Welcome to the Vocal Advancement Podcast: Season 3!

Tom and Heather delve into a side of being a self-employed voice teacher that we seldom cover — the business side! Because, let’s face it, when you’re running your own business, keeping good records and promoting your services are skills we all need to develop.

Here at the Institute of Vocal Advancement, we’re all about sharing what worked for us when we built our careers. So, join Tom and Heather as they discuss strategies and provide tips for running a successful voice teacher business.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. (5:43 ) How digital tools and spreadsheets help you keep accurate records and complete your taxes.


2. (9:20 ) The importance of understanding your country’s tax laws.


3. (9:40 ) Where to find business advice (for free!) using online and offline resources


4. (11:30 ) Tips for creating a simple recording system


5. (12:33 ) How to reduce your tax liability by learning what you can claim as a business expense.


6. (14:08 ) How grants can help you get your business started.


7. (14:33 ) What type of equipment you need to start your teaching business (and how to keep your startup costs low!)


8. (15:55 ) What type of online presence you need to promote your business — and what important information many voice teachers neglect to include! 


9. (18:09 ) Why continuing to invest in your own education is important (and how this can be a business expense you can write off).


10. (19:19 ) Why you might need to invest in a professional studio space outside your home.


11. (20:11 ) How to determine what to charge for your lessons


12. (22:15 ) When working with other voice teachers in the same studio space makes sense — and the importance of having a waiting area.


13. (25:22 ) How to increase your income by offering complementary services


14. (27:20 ) The true cost of teaching in a commercial building


15. (28:15 ) How to retain and attract more students by offering choirs and workshops


16. (31:07 ) How offering group classes can build student confidence and help establish teacher-student rapport


17. (32:32 ) When to start increasing your teaching rates — and what to do when you start pricing yourself out of certain student budgets.


18. (34:32 ) How to use your growing skillset to justify your higher rates.


19. (36:17 ) How to create a fair teaching rate by studying your local market.


20. (38:04 ) How to adjust your rates for inflation — and how offering advance warning can help you retain students.


21. (39:19 ) When (and how) to offer scholarship opportunities for exceptional students


22. (41:00 ) Why offering lessons at a lower price point can provide you with valuable teaching experience


23. (42:17 ) Where to find offline opportunities to promote your business — and how offering free or discounted lessons can build your client list.


24. (44:06 ) Good online marketing opportunities — from Facebook groups to lead generation companies


25. (48:04 ) How to test marketing strategies and learn which ones work best for you.


26. (51:00 ) Strategies for nurturing cold leads into warm leads

We want to hear from you! What business strategies helped you the most when you were building up your teaching career? What questions do you still have about starting out as a vocal coach? Send us your comments and questions to hello@vocaladvancement.com. 

We’ve got many more guests coming up this season, including experts in social media marketing and more! Make sure you hear from them all by following us on the Vocal Advancement Podcast and subscribing to our YouTube channel! 

About the Institute for Vocal Advancement

The Institute of Vocal Advancement (IVA) was created to provide voice teachers with a support network to provide you with the best teaching tools and strategies to advance your career. Our trainers teach from an empathic mindset, showing you how to improve your own teaching style.

Check out our webinars in our list of upcoming events and learning how our Teacher Training Programs can help advance your career. Use the code “iva20percent” to get 20% off your first year’s course membership fee!