I literally just saw this on a public martial arts school’s Facebook Fan Page:
Is this how you would handle this?
How would you handle it differently?
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LOL wow. The first word that pops in to my head is “unprofessional”. The second thought is that he’s providing a public service, and his customers dictate their frequency of attendance. If he’s sick of lack of attendance, he should 1) look at why his students aren’t attending regularly (perhaps there is no value provided in return for their time?) and 2) market to get more students. Most importantly, he needs to invest in automatic billing services and require all students to pay by credit, debit, or EFT. We do, and I never have to chase anyone down for their dues. I get paid on time, every month, with very minimal effort. Sounds like this guy is on his way down the drain.
Even with an automatic billing system you have many that don’t pay yet they have the nerve to regularly show up to classes. They always promise to pay but most of the time they don’t.
I feel sorry for the instructor, if he feel he needs to post a comment on facebook for the whole world to see…. imagine how he is during class.
Megan is right about investing in a automatic system. However we don’t have one and I only occasional have to remind a student of their late fees and they pay.
Your Gym, Dojang, Dojo, etc, should be so enjoyable that the students feel it is theirs to keep. Paying fees and attending classes is part of the community spirit. If they are complaining, maybe you should be listening to their complaints.
I would never put another instructor down, each is individual and unique, but this is a great example of biting the hand that feeds you. Time to take a break or stop instructing for a while – at least until the resentment leaves his system.
We don’t have an electronic billing system but when a new student signs up they also sign a policy agreement. It states that tuition is due the 1st class of the month. If the dues are not paid by the 2nd class of the month the student is not allowed to participate. Have had ZERO problems getting paid and have not had to have anyone sit out a class either.
Another thought…
It’s summertime. Vacations, family outings, heat etc. always decrease attendance. Maybe he should offer special summer programs to help offset the poor attendance rates that can happen in the summer.
First of all, it is summer time and no one is paying on time unless they have eft/automated billing. We have just opened our account with members solutions and we are excited. Summer is crazy, but Fall is always our big enrollment. The instructor should not have posted this, it is very unprofessional. I understand his frustations, I hear all the time “we are going on vacation for the first two weeks” I tell them that tuition is due when they come back, it isn’t discounted and they can make up missed classes. I’m sure everyone here has wanted to “say” what this instructor posted, but we haven’t. No one wants to feel like the tuition is all the instructor cares about, we need tuition to pay the bills and ourselves, and I believe that our students forget on occassion. We will no longer allow parents/students to pay us tuition in person after 08/31/2011, it will all be automated/EFT. I learned the hardway, get a billing company to be the “tuition collecter” then they are the bad guys.
I hope this helps,
Heather
for those on automatic billing, how do you pitch that to a prospective student who seems hesitant based on a contract or automatic billing?
We have made it mandatory, but we also offer statement billing for an extra $10.00/student per month. This way if they do not want to have EFT/CC/DC automated payments they will be sent a bill, and have to pay extra for it. Most professionals: doctors, dentists, and optometrists do this. I know my eye doctor charges extra for a mailed statement. I have told prospective students and current students that it is to help with the quality of instruction. I explain that when we have a professional company handle our billing we can put 100% of our focus into our martial arts instruction and students. Right now, no one wants to sign contracts, we have just started implementing them and have given several options:
1. If they are active in the military and are sent on leave we will either freeze their contract or cancel it with no penalty.
2. If they move more that 35 miles away, we will cancel the contract with no penalty.
3. If they have had a serious injury (with a doctor’s note) we will freeze the contract until they can begin training again.
4. We also have if they lose their job (with proof of lay off or loss of employment) that we will freeze their contract and cancel it if needed with no penalty.
A prospective student has to see that when they sign a contract their are certain exceptions. They also have to know that unless one of the above has happened that they will be expected to be committed to the martial arts training.
I hope this helps,
Heather
I tell people I use automatic billing. I say it is a “soft contract”, meaning that the amount they sign off on continues to come out until the date on it, or until they ask me to stop it. I make sure they understand they have an “out”, but they have to call me or come and talk to me to end it, not just stop showing up.
Presenting it this way, I have never had an issue. It is such a common way to pay recurring bills, people are pretty reasonable about it. If they were still unsure, I might even tell them that I use it so I don’t have to be a bill collector, since what I want to spend my time on is teaching them!
I believe you will ALWAYS have stuff falling through the cracks without a good payment system.
i think the “soft contract” sounds reasonable.
is anyone using tiered contracts? i.e. sign up for 1 year, save 50%, sign up for six months save 20%, sign up month to month, save nothing, etc.
i knew the owner of another school here in town who tried that on a “soft contract” system, asking for 30 days notice of cancellation, after which he would collect one more payment as an early termination fee, which i thought was very fair, but the last i knew the school still wasn’t doing very well financially, but most of the big, store front traditional schools here in Phoenix are not doing well.
Here is my take on the situation. The jist of it is to me… is that the Instructor does not have a program that the students value. When the student see’s value and receive benefits and results from the course they will pay and they will show up to train. However, Martial Art training alone will not provide this type of daily enthusiam because, using your fighting skills does not come along everyday of your life.
The course should have extensive personal development training involved for everyday real life both professional and personal. The more value they see and receive the better they pay. I changed my Martial Arts school to a full time personal development institute and very, very, glad I did. My students pay around $250.00-350.00 a month and I have a very low no pay rate.
Appalling, what happened to honor, integrity and respect?
Recently I had a Master Instructor that I have known for years try to blackmail me by telling me that they would not recognize my previous rank unless I helped them get more students in their school, as soon as you lose that little piece of paper even those that know you will deny you and everyone wants to base rank on patterns and one-steps even though they vary from one school to the next while the moves do not. I was trying to get him to speak for my rank so I could join some organizations and that’s what I got instead and this was while he knew my dad was in the hospital, he died the next day. Then to make things even more shocking his older brother removed me from his friends list when I posted something about it, these are 6th and 7th Dan Black Belts in a national organization. So now my dads gone and two people I have know for a long time turned out to be scumbags all in a matter of a few days and I don’t know if I can ever get recognized now for what I had because I lost my next to last and highest ranking certificate in a storm when our roof started leaking after it was damaged.
Is this really what it’s all about now?
Matt;
Most people are not going to ask to see your certificate. What matters is what you know and what you do with it. I realize it is upsetting, but circumstances can change quickly, and what is important today may not be tomorrow. A ranking from the type of people you have described is probably not worth as much as you had hoped. Carry on and be thankful you are not involved with them any longer. I’m no expert when it comes to your life, but I have been teaching karate for over 25 years…
LOL amazing. You might get away with that if you are some world famous trainer. Maybe.