Case studies
Worked examples from running a music school
Most of the friction in running a music school isn't teaching — it's the week around the teaching. A family wants a different time, a teacher is booked twice, a public holiday lands in a block someone has already paid for, a student leaves halfway through a term and the invoices keep coming.
Each case study below takes one of those moments, works it through step by step, and shows what Encore does so the studio doesn't have to track it by hand. They are written generically — the studios, teachers and students in them are illustrations, not customers.
Finding a time for a new student without double-booking anyone
A family wants a weekly piano lesson. How do you find a time that suits the student and the teacher — without booking either of them twice?
A public holiday lands inside a block of lessons that's already paid
A family has paid for ten lessons. One of those Mondays is a public holiday and the studio is closed. Do they lose the lesson?
A student leaves partway through — stopping the invoices without losing what's owed
A family tells you their son is stopping lessons. There's an unpaid invoice for his next block, and he still owes for two lessons he's already had. What should happen to each?
A student joins halfway through term — what should their first invoice be?
A new student starts in week six of a ten-week term. Charging the full term fee feels wrong. How do you work out a fair first invoice?