Job Discussion Forums

ScottishMike · Joined: 21 Sep 2003 Posts: 45

Since there are so many poor quality schools and eikaiwa in Japan, many of which SEEM to be financially successful (correct me if I`m wrong) Confused

Do you think that students are willing to pay more if they believe the lessons are better?

Do you think that teachers work harder if the conditions are better?

I`ve heard over and over that students want to pay the lowest possible for lessons, is this a matter of consumer education Question

If they were informed that, when it comes to schools, you often get what you pay for, would they splash the extra cash????

avahanian · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 123

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Avahanian,
How can you give this guy an answer about Japanese people when you don't live or work in Japan? Your advice stems from one job in Spain.

ScottishMike,
The simple answer to your questions is, it will be case by case.

Sherri · Posted: Mon Feb 09, 2004 12:27 am Post subject:

I used to work at one of the better private language schools and we did a lot of market research into this kind of topic.

Q1 Do you think that students are willing to pay more if they believe the lessons are better?

Depends on the students. If the students are learning English for a specific goal, such as for a job promotion, then the answer is usually yes. If the students just want to study English as a hobby or for travel, probably no.

The single most important consideration of potential English student is not the quality of the lesson, the professional teachers, it is location. Students care most about where the school is and if it is easy to get to from their home or workplace.

Q2 Do you think that teachers work harder if the conditions are better?

If you start out and hire teachers with a professional outlook then I believe that the teachers will be more motivated if they work for a school which offers above average conditions. Also if you want better teachers you are competing with colleges and universities, so you have to be prepared to offer longer holidays and a higher base salary to attract them and keep them.

Q3 I`ve heard over and over that students want to pay the lowest possible for lessons, is this a matter of consumer education

This is not necessarily true. Some students are looking for cheap classes, but as said before serious students will pay what they believe is necessary--but they will complain heartily if they don't get good quality lessons and services from the school.

Q4 If they were informed that, when it comes to schools, you often get what you pay for, would they splash the extra cash????

There is a market for these kinds of students but it is much smaller than the Nova market.

Got to dash
Sherri

ScottishMike · Joined: 21 Sep 2003 Posts: 45