Music teacher website: trial lessons and term fees

Two kinds of student, two kinds of question

Parents booking for a child ask about patience, safeguarding, exam routes and whether lessons fit after school. Adult learners ask whether it's too late to start, whether they can learn the music they actually like, and whether lessons can be online around work. Address both directly, perhaps with a short section for each, instead of a single block of copy that tries to speak to everyone.

Instruments, levels and styles

Instruments: Each instrument you teach, with the ages you take for each (some start very young, others suit older children).
Levels: Complete beginners, returning players, grade or exam students, advanced players. Say honestly where your teaching stops.
Styles: Classical, jazz, pop, rock, folk, worship music, songwriting, music theory. Adult learners search by style.
Where: Your studio, the student's home, schools, or online. For online lessons, say which video tool you use and what equipment helps.

The trial lesson

A trial lesson lowers the risk of committing to a term. Explain what happens in it: a chat about goals, a look at current level, a little playing, and a plan. Say whether it's free, discounted or full price, and what a parent should do during it. Anticode's booking calendar suits trial bookings: it offers six fixed times a day over the coming days (Mondays skipped), accepts one booking per slot and refuses dates in the past or more than 120 days ahead. You confirm each trial yourself. The booking form asks for a name, phone number and email with the day and time; ask about the student's age and experience when you confirm.

After a successful trial, the regular weekly slot is usually agreed directly. The calendar books individual slots rather than a recurring weekly time, so it's better used for trials and one-off lessons than for running your whole timetable.

Fees and terms

Many teachers charge by the term or half-term rather than per lesson. State the lesson lengths you offer, the fee per term or block, when fees are due, and your policy on missed lessons, holidays and notice to stop. Fee options can carry a buy button pointing at your payment link from Stripe, PayPal or another provider. There's one payment link per account, so every button opens the same checkout; for several term options, point it at a product list at your provider. A recurring payment link suits monthly billing if that's all you sell. Anticode doesn't track which families have paid, so check your provider's dashboard.

Exam preparation

If you prepare students for graded exams, name the exam boards you teach for, the grades, and how you prepare: scales and aural practice, mock exams, help with entry and accompaniment. Note that exam entry fees are paid separately to the board. Parents choosing a teacher for an exam-focused child look for this page specifically.

Recitals, news and student achievements

Student concerts, exam results (with permission), new pieces learned and term dates give families a reason to return to the site. Keep these in an Anticode CMS collection with fields for title, date and text, edited from the dashboard. CMS collections hold posts but aren't a full blog: there are no comments, RSS or scheduled posts.

Safeguarding and trust

Background checks for working with children where your country has them, and that you'll show evidence.
Your own training and performing experience, briefly.
Membership of a professional association for music teachers, if you belong to one.
Your policy on parents staying for lessons and on online lessons with under-18s.
Never publish photos of child students without written permission from a parent.

Mistakes to avoid

Leading with a long performer biography before saying what you teach.
Not saying whether lessons are online, at home or in a studio.
Prices missing, or given only per hour when you sell terms.
A gallery of stock instruments instead of your teaching room.

Building it with Anticode

Describe your teaching in a sentence: "a piano and theory teacher in York teaching children and adults, in person and online, with trial lessons and termly fees". The Architect asks up to three questions and plans the site, for example Services, Pricing, Book and Contact pages. Editorial (Geist) suits a classical teacher, Playful (Fredoka) one who teaches young children, and Organic (Figtree) a relaxed adult-focused studio. See also tutors and dance studios.

Limits

No recurring lesson bookings and no timetable management.
No student or parent accounts, practice logs or lesson notes on published sites.
No payment tracking; payments live with your provider.
No video lessons. Use your own video-call tool.

Questions people ask

Can students book a trial music lesson online?

Yes. The booking calendar takes trial bookings, one per slot. Regular weekly lessons are then arranged directly.

Can parents pay term fees on the site?

Yes, through your payment link from your own provider, pointed at a product list if you offer several fee options. Anticode doesn't record who has paid.

Should a music teacher put prices online?

Yes. Give lesson lengths and fees per term or block, plus your missed-lesson and notice policy.