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Starting a music studio in your home environment means that you can reach out to people you already know in the music community and rest on your reputation and network to bring you clientele. But when you move somewhere new, it can be very, very difficult to get started. After having grown up in Bangladesh and completed my higher education in London, I got married and moved to India in October 2011. I knew very few people and had to start from scratch, but I managed to build a modest studio for myself, so I wanted to share my tips on how to start a studio in a new place – what has worked for me, what hasn’t, etc.

When it comes to setting up a studio, all you need is a quiet and tranquil space, a piano (if you teach piano, voice, or any instrument that requires accompaniment), and a bookshelf. I taught out of my living room for several months while my studio room was being set up (see before and after pics here). However, if you live in an apartment, small space, are unable to purchase an instrument, or for some reason can’t teach out of your home or a rented studio space, consider joining a school. I worked at a music school when I first moved to Delhi because I was having difficulty finding private students, and it vastly increased my network of contacts in the music field and helped me jump-start my private studio, which I officially started in October 2012. (Yes, it took me a whole year because I made lots of mistakes along the way! Hopefully this post will help you avoid the mistakes and quicken the process.)

When it comes to advertising:

Don’t

… bother with flyers, newspaper ads, or any other “mass marketing” tools. They reach too many uninterested people and are a waste of time and money.

… rely on word-of-mouth right at the very beginning. It takes time to build your reputation, so focus on targeted advertising!

… stress out when you have just a few students. Fill the empty time by reading teaching books, gathering tools needed for lessons, playing your instrument, exploring your new town… you probably won’t have much time for all that when you’re a busy teacher!

Do

… advertise online. When I had only a handful of students, I spent an entire day finding all the free online classifieds websites for my city, and posted my ad on almost all of them. Look for websites that cater to parents with children; music websites; websites that are focused on skills-training or tutoring, etc. Most of my students have come from online advertising – I went from 3 to 15 students in just two months!

… create a website. Once potential students view your ad, they probably want to know more about you. Create a professional website listing all the necessary information about yourself and your studio. My brother’s media company designed my website (see it here), and I can’t tell you how many people have told me that they chose to call me simply because my website looked more professional than the rest!

… remember that referrals make a big difference. People are more likely to sign up for classes with you if they’ve been referred by a friend or family member. Consider offering a referral discount to build up your studio numbers. I offer 500 rs (the cost of one voice lesson, equivalent to about $10, for every referee that signs up for lessons). If you teach multiple instruments and the balance is skewed in favor of one, offer referrals for the other instrument to help stabilize your numbers.

… find a way to meet musical people in your new city. Join a choir or orchestra, get in touch with schools, attend workshops, make musical friends.

… visit local music shops. Ask them if they have a referral program, give them your business card, and request that they send you interested students. That reminds me –

… update your business cards with your new number and contact information. Always have them on hand – you never know when you’ll meet an interested student! I keep a few in my wallet (and some in my husband’s!) so I never leave the house without them.

… meet other teachers. They may refer students to you if their studios are full, and you can always repay the favor by collaborating with them, sending them students that are better-suited to their studios, etc. Never bad-mouth another teacher or criticise their methods! This reflects badly on you as a professional.

… be flexible, especially while you can!

… but don’t be a pushover. Write up your studio policies before you begin teaching and stick to them. I was too flexible at first and definitely paid the price, which led to a lot of late payments, constant phonecalls requiring rescheduling of lessons, etc. You need to be clear about your expectations and realise that every country runs things a little differently. Find out what other teachers do and how much they charge, and consider following their example, at least in the beginning.

… be patient. It can take a long time to build up your reputation and fill your studio with bright, excited music students! As I mentioned above, I tripled my students in two months by using the above tactics, and I hope they work for you, too.

While it can be challenging to start a studio with absolutely no contacts in the music industry, it certainly is possible! Advertise smartly, make friends in the music community, and above all, be a great teacher. If your lessons are interesting, challenging, unique, and rewarding, your work will speak for itself, and soon you’ll have a studio full of students!