21st Century Music Lessons

A few years ago, I started researching teaching online. At the time, I was not happy with the idea of being a part of another company, when I had my own. I consider myself a forward thinker and I saw the writing on the wall.  I saw that current format for teaching is going to change radically. So what do I do?

I saw the level of decrease in guitar students, not just myself but teachers all across America. YouTube, Vimeo, etc..etc.. was taking what was a strong flow of students. When I started my company,

we were 90% guitar students. In 2018, it was 25% or less depending on the season. I would complain that, YouTube was destroying the teaching business. Then I would blame the students, the teachers and anything else I could put blame on.  Oh whoa is me…

In 2015, I started thinking about maybe teaching online, how to go about it.. The market is flooded with online teachers and the video sites are packed with both good and bad teachers. It seemed like an impossible task to break into that market. I got a call from a company promoting teaching software for music teachers. I really couldn’t afford paying for a monthly subscription for software. But I did it anyway. At the time, I was up to my eyeballs with a third location. That location was struggling and would eventually fail. That failure a couple of years later, kicked me into high gear with online lessons. During those two years, I started using the software with my local private students. Sometime it was good other times bad. I had some students who would not use it and others loved. It cost me a couple of students, but helped me make gains with students who were struggling.

2018 comes and I feel like I have learned the software well enough and I decide. I required my teachers to start using the software in 2018. But they were troublesome with it. I could only get them to use it for attendance. But I was convinced it is the next step, I begin teaching online lessons. At the beginning of 2018, I had 12 students, now I have 33. It took a while to get my first online students. Now it seems I am constantly chatting with online students and my local students in the software.

Now I see and understand what is happening. Instead of nay saying the new style of teaching, I embraced it. I foresee that if current teachers don’t adopt a new format for teaching. They will no longer be teaching in 5-7 years. I love teaching with software and I am constantly looking for added value for my students.

Then here comes 2019, a downturn in the business locations. In June of 2019 I closed one location to consolidate down to one location tin an effort to stabilize the business. Then followed a series of damaging things that happen. I decide to just close the physical locations and teach online.  I keep about 30 students and I no longer have the worries of an instructor getting mad and leaving with 20 plus students, no rent, no headaches and way less stress. I love it!

Here are some on my takeaway from using software to teach with.

• I get reports on student practice with our software.
• I can upload videos to focus on particular student challenges.
• I can teach students pretty much anywhere in the world. ( Actually talking to someone in Tokoyo, Japan.)
• Student’s music is always there, no need to rewrite it out if it is lost.
• Accountability with students involving the parents.
• Accurate attendance tracking.
• Easy to keep students motivated by constantly tweaking their lessons.
• Give me the maximum amount to time to coach my students through the lesson.

The next phase a Youtube channel.