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Which, in your opinion, should be higher:

Paying for a package of lessons (4 lessons) or paying monthly (same price each month, regardless of lessons)

Just curious.

Hmm, I think they should be the same. Technically speaking, the monthly payment option would be an average since some months there would be anywhere for 3-5 lessons, and the 4 per month rate would even out over a period of a school year.

The only difference in price would be then, as to which the teacher preferred. If they want to get the same monthly amount for stability and ease of billing, then the 2nd option would be lower. Or, if they want to bill every 4 lessons then they'd make the 1st option a bit less.

Thanks for the reply. I prefer payment every four lessons and that is what I have been doing for a few years. It's less restrictive for me since I'm not stuck giving make-ups or crediting students when I have to miss a lesson.

My older students, maybe about 25%, are still on monthly. But I have had a couple of new students request to change to monthly payments since it is easier for them to pay on the same time each month. But I just wasn't sure what would be best, especially if I decide to keep this option available.

I mean, would it make sense to have something like:
"Tuition is $110 a month or $110 every for lessons, based on your preference."

I charge by the month now, so the payment is due at the same time (the last lesson before the new month). I charge them for however many lessons I'm planning on having. If I miss then I can choose to do a make up or give them credit on their next month's bill.

I charge an annual tuition fee for a guaranteed number of lessons during the calendar year.

Parents can pay in full, by semester or in monthly installments. Easy bookkeeping.

I do the same as minniemay. I rarely need to take a lesson off for something else; and once in a great while I will reschedule a student. I rarely do make-ups as well...I hand out a swap list and let the students figure out their own times to swap.

I am running things this way because I may miss lessons due to performing opportunities. This makes it easier on me so I don't feel I *have* to make up a lesson. I can choose to give them credit or if I know by the beginning of the month I can simply not charge them for lessons I know I will miss.

Minniemay\Stanny - I used to charge an annual fee and my older students are still on that system. And they pay a set amount each month.

I really like the "paying per package of lessons" system I have now because I have a *lot* of students and I always seem to pick up a bug or two during the year. If I miss one day, that's easily 8 lessons I have to try and squeeze in. Not to mention the unplanned snows days and such. There also festivals, which if my students participate in, I have to help judge. And depending on how many students I enter, I might be required to judge one, two, or even three days.

Plus, I also have the freedom to go on an unplanned trip or just play hooky for a day... if I really, really want to.

I've probably used about every payment system and what I have now is actually a combo. Some students pay each month (older students) and the other students (new) pay every four lessons.

But I just wasn't sure if it made sense to have one payment system be more than the other: Should a monthly tuition fee be more or less than a "package of lessons".

If you have an opinion on that, that would be great.

For the past few years, I've only offered my new students one option, and that is to pay for a group of four lessons at a time. But I've debated making a set monthly tuition available as a second, alternative option. That way, new students could choose from one of the two.

What I was unsure about, is if it would make sense to have one option be more and the other less, or both the same. So again, if anyone has an opinion on that, that would be appreciated.

My current package has 38 lessons from Sept. 1-Aug. 31 with vacation days marked off.

There is plenty of room with 52 weeks in the year to get the 38 in.

I do a package of 34 lessons between Aug. 30 and June 1.

Monthly Tuition = 34 x lesson cost / 9

Minniemay - That's great. You seem to have system that works really well for you. I live in a very affluent area and half of my students go away for the summer. Literally, the day after school ends a good bulk of my students are on a plane to India or Argentina or Holland, or some other exotic locale. And they're back when school starts.

I also go away for the summer. And at the moment, I like the way I run my studio and so do the parents. I have my highest retention rate in years. It may be slightly unorthodox, but it works for me. Owning a business is about making 'systems' and since I am self-employed my system has to work for me. And my goal, with my system, is to decrease the amount of "non-fun" work as much as possible. And I think I'm succeeding.

My problem at the moment is that I just wasn't sure if it made sense, from a business perspective, to charge the same or different amounts for the "monthly tuition option" vs. a "package of lessons option".

Morodiene - the first responder, thinks it should be the same since, in theory, every thing should even out.

And I think that makes a lot of sense. But I would like some more opinions on that if anyone has any.

So, Minniemay, do you have an opinion on that specifically? If so, I would like to hear it.

I think if you charge for a package of lessons, your schedule will end up being irregular. One week they are there, another week they aren't. They can be a little more whimsical.

A monthly fee would encourage regular attendance.

I charge a flat monthly fee regardless of how many weeks and regardless of whether they come or not. I don't give make-up lessons. If I have to cancel I give them a credit. I also hand out a calendar at the beginning of the year (and post it on my website, blog and Facebook page) so they know exactly when we have lessons and when we're off. I keep lessons affordable enough that if they miss a time or two for vacation or sickness it doesn't break the bank. Works well for me.

Sigh. Still off-topic I see. I'm beginning to think I won't get an answer to my question.



My schedule is not irregular and attendance is fine.

By reading in-between the lines, I'm going to assume that you think paying a set monthly fee should be lower than paying for a package of lessons.



And my method works for me.

I not trying to be rude or anything, but I didn't start this post to get into a debate on which method is best to run your studio or mine. I just asked a simple question, in my opinion, that resulted from a simple request from a student.

And so far, I've received one answer that addresses that question.

Personally I don't see any reason to have to charge the same price if you didn't want to. One way to look at it is that the "pay for a package" option offers more flexibility for the customer. Given that, paying a premium for that flexibility doesn't seem too far fetched. Plus, if that method of payment causes extra effort on your part from a book keeping/management standpoint, then that's yet another reason why charging a premium is reasonable. I guess the real question here is what do _you_ want from this "package deal". Do you want to use it to entice people who might find that option more palatable, are you hoping that it could be a way to drive a bit of extra revenue, etc.

Assuming you mean paying for a package of four weekly lessons, given in successive weeks, with no obligation to continue past, then you should probably charge a premium.

What if, for example, as student selects the 4 lesson package, comes four weeks, then tells you that they are going to take a week or two off, then comes back and purchases another four week package. You've just succeeded in screwing yourself (sorry for the language).

If you offer "packages," then you should be prepared to accept this.

If, however, you mean that the student must pay you for each four weeks in advance, but study must be continuous, then we're talking a whole different situation. Personally, I would find the book-keeping maddening. I much prefer preparing bills/statements monthly. So, I'd be tempted to charge a slight premium for the inconvenience factor.

Does this help any?

But I think these things are inter-related.

For instance, my son's trumpet teacher charges for a package of 4 lessons. We could have 1 lesson a month, or 4 lessons in one month. This ultimately affects his monthly income. In my mind, he should choose a higher fee for a package because of the incredible flexibility this gives the client.

If you are charging a monthly fee, students are more likely to attend every week, but also giving them the feeling that there is less flexibility. Because there are more lessons in some months and less in others, the fee seems less like an hourly fee and should probably be less than the package.

Satisfied that I have addressed your question?

UrbanSpice, you said your system keeps you from being stuck crediting students when you have to miss a lesson. But essentially you are crediting them. If you miss a lesson then their week to pay for the next 4 lessons moves up a week. I can see how that could get a bit batty for parents to figure out especially if you miss a lot.

You could just figure out your weekly rate. Let them all pay the same. After all it is your preference to have them pay 4 weeks at a time, so why discount if they move to monthly payment?

While I agree there's more chance for the teacher to not get a steady income, the flexibility works both ways. This is why I'm doing something similar. Students who sign up for lessons are guaranteed the same lesson time slot except for when there is a conflict. Then I can either not have them pay for that lesson, give them a credit, or reschedule. Students can do one make-up lesson per semester, and if they need flexibility I can try to accommodate them or they can swap lessons with another student.

This does essentially mean that potentially I will not get paid as much or a consistent amount over the course of a year, but I think parents are enjoying the flexibility as well.