Korean Job Discussion Forums

Sir John Hawkins · Joined: 07 Nov 2008 Location: Ulsan, SK

I am at a hog that needs more students. My boss and I were talking earlier about what are good ways to recruit students and I couldnt think of anything other than what we have already tried (Free ice cream on the street and handing out brochures outside of schools. )What say you?

lifeinkorea · Joined: 24 Jan 2009 Location: somewhere in China

I don't know if you can do this in Korea, but in Japan we would go to train stations and hand out fliers. Maybe you can do this around stores instead of train stations.

i · Joined: 10 Apr 2008 Location: Seoul

I tried to help an owner with that very thing last year. He thought I'd help him save the place just by having a foreign teacher. Told him to put fliers in every mailbox in the apartments around the school and advertise in the nearby subway station. He also asked me to hand out candy and such on the street. After 5 months he had to let me and another teacher go. Couldn't afford us. Tried to run the place with 1 teacher and cram different levels together. Place finally shut down.
I think once parents start pulling kids out, word gets around and it is really hard to turn things around. He had 200 kids, down to 60 when I got there, and people kept quitting. We did get new students at discounted tuition, but the ship was already sinking.
This place was full of problem kids. I think if he'd weeded out the bad seeds earlier, it could have saved the place and been a better place to learn and have fun.

wylies99 · Joined: 13 May 2006 Location: I'm one cool cat!

Some hagwons actually advertise. Others offer parents "price breaks" for bringing in more kids- the norm is bring in 3 more kids who pay full price, and your child gets a free month.

The best hagwons actually offer bribes, I mean "bonuses" to Korean public school teachers that teach part-time in the afternoon or evening, and bring in their public school students. Rolling Eyes

Others recruit kids from their churches.

BTW, some of the hagwons that are associated with churches actually pressure parents into sending their kids to the church hagwons by threatening eternal damnation. Funny, isn't it? Rolling Eyes

BTW, unless you are Korean, you will have no credibility with Korean parents. They read the newspapers and think you are scum. Let the owner and Korean teachers handle this one.

wylies99 · Joined: 13 May 2006 Location: I'm one cool cat!

BTW, the activities mentioned in the above post happen in EVERY hagwon. Wink

Never seen it? DUHHHHH! PAY ATTENTION!

ontheway · Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2009 7:19 am Post subject:

lifeinkorea · Joined: 24 Jan 2009 Location: somewhere in China

ontheway · Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2009 9:22 am Post subject:

lifeinkorea · Joined: 24 Jan 2009 Location: somewhere in China

ontheway · Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2009 10:26 am Post subject:

Juregen · Joined: 30 May 2006

Advertising in the ESL industry is wasted money.

I have tried extensively without result. The only way I get more students walking in is because I am getting results faster then any other school in my neighborhood.

I grow slowly but steadily, every month a little bit. Parents trust me more and more, they even ask me to organize language holiday's etc ...

It takes a long time getting there.

meangradin · Joined: 10 Mar 2006

Jurgen is on the right track.

Advertising is pretty much a waste of time. IMO, it is far more productive to use the time spent handing out flyers, ice-cream, or whatever, and apply it to developing a cirriculum. This is (or should be) a results orientated business. If your school can produce distinct results, then it is just a matter of time until the students come. We started a few months ago with a few students, and have grown so fast that I now have to decide if I need to hire another FT and expand, or just keep it a small operation. But without a doubt, the key has been the program we run, and the word of mouth buzz generated as a result of the program.

The problem for the OP may be that his owner has shelled out a lot of money for his foreign teacher and expects the results now, without putting the due care and thought in to what he is teaching.