Web-01: Finding Your Niche
MAKING YOUR WEBSITE FIT YOUR NICHE
AND CALL OUT TO YOUR DREAM STUDENT
Not all websites are created the same. I am not here to tell you how to recreate my website. Though it works well for my market, demographic, and niche it probably won’t work as well for you.
So now we get to dig into you and your studio. This is where you really get to show off what makes your studio unique. Take a moment and really think about this one. What do you have to offer that no one else can do? What do you do better or differently than every other teacher or studio around? If you can’t come up with anything, you’ve got a problem. If you can’t tell what sets you apart from all of the other local piano teachers, how can anyone else? Why should they choose you over your competition?
Your niche is one of THE most important decisions that you will make regarding your studio.
Sometimes you can make a decision and sometimes it presents itself to you. You may decide that you only want to work with elementary age children. Or because of who you are, you may realize that you just seem to attract really quirky pre-teens. Whether you make a conscious decision about what you want your studio to be or base it on what surrounds you, figure out exactly what it is and how to describe it.
The form below will help you to think through what you want your studio to be.
Check off all of the qualities that describe your studio. On some of them you may have multiple answers (children and adults, for example) but think about what you are best at teaching and what your ideal students would be. What do you enjoy the most?
If you could decide exactly the types of students and studio that you wanted what would it be?
Laid Back _____ or _____ Serious
Beginners _____ or _____ Advanced Students
Children _____ or _____ Adults
Budget Friendly _____ or _____ Top Tier Pricing
Casual Students _____ or _____ Serious Students
One Instrument _____ or _____ Multiple Instruments
One Teacher _____ or _____ Multiple Teachers
One Genre _____ or _____ Multiple Genres
Technology Based _____ or _____ Old School
One Method for all students _____ or _____ different methods for every student
List 5 more adjectives or activities that set you apart from your competition:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Maybe you specialize in technology. Maybe you have musical therapy dogs. Maybe you are bilingual. Maybe you only teach one handed pianists named Jeff. Whatever your thing is, flaunt it. Do not try to be all things to all people. It may seem like the best way to gain more students is to try to teach every possible student in your area. You can’t and ultimately you and your students won’t be happy. Specialize and learn to market to the types of students that you are best at.
Maybe you don’t have a specialty. Maybe there are already some amazing jazz pianists or classical pianists in your area that teach and have flourishing studios. Your speciality might be that you provide a general overview of your instrument before passing them on to the more advanced teachers. Most students won’t reach an advanced level anyway.
We are a really laid-back casual studio. We lean a lot more towards rock, pop, country, and that type of music. Our advertising, website, attitude, and studio appearance reflect that. Every now and then we’ll get an inquiry or walk-in from someone that is wanting classical piano lessons or is looking for something a little more rigid than what we offer. I used to try to accommodate them, but now I’m quick to tell them that we’re probably not what they’re looking for and refer them to some friends that specialize in classical piano. No harm, no foul. Nothing against them or us, we just aren’t the best fit for each other. And that’s ok.
Of course this doesn’t mean you have to always shut down students that aren’t your ideal student. We do have a handful of classical piano students that we work with. Though they loved the music and style they were looking for a more casual approach to it. We can do that! So, don’t be afraid to look for ways that you can pivot from your strengths to find additional students that you can work with.
Take your time and really figure out who you are, who your studio is, and what your ideal student looks like. Everything else we do will be based on that so make sure that you get that foundation right.
If you don’t have your niche and ideal student figured out yet, take some time. Go and take a walk. Ask some students, parents, or colleagues to describe you and what you do. Sit and think about your favorite students. Listen to some music you enjoy. Unplug for a while. It’s worth it to take the time to really think about it and get this right.
Go ahead, I’ll wait….
Figured it out? Awesome. I’m proud of you.
Write it down on a sheet of paper and hang it on the fridge. Fill in the blanks with your niche and a quick description of your ideal student. I’m serious..
My niche is ________________________________________.
My ideal student is ___________________________________.
Now that you know who you are and what your ideal student looks like, you have conquered most of the hard work. Let’s start with the first part: Making your website fit your niche.
For now I just want to talk about the overall tone and feel of your website.
I have seen some teachers that have the most creative and fun studios around have the most boring and bland websites. You are awesome! You have an amazing studio. It’s impossible to completely capture the vibe of your studio, but we’re going to try.
Let’s start with one of the most obvious decisions. What is the tone of your studio?
Are you:
Fun?
Serious?
Structured?
Silly?
Laid-Back?
There is no right or wrong answer, but you want your website to reflect who you are. Not what you think people want you to be. I know that without a doubt some prospective students look at our website and are immediately turned off.
Awesome. That means that I’m doing something right. You want to be polarizing. If you are looking for serious, studious, music lessons with no nonsense then my studio isn’t the place for you. The sooner that I can help someone to realize that the better. I don’t need to have them fill out forms and exchange emails, phone calls, and studio tours.
Again, there’s no problem with that. You are creating and marketing a niche and, by definition, that can’t include everybody. Your website should get your type of students really really excited and make prospective students that aren’t a good fit decide to keep looking.
We are fun and laid-back with a rockstar vibe. Everything about our online advertising and website reflects that. Choose pictures, an appearance, and write in a tone that conveys who you are and resonates with the type of students you want to attract.
So now we get to dig into you and your studio. This is where you really get to show off what makes your studio unique. Take a moment and really think about this one. What do you have to offer that no one else can do? What do you do better or differently than every other teacher or studio around? If you can’t come up with anything, you’ve got a problem. If you can’t tell what sets you apart from all of the other local piano teachers, how can anyone else? Why should they choose you over your competition?
Your niche is one of THE most important decisions that you will make regarding your studio.
Sometimes you can make a decision and sometimes it presents itself to you. You may decide that you only want to work with elementary age children. Or because of who you are, you may realize that you just seem to attract really quirky pre-teens. Whether you make a conscious decision about what you want your studio to be or base it on what surrounds you, figure out exactly what it is and how to describe it.
The form below will help you to think through what you want your studio to be.
Check off all of the qualities that describe your studio. On some of them you may have multiple answers (children and adults, for example) but think about what you are best at teaching and what your ideal students would be. What do you enjoy the most?
If you could decide exactly the types of students and studio that you wanted what would it be?
Laid Back _____ or _____ Serious
Beginners _____ or _____ Advanced Students
Children _____ or _____ Adults
Budget Friendly _____ or _____ Top Tier Pricing
Casual Students _____ or _____ Serious Students
One Instrument _____ or _____ Multiple Instruments
One Teacher _____ or _____ Multiple Teachers
One Genre _____ or _____ Multiple Genres
Technology Based _____ or _____ Old School
One Method for all students _____ or _____ different methods for every student
List 5 more adjectives or activities that set you apart from your competition:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Maybe you specialize in technology. Maybe you have musical therapy dogs. Maybe you are bilingual. Maybe you only teach one handed pianists named Jeff. Whatever your thing is, flaunt it. Do not try to be all things to all people. It may seem like the best way to gain more students is to try to teach every possible student in your area. You can’t and ultimately you and your students won’t be happy. Specialize and learn to market to the types of students that you are best at.
Maybe you don’t have a specialty. Maybe there are already some amazing jazz pianists or classical pianists in your area that teach and have flourishing studios. Your speciality might be that you provide a general overview of your instrument before passing them on to the more advanced teachers. Most students won’t reach an advanced level anyway.
We are a really laid-back casual studio. We lean a lot more towards rock, pop, country, and that type of music. Our advertising, website, attitude, and studio appearance reflect that. Every now and then we’ll get an inquiry or walk-in from someone that is wanting classical piano lessons or is looking for something a little more rigid than what we offer. I used to try to accommodate them, but now I’m quick to tell them that we’re probably not what they’re looking for and refer them to some friends that specialize in classical piano. No harm, no foul. Nothing against them or us, we just aren’t the best fit for each other. And that’s ok.
Of course this doesn’t mean you have to always shut down students that aren’t your ideal student. We do have a handful of classical piano students that we work with. Though they loved the music and style they were looking for a more casual approach to it. We can do that! So, don’t be afraid to look for ways that you can pivot from your strengths to find additional students that you can work with.
Take your time and really figure out who you are, who your studio is, and what your ideal student looks like. Everything else we do will be based on that so make sure that you get that foundation right.
If you don’t have your niche and ideal student figured out yet, take some time. Go and take a walk. Ask some students, parents, or colleagues to describe you and what you do. Sit and think about your favorite students. Listen to some music you enjoy. Unplug for a while. It’s worth it to take the time to really think about it and get this right.
Go ahead, I’ll wait….
Figured it out? Awesome. I’m proud of you.
Write it down on a sheet of paper and hang it on the fridge. Fill in the blanks with your niche and a quick description of your ideal student. I’m serious..
My niche is ________________________________________.
My ideal student is ___________________________________.
Now that you know who you are and what your ideal student looks like, you have conquered most of the hard work. Let’s start with the first part: Making your website fit your niche.
For now I just want to talk about the overall tone and feel of your website.
I have seen some teachers that have the most creative and fun studios around have the most boring and bland websites. You are awesome! You have an amazing studio. It’s impossible to completely capture the vibe of your studio, but we’re going to try.
Let’s start with one of the most obvious decisions. What is the tone of your studio?
Are you:
Fun?
Serious?
Structured?
Silly?
Laid-Back?
There is no right or wrong answer, but you want your website to reflect who you are. Not what you think people want you to be. I know that without a doubt some prospective students look at our website and are immediately turned off.
Awesome. That means that I’m doing something right. You want to be polarizing. If you are looking for serious, studious, music lessons with no nonsense then my studio isn’t the place for you. The sooner that I can help someone to realize that the better. I don’t need to have them fill out forms and exchange emails, phone calls, and studio tours.
Again, there’s no problem with that. You are creating and marketing a niche and, by definition, that can’t include everybody. Your website should get your type of students really really excited and make prospective students that aren’t a good fit decide to keep looking.
We are fun and laid-back with a rockstar vibe. Everything about our online advertising and website reflects that. Choose pictures, an appearance, and write in a tone that conveys who you are and resonates with the type of students you want to attract.
