, not a marketer! You love teaching. You love seeing the light in a student's eye as a difficult concept is finally understood.  You love hearing the progress that your students are making as they practice and learn and grow. Marketing isn't something that comes so naturally. Unfortunately though, waiting for word-of-mouth references can make for a slow build-up to a studio.

Marketing is an important part of every business, and it can be difficult to get going in a good direction. Here are at least a few things that can be done to help get the ball rolling.

Talk to the local schools (especially the music teachers)

As a parent (Sally is the music teacher in Whirligig, LLP), I find that I rely heavily on my children's music teachers (band directors) to help with finding private instruction.  I hope that they will be able to give me some guidance as I don't even know where to begin to look.  My children's band director puts together a list of suggested private instructors, and he appreciates any feedback he gets from parents as to the quality of the teacher.

Invite a local music teacher out for coffee and a muffin and discuss your experience and expertise.  Leave some business cards and flyers that will link to a facebook page, website or blog so that the students can find more information about you.

Accompany for competitions

(Back to the local school's teachers again.)  In my children's band programs, solo/ensemble competition is encouraged.  With the exception of percussion, most of the instrument pieces require a piano accompanist.  If the band teacher knows you are available and willing to work with the band students on polishing their pieces, that becomes a great reference for you.  It is another way to get your name out there, and to potentially increase the number of students coming from word of mouth referrals.

Senior Center

Are you interested in some more mature students?  Perhaps someone who has always wanted lessons, but for some reason was unable to have them as a child or young adult.  Now the retirees have some free time, disposable income, and a willingness to practice.  Pinning a flyer on the notice board, leaving business cards, and maybe even volunteering to perform or having a recital at the Senior Center would be ways to let this group know of your interest and availability.

Social Media/Website/Internet Marketing

The internet has become a source of everything these days.  Our young parents have grown up with computers and don't think twice about looking online to find anything.  Setting up a Facebook and/or Google+ page might be one free way to get an online presence.  You can have your own personal page and from that account you can set up a business page.

Blogs are another way to go.  Free blogs can be set up through a Google or Word Press account.  There are templates that can be used so that you can enter your own content and go.  You could keep that as kind of a message-board or "Note from the Teacher" that is directed toward your parents.  Parents of potential students can then see what your studio is up to and perhaps see links to some of your policies and practices.

You can set up your own website.  This will of course require a fee, and maybe even some design savvy.  It is important that the site look professional and appealing. An unprofessional website can discourage people from investigating your services.  Perhaps a parent of one of your students would be willing to help you set up a website.

If your community has a web page that features businesses, you might see if you can be included.  You can see about becoming a part of a piano teacher web resource page like this one http://www.pianoteachers.com/

Don't Give Up!

None of these methods are a "magic bullet" that will guarantee students in your studio.  No matter what  you do, expect it to take time, persistence and patience.  The key is to hang in there and not give up!

Hope these thoughts help!  Good luck with the new year!


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Supplies for a New Start

.....musings from Sharon

The summer days are slipping away s-o-o-o-o quickly. In spite of the heat this year it has been a wonderful few months.  The sun, green trees, singing birds, chirping crickets, and beautiful flowers, are rejuvenating!  Walking outdoors into a vibrantly colored landscape is something worth savoring.

While the shortening days, changing leaves, and back-to-school sales bring some sadness, there is also an excitement for the new school year and a fresh start.  My kids are getting new supplies, shoes, clothes, teachers, and activities.  Teachers and students alike are looking forward to the new school year with anticipation.  It's time for new possibilities, to do a little better than last year, and to move upward and onward with a clean slate.  

Music Teacher Marketing

It only seems fair that those who are teaching are able to get some new, fun supplies too.  With that in mind I have hunted and scoured the print-on-demand store, Zazzle, in search of a few marketing tools for piano teachers.

NOTE - Zazzle always has something on sale.  If you aren't in a hurry, frequently check the Zazzle website for the current deal.  You might save yourself a lot of money and get your marketing off to a good start!

There's a Piano Teacher on my Street?  Really?

For starters, I've found some yard signs to advertise your studio.  How many people know that you give lessons in your house?  How many people drive by on a daily basis who just might want to bring their children to a more convenient location....if only they knew that there was a teacher closer to home or school?

NOTE- These yard signs do not come with stands included.  The stand is an additional $1.95.  It is found at the bottom of the right-hand column of the product page where it says "Add Yard Sign Frame"

Classy Black and White Keyboard Yard Sign by lovescolor
Make yard signs online at Zazzle

Green and White Keyboard Teacher Yard Sign by lovescolor
View additional yard signs

Custom Piano Lessons Yard Sign Ad by CustomSigns
Browse another yard sign at Zazzle

Business Cards

Along with yard signs, of course you will be wanting some business cards!  Not only good for dropping in restaurants for a chance to win a free meal (and who wouldn't want that?), they are perfect to leave on bulletin boards of local schools and community centers.

It is possible to coordinate the look so that you can have matching yard signs and business cards for a consistent look.

Classy Piano Teacher Business Card by lovescolor
Browse more Piano teacher Business Cards

Piano Keys Music business card by BluePlanet
Browse Piano Business Cards

Piano Business Card by queensbusinesscards
View other Piano Business Cards

Looking for something specific?

If you find a business card that you like, but can't find other matching pieces (yard sign, stickers, postage, etc), I have found that most of the designers at Zazzle are willing to go the extra mile and create a product at a customer's request.

That's one of the amazing and cool things about Zazzle -- you can have something that is customized to your needs!  If you click any of the above products and then scroll down the page a bit, you will see the heading "Information from the Designer" along with the designer's Zazzle store name, store link, and contact information.  Click on "Contact" and you can send an email to the designer whose style you like - and you can possibly get a design that is a little more customized to your needs.

No promises, not all designers are able or willing to do this.  I do know though, as one of those designers, and as one who participates in the Zazzle forums, there are many, many designers who will be happy to work with you.


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Putting Together a Recital - Part 2

.....from Emma's Studio

Uncertainty does not sit well with me. Because I had never put together a recital at this location before (or anywhere else, for that matter), I spent a good portion of the recital day thinking along these lines: “…..I hope the parents like it….I hope my students come prepared….I hope they come in the first place…..I hope I don’t make a fool of myself…. I hope we have enough chairs… etc, etc, etc. However, when I showed up at the recital venue half an hour early, the music store employees had everything ready to go just as I had requested it. There were extra chairs out, a table to hold my refreshments, and a sink to fill up the water pitcher. The piano was set up and ready to go, and the students who showed up early had the opportunity to test it out beforehand. (See, all that worrying really paid off!)

During the recital, we hit one snag, but I was able to use my improvisational skills to recover. Two of my students could not make the recital on time, and the other students finished playing before these two arrived. I filled the time by inviting any willing students to perform another piece. Surprise, surprise; it worked!

 I am very proud of all of my students for showing up and participating, and some of them really surprised me with the attention to detail they put into their pieces. Only one of my students remembered the time we spent practicing how to finish the performance with a bow, but that leaves something to work on for next time. However, the best part for me was the appreciation shown by the parents after the recital. I am blessed to have such a supportive group of parents and students! 

Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Putting Together a Recital: Part 1

. . . . . . . . . from Emma's studio

At the beginning of May, I had the opportunity to participate in my first piano recital as a piano teacher. One of my colleagues was generous enough to allow a few of my students to participate in her piano recital. After that experience, I decided to put together my own recital for the rest of my students. Little did I anticipate the challenges I would face…

Challenge number 1: Scheduling. I suppose most teachers just pick a day and tell their students “This is the recital day. If you can make it, that’s great; if not, too bad, maybe next year.” However, I wanted to do my best to make sure that all of my students could participate (since I only had six), so I wound up changing the date twice, after several frantic emails and phone calls.

Challenge number 2: Location. My studio is, as my mom so succinctly put it, “Mom’s living room.” Unfortunately, Mom’s living room is not set up to host four families of students without squishing people together. Fortunately, my local music store offers the use of its facility free to piano teachers for their recitals. Great! Right? Well, we all know what assuming does… I thought I would be free to pick whatever time I wanted. Instead, my choices were 6pm or 6:30pm, and as I was planning an early afternoon recital, these choices left my rather flustered. Oh well, I choose 6pm and made it work. 

The other challenge involved putting together a program for the recital. However, since my time in the education department at Wisconsin Lutheran College made me very adept at Microsoft Office Word and I had several previous programs of my own to use for reference, I skated through that challenge without much difficulty.

Stay tuned for information on the recital itself….


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

A Little History . . .

from Emma's Studio

Most people, once they graduate from college, do not find themselves willingly sitting down to write a research paper. However, two weeks ago I found myself spending many hours at the kitchen table writing a research paper on “Russian Music for Children.” The reason? My piano teacher (I still take piano lessons in addition to teach them) roped me into participating in his semi-annual thematic recital, this time focused on Russian music. After putting in the work to do my paper, I spent a pleasant evening with several of my fellow piano students listening to performances of Russian music and learning details about Russian music I had never heard before.

This thematic recital idea is a great one to use in piano studios for many reasons. For many students, it is a rather fun break from the traditional repertoire recital. A thematic recital also provides an opportunity for students to learn about a topic they might not otherwise explore, and share this information with their fellow students. I learned several things about Russian art music during my recital, including the fact that it did not really begin until the early 1800’s due to censorship by the church. I also learned that composers Rachmaninoff and Scriabin had the same musical training but came up with very different styles, and the Communist party’s emphasis on education caused many fine composers to write great music for children. I would recommend implementing this kind of recital in your piano studio because it gives students opportunities to learn from each other.

Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Patriotic Theme Recital

....from Sally's Studio

In 2002, my students really wanted to do Patriotic music. 

We had a screen placed on one side in front of the stage and the students chose pictures that portrayed the music they were performing.  We used Power Point and had one person running that program on a laptop during the performances.  That afforded them the opportunity to choreograph their own pieces.  They made marks in the music to tell where each picture should change.  It was a lot of work but added a very unique touch to the recital.

Since the attacks of 9-11 were very fresh in our minds, many of them wanted to use pictures of the World Trade Center and Pentagon and show the devastation.  I reminded them that there was more to patriotism and encouraged a variety of scenes of America.   They found many wonderful scenes and moods.   The pride they had in their country was very evident.

We expanded the theme to “The Music of America” so it allowed them to choose many kinds of music from ragtime through modern.   It was a great way to explore American music and still let them include many patriotic pieces.

When Books Fail Me . . .

from Emma's Studio

All throughout my time as a piano student, my teachers have seemed to know exactly what books to use with me. I never questioned their judgment, because everything they did worked. I comfort myself with the thought that my students think the same of me; however, after six months of teaching, one of the method books I chose for my middle school students has sputtered and died in its effectiveness. I saw it in the faces of my students as they slowly pulled out the book at the beginning of each lesson and struggled through each song. Nothing kills motivation faster than lack of progress! 

I’ve asked myself “how was I supposed to know when I started that this would not work? I don’t know the answer to that question, but I think the more important question is “what am I doing about it now?” I have started using bits and pieces of another series with these students, along with other supplementary materials. I’ve also motivated one student by bringing in a simplified version of a song by his favorite band. Even if he practices nothing else, he will faithfully practice that song. 

In addition, I am more than willing to take advice from other teachers.  If any of you piano teachers have thoughts on this subject, I would love to hear them!