How to Establish a Loyalty Mindset Beyond Customer and Dance Studio?

Customer retention is one of the top concerns of any business. For a dance studio, this is a challenging project as it involves combining tangible information such as class availability, schedules/rates and dance apparel requirements with more sensitive issues such as different skill perceptions in dance, temperaments and a large number of arbitrary expectations. To overcome these often conflicting issues, loyalty program helps to establish a mindset that goes beyond customer and embraces the concept of generating and rewarding loyalty instead!

Loyalty starts with the studio infrastructure. Since the dance coaches are the "face" of the studio representing the owner to those who walk through the door, how you interact with them is critical. It is essential for your team to win the heart of the leader. World Dance Apparel points out some ideas that can create the loyalty and important feeling of friendship.

Some Ideas to Create Loyalty

Monthly Meetings

Monthly meetings are ideal for discussing issues such as:

• pending promotions
• procedures
• staffing needs and roster changes
• status of subscriptions and offers, etc.

Include a short presentation on how the service interacts and /or the studio can improve. This will help keep everyone united in meeting customer needs and answering questions. It's also a great way to encourage "I got your back!" The mentality of colleagues when there is uncertainty or disagreement.

Yearly Gatherings

Early, mid-season and/or end-of-year gatherings can also bring a lot. Use these times to discuss renewal of annual contract agreements, explain changes in tuition and/or studio procedures, discuss season plans for shows, etc., and most importantly, develop employee relationships.

Extra-Curricular Activities

Play games, win prizes and create a safe atmosphere for an appropriate level of transparency by having each person reveal one or two personal details (e.g. favorite color, dream vacation, etc.) and it creates a plus great family spirit. Other ideas include setting individual and studio goals; Share at least one area where the studio has done a great job and where improvements are needed. Playing "employee/customer scenarios" by showing you the right and wrong ways to handle certain situations can be very helpful! Follow every meeting with a meal - brought to a local sandwich shop or a full lunch or dinner at a fine restaurant! Often “breaking the bread together” brings people together.

How to Create Relationship Between Students and Studios?

Keep employees engaged all year round with a system that allows each employee to leave encouragements and/or goodies for colleagues. It can be signed or with the "Secret Buddy" plan!

Distribute Prizes in Best Dancers

At a mid-year staff meeting, take a carpool or limousine to a handful of dancers who have been rated excellent in many areas by the staff and bring them a certificate, balloons and/or a gift! This emphasizes connecting and blessing the dancers!

Incentive/Reward Program 

Reward students who arrive in class on time with appropriate clothing and haircuts with a card. Do they put their names on the cards and put them in a bucket? Draw a drawing at the end of a certain period (monthly & yearly). Give the winner(s) an age-appropriate gift. Thematic gifts such as "movie night", "beach fun", etc. make gifts even more fun! Another fun idea is to have a studio mascot that can be sent home with the winner.

Personal development

Personal development is just as important as improving skills. Show a banner or tag with a slogan such as Friendship, Patience or Loyalty! Ask the teachers to read a short paragraph explaining this value, then hand out the corresponding worksheets. Rewards for viewing completed worksheets can include an additional raffle ticket or silicone wristbands with the word engraved (add studio name for publicity benefits).

Student Appreciation

Schedule an early registration process for the next dance season. Invite your families to a satisfying event with free food and drinks, and activities like face painting, bouncy castles, and more. And while you're at it, give them a chance to sign up with incentives like free or discounted signup and/or payment discounts. Full tuition. Advertise any summer programs such as dance camp. A fee will be deducted from everyone who registers that day. Resources to give can include things like:

1. a free show uniform
2. free participation in a summer program, and
3. the consideration of free tuition for an entire family for the next season!

Loyalty Community

If you find it necessary to increase tuition rates, create a Loyalty Community. Give all families who have been enrolled with the studio for a set amount of time benefits such as continuing to pay the original rates as long as they registered on VIP Day or special rates for Summer Programs, Showcase tickets, uniforms, etc.

If you find it necessary to raise tuition fees, set up a loyalty Community. Give all studio registered families’ benefits for a period of time, such as continuing to pay the original rates as long as they register for the VIP day or special rates for summer programs, tickets to shows, uniforms, etc.

Invite Your Loved Once for Dance Practice

Give current dancers a week or two to invite family, friends and neighbors to class. Give everyone who invites someone and their guest the symbolic gift of a wallet with erasers, pencils, inflatables, stickers, etc. Draw a chart for everyone who signs up this week and gift the new partner and their friend who invited them!

Spirit Week

During certain months, hold a "Spirit Week" that focuses on things like sports, the Hawaiian beach, and/or Crazy Hair Week. As with BAFW, give all attendees a symbolic gift that is thematically related to the theme of the week and have your photo taken. You can also ticket them to withdraw rewards.

Wall of Appreciation

This is a great place to post photos of the winners of

• Incentive/Award drawings
• Early Bird Day winners
• BAFW winners, and
• Spirit Week participants.

You can also put up posters of dancers who have participated in competitions and of dancers who participate in local community activities such as plays and school events.

Conclusion

Once your families have participated in one or more of these incentives, they will bond that will create a sense of loyalty to your employees and the dance studio. This will make them more than just clients - they will begin to see themselves as part of your studio family. Since the family tends to stick together, you'll be in a better position to keep a core of dancers coming back year after year!