How Has Word of Mouth Marketing Changed for the Piano Teacher?

I’m so excited to bring you a new series of articles by a wonderful teacher and blogger I had the privilege of meeting at NCKP 2013. Kevin Kao impressed with me his brief and friendly introduction of himself. Through chatting, I found that he writes a blog for piano teachers and students and then through reading his blog, found that he is a “must-follow!” The advice that he shares in this series about the importance of a web presence will make a huge difference in your future as a piano teacher.

Even if you don’t have a website, keep reading! Kevin is going to explain in future posts an easy, but effective way of getting on the web without a website!

The Importance of a Web Presence: How Word of Mouth has Changed for the Piano Teacher?

About two months ago, I was looking for a photographer to take some headshots for my studio website. I ended up finding a photographer from a local service listings website. The photographer was horrible: dishonest, late, high excuse to work-done ratio…but that’s beside the point. The point is, I relied on my own online research instead of recommendations from friends (and I have a lot of singer friends—lots of headshots). Even more telling I think, is the fact that I did ask for recommendations from a voice teacher and I STILL went with my own research on the web. How does this relate to you as a professional piano teacher?

Get Yourself on the Web or Perish!

Younger generations (X, Y, Z, xP…I don’t even know which one I’m in), turn to the internet for recommendations. It’s how I’ve built up my studio relatively quickly since graduating last year. My studio consists of mostly students from young families, with YOUNGER SIBLINGS, score. This is also another reason why websites like TakeLessons, onLessons, and Thumbtack have prospered in the last few years. They capitalized on this consumer shift to researching lessons online.

Word of Mouth: Dying? Or Evolving?

You might be saying now, “But I have a full studio PLUS a waiting list.” And what would you say is the number one way you get new students? Most likely through word of mouth. Unless you have someone who’ll tell others about you without being asked, here’s how “word of mouth” usually happens:

  • There needs to be a conversation between two people. (Obvious right?)
  • The conversation needs to lead to the topic of piano lessons.
  • The person in the conversation needs to have you “top of mind”, and feel good about recommending you to their friend.

With that in mind, the last time I went to Souplantation, when I took a breather from stuffing myself silly with spinach, broccoli, and their delicious cream of mushroom soup, I saw this:

  • Word of mouth advertising for piano teachersFour friends staring at their smartphones, occasionally sharing what they found funny on their phones.
  • Couple sitting across from each other, checking who knows what on their phones while drinking soup.
  • Parents and kids, playing games and checking mail, on their iPads and iPhones.

It’s sad, but true. And guess what, word of mouth? NOT happening there—at least not in the traditional sense.

Word of Mouth: Now it’s Supercharged

Here’s how word of mouth has evolved:

  • What if one of the friends is on Facebook posting pictures of himself and talking about how much fun he had playing at your recent studio recital?
  • What if the girlfriend is making note of how much she learned at her last lesson with you so she can go home and write a blog post about it?
  • What if the mom is emailing her friends pictures of her children playing for the grandparents at their family gathering and mentioning how much the children love studying with you?

These testimonials and word of mouth activities have a reach far greater than the traditional word of mouth format. Plus, things on the internet stay FOREVER. With all these activities happening online, you’re actually doing a disservice to your current and potential piano students by not having a web presence, an easy way for your students to share about you and for potential students to find you. In the next post I’ll share one of the easiest and best bang for your buck ways to build a web presence (and it doesn’t involve building a website). Before then, try entering (your city) piano lessons, piano teacher, and piano studio into Google search and see what comes up in your area!
Don’t forget to sign up for the ComposeCreate email newsletter where you’ll get these blog posts and updates by email every 3 weeks or so.  It’s a great way to make sure you don’t miss any new idea!

READ ALSO:

Kevin Kao bioKevin Kao just celebrated his piano studio’s one-year anniversary after moving back from San Diego where he taught class piano at San Diego State University under the guidance of Dr. Mitzi Kolar. He’s currently teaching piano lessons in Irvine, California to an awesome group of kids (mostly boys) and a few adult students. He also writes a blog for piano students and their parents designed to educate parents about piano lessons and answer commonly asked questions through his posts and interviews.

3 thoughts on “How Has Word of Mouth Marketing Changed for the Piano Teacher?”

  1. Also a good point! Now when a business doesn’t have a web presence at all it actually turns people away–regardless of the actual quality of the establishment! I think that’s kind of a scary thought. Thanks for reading and commenting!

  2. That is so true, Kevin. I think of how I look for places to eat or shop or especially places to send my children. If they don’t have a web presence, I move to the next option!

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