Controlling Your Martial Arts Studio Membership Cost

Controlling Membership Costs in Your Martial Arts Studio

The need to keep up with the amount of attendance is necessary in any educational system.  Attendance can alter a marginal decision on a testing grade or alert the instructor that further communication may be necessary if a student apparently becomes inactive.  There are several methods of recording a student’s attendance that will satisfy this need.

* Sign – In Charts – This is a very common method of having students sign in with every class they participate.  The problem with most sign-in methods is that it doesn’t alter the instructor to absent students, especially if they are new or unfamiliar to the instructor.  This method is adequate for smaller programs where the instructor is familiar with occasional students.

* Wall Chart Methods – This method can offer an immediate report to the instructor if someone has been absent for an extended period of time.  By checking each name in the appropriate date block a reasonably accurate system can be achieved with one or two week absent students being called from a student roster.  This method may however require valuable additional time to check each students name with the appropriate credit.  Perhaps a senior student or assistant instructor could solve this problem for the class.  The names and credits are done with grease pencil on a plastic overlay.  The days and blacks can be permanent.

* Card Charts – This method is very similar to the sign-in method except the student would go to his/her appropriate rank or alphabetized file for each rank to credit their attendance.  By checking each rank file an instructor can determine if a student should be contacted after one or two weeks of absence.

* Computer – Ideally the school of the future will have a computer with a special program that would, upon request, give the instructor all students not attending class over the past one or two weeks complete with addresses and current phone numbers.  The  method however, would require a small amount of time with each student when they enroll to instruct them on how to insert their personal attendance credit code.

 

Student Instructor Relationship

Your students must respect and trust you.  They must enjoy coming to class.  They look to you for guidance.  You spend long hours developing this atmosphere.  In most schools it is a family relationship.

When you must become a bill collector, you have taken yourself out of the role of instructor and placed yourself in the role of bill collector.  This will lead to a breakdown of your position as their leader.

When you have to ask for money and they don’t have it on hand, they will quit coming to class to avoid being asked again.  This compounds the problem, when they don’t attend, they don’t feel they owe.  With a billing company you aren’t forced into the role of a bill collector.  All your contact with your student is positive.  They always see you in a positive light.

 

Associated Costs for Running Your Studio

Paper – Invoices or coupon booklets, EFT forms & envelopes

Printing – Invoices or coupon booklets & receipts.

Postage – $0.32 cents per student, per month or bulk rate permit fee plus $0.21 cents per student, per month.

Telephone – Two lines will be necessary to keep collection calls from interfering with inquiry and reactivation calls.

Time – Fill out, fold, stamp, and address invoices, – call past due accounts, keep track of payment histories and aged club reports, – issue receipts, reconcile and recollect returned checks.

 

Accounting Techniques for Martial Arts Schools and Studios

Running a martial arts school entails a certain amount of bookkeeping, as does any business.  A billing company will significantly reduce your bookkeeping load.

Accounting is more than just keeping figures.  The figures have to mean something; have to give you direction.  They should give you a picture of your financial position past, present, and future.  The reports that billing companies give you will do just that.

They include:

1. Aged club reports — this report gives you a detailed standing on the status of your accounts plus the total dollar value of your receivables.

2. Contracts received listing – gives you a record of accounts held by the billing company.

3. Payment received – is designated to let you see who made payment and the amount and balance of each.

4. Paid in full listing – lists all students paid in full.  Also serves as a reminder to renew their contracts.

5. Cancel listing – provides precise reports on each membership cancellation.

 

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