Published on 1 January 2025
As owners of small(ish!) businesses, rehearsal studio managers often have to play every part: HR manager, admin assistant, cleaner, accountant, marketing executive, … And even though you know how important it is to sell your space at every opportunity, the day-to-day running of your studio can take up all your time and energy, right? That’s why we at Jammed want to share with you 4 easy but effective tips to boost your bookings.
1. Let your online presence work harder, so you don’t have to
So you’ve got a website, but is it doing its job? Are you easy to search for? Is it easy to book your studio online? Are your services clearly set out? Are there plenty of images of your rehearsal spaces to instantly show off your offering?
For smaller studios, you might want to give your website a once-over to make sure it’s ticking all the boxes and working as hard as it can for you. It’s a lot of customers’ first port of call and needs to sing to them. If you run a larger studio, you might want to consider employing a professional web designer to create a stand-out website to beat off the competition and hook new customers, like All Nighter Studios did.
The Jammed booking widget allows you to add a booking page to your website, making booking fast and simple with instant payment and no fuss. Eiger Studios have been reaping the benefits of their Jammed booking page, which their customers can use anytime, anywhere.
With 40% of appointment bookings being taken after business hours and online bookings boosting income by an average 27%, it’s more essential than ever that your studio has a strong online presence and user-friendly online booking service.
And what about social media? Never underestimate free advertising! A quick Instagram reel about tuning a drum kit or giving a tour of your rooms will show potential customers what they’re missing. And quick but regular updates on other platforms, like Facebook and Twitter, will keep your studio in mind. Try sharing your offering on local group pages. Tag local bands and venues to generate interest and traffic to your website.
Then there’s Google. Make sure your studio has a Google business profile to pin it on the local map and get it popping up in searches. Why not ask customers to leave you a review to show new clients how great your service and space are, while also directing traffic to your website?
2. Set up smart pricing strategies that offer something for everyone
To fill up your bookings, you need to suit a range of budgets and availability. And you can do this with some clever pricing strategies that won’t sell you short.
- Appeal to professional musicians and music teachers by taking daytime bookings by the hour.
- Offer special rates for single occupancy to attract solo drummers and music tutors etc.
- Try bulk discounts for regular customers booking months in advance, giving bands more reason to come back.
- Fill less popular times of day and night with block booking tiered pricing or happy hours.
- Offer 3-hour block discounts for weekends.
- Host events in larger rooms on Friday and Saturday nights to ramp up interest and show off your space.
3. Build relationships with your customers and local bands
For small businesses, you are the business! Your presence and personality are often what people are drawn to and buy into when they rent your space. And you might be the reason people keep coming back! But even the shy and retiring studio owners can use a personal touch to boost bookings without going too far out of their comfort zone.
Next time one of your regulars is finishing their session, why not check in with them and see if they’ve booked their next rehearsal? It’s great customer service and a great opportunity for a soft sell.
You could even offer your most loyal customers mates’ rates to keep them sweet and coming back for more.
Have you thought of sponsoring a local music venue or advertising in your local record/music shop? These are places your key demographic hang out. Get your studio name out there.
And what about some friendly targeted social media campaigns inviting local bands and artists to practise in your space? It’d only take a minute and is absolutely free. What’s not to like?
4. Open your doors and be seen!
Don’t wait for customers to find you. Go get’em!
Approach local schools to offer your space up to kids’ group sessions like choir and band rehearsals. Offer work experience in music production and recording engineering at the nearby college.
If you’re lucky enough to have seen a few local famous artists through your doors, consider offering heritage tours to show fans where their favourite band rehearsed. Bet you’ll have some great stories to share too!
And why not let the clothes people wear and the accessories they use do the advertising for you? Pop your logo on some hoodies, tshirts, guitar picks, drumsticks and let the merch do the talking!
For more details on the Jammed booking app, pricing strategies and more, visit jammed.app.