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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
Trainer, Translator,
Proofreader

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

There are a million and one language schools in Poland all offering the same thing:

A communicative approach
An individual approach to clients
Professional trainers
etc etc etc bla bla bla

How do clients differentiate between all these very similar offers?
What's the selling point?
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Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Hey Steve,
Interesting point, thanks for the post.

In my humble opinion our (and others) results are the best benchmark for quality.
So in other words if someone told me: "Man, the X school/company changed the way
I work. I am more effective, speak better language and because of that my business grew
20% last year"
Seeing the ad: "Come to Y School/company/ we have 20years of training experience and make sure you succeed" just won't cut it anymore.

But its only my opinion.

How about the rest of the group?
Would anyone like to comment?Krzysztof Dargiewicz edytował(a) ten post dnia 10.02.11 o godzinie 15:45
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
Trainer, Translator,
Proofreader

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Chris, I'd agree that if you could say "I'm more effective because I learned English and I did 20% more business", then that is a strong argument.

However, the cause and effect is hard to prove. I might have done 20% more business in spite of the English rather than because of it.
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Iga K.

Iga K. HR Business
Partner/Interim HR
Director

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Depends on a client.

One has to take into consideration:

- the aim of the training
- specific language area (Business English/everyday English/medical English etc.)
- whether it's an individual course or a special training for your employees
- location (language school/home/work office)
- cost
- Native teacher vs. Polish teacher

Of course good recommendation from a friend is priceless ;)

Why are u asking? :)
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
Trainer, Translator,
Proofreader

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Why are u asking? :)

Because I've come to the conclusion that pretty much all language schools offer the same things and make the same claims..... and .... I was wondering if anyone out there has any stunning ideas for differentiation.

It's not really enough to say "Hey everyone! We've got the best teachers!" or "we do Business English" or "we focus on speaking the language" or "we've got Native Speakers" Big deal! Woopee! No, not anymore.
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Iga K.

Iga K. HR Business
Partner/Interim HR
Director

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

People differ, so do their expectaions. What one person finds very attractive may be totally unimportant for another. I guess the key to success is not thinking about another breathtaking idea (it's a mental fast track - "let's offer something that other schools don't have")that would attract potential clients, but doing the usual things in unusual way. Good teachers (both Polish and Native), nice location, interesting books and measurable effects - enough to attract new clients.
And how to find a good school? Ask the people who have already chosen one ;)
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Agata P.

Agata P. angielski: lekcje,
szkolenia,
tłumaczenia

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Well, first of all, I don't think someone who has a brilliant idea for promoting their services will share it with the competition:)

Having said that, I think I'm gonna go old school:) Have you noticed that teaching institutions marketing themselves with words such as "fast learning", "state-of-the-art equipment", "free conversation" have very low student retention rates? People sign up for courses, and then quickly see that "fast learning" turns into "repeating the same thing over and over again, because there is not enough practice to really learn it", "state-of-the-art equipment" looks good, but using it is too distracting and time-consuming, and "free conversations" are indeed free, but conversations actually mean lectures, in which native (or not) speakers discuss their personal lives. And people want to see results. They don't want to repeat the same level for three years. They want to be able to say: "you know, I had a meeting with a business partner from UK, and my palms were no longer sweating when I had to welcome him in English!" And they say that to their colleagues, and then the colleagues sign up for your classes:) In a nutshell: be a great and demanding teacher, and your students will bring you more students:)

Truth be told, nothing meaningful has ever been accomplished without hard work. So if you ask me, no gimmicks, just old-fashioned supervision, lots of homework and general "do-it-yourself under my close supervision". That's my selling point:)
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Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Agata,
Thanks for your input, some great comments here.

I agree that gently "pushing" the students to learn, grow and develop is key.
There is no better word-of-mouth than telling your business colleague that this XYZ training company motivated you to work on your weaknessess and develop your strengths (whether it comes to language or business skills).

So who's up for forming a "Different, Better, Language/Business Training Companies Union" ?:P

Krzysztof "Chris" Dargiewicz
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Steve Jones

Steve Jones Business English
Trainer, Translator,
Proofreader

Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Agata P.:
Well, first of all, I don't think someone who has a brilliant idea for promoting their services will share it with the competition:)

Having said that, I think I'm gonna go old school:) Have you noticed that teaching institutions marketing themselves with words such as "fast learning", "state-of-the-art equipment", "free conversation" have very low student retention rates? People sign up for courses, and then quickly see that "fast learning" turns into "repeating the same thing over and over again, because there is not enough practice to really learn it", "state-of-the-art equipment" looks good, but using it is too distracting and time-consuming, and "free conversations" are indeed free, but conversations actually mean lectures, in which native (or not) speakers discuss their personal lives. And people want to see results. They don't want to repeat the same level for three years. They want to be able to say: "you know, I had a meeting with a business partner from UK, and my palms were no longer sweating when I had to welcome him in English!" And they say that to their colleagues, and then the colleagues sign up for your classes:) In a nutshell: be a great and demanding teacher, and your students will bring you more students:)

Truth be told, nothing meaningful has ever been accomplished without hard work. So if you ask me, no gimmicks, just old-fashioned supervision, lots of homework and general "do-it-yourself under my close supervision". That's my selling point:)

There's a lot of good stuff there.

In my experience also, the technology doesn't sell. It's the personality of the trainer and the know-how. Computers assist a good trainer well. However, they do not compensate for incompetence.
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Temat: Differentiation (Language Schools)

Exactly Steve!
Garr Reynolds had a great post about that issue:
http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2011/03...

Great trainer facilitates the learning process and steps back to get students going.
He is a scultpor, source of inspiration and guide in times of despair and ambiguity.

We need more trainers of that sort, especially in Poland, where the education mentality is still many times "sit still, be quiet, listen, don't cheat, get numbers, get out of the system, next!"
Let's hope that our collaborative contribution to the industry shapes it for the better.Krzysztof Dargiewicz edytował(a) ten post dnia 12.03.11 o godzinie 19:56
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