Pitching Your Story
I ran into in my friend Rich last night at a party. He said he has a kid and has been meaning to contact my school for lessons. I’ve had people say this to me before. They usually aren’t that serious. It’s a nice conversation starter. This was a great opportunity to deploy a Donald Miller style one-liner.
A one-liner comes from the movie industry. It’s a simple formula for pitching movies. A one-liner is a simple statement designed to set the moviegoers imagination on fire.
This Tinseltown tactic can easily be applied to your music lesson business. Miller talks about how your one-liner can be used when engaging in any conversation about your business.
Two Sentences That Revolutionized My Studio
I spent weeks working on my one-liner. Just a few words but man was it hard to construct. I was ready to try it out on Rich to see how he would respond. He fell for it big time. Rich was ready to sign up. See our conversation below. My one-liner is in bold.
Rich: So Dave how’s your music school doing? I have been meaning to call you about my seven-year-old. Just been too busy.
Me: He’s a great age to get started in music. Our school is based on this idea that all kids love music but not all kids love lessons. We offer rock band classes that make playing fun and easy for kids which really makes them feel good about their abilities
Close The Deal
This single statement left the Rick wanting more. I hit all of my memorized talking points in a very natural way “The program allows kids to be playing as a rock band in just one rehearsal”. I’ll confess: I was on my second gin and tonic and was ready to talk. I closed it off with my sinkerball “We’ve reversed the educational process by making private lessons a destination” He swung at the pitch. “That is so interesting. Do you have openings on Wednesday?” Pulled out my phone. Closed the deal. Bought the guy a drink. Question: I bought Rich a drink but he just gave me his business. So who really paid for the drink?
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