Dance Studio Student Recruitment: 5 Best Practices
We think dance studio teachers are superheroes. You balance tons of different tasks — from creating choreography to managing class schedules to making every student feel special, you’re unstoppable.
But there’s probably one particularly challenging task that’s always on your mind when it comes to running your studio. What’s this infamous task? Student recruitment.
Recruiting new students is crucial to sustain your studio, bring in new talent, and raise the next generation of fabulous dancers. Bringing in new students also means that you can make an even deeper impact on your community by transforming the lives of more dancers! However, with all the other things you have going on, how can you prioritize recruitment and ensure that your strategies are successful?
We understand the unique challenges you face when it comes to student recruitment. That’s why we’ve put together this brief guide to help. Here are our top five best practices for dance studio student recruitment:
Emphasize what makes your studio unique.
Be open about your teaching style.
Use a multi-channel marketing approach.
Host an open house.
Offer registration incentives.
Even if the amount of time you have available to dedicate to recruitment is limited, these best practices ensure that it won’t be time wasted. In the long run, designing a sustainable recruitment strategy can help you maintain continuous growth while still giving you plenty of time and energy to invest in your current students. Let’s get started!
1. Emphasize what makes your studio unique.
Let’s face it: dancers typically have a lot of options when it comes to choosing a studio. According to DanceStudio-Pro’s tips for dance studio owners, positioning your studio against the competition is crucial to successfully growing your business. That’s why our number one piece of advice is to focus your marketing efforts on what makes your studio unique.
Your studio likely has a lot to offer compared to others. For example, do your dance instructors go through more intensive workplace training to ensure they’re the best of the best? Do you specialize in a certain type of dance? Have your dancers gone on to become professional performers?
It might be helpful to research other dance studios in the area so that you can assess what they lack or if they have any offerings that you don’t (but could add!). This way, you can create a marketing strategy that positions your dance studio as the best in town.
2. Be open about your teaching style.
Dance students tend to select a studio because they want to work with a specific instructor who can help them thrive. That’s why it’s essential to be open about your teaching style during the recruitment phase. This way, students will be able to get a sense of whether your studio will be the right fit. When discussing your teaching philosophy, you should:
Share the focus of your training: During recruitment, you should share the main focus of your training, including any techniques or styles you specialize in. You can also explain other important aspects of your teaching that transfer to other aspects of their lives. For instance, maybe your dance lessons with younger students focus on confidence, overcoming stage fright, and building self-esteem. These values are essential to share with prospective students.
Explain rehearsal expectations: It’s also important to share expectations for rehearsal. Do you require a certain number of rehearsals per month, or do you take a more relaxed approach to practice? Perhaps you incorporate mental health skills training during each lesson to ensure that your dancers are in a good place physically and mentally during rehearsals and competitions. However you decide to do it, make sure prospective students have a clear understanding of rehearsal expectations before signing up.
Discuss how you interact with students: Lastly, you should discuss how you interact with students and the classroom culture you cultivate during rehearsals. This might be a bit more difficult to discuss, so it could be helpful to allow prospective students to sit in on one of your classes or to show students rather than tell them.
Every teacher has a different philosophy. Yours might be a great fit for some dancers and a not-so-great fit for others. That’s okay! It’s important that any new dancers you bring on connect with your teaching style so that they can improve their technique to the best of their ability.
3. Use a multi-channel marketing approach.
You can share what makes your studio different and the unique aspects of your teaching philosophy, but discussing these aspects of your studio won’t matter if prospective students don’t read about it!
Recruiting students for your dance studio also requires a bit of extra marketing. And what’s the best way to market your dance studio? By using a multi-channel marketing approach!
Multi-channel marketing means that you use multiple different platforms to advertise your studio. According to this DanceStudio-Pro guide to dance studio marketing, a multi-channel approach is the most effective way to maximize the number of students you can connect with. Let’s take a look at some of the marketing channels you can use:
Social media: Social media is a great way to connect with dancers of all ages! And with so many talented dancers in your studio, you have plenty of content to share. Consider posting videos of your dancers showing off their best moves (with their permission, of course) so that interested students can see all the cool stuff they could be doing at your studio.
Website: Your website is the central hub of your marketing efforts, and all other marketing materials should drive prospective students to it. Your website is where prospective dancers can learn everything they need to know about your studio and even sign up for an info session!
Email: Email marketing can help you convince interested dancers why they should join your studio. Consider writing a newsletter that shares updates about your studio and dancers, and then make it easy for your website visitors to sign up. This way, they can get the inside scoop on your studio.
Flyers: Create your own eye-catching flyers and post them around your community. This way, anyone who’s interested can learn about your studio and consider it for their dance lessons. You can also include a QR code on the flyer that sends recipients directly to your dance studio website!
You don’t necessarily need to use all of these channels to successfully reach your target audience, but you should try to employ at least two or three of these channels in your marketing strategy. It’s also best to combine channels that might seem like polar opposites, such as social media and flyers. This way, you cast a wider net of people who might see your messaging.
4. Host an open house.
Once you’ve generated some interest in your studio with your marketing materials, it’s time to open up your doors and give prospective students a peek inside. Hosting an open house is a great way for dancers to get a feel for your studio and allow you to show off your eagerness to recruit some new faces.
Here are a few tips for hosting a successful open house:
Require staff to attend: Prospective students will likely want to get to know every teacher they will be working with at your studio. For this reason, make sure your full staff is in attendance so that prospective students can ask questions and get to know their future instructors.
Encourage current students to share their experiences: No one can speak to your studio’s experience better than your current students. Invite some of them to your open house to represent your studio and give them a chance to talk to new students.
Give full tours of your studio: When everyone has arrived, give a full tour of your studio, from the rehearsal rooms to the changing rooms. This way, prospective students and their caregivers can get to know their (hopefully) home away from home.
Students and caregivers who take the time to attend your open house are likely very interested in joining your studio, so do everything you can to dazzle them! A few drinks, snacks, and warm welcomes can go a long way.
5. Offer registration incentives.
Who doesn’t love a good incentive? Creating your own registration incentives might be just what that on-the-fence dancer needs to sign up for your classes. Here are our favorite registration incentives you can offer:
Waive registration fees for a certain period of time.
Give returning students an early bird discount if they register quickly.
Offer free merchandise for first time registrants.
Provide a discount for students who refer others.
Registration incentives are especially valuable if you advertise them along with your typical marketing materials. A dancer might be interested in your classes, but it might take the incentive for them to sign up. Don’t be afraid to try different incentives to see which one or which combination works best for your audience!
Recruiting new students for your dance studio might seem stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. With these best practices, you can effectively reach students who would be a great fit for your studio. Remember to be open about your teaching style and don’t be afraid to brag about what makes your studio special. Happy recruitment!
Olivia Mode-Cater is an industry leader in dance education and dance entrepreneurship, having presented on these topics on a national and international level. Olivia’s work draws on her experiences as a veteran dance educator in all teaching settings: higher education, PK-12 schools, and studios. Olivia proudly joined the DanceStudio-Pro team in 2021 as the Sr. Marketing Manager.