Self Marketing: Getting Creative and Appearing "Grown Up"

Putting yourself out there is a huge risk, since there is no guarantee of success, and having to spend your own money to market yourself is a big deal. For us college students, I have found that getting creative with marketing can bring about a genuine connection between yourself and students. This doesn't have to apply to just music teaching!

If you have an Apple laptop/iPad, then you have access to Pages, the generic word processing software. To stand out from the others, try making a brochure for your lesson studio rather than a flyer. Brochures are more expensive, but can potentially have a high return if your students/student's parents see the level of care you put into your marketing.

Microsoft publisher also allows for this type of creative media, but I know that the suite will cost you if you are not part of a school that provides it for free!

Business cards are also a great marketing tool. I do not see many teachers use them, and have always wondered why. Very rarely will I get a business card from a teacher, even when they are running a business. Of course we never want to think of our students as profit margins, but when you boil down the holism of your lessons, you ARE running a business and it should be treated as such. Again, in Apple's Pages, you can create beautiful, simple business cards that will get the job done, and you can carry them everywhere with you!

Going the extra mile for your brand is something that might keep you on the radar of parents. Small things like designing a logo that goes on ALL of your documents really ups the professional factor. It is surprisingly easy to print directly onto envelopes, added into lesson sheets, used on business cards, etc.

Here is mine: It was created in Pages, and will be my logo until I can afford a designer to create a better one!

As college students it is important for us to develop ourselves professionally. Appearing professional takes many forms, but when it comes to the administrative side of your private teaching it is vital that you appear as put together and professional as possible!

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