Octopusprime
Contributor
Rich, totally agree with your typical instructor. Many use it as an excuse to spend money and dive more. I would like to disagree that you can not be a full time dive pro and make good money. I have met a few. And I mean a few like 2. With any profession there are those that sell on price and those that sell on value. The is an Independant instructor in FL he charges over $1000 for an OW student but when the rest of the market was saying prices are going down I need to do the minimum amount of work to compete on price he said he would teach 1 or 2 divers on their schedule when ever they want and sold on value and service. However, because most dive pros do not make the leap and go full time or own a dive shop and have to keep the doors open so they can only teach on the weekends are not able to provide the service.
Many of the same shop owners will complain about online sales are killing business but they have not been able to adapt. Shop owners need to realize that people can not get certified online (yet) they need to stop giving certifications away for free and yes anything under $500 is giving it away.
As as for online competition shops need to understand human shopping behavior on BIG purchase people will shop and look for a deal. If you walk into Home Depot and buy a drill for $99 they may make $5 on the drill and that is if 2 did not get stolen. But on the $20 drill bit set they made $15. So LDS need to think like a big box. Be competitive on big items and make money on the little things. How many shops have you been to that sell the camera accessories but no clips or lanyards to secure them. They could make $40 on selling a camera housing they have had in stock for a year or sell a 40 lanyard and make $30. Hummm $40 investment to make 30, or $600 investment to make 40 after a year.
Shops need to know what their value is and make it known. It is connivance and service. Most shops if you buy a reg set from them will assemble it for free but if they buy online they will charge for it right... So why not have signs everywhere saying free assembly with purchase $60 value. The other value is conveyance you can have it today. This is big for save a dive items, broken mask order online have it in 5 days buy in a shop get it today... This is the same for fit. If you have someone in the store trying on a wet suit and they want to leave and "think about it" or "ask my wife" that is code for look online. Tell them you will give them $20 off and leave with it today or if you find it online we will beet the price and there is no shipping.
Wow wow sorry that is my rant. I'm in sales and marketing and this just drives me nuts when people have excuses it is a knowing how to sell problem not a demand problem.
Many of the same shop owners will complain about online sales are killing business but they have not been able to adapt. Shop owners need to realize that people can not get certified online (yet) they need to stop giving certifications away for free and yes anything under $500 is giving it away.
As as for online competition shops need to understand human shopping behavior on BIG purchase people will shop and look for a deal. If you walk into Home Depot and buy a drill for $99 they may make $5 on the drill and that is if 2 did not get stolen. But on the $20 drill bit set they made $15. So LDS need to think like a big box. Be competitive on big items and make money on the little things. How many shops have you been to that sell the camera accessories but no clips or lanyards to secure them. They could make $40 on selling a camera housing they have had in stock for a year or sell a 40 lanyard and make $30. Hummm $40 investment to make 30, or $600 investment to make 40 after a year.
Shops need to know what their value is and make it known. It is connivance and service. Most shops if you buy a reg set from them will assemble it for free but if they buy online they will charge for it right... So why not have signs everywhere saying free assembly with purchase $60 value. The other value is conveyance you can have it today. This is big for save a dive items, broken mask order online have it in 5 days buy in a shop get it today... This is the same for fit. If you have someone in the store trying on a wet suit and they want to leave and "think about it" or "ask my wife" that is code for look online. Tell them you will give them $20 off and leave with it today or if you find it online we will beet the price and there is no shipping.
Wow wow sorry that is my rant. I'm in sales and marketing and this just drives me nuts when people have excuses it is a knowing how to sell problem not a demand problem.
HHHhhahahahhaarrr!
Let's break that $90/student down, shall we? At a four student minimum/8 student maximum - $360-720 for the class. We'll assume the dive shop pays all insurance, transportation, food & lodging on dive trips.
Classroom time (average) 12½ hours
Preparation for classroom time (average) 5 hours
Private time with the "duty 10%" (average) 2½ hours
Pool time (average) 12½ hours
Preparation for pool time (average) 2½ hours
Securing pool after sessions time (average) 1 hr.
Open water trips (since I don't know Mario's situation I'll use ours - Sat-Sun at a site 2½ hours distant on one weekend, and a four hour boat trip at a site 3½ hours distant on another weekend) - total time on-site with students plus driving time, prep time, tank and equipment loading and unloading, getting tanks refilled between dives, cleanup and stowage after the trips - (minimum) 30. (this does not include all the time away from home, or any informal instruction over dinner etc)
Beer for Assistants (entire course - 14 (cheap) beers (average) $20
So, for somewhere from $360 to $720, a typical instructor is putting in about 66 hours and $20, plus wear & tear on his own equipment, which probably averages another $100 per course.
That works out to about $3.65 to $9 an hour... a hell of a deal for the student. The instructor could make more digging ditches even if he had to provide his own shovel.
Bottom line - if you intend to be a full time instructor, realize you must live on equipment sales and not your instructor commissions. A "traveling instructor" must be independently wealthy, or prepared to lead a frugal life and pick up odd jobs at other things.
Rick