CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 14 Issue 4 - 13

The learn-to-fly community needs word-ofmouth
advertising from customers who are
having, or have had, a satisfactory and pleasant
flight training experience. Treat people well and
they are likely to come back after shopping for
other flight schools. Some are seriously interested
but can't afford it at the moment, and it is not
polite to dig for that answer-if they want to
tell you they will. I remember one young man
asking, " Remember me? I stopped by two years
ago but did not have the money to start flying. You
treated me better than all the other flight schools
I visited. Now, I have saved enough money to
start flight lessons. " Your personal and company
reputation always pays off in the long run.
THE LEARN-TO-FLY COMMUNITY NEEDS
WORD-OF-MOUTH ADVERTISING FROM
CUSTOMERS WHO ARE HAVING, OR HAVE
HAD, A SATISFACTORY AND PLEASANT FLIGHT
TRAINING EXPERIENCE. TREAT PEOPLE WELL
AND THEY ARE LIKELY TO COME BACK AFTER
SHOPPING FOR OTHER FLIGHT SCHOOLS.
On a final note, keep track of the introduction
flights that turn into enrolled students, and of
course the percentage of introduction flights
that turn into an FAA certificate or rating.
These, as well as a discussion of intro-flight
issues, are great for CFI staff discussions and
continued, never-ending staff development.
The improvement we are talking about drives
individual performance, CFI teamwork, and
company effectiveness. Everyone's credentials
are at stake when it comes to serving
our customers.
Considerations
Hopefully, this article will stimulate interest
in the importance of sales training for flight
instructors. Local resources available to you are
regional truck and automobile dealerships and
real estate agencies. Both professions succeed or
fail because of sales skills. They are constantly
training to meet staff goals. Once, I even traded
a real estate executive's flight lessons for basic
sales training.
We have a product to sell, and the reality is that
we are probably missing a lot of opportunities to
enroll potential future pilots. Often, we do not
even keep statistics that measure our success and
drive never-ending improvement and quality. Our
university and college aviation programs should
be the first to offer sales training for student flight
instructors. Similarly, if a small mom and pop
flight school includes sales training in their CFI
course it would certainly be an added reason to
enroll in their program.
Flight school owners and managers should
specifically look to hire CFIs who recognize
the added value of an individual with an
enthusiastic sales personality-why our hiring
advertising needs to specify an interest in
salesmanship skills.
Lastly, flight schools should display a list
of individuals who have received FAA pilot
certificates and ratings. Such a list gives bragging
rights to the school and it should be visible to all
who visit the school.
Ed Helmick has been a flight instructor since 1988.
He formerly managed a flight school in Spanish
Fork, Utah, as well as schools in Scottsdale, Arizona;
and Honolulu, Hawaii.
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 14 Issue 4

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