Tips

The outside air temperature was 3 degrees Fahrenheit and the stadium was in Western Maine. My opponent on the other side of the net was a 74-year old woman from the Netherlands, running me up and down and from left to right! This 74-year old woman was actually my mom, Ineke, and after a close and competitive match, despite her jet lag, she actually beat me!

I have always thought of myself as the tennis expert in the family, but after playing Wii-tennis against all my family members during this past Christmas, I came to realize that my expertise is limited to only a real tennis court.        see the full article at  http://www.tennisweek.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=6629169

Hans Romer      Portland, MA

Retaining Lessons   from the One Good Idea Collection

Offering a variety of new drills as well as changing your lesson format, although sometimes good solutions may not necessarily be the answer in preventing clients from discontinuing regular lessons, or even changing instructors. Private lessons may be rendered inconsequential to the client for a number of reasons, but the reasons most often cited for discontinuing are ‘I need to practice what I’ve learned’ or ‘What you are teaching me is too complicated’. There is some merit in a player wishing to discontinue lessons for these reasons, but looking more deeply into the overall picture, you will find, more often than not, a client with one of these complaints, feels they are not getting the same attention they were used to getting, when they first enrolled in your schedule.

Four practical recommendations: 

1) At a first lesson with a new client, be prepared to discuss all goals they may have and any physical limitations they or you consider relevant, as well as their general stats (age, weight etc.). Always go to the court with a clip board so you can record the items you and your client discuss, and file this information. It will definitely be useful down the road. Bring this information to every lesson so you can note improvements and also remember what you were working in the previous lessons. 

2) When working with regular clients, if you become aware of lessons that seem too routine or ordinary it is a sign that a change may occur. To insure it is not a result of how you are conducting the lessons, always ask your client if they feel they are making progress.  

3) Even if your client is not yet playing tournaments, but especially if they are, offer to watch them play a match, either at a tournament or even a friendly club match for the same price as a lesson. Analyze their effort and spend part of the next lesson going over your advice for improving their match play. Many times this results in better insight for the instructor as to which areas need attention so lessons become more relevant and constructive. 

4) Distribute semi annual or annual evaluation forms to your students. Evaluation forms are also a good indicator of a professional’s effectiveness and client satisfaction. 

These recommendations may not be foolproof, but they are a step in the right direction. At the very least, your clients will feel they are important to you. Your best chance to retain lessons is through showing that you are interested in your clients as players as well as just a source of regular income. 

Dave S. Hyams     North Augusta, SC