I'll start by owning that I track stats on everything I do... like I go *way* overboard, for the last year of teaching. I can't help it... I just love spreadsheets.

A while back I got curious because I was having so many Trial classes. A lot (but not all) are short notice, and of course a lot of them end up as no-shows. I have an average conversion rate, hovering around 15%. I started wondering how all these trials compare, financially, to teaching regular classes.

Turns out, adding up all the no-show half pay classes, short notice $2 bonuses, and the occasional $5 signup bonus, my average rate came out to...... *exactly* my normal class rate. Like, within a few cents. So basically, teaching trials earns me exactly the same as regular classes.

I don't mind getting a 15-minute break here or there, but something about realizing that the $5 signup bonus just covers all those no shows doesn't really make it an "incentive" as much as more "needless gamification".

EDIT: It's probably worth noting that numbers (and base pay) are variable, and this may not be true for everyone.