Another great question. I’ve got it from many people over the years in regard to offering week-long or short format Camp Millionaire programs to school, park & rec departments, YMCAs, etc. Here are my suggestions.

Step 1:

Decide on the best format for your market. Ideas…

  • All day program of at least 3 hours to 8 hours, i.e., 9 am to 5 pm would be the longest. It’s a long day but because the program is very active, it works.
  • Short time frame over several days, i.e., 2-3 hours for 5 days in a row.
  • Short time frame spread over several weeks, i.e., 1 hour for 6-10 weeks. This format works great in schools where you can spread the Money Game rounds/lessons over a semester or quarter. (We have one teacher who teaches The Money Game on Fridays and her students NEVER miss Fridays!)

Step 2:

Decide how many participants you can handle in the program. We have 2 instructors for programs over 10. And the more volunteers (adult eyes) you can enlist, the better!

But What Do I Charge?

Step 3:

Add up the total hours you will be spending on the following:

  • Learning how to play the game (this time is spread out over the number of camps/programs you will be offering though but it’s good to work it in.
  • Preparing marketing materials if you have to do the marketing.
  • Preparing the game materials, extra activity materials if you’re in the Major League Players Program, general camp/program supplies like pencils (we recommend pencils over pens…easier to fix boo-boos), markers, flip chart paper, flip chart, etc.
  • Driving to and from the facility.
  • Actual time instructing.

Step 4:

Ask yourself this very important question:

“How much is my time worth?”

Now here is what usually happens…people like us (who want to do good in the world and really make a different…which in actuality is all of us:-), often say, “But I can’t charge that. The school can’t afford it. Or, but it’s financial education, can I really charge that much?”

YES, you can!!! And you must.

You must value what you do and what you offer if you want others to value what you do and what you offer. And ladies…we are the worst when it comes to this. We under-value our time and worth compared to men…stop doing this! 🙂

Step 5:

Multiply the answer to Step 4 by the number of hours you will spend providing the program.

My suggestion is start with $30/hour and go from there. If you’re going to spend 20 hours that week teaching, driving, etc., then set your price at $600. If you want $50/hour, then it would be $1000.

Step 6:

Look at what has been offered in the past. Compare it to other “Enrichment Programs”, not sports programs or art programs. Compare to science programs where the school or organization is bringing in a special program.

If comparable programs are a bit less, match them. If they are priced a little higher, match them also.

Step 7:

Material fees…sometimes you can make the fees look at little more doable if you break the amount of money you want into a per head fee plus a materials fee. Let’s look at the $1000 example above.

Let’s say you are doing a 20 hour a week program and you want to have 15 kids in the program. $1000 divided by 15 is about $68. Instead, you might charge $50 a child with a $20 materials fee. It’s just another way to break it down.

Other things to consider:

  • Minimum number of participants: You have to know how many kids you are willing to teach. Our number here at Creative Wealth is 10. This gives us enough kids to really play with and have a good time and ensure that we can do most of the activities in a playful manner.
  • Charging a minimum fee: When you don’t know (and we never do) how many people you’re going to get signed up, make sure to specify a minimum fee for your services. This works when you charge a per head fee. In other words, you offer to teach the program for $50/$20 (head/material fee) with a minimum of $750 for the course. Gives both you and the school/facility a little lee way.
  • Offering scholarship spots: We always provide 2-5 spots to kids from low-income organizations, boys & girls clubs, etc. to join our program for free, BUT, we try to get at least a $10 material fee from these families. Why? Because if you don’t charge the something, there is no value and they don’t show up! Ask us how we know! 🙂

I hope that helps you structure your pricing for your Money Game programs. Feel free to shot us an email about a specific situation you’re working on. We’re happy to help.

Happy Money Game Days…Elisabeth/Jan