LearningRX Insider Secrets: How to Negotiate a Better Price from LearningRX
March 31, 2013
LearningRX franchise brain training centers charge substantial fees for their services, with LearningRX program costs often ranging from $3000 – $15,000 or more.
According to one LearningRX insider (who’s contributing under the name Former LRX), despite the company’s claims that its programs benefit nearly every student, the LearningRX program “helps some a lot, some a little, and some not at all…”
“LRX gets good results for those students who work hard and stay focused on training, who have fun through the process,” writes Former LRX.
“Signing up is the right answer as long as you do so with your eyes wide open. That’s why I am here, because I don’t think most parents have their eyes wide open.”
Former LRX told UnhappyFranchisee.Com that parents can get the best value if they understand the business motives of LearningRX franchise owners, and work the system.
Former LRX states that “every parent needs to know that this is a sales process and that they are being sold.
“Sure, the business is about caring about students / children / adults / seniors, but the end result of all that caring is supposed to be a profitable business.”
The text in the blue boxes below is from Former LRX.
LearningRX doesn’t “negotiate,” but they do “discount.”
If you ask about negotiating, you’ll be told that the company doesn’t negotiate.
Franchisees are told not to negotiate price.
Fine, but price is negotiable.
So, if you are going to negotiate, do the director a favor. Don’t ever talk about ‘negotiating’. Instead, give her a reason to give you a discount.
Try the LearningRX Flexibility Discount
The parent might say, “I see that this is what my son needs. He needs 24 weeks to finish the program. I also see that it is best if we do this in the center, but we want to only come 4 days per week. However, we only have $8500 for this, so if you can figure out a way to get us into the program for that much money, I’d be willing to do that. Maybe during a lull in your business call me because we don’t need to start right now.
Know this, the director will be looking at the monthly bookings and think, “Wouldn’t these numbers look so much better with that $8500 in there than without it in there?” Or the director will hear a few trainers say that they really want another student as soon as one can be found and the director will think, “We have this open slot and I have the perfect student, I just need to be able to figure out how to say yes to this person without appearing like I’m negotiating.”
Be creative in requesting a LearningRX discount
I saw parents get discounts for all kinds of reasons…
Maybe you are willing to train before school is out, so you might figure out an off-peak discount.
Or, you might ask the director if they ever provide discounts.
Or, maybe you are related to the friend of a trainer and you get the family discount.
Or, maybe you have already shared the program with another family, so you get the shared-with-another-family discount.
Or, maybe you didn’t come in as a result of marketing that was expensive so you ask for the ‘drive by’ discount.
Or, maybe you ask if they ever have coupons.
Also, know this, the slowest times in most centers happen before school opens and during the November/December holiday seasons. You could also use these as leverage points. “Hey, I’ll sign up here in December if you can get me that discount.”
You get the idea, be creative and get a discount. If you directly ask the question whether discounts are ever given, you might be able to figure out an existing discount that makes sense for you.
NEVER pay LearningRX in full, upfront
By the by, you will likely be told that there is a paid-in-full discount of 5% (or whatever) or a pay with a check, not a credit card 3% discount (or whatever).
These are places to find discounts.
Do not pay in full, ever.
It emotionally makes it difficult for you to pull out of the program. But if you say, “Hey, give me the off hours discount and I’ll pay with checks so that you don’t have to incur the cost of my great-perks credit card” this might tip the scales.
Also read:
LEARNINGRX Brain Training: What LearningRX Costs
LearningRX Complaints: Falsified Test Results
LearningRX Insider Secrets: How LearningRX Brain Training is Sold (Coming Soon)
Tip of the hat to Former LRX for sharing his or her LearningRX insider tips and insights.
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH LEARNINGRX AND THE LEARNINGRX BRAIN TRAINING PROGRAMS? PLEASE SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
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LEARNINGRX Brain Training: What LearningRX Costs
March 31, 2013
LearningRx franchise brain training centers provide educational and tutoring services throughout the U.S.
LearningRX claims “We change lives every day through the incredible power of brain training! Our programs are designed to target weak cognitive skills and help anyone from age 4 to 94 to achieve guaranteed results. Our goal is to ensure that people of all ages can receive the help they need to train their brains, get smarter, and be successful in life.”
But what do LearningRX services cost?
According to one company insider, LearningRX will not disclose their fees and costs publicly or over the phone, as they have a very aggressive and systematic sales process designed to get parents into an initial meeting (called an “Assessment”) before disclosing their program’s substantial costs.
No matter how hard you press for their fees over the phone, LearningRX will tell you that costs vary from situation to situation because their program is customized to particular students, and the Director will cover that in the Assessment.
However, our LearningRX insider claims the programs and related costs are fairly standard and predictable.
The LearningRX insider has provided us with a detailed overview of the slick sales process parents can expect (see the related post, to be published soon), as well as ballpark costs and fees currently charged by LearningRX (below).
Former LRX writes:
The shortest duration program LRX centers do is 12 weeks, though this number is increasing as centers sell longer and longer programs. The program is sold in 4 week increments, but the most common program lengths are 12, 24, and 36 weeks.
The program is delivered either as a partner or a pro program.
In the “Partner” program, there are three hours in the center with a trainer and three hours at home with you (or with the online digital trainer called Max).
In the “Pro” program, you will be in the center 5 hours per week. You will often pay more per hour for the Partner program, but there is little justification for this. It is true that the center trains you to train your student, but you also end up doing as much work as the trainer in the center (or more). Be this as it may, we can estimate program costs now.
Let’s use $85 as a per hour estimate. 12 weeks in a 3 hour per week (in the center) program at $85 per hour puts you around $3000. The center I was in had this closer to $4000. So let’s say $3000 – $4000. This is your baseline for a 12-week partner program.
Now, in the Pro program, you’ll have 12 weeks in a 5 hour per week program at $85 per hour. Your calculator will pop out $5000. I have heard some centers are less than this and some more, so this is a good estimate.
If you are going to expect changes in reading *or* math, then double the above, because you’ll be placed in a 24-week program. Partner in the $7000 range. Pro in the $10,000 range. Plus or minus.
If you are going to expect changes in both reading and math, then triple the above, because you’ll be placed in a 36-week program. Partner in the $10,000 plus range. Pro in the $15,000 range. Plus or minus again.
What you cannot know is how much change you can expect to see in your child and how much value you place on this change….
Many parents end up happy.
Some end up disappointed.
Some should be disappointed, but aren’t….
Also read:
LearningRX Complaints: Falsified Test Results
LearningRX Insider Secrets: How to Negotiate a Better Price from LearningRX (Coming Soon)
LearningRX Insider Secrets: How LearningRX Brain Training is Sold (Coming Soon)
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH LEARNING RX AND THE LEARNING RX FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY? PLEASE SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
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LearningRX Complaints: Falsified Test Results
June 22, 2012
LearningRX Complaints: Falsified Test Results.
(UnhappyFranchisee.com) According to the LearningRx franchise website: “LearningRx is one of the top educational and child franchises in the nation. We change lives every day through the incredible power of brain training! Our programs are designed to target weak cognitive skills and help anyone from age 4 to 94 to achieve guaranteed results.”
LearningRx franchise centers promise guaranteed results for children and adults with ADD, ADHD, autism, dyslexia, reading problems, learning disabilities and other challenges.
LearningRX programs are pricey, often costing $5000 – $15,000. However, part of the LearningRX sales pitch is that they guarantee results – or your money back. However, some former LearningRX employees have claimed that their LearningRX franchise either put undue pressure (and financial incentives) on testers to do whatever it takes produce positive test results – and thereby avoid a refund.
Others claimed they were blatantly instructed to falsify test scores to exaggerate the effect of their program.
Are you familiar with the LearningRX franchise? Please share a comment below.
Does LearningRX Falsify Test Results?
Some allege that some LearningRX franchise locations intentionally falsify test results to show bogus improvement – and avoid paying refunds.
thetruthbetold wrote:
I worked for learningRx in a management position and as a trainer… i witnessed test scores being changed to persuade parents to sign up or continue after completion… It is grossly overcharged without a flat rate so each family pays what the owners can get out of them! …its not the program itself that’s a problem it is the fact that now franchisees can open up shop, claim to be pseudo-medical and exploit children with disabilities by taking advantage of their desperate families…
ErinM wrote:
I worked for them for many years, and they are EXTREMELY corrupt. The trainers are all great people who do exactly as they are told, and help motivate the students. However, they will scam you out of your money and falsify test results. I felt guilty being a part of it after a while.
Lauren P. wrote:
I worked with a LearningRx franchise for 2 years before taking on the role as a test examiner. Shortly after taking on the role, the director pulled me aside and complained about the lack of growth in the final testings I had administered. He said it was very important to remember that our success as a center relies on results found in the final tests and that basically my paycheck relied on seeing growth in the final tests. I’m not stupid and I know what he was asking me to do… I refused to alter final testing scores and was fired from the role. The excuse was that I was not administering the test correctly. I was heartbroken. All of the results I thought my own students were achieving were false. The director was willing to trick parents and manipulate a credible test like the WJIII to make money. It seems most, if not all of these franchises carry this attitude about testing and it’s all about the buck with the directors. I would advise buyer beware.
first-hand-experience wrote:
I also was in management with LearningRx. Let me start by saying, I worked at two different locations (each with different owners). I started as a receptionist and tester and worked my way up to Assistant Director. The first center I worked at was everything negative you’ve heard so far. Everything from falsifying test scores to trying to make her employees claim they were independent contractors…
Are LearningRX Test Results Intentionally Skewed?
Others allege that the type and frequency of testing used by LearningRX skews results to indicate progress that doesn’t exist.
One commenter states that progress demonstrated is a result of LearningRX “teaching for the test.”
Alan Balter writes:
…The training is specific to the woodcock johnson III, so if I pretest you and you score badly, then train you specifically to the test, then you show growth ( i would hope), did you really grow? It would be like giving you all the answers to the SAT or intelligene quota and then saying you’re brilliant or belong in MENSA when you do well. bottom line they’re not accurately measuring the programs true effectiveness by not accounting for threats to internal and external validity.
Allison Edge agrees:
As a trainer and tester at Learningrx, I’d like to say that you should be careful when going there. Standardized assessments like the initial and supplemental tests are not meant to be given more than once a year. LearningRx gives them every 4-6 months. This allows the student to get a higher than average score on the test…
Is The LearningRX Guarantee Deceptive?
sydneysjrstate wrote:
Keep in mind the tests they use to measure grade improvement don’t necessarily correspond to what children are doing in school, and if your child shows two grade level improvements on THEIR TESTS, they get to keep YOUR MONEY!
Lisa wrote:
If you are not familiar with the system, the entrance test and exit test is identical. LearningRX bases success on whether or not the person being trained moves beyond what they are initially able to complete on the test. For instance, if he/she is able to do 3 out of 8 steps on the test when he/she first takes the test, but completes 5 out of 8 when they complete all training, LearningRX has succeeded in helping the person. So, on paper and according to their guarantee, their program has worked. However, there was absolutely NO improvement in any of the areas that had been discussed during the initial visit! In fact, some grades were even worse while taking the training – this was explained away as “normal” at the half-way review point.
Barbara Crewell wrote:
My daughter went through this program at the beginning of this year… now that she is in 8th grade everything has just gone downhill. She has worse grades than ever and has dozens of missing assignments. So I feel like I threw away 7,000 dollars on the product that has no true guarantee. Your guarantee is if she doesn’t improve they will give you an extra month free. That doesn’t sound like a guarantee at all. Maybe if it doesn’t work they refund your damn money, how bout that?
What do you think?
Do LearningRX franchise owners falsify test results?
Is the LearningRX system skewed to indicate imaginary progress?
Are LearningRX trainers and testers under pressure to return positive results, even if it requires questionable tactics?
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH LEARNING RX AND THE LEARNING RX FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY? PLEASE SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
