A good trial, then silence
An eight-year-old has a trial guitar lesson on Saturday. It goes well: she can already strum two chords by the end, and her mum is smiling. At the door, the teacher says 'let the office know if you want to carry on'. The mum says she will.
On Monday, the office has no idea how the trial went. The teacher is teaching elsewhere. The mum is busy. By Thursday, nobody has contacted anybody, and by the following week the family has booked the free trial at the other music school in town, which rang them on Sunday afternoon.
The handover after the trial is missing
Trial lessons are booked with care: the enquiry, the time, the teacher, the reminder. After the lesson, the process stops. The teacher knows how it went but has no easy way to tell the office. The office has slots but does not know which one the family could take. The family is waiting to be asked.
- The teacher's view of the trial is never recorded.
- No specific slot is offered, just an open invitation.
- Follow-up depends on the office remembering to call.
- Families who say 'we will think about it' are never contacted again.
Where this is costing you pupils
Trials cost you teacher time and a room, and often they are free. Each one that does not convert is that cost with nothing to show for it. Worse, the family who liked the lesson but was not asked may never come back. Word of mouth works both ways: a parent who had a good trial and then heard nothing tells friends that the school seemed disorganised.
The trial follow-up we build
- Trials are booked online with the child's age, instrument, experience and the days the family could do.
- After the trial, the teacher answers three quick questions on their phone: how it went, suggested lesson length, and any slot they could offer.
- The same day, the family receives a thank-you with a specific offer: a named slot with that teacher, the term price, and a link to accept.
- If they accept, the pupil is added to the timetable and the first invoice is drafted.
- If they do not reply, reminders go out on a schedule you choose, and the office gets a call list.
- If they decline, the reason is recorded, which over time tells you whether price, times or something else is losing families.
| After the trial | What happens automatically | Office action |
|---|---|---|
| Teacher gives feedback | Offer sent with a real slot | None |
| Family accepts | Pupil added, invoice drafted | Quick review |
| No reply after a few days | Friendly reminder | Call if still no reply |
| Family declines | Reason recorded | None |
| Teacher unsure about fit | Office notified before any offer | Suggest another teacher |
Trials that lead somewhere
Families hear from you while the lesson is still fresh, with a specific time rather than a vague invitation. Teachers spend one minute after a trial instead of hoping someone follows up. The office works a short call list instead of trying to remember who had a trial last week. And you get a record of why families say no, which is worth having before you change prices or add evenings.
Picture the Saturday guitar trial again. By Saturday evening the mum has an email thanking her daughter by name, offering Tuesday at 4.30 with the same teacher and a link to accept. She accepts on Sunday morning, and on Monday the office sees a new pupil on the timetable rather than an unanswered question.
Are trials slipping through?
- Families who enjoyed a trial do not sign up.
- Nobody knows who is meant to follow up after a trial.
- Offers are vague rather than a specific slot.
- You have no record of why families decline.
- Families end up at another school after a trial with you.