How to develop a business as a private music teacher
Aug 04 '05 (Updated Sep 16 '05)
The Bottom Line It can be fulfilling and financially rewarding
Performing musicians know full well that good gigs can be hard to come by. So, what’s a musician to do?
Many musicians have day jobs to pay the bills and provide benefits. Some are musically-related, some are not. However, taking on students as a private music teacher can be fulfilling and financially rewarding. Here’s some tips on how to build your client base for fun and profit.
First, you need to have a verifiable musical performing skill. A music degree from a solid school can provide a credential. If you are performing regularly in public, particularly as leader or a solo act, will provide credentials, as long s they are verifiable. A commercially produced demo or CD can also testify to your skills as a musician.
Next, you need to have SOME idea of what your target market will be. Will it be beginners through middle school? High school? Adults? Skilled players looking for tips to take it to the next level? All of the above?
I believe that beginners through high school in districts that have a number of schools can be lucrative. My comments will be based on that. If you would prefer to have fewer and better students, you would do well to perform frequently and promote heavily.
The next step is to get experience. Teaching one on one is a lot different than performing, because of the other person with you. Many people like the experience but some don’t. If you have had good relationships with your private teachers, that could be a starting point as you develop your unique style as a teacher.
Some ways to identify your initial students:
1. Do demonstrations at local grade schools. Teachers are always looking for an interesting activity. Bringing in a few instruments (for me it was usually tenor sax, soprano sax and clarinet) and playing some familiar tunes is a great, short activity for primary students, and the teachers and parents might remember you!
2. The same thing can be done at bookstores. The stores are always looking for quality children’s entertainment.
3. Volunteer. Of course you don’t want to give your services away for free, but you can look at this as a brief apprentice period. Offer to do a clinic for your local middle school or high school. Or, you could offer to do a few sectionals over the course of a month or two or maybe offer a limited number of volunteer private lessons based on need or talent through the school’s music parent-teacher organization.
Obviously, you should learn about the school and see if sufficient numbers of private music teachers on your instrument are already on a recommended list. You would be better off volunteering at schools where there are less such teachers. Now is a good time to do this. Years ago, performing paid well enough so that many music teachers would basically go to a school and help out in return for being able to conduct lessons. Nowadays, that’s not so prevalent, because of the difficulty in making a living as a full time professional musician. Of course, if you receive an offer like that, it could make sense if there are sufficient numbers of students.
You might be able to volunteer through a senior center, helping people rekindle their playing.
4. Local newspapers may offer free listings for music teachers. You also might be able to get article coverage based on your volunteer activities.
5. Some stores might offer free listings as well, but they might validate you based on experiences. So, you need to be deliberate about how you market to them.
Now would be a good time to develop solid marketing materials that include your experiences and credentials and the work you have done so far in developing your teaching business. If you are performing regularly as a leader, chances are that you already have quality marketing materials.
You have now done some lessons, have learned from them, and you know that you can teach well and that you enjoy it. You have developed marketing materials that reflect your experiences, credentials, and teaching philosophies. You also have researched prevailing rates and have come up with a pricing structure and ground rules (cancellations, make-ups, etc.) that make sense to you.
The next piece, which is crucial, is identifying good referral sources.
Band instrument players, in my experience, generally will identify teachers through the schools band director or through the sore where the instrument is rented.
If you have been successful in your volunteer efforts, this could be the start of your initial referrals through the school where you volunteered. You could get an introduction from the band director where you volunteered to other schools nearby. Other band directors could be solicited by mail. This is done most effectively at the beginning of the school year.
Music stores with a large base of rentals on your instrument could be lucrative sources and can be solicited using your marketing materials. Being a regular customer might help as well.
The two sources above will be your most productive sources. However, other sources can be cultivated as well:
A web site can be created for your teaching business or you could add pages on teaching to an existing web site promoting your performances.
Your existing students can be a productive source.
Once your business matures, you need to maintain it. This includes:
- Continuing to develop as a player and performer
- Evaluating ways to improve as a teacher – such as new techniques, improved books, etc.
- Continuing marketing efforts (volunteer performances, clinics, etc.)
I’ve found fulfillment and some nice financial rewards as a private music teacher. Certainly, there is plenty of competition, just as there is in performing. However, there’s always room for more good teachers.
Please check out some of my other epinions in this category:
How to start a jazz band
Correcting intonation
What music has helped me learn about myself
Fast fingers are important
How to eliminate recurring mistakes
How I help my students learn new music
I learned about a lot more than music from my music teachers
Ear Training I: beginning and intermediate
Ear Training II: Prelude to Jazz Improv
How to get your child started on an instrument
I compose the way I play
Good luck and God bless!
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