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 Business Best
Practices
By Rhee Gold
Boost your ‘business karma’ with customer service and
communication
Last fall I was on the road presenting Project Motivate
seminars to dance teachers and school owners across the
country. The attendees always bring up interesting topics, but
this time, in every city, topics arose that were related to
best practices in the dance school business.
School owners often find themselves torn between commitment to
the classroom and to running a business. Things like focusing
on customer service or simply finding the patience to deal
with a novice parent’s inquiries about dance lessons can drop
to the bottom of the priority list. But good customer service
and communication are essential to the success of any
business. Let’s take a look at some of the hot topics from
Project Motivate and the DanceLife Teacher Conference, along
with some solutions and suggestions to help you and your
business.
The Dreaded Question
Don’t you hate it when the first question you’re asked by an
inquiring mom is “How much are your dance lessons?” You might
feel insulted and wonder why she doesn’t ask about your
credentials or the kind of programs you offer. But that kind
of reaction to what is a legitimate question could be
unjustified. Think about it—is that mom going to ask you about
your credentials when she doesn’t know that they exist for
dance teachers? Is she going to inquire about the techniques
you teach when she has no idea what technique is? No, she’s
going to ask the dreaded question because she doesn’t
know enough about dance to ask anything else.
Most non-dancing parents’ perception of dance classes is a
once-a-week lesson for their child, with a tutu and a recital
at the end of the year—that’s it. You might wish that parents
were more educated, but it’s time to face the fact that they
aren’t. Instead of feeling resentful at the question, try
looking at it as an opportunity to educate yet another parent.
Your response should be an enthusiastic “I’d be happy to tell
you what we can offer, but first tell me about your child.”
Parents love talking about their children, and they appreciate
a teacher who expresses interest in them. Once you know
something about the child, you will also know what the
appropriate program is for them. That’s the time to tell the
parent about the program, your qualifications, and the
benefits of dance training. Follow that conversation with
information about tuition and other costs.
I like to share this analogy with school owners regarding this
topic. If your son came home and told you he wanted to take
fencing classes, your first question would probably be “How
much do they cost?”
A Professional Image
Let’s say that the ad for your school uses the word
“professional” three times. And let’s say that a mom sees the
ad and decides to call your school to inquire about classes
for her daughter. The call is answered with an abrupt hello
from a giggling, 13-year-old student who happened to be near
the phone. The teenager is confronted with a series of
questions that she can’t answer, and she’s not mature enough
to express her predicament in a professional way. The
inquiring mom hangs up thinking that the call was the most
unprofessional experience of her day and that there’s no way
she would take her child to that dance school. She made that
decision without having the chance to see the quality of your
training, simply because the customer service was dreadful.
Here was a potential client who needed a little of that
professionalism that you advertised, and she didn’t get it.
How often do you call a business only to be greeted by a
13-year-old answering the phone? I would dare to say not very
often. As a business owner, I would opt to have the answering
machine pick up the call rather than have a teenager offer a
potential client the first impression of my school. However,
the ideal situation would be to have the person who answers
the phone be a mature adult who can accurately and
enthusiastically answer any questions.
Another quick tip: If you can’t have an adult at the phone, be
sure that the answering machine refers the caller to your
website. That way they can start to gather the information
that they require, even before you quickly return their
call.
No Refunds?
As most Dance Studio Life readers know, I am an
advocate for dance teachers sticking to their polices,
especially those that relate to commitments from your students
and their parents. However, there are times when I would make
exceptions for the sake of my business and the positive word
of mouth I know they would help to generate.
Here’s such a scenario: Susie is a 4-year-old who is taking
her first dance class ever at your school. Her mom has paid a
registration fee and the first month’s tuition.
Not only is Susie scared, but this is the first time in her
life that her mom or dad aren’t in sight. She starts to sob
because she’s overwhelmed and spends the entire class sitting
on the floor, crying. The teacher and Susie’s mom decide that
she should try the class again the following week, but the
same scenario plays out. Susie just isn’t ready. When the mom
asks for a refund, you explain that your school policy states
that there are no refunds for tuition or registration fees and
that you can’t make exceptions. Not only does the mom leave
the school with the disappointment that her child isn’t ready
for class like all the other kids appear to be, she’s also
resentful that you wouldn’t refund her money, even though her
child didn’t really take a class. Add to that the fact that
the mom bought the required shoes, tights, and leotard (which
the child will soon grow out of) and she will probably never
again consider dance training for her child.
From a business perspective, offering the refund along with
the comment “I look forward to seeing Susie try dance class
again next year” is the way to go in this situation. This
approach practically guarantees that you will see the child
(or her little sibling) again. Plus, if the mom is pleased
with your customer service, she will probably provide your
school with positive word of mouth. That’s well worth the cost
of the refund.
Scrimping on Preschool Classes
When given the option of employing an adult preschool teacher
who has experience working with toddlers at a rate of $25 per
hour or hiring one of your advanced students at $15 per hour,
what would you do? School owners who are barely able to keep
up with expenses might go for the less expensive option. But
are they really saving money?
Let’s say that each student in the preschool class is paying
$10 per class, which also happens to be the cost difference
between the experienced adult and the teenage teacher. At the
very moment that the inexperienced teacher loses her first
student, you are at the same cost for that teacher as you
would have been if you paid her $25. If the inexperienced
teacher loses three or four students because of her lack of
experience, then you continue to lose money. On the other
hand, if the more expensive teacher hangs on to the majority
of her students, you will actually make more income even
though you are paying the more expensive rate. So goes the old
cliché: “It takes money to make money.”
Let’s explore this topic a little further—many school owners
pay $50 (or more) per hour for a professional ballet teacher
for the advanced dancers. Some pay thousands for a good
competition routine, which is paid for from the tuition income
from the remarkably discounted lessons offered to most
advanced students. Yet the tendency is to try to save money on
the preschool teacher, when she is the one who works with the
students who pay a premium price for their lessons. That’s
like telling customers that they pay more for less!
I am not suggesting that you shouldn’t hire an excellent
ballet teacher for the advanced kids. But investing in a
strong faculty for the preschool students is one way to afford
the best teachers for the advanced students. How? If the
preschool kids and their parents are happy at your school,
they will be with you for years. And they will provide the
financial means for you to afford teaching those discounted
advanced students.
Chances are you want your school to be number one, the best in
your area. You’ll be well on your way to achieving that if you
take a close look at your practices and policies regarding
customer service. So brush up your communication skills and
put yourself in your clients’ shoes—and start treating your
customers like they are number one. It’s just good
business.
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