There’s still time

You’ve got just more than a month to get your customers to participate. Why should you encourage them to talk about the training they receive from your business?

AOPA’s Flight Training Experience Survey is an incredible opportunity to get valuable feedback from your customers. You’ll find out what you’re doing right—or which areas might need improvement.

The survey is a chance to get national recognition for the services you provide. It’s a way to get more customers—because they seek out the winning schools, whose high scores represent the best of the best in the Flight Training Excellence Awards.

What’s more, when you ask your customers to rate your flight instructors and your business, that sends a clear message that you want to improve their training experience. It shows clients you value them. Your clients become more invested in your flight school and your flight instructors.

How can you encourage your customers to take the survey? We have some resources to help you.

After you travel to the main page, you’ll find all the resources for flight schools and CFIS: a sample strategy, a sample promotional email to your clients; and even sample social media networking posts that you can plug into your Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram feeds. There are flight instructor talking points you can share with your staff, and two sizes of downloadable promotional posters. There’s even a webinar that shares best practices from some of the previous winning flight schools.

Everyone who participates is entered in the 2018 Flight Training Experience Sweepstakes. They are eligible to win a prize from Aircraft Spruce; Hertz Rental Cars; Pilot Workshops; SiriusXM; and Sporty’s.

During a recent visit to the Idaho backcountry, I flew with Bob DelValle of Sandpoint, Idaho, in his Cessna 182. I found Bob’s easygoing approach a perfect fit for my learning style as he helped me familiarize myself with flying into such challenging airstrips as Sulphur Creek and Johnson Creek, and we had a blast going in and out of Big Creek, Dixie Town, and Wilson Bar. I’m counting the days until I can fly around the backcountry again, and that’s in no small part thanks to Bob, who made our time together challenging but not overwhelming.

So I’ll be filling out a survey on Bob to let pilots know there’s a mountain flying, backcountry expert who  gives great value for their dollars. Your customers will want to do the same for you.