I am old enough to remember one time when I was sick our family doctor came to my house. ‘House call’ that was what they used to call it. Can you imagine that?

 

There are still piano teachers who travel to student’s homes. But is it worth it?

 

I have done it all, (after all, I am old enough to remember my doctor coming to my house) I have taught at home, at studios, at music stores, and online, and I have traveled. I still travel…a little bit.

 

I have a family with three kids that I travel to on Saturday mornings. They pay me very well, it’s not far from where I live, and I want to give hubby (and the neighbors) a break from the daily piano circus that goes on in the house. They are flexible, I am flexible, and it works out. I have one other homeschooler who lives 5 minutes door to door and takes her lesson at noon. Her grandmother can’t drive her, and they pay me extra to go there.

 

The rest of my students are either online or they come to me. As of this post, I have 43 students.

 

I know some teachers feel that they have to travel. You may be one of those teachers. Not having space in your own home or apartment or having strict community rules may keep you from being able to have students come to your house.

 

So that begs the question. How do you make that work?

 

A –Charge a lot more.

 

B – Give your students a choice.

 

Let’s take a look at option ‘A’

 

If you teach from 3:00 pm to 7:30 that makes 9, 30-minute lessons back-to-back. At the rate of $30 per half-hour, you earn $270.00 for an afternoon of work. (before taxes). Not bad. Way to go!

 

If you want to begin teaching at 3:00 and you travel you must get out the door at about 2:45 and finish at 7:15 if you want to get home by 7:30. Leaving 15 minutes between students, you can teach only 6 students. (Maybe less, depending on how far apart your students are.)

 

So, to make that same $270.00 you have to charge $45.00 per half hour. Actually, that would be closer to $50.00 per hour if you add on the extra 15 minutes to get to the first student plus, gas, mileage, and a convenience fee. Remember, it’s you, fighting traffic out in the cold, rain, heat, and snow.

 

“But wait! My families won’t pay 50 bucks for a half-hour lesson.”

 

Maybe they will, maybe they won’t. But you need to be paid.

 

Period.

 

Or you can’t stay in business.

 

Yes, business.

 

“But if they all quit then I won’t have any students.”

 

This is where option ‘B’ comes in.

 

I learned a long time ago that the best thing to do is to give people a choice between two or three acceptable options.

 

Here’s the choice. Pay extra to have me come to your home or take your lesson online.

 

If you absolutely cannot teach from home, and don’t want to teach online. You have to decide whether you would be better working for a studio than traveling. True, studios take their cut but most handle all the billing, cancellations, marketing, and recital planning. Plus, (outside of the obvious pay differential) I have always really enjoyed working where there are other musicians.

 

So, what’s the point?

 

The point is you can’t continue in an unsustainable job.

 

I am pretty sure there are lots of reasons why doctors don’t come to homes anymore. Insurance, equipment, etc. but it probably isn’t very cost-effective either.

 

Yes, ladies and gentlemen. We are musicians, with musicians’ hearts and souls. But we are also entrepreneurs, business people, strong, wise, and savvy.

 

Make good decisions for yourself. Charge what you are worth, you’re worth it!

 

Come join our community, and get the support you need to make your studio peaceful and profitable.

 

palomapiano.com

 

 

 

 


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