Tweet
This is usually a touchy point for many martial artists and personal trainers. You have to strike a balance as to what you need to make in order to survive while not drive all your students away because of price.
If you look at it as a business, what does your competitors charge? Remember you compete with many other programs and non-profit organizations. Dance schools in my area charge $125 US per month for the beginner classes and it goes up from there if the student competes or wants to be part of a show.
A friend told me once that he set his price based upon what was the most expensive pair of shoes kids where wearing. He found that parents were willing to spend $120 US for shoes and that became his price.
When I started out, I only charged $35 a month. I began raising my prices. When I got to $69 a month, I doubled my number of students. When I raised it to $120 per month, I gained over 100 students.
When people are paying for a service like ours, it is 'perceived value' versus cost. If you can sell the perceived value of your program, you can charge more. There is another school in my town that charges $85 per month. Unfortunately, they just closed their doors.
Am I that better of a teacher? I don't know. This guy has been around for over 25 years in this town. I came in three years ago. But if people were merely comparing prices, he should have run me out of town. I was able to sell the value of my program which in turn drew in a lot of students.
I believe that you can charge more if you allow yourself. Test the waters. Double your price and see if people will pay it. If not, reduce it until you see the numbers you want.
Hope this helps,
Jeff Barnes
If you look at it as a business, what does your competitors charge? Remember you compete with many other programs and non-profit organizations. Dance schools in my area charge $125 US per month for the beginner classes and it goes up from there if the student competes or wants to be part of a show.
A friend told me once that he set his price based upon what was the most expensive pair of shoes kids where wearing. He found that parents were willing to spend $120 US for shoes and that became his price.
When I started out, I only charged $35 a month. I began raising my prices. When I got to $69 a month, I doubled my number of students. When I raised it to $120 per month, I gained over 100 students.
When people are paying for a service like ours, it is 'perceived value' versus cost. If you can sell the perceived value of your program, you can charge more. There is another school in my town that charges $85 per month. Unfortunately, they just closed their doors.
Am I that better of a teacher? I don't know. This guy has been around for over 25 years in this town. I came in three years ago. But if people were merely comparing prices, he should have run me out of town. I was able to sell the value of my program which in turn drew in a lot of students.
I believe that you can charge more if you allow yourself. Test the waters. Double your price and see if people will pay it. If not, reduce it until you see the numbers you want.
Hope this helps,
Jeff Barnes
Comment