Keeping families through re-enrollment season
Re-enrollment is when a studio finds out which families it kept. By the time the form goes out, most families have already decided. The work that changes the result happens in the six to eight weeks before.
Start before the form goes out
A family that is unhappy in February rarely says so. They wait, and when the re-enrollment form arrives in spring they simply do not fill it out. If the first time you hear about a problem is an empty slot in next season’s roster, there is nothing left to do.
So begin six to eight weeks before re-enrollment opens. That is long enough to have a real conversation, and to fix something small, before anyone has to decide.
Ask every family one question
The quickest way to find the families who are wavering is to ask everyone. One question is enough: “How likely are you to recommend us to another family?” on a scale of 0 to 10, with an optional line for the reason.
Send it from your studio’s own address. Make it answerable in one tap on a phone. Tell families honestly that you will see their name with their answer, because you will need it to call them back.
Call the families who scored 0 to 6 first
Those families are telling you something is wrong while they are still yours. Call them within a week of their answer, before re-enrollment opens. Do not open with re-enrollment. Open with what they wrote: “You mentioned the Tuesday class felt crowded. Tell me more.”
Some problems you can fix: a class level, a schedule clash, an unanswered question about fees. Some you cannot. Either way, a family that feels heard is far more likely to give you another season than one that answered and heard nothing back.
Do not forget the quiet families
Not every family answers. A family that never answers, has a dancer who has missed classes lately, or has an older sibling who already left is worth a personal note too. Silence is not the same as satisfaction.
Make saying yes easy
When re-enrollment opens, remove every reason to put it off:
- Publish next season’s schedule and fees early, so families are not waiting on information to decide.
- One link, one form, that works on a phone.
- A clear deadline, with one reminder before it, not five.
- Tell returning families what is new, especially anything that came from what families told you.
Close the loop
The most persuasive thing you can send in re-enrollment season is evidence that you listened. “Several of you told us pickup on Thursdays was chaotic, so we have staggered the end times” does more than any discount. It tells families that answering was worth it, which is also why they will answer next year.
Where SARA fits
SARA was built for this window: it sends the one question from your own studio’s address, and gives you the short list of families to call, with what each one wrote. It is in development with Synergy Dance Studio in Austin, Texas, and is not yet generally available. See how it works in the owner’s guide.