extra, and charge a little more, or will you lower your price below your competition and bring students with a value-for-money , ‘sound but basic study’ approach. 2.4. Promotion
Decide how much you are going to spend and select carefully where and how to promote.
Make sure you stick to your budget
. Promotion is your third big cost and the one most likely to be poorly directed. Be sure you have feedback arrangements in place so that you can see the results of each promotion that you pay for.
3. Premises
From your financial projections (below) you will know what budget you have set yourself. You will need two figures: a. Capital Outlay; Are you purchasing the premises? Also, purchase or not, what expense will you incur converting them to the school you want. b. Ongoing expense
–
rent/mortgage repayment. Consider the following issues:
-

Costs. Apart from wages this is likely to be your biggest cost.
-

Access for students (public transport availability, parking, etc)
-

Other tenants in the building. Will your sudden surges of students arriving and leaving create problems for you?
-

Natural light for your classrooms.
-

Legal requirements; health & safety, fire, emergency exits and so forth. Discover what insurance will cost, particularly public liability insurance.
-

Potential income. How many classrooms can you operate, and how many classes will go through each classroom in a day? At what point will your premises limit your potential growth?
-

What level of outfit are you going to apply to your premises, given that you want to impress your students with a professional set up on the one hand, but not blow your limited budget on the other.
4. People
Identify who you are going to employ and at what point? Will you do all the work at

the beginning? If so how many students will it take before there is too much for you to do yourself and you need to take on teachers or administrative staff. Will these begin as part-timers?
Your wage bill will be your biggest cost, and it is vital that you keep it under control at all times
. It can be tricky to find the balance where you are employing enough people to do the job, and deliver the service well, but not so many that you lose your profit. Also consider your employment procedures; How are you going to find the right people for your school? Precisely when you employ people, and how much you will pay them, should be reflected in your financial planning figures.
5. Physical Evidence
Unlike a product, such as a shirt, a hamburger or a car, which you can inspect at your leisure, a service is harder to make tangible. Most teachers are familiar with disillusioned students, frustrated because they can’t see the progr ess they are making. Physical Evidence is about two things: a. Helping students to see their progress. Examples include tests, external exams, course books, identifying the aims of each class, moving to the next level. b. Giving students confidence in you, so they believe your school is the one to help them achieve their goals. For example show any accreditations and memberships on walls, and do the same with teachers’ diplomas. Maintain high levels of fit out and technology and make sure your teachers present themselves well. Ensure your website and all other technology works well.
6. Process
Consider
a potential student’s every encounter with your organization, from making the first contact to the moment they sit in a classroom and begin learning with you. Make sure each step is conducive to moving the client to the next step. Consider information and levels of interest. In the former what is necessary? With the latter how do you heighten it? At each stage new information should be available, and the interest level should increase.
For Example:
•

1 st contact – newspaper ad’ o Website address o ‘promotion’ (an offer, for example).

 2 nd Contact – Website o Greater information about courses. o Explaining that the offer can be accessed at the school premises. o Address and phone number.
•

3 rd contact – First face-to-face meeting. Reception? o Opportunity to see the school. o Opportunity to register for more information (technology?) o Opportunity to do a free level test (technology). o A clearly defined next step for client to take if she/he wishes.
•

4 th Contact. DOS o Testing procedure – professionalism. o Clear result. o Clear opportunity for next step.
7. Financials
You need to prepare - a profit and loss plan - a cash flow forecast. - Also identify your anticipated sources of finance.
8. Work Emerging from this plan
Identify your key tasks in order of priority.