3 Tips to Engage and Retain Your Families and Students
The year has just started and you are probably still busy with registration, planning for Nutcracker, and dare we mention, competition season. Your plate might be very full, and your cup overflowing, but it is still super important to keep your families and students engaged and excited about being a part of your dance studio family. It is not too soon for students to start dropping out, or parents to think of “defecting.”
Here are three ideas to engage, encourage and connect (without deeper discounts!) My favorite idea germinated this weekend, when I went to Steppin’ Out Studios monthly Open House. They featured their version of Dancing With the Stars. How inspiring, that in a short amount of time, I could be dancing like those students! So, why not make your open house interesting and host your own…
- Dancing with the Stars: Each class can have a drawing where one or two students get selected to dance a routine with their teacher. This could be a monthly or quarterly event, but having students from every age group is sure to make this a fun and exciting event at your studio. Make sure you publicize in your local schools through flyers, email blasts, or Facebook advertising, as well as your website, emails to parents, and your Facebook Page. Your studio’s version of Dancing with the Stars can be presented as a standalone event or part of a…
- Parents Night: With any school, especially a school that a parent pays for, it is important to make each and every parent feel that their child is taught with special care. Why not have a FUN parent’s night with each teacher having the opportunity to speak to the parents of their students? It’s also super easy to have a short “smartphone” video of each class and post it on Youtube so each parent gets a glimpse of their child’s progress. The video does not have to be recital perfect, just a glimpse into what their kid is working on every day. Click Here for some great examples of how one studio shows these videos. Added bonus: Youtube helps Google find your website organically!
- Personal Notes to Parents: Who has time to do that? OK, it is work. I know. But just as sending thank you notes after receiving a gift is important, so is that first month thank you note and email to parents, thanking them for their continued patronage, as well as addressing any problems, issues, or questions they have giving your school the extra caring attitude that shows them they are with the right school. Write as if you are writing to a friend and make sure they feel if you are speaking to them personally!