I’ll be launching the homework program for new sign ups again on Nov 4th.
Lots of you have been asking about it. And specifically how to explain the cost to the parents.
It’s easy when you know how 🙂
1. Tell the parents that you’ll be launching a new intense /deluxe/upgrade (we haven’t quite figured out the best name yet) class where kids will do computer homework every week.
Ninja Tip: You have to launch a new class, the difference between kids who have the software at home and those who don’t is too great.
2. Instead of taking 3 ( or 4) years to complete the course you’ll be able to do it in 2.
The good parents, i.e. the ones you want, will jump at the chance. After all who doesn’t want their kids to get good really quickly?
Ninja Tip 2: The parents who just want you to be an underpaid babysitter will of course not be interested . Your decision: Are they really the sort of parents that you want to keep?
Ninja Tip 3: Once you’ve graduated the kids from Genki English, just do other courses, science, geography, robotics, actually in English. After all with Genki English and genki phonics they’ll be ready for anything and the parents love when they get two subjects for the price of one.
Tell the parents it costs just 200 euros to join the new program now (which is similar to what other courses charge for sign up materials etc) but it doesn’t cost anything extra for the lessons.
Ninja Tip: And because you are putting the homework kids in a separate class, there are no worries about parents making copies, they have to purchase the software from you in order to get in to the higher class.
So for example if you are charging 500 euros/$ per year over 3 years that is 1500 euros. But with this program it costs just 1200 so they save lots of money. That makes them happy. 🙂
Ninja Tip: If your are in a G8 developed country then of course you should really be charging more than 1000 euros/$ per year so the parents will save even more with the homework.
Then each week simply set next week’s topic as this week’s homework and the parents sign the homework calendar each time their kids do it. The kids turn up knowing all the English and you do the real teacher thing of correcting, motivating and really using the English in the class games.)
You get better students, better parents and way better results.
It’s the easiest way to take your school to the next level, both financially, academically and reputation wise. After all what school is going to be able to compete with you now?
So keep an eye out for when I reopen the program in November!
Be genki,
Richard
P.S. If you don’t know how much to charge for lessons, ring around at least 50 schools in your city or a comparably sized city. Plot the prices on a graph. You will be shocked at how much more they charge than you. Of course you can’t stay at the low end, that sets you up as low value. And you can’t compete at the average price, because there are so many other schools there. Your only option is to charge higher than average prices and then offer way higher than average quality. After all you aren’t a chain school and you can’t compete on price. You are the hand crafted, caring, boutique English school and should charge, and get results, accordingly. 🙂
Thanks for this great refresher on how to introduce and sell the homework program to the parents! I can’t wait until I can do a class that has the Genki resources at home and not just the Genki worksheet, my own audio homework, and the Genki Phonics….but all that AND the full software pack! Exciting!
I always get so pumped when I see your suggestion for the post-Genki classes. Graduation … or continued study in English but other subjects and not just English to learn English but using English to learn other (possibly more interesting) subjects!