Is there room left over for your martial arts business marketing?
To grow your martial arts business requires constant marketing and the ability grab attention and then follow up.
I’ve been watching the NHL playoffs just about every night for the past three weeks.
I’m not sure if you’re a sports fan or not, but if you’ve ever caught the “wrap up” of a sports broadcast you’ll know what I’m talking about here.
A few minutes after the game is over and just seconds before the broadcasters sign off most of the time you get a camera shot of the crowd exiting the arena.
Massive amounts of people heading to their cars returning to reality.
They’re spending half of their thought energy on the game they just watched and the other half on the mundane details of their busy and hectic lives.
100% thought energy is being used.
Guess What…
Whether they’re leaving a game, driving to work, running errands or heading out to dinner 100% of their thought energy is still focused on the immediate and “urgent” matters of life.
What’s left over after 100% has been used up?
Not much!
And that’s the space you get to occupy in their minds.
Along with every other person, business or company who wants their attention.
This, my friend, is the major challenge and the most fun part of being in business.
How are you going to get through to this “moving parade?”
Sometimes you can slip in amongst the crowd via a referral.
Other times you’ll have to do something that catches their attention at the right time and makes them head off in your direction.
Once they’re coming your way – you’ll have to keep them coming.
Every once in a while you do something so amazing – they’ll head your way in multiples.
Occasionally one, two or three will decide all by themselves to leave the parade for a few minutes and seek you out (along with other options). If your message is compelling and your offer on target they’ll choose you.
Sometimes they’ll contact you and then seemingly vanish.
They haven’t vanished. And even though you think they’re totally flaky, they’re not! (well maybe a little!)
They just realized how paying attention to you right now is not going to work.
This moment is where you need reliable marketing systems to carve out your little space in the room of what’s left after the 100%.
Here’s something for you to give you a few ideas about how to occupy that little space.
It’s a video I put together.
Here’s what happens when you take action on the advice of the video…
Call it staying power. The energy to persist. The ability to last. Whatever you want. The fact is we can all relate.
Whether it’s the ability to spar or grapple longer.
To work a long weekend filled with special events at your martial arts school.
To work the 15 hour day and plan your martial arts marketing.
The ability to keep at it year after year as you grow your martial arts business. Stamina is key.
This past weekend we had a table and I spoke (for the second year in a row) at the Member Solutions Business Building Bootcamp.
I got to reconnect with industry leaders and experts and make some new connections. Had dinner with Mike Parella, Allie Alberigo, Roland Osborne, Tommy Lee, Glen Hansen (Editor of MMA Business) and the great folks at Member Solutions.
Something that stuck out for me. Stamina.
What I mean is I ran into guys that’ve been doing their thing for years.
I mentioned to John Graden how, just in my 6 years of doing business with school owners, I’ve seen so many “shiny new objects” come and go. But how refreshing it was to run in to so many who have been “at it for a while.” (Him Included!!)
I mentioned to Dave Kovar how when I was just 16 years old and had just earned my black belt in TKD one of my instructors let me borrow the Kovar instructor training manuals and video tapes. When I opened my school two years later I studied his stuff even more.
The true test is the stamina of the people behind the business and the school. Their willingness to try new things and constantly innovate to reach their main goal of serving others through their passion.
I overhead another speaker talking about how “There is so much information in the martial arts industry.” Yes there is! You know why? Because the best school operators are great teachers and great business people. Great business people and great teachers both have a strong desire to help others. Put those two together and you have a bunch of folks willing to share (and get paid to help their fellow professionals).
As a school owner you should take this information as a blessing.
How to sift through it all?
Look at their stamina. How long have they been at it? Do they have a system or are they sporadic? Do they tire of something quickly or does their approach build on their innovations?
If you want to be the best and most successful school owner you can be an open mind and willingness to learn is the foundation.
Learn more here…
That’s a scary thought.
But take a look at the stats…
The U.S. Post Office tells us 12 to 22% of people move every year.
The nerve. How could they move before Black Belt?
Due to “Family & Life Circumstances” 15% have no choice (or so they think) but to change their life style.
Divorce
Kids heading to college.
“Gas prices are too high, we can’t afford it anymore.”
Changes to a job situation.
The fact is your students are under a constant barrage of attacks that kill your retention, no matter how good you are.
Then, add the worst of all, dropouts… “I’m too busy.” Or, “He doesn’t like it anymore.”
Do you see where this number quickly gets to close to 50%?
So what’s the point?
1- You need to base everything on reality.
2- The mission of new student acquisition never ends.
3- Deepening of Marketing Funnels. What does that mean?
Examples…
You do a special event. You end up with 15 leads. It’s not enough to call them on Monday. It’s not enough to invite them back for a special class. There must be a multi-step follow up system in place.
Right now I’m working on a 99 step follow up marketing system for a client.
You read it right – 99 steps!
Crazy? Not Really.
This guy actually HAS The Discipline to work on these things with me!
Sadly – many martial arts school owners are border-line Charlatans – because they are NOT disciplined enough to make the time to work on their business.
Sorry – no other way to put it.
If you’re in the disciplined camp. You appreciate my honesty. If you’re in the “lack of time” or “lack of knowing what to do” camp you’ll probably UN-subscribe. But that’s OK.
Anyway – I hope this email reminds you the stakes are high for all of us.
Therefor – no time for dilly-dally.
That’s all for today.
Marketing Help for Those With Discipline is Right Here for the Taking…
Here’s a big problem and I hope you don’t have it.
Too many times something “new” comes along and school owners forget about or stops doing the “old.”
This became real obvious to me today as I working on a direct mail campaign for a new client.
In this campaign – we’re going “OLD School” – totally targeting the radius around the business.
Compelling offer, headline, testimonials, a unique message, deadline to respond, map of the location – all the goodies you need on the check list.
In direct mail this is called “Farming.”
And even though my contract is for this campaign only I informed them “Farming” is something they should continue to do.
The right farming program can help you penetrate an area through repetition. Heck, don’t you always tell your students…
“Repetition is the mother of skill!” Yet there are some school owners who abandon marketing programs faster than a spoiled kid can tell his parents he’s quitting so he can play more video games.
These guys don’t practice what they preach. One of my early martial arts business mentors joked about how for certain school owners attaining the next degree of Black Belt often meant an inch or more addition to their waste-line. (not practicing what they preach)
The real success happens when old school discipline and repetition meets new school marketing.
The real success happens in your martial arts business when you do a bunch of things to bring in students.
Yes, I’ve been telling you about how important Mobile is right now.
We’ve talked about how Facebook Ads when done right can give you a direct line of communication to your most desired prospects.
The point is to stay with it.
Well, if you’ve read this far you obviously know about sticking with it.
If you want some help with Facebook Ads, (or anything else) go to the link below and request a time to chat with me.
From Your Laptop…
From Your Mobile…
You’re in the business of helping people with martial arts, right?
Helping your students with focus, self-confidence, discipline.
Helping kids stay active.
Helping adults get in shape.
All of the above and more, right?? “Yes or Yes?”
The problem is most of your best prospects are totally UN-aware of how you can help them.
Sure, maybe once they get started and experience you they get it.
But, it’s not enough to stick an ad in their face. Yea- sometimes that works.
What you have to do is showcase your expertise by giving them some content.
I have a client who has all kinds of video messages plugged in to his follow up sequences for new students. What a nice touch! Video is just one option though.
To help you clarify this, let me ask you…
Do you have a proven method for increasing a kid’s self-confidence?
What about a method for adults to gain strength and flexibility?
Those are just examples – but that knowledge can be turned into content that can help your students.
It will also showcase your expertise to your prospects.
It’s not enough to just tell people “I can help you, if you join my school.” You have to help them a little first with your knowledge, expertise and content.
And then, they will start taking steps toward you!
I know it’s tough sometimes to get the content together. That’s why for my “Book Project Clients” I hand them content already done. They just have to tweak a little.
Why would you want a book for your martial arts school business?
The simple reason is because it is one of the best ways to elevate yourself above the crowd of competition in your area. Not just martial arts schools either…
Do you think the local “Gym Manager” is an expert? How many of your competitors in the kids’ market will have a book?You guessed it – slim pickins!
And Slim Pickins for me too. Because I’m only taking one school owner for my next “Help You Get A Book Done to Market Your School and grow your martial arts business” program.
Details here…
Martial Arts Business Book Project
Wanta know a really simple way to get leads for your martial arts business?
It’s simple because it takes the “data input” off of your plate and places it in the hands of the prospect.
Now, I’m gonna go back to something you have either heard about forever. Or, have been doing forever.
And that’s…
The plain old Martial Arts Birthday Party!
I’m just using this as an example but it can be applied to any event you do in your martial arts business.
Watch the video to get the scoop…
Martial Arts Business System Members! Remember this sample web page and follow up strategies are available to you upon request.
Not a Member?
Member Solutions Business Building Bootcamp coming up in Philly on March 31st and April 1st 2012 will include new interactive workshops, educational seminars and physical training sessions.
In the workshops, you’ll put into practice what is being taught right on the spot. Bring your laptop and smartphone and get ready for hands-on guidance and instant results!
The Dojo DNA – Daily Necessary Activities
Allie Alberigo, Founder of Taking It to the Next Level
Learn what it takes to run a school from top to bottom. Allie will cover what tasks are necessary for success and what it takes to get them done. You’ll walk away with a list of actionable techniques for effective time management, time slicing and goal setting.
The Secrets to Managing Your School’s Online Reputation
Michael Parrella, CEO of FC Online Marketing and iLoveKickboxing.com
Learn how to monitor and manage your business’ online reputation. Michael will reveal the secrets to helping you stand out from your competition and build consumer confidence. You’ll then put his tips and techniques into action through a hands-on guided tutorial!
Optimizing Your Student Upgrade Process
Master Tommy Lee, Founder of Step-by-Step Success
This session will cover the student upgrade process, how to improve systems, overcome objections and enhance retention for your schools. Tommy will also provide specific suggestions to enhance your own school’s program levels and upgrades so you walk away with actionable tips and advice.
BUSINESS SEMINARS
Surviving as a Traditional Martial Arts School Owner When Others Say You Can’t
Allie Alberigo, Founder of Taking It to the Next Level
Which 21st Century techniques should you embrace? Which are just fads, gimmicks or trends that will soon disappear? In this seminar, Allie will reveal the techniques and tools he’s used for the past two decades in running his successful, traditional Martial Arts school.
Grant Yourself Permission to Grow
John Bussard, CEO of Kicks Karate
Break the chains that are holding back your growth!
Are you making decisions that will allow your school to grow, or are you making choices that are preventing it? Join John Bussard as he discusses some of his mistakes, the tough lessons he’s learned, and victories that have helped him become one of the most successful school owners in the industry. John will challenge you to take a hard look at your school structure and business, and share some of his most successful strategies to help take your school to a higher level.
9 Easy-to-Use Internet Marketing Techniques
Michael Parrella, CEO of FC Online Marketing and iLoveKickboxing.com
Join Michael Parrella as he reveals 9 simple and effective ways to market your school online – the same techniques he’s used to help his clients generate over 60,000 paid online enrollments!
Marketing Mastery – Going from Zero to Hero!
Barry Van Over, President of Martial Arts Management Group
Join Barry Van Over as he reveals the marketing ideas and strategies that will drive new business to your studio. With the popularity of Internet marketing, and the fact from Google that 80% of all Internet leads are driven from off-line marketing tactics, great marketing systems are more important than ever for your business!
Retention 101
Dave Kovar, Founder and Chief Training Officer of Kovar’s Satori Academy of Martial Arts
Many Martial Arts professionals spend too much time trying to get new students and not enough time sincerely taking care of their existing ones. In this discussion, Dave Kovar will review “Retention 101” and give participants a clear game plan as to how they can dramatically improve their retention. Good retention is arguably the most important aspect of a successful school because happy students will refer others.
PHYSICAL TRAINING SESSIONS
Cutting Edge Classroom Concepts
Dave Kovar, Founder and Chief Training Officer of Kovar’s Satori Academy of Martial Arts
In this fast-moving class, Dave will take participants through a training session filled with functional and dynamic drills and skills.
Are you doing anything about this?
Obesity in the USA has inched up slightly over the past decade, mainly because of weight gain among men and boys, new government statistics show.
The average body mass index (BMI) of men rose to 28.7 in 2010 up from 27.7 in 2000.
For women the average BMI remained unchanged at about 28.5.
The percentage of obese men increased to 35.5% in 2010, up from 27.5% in 2000. About 35.8% of women were obese in 2010, not a significant change from 2000. Adults are considered obese if they are roughly 30 or more pounds over a healthy weight.
About 16.9% of children and adolescents, ages 2 to 19, were obese in 2010, up 13.9% from 2000. This was mostly because of an increase in the percentage of boys who are obese.
Even though the bulge has “leveled off” isn’t this crazy?
The weight loss industry is huge. The funny thing is the whole key to staying fit is to eat less of the wrong foods and more of the right foods. And then, workout everyday!
Lack of discipline is what it is.
You have chance to position your martial arts school to help people get fit.
The overall challenge is we’ve done such a good job of “branding” martial arts as a mental fitness thing and therefor the physical fitness aspect has taken a back seat in the mind of consumers.
Here’s what to do…
Craft your martial arts marketing (whether on your website, printed materials, direct mail, Facebook, whatever) to address the pains of being out of shape. Then, offer your martial arts program as the solution to lasting fitness from the self-discipline learned. (and the fact that it is more fun!)
You should get on this.
If you’re a member of our martial arts business system program be sure you grab the email from last week and get the sample for the Facebook Fitness campaign.
Not a member?
Start here…
Increase your awareness: self-defense success: MyFoxBOSTON.com
Members! Be sure you check out the media pitch sample area to get sample wording a bullet points to get your school some free publicity.Not a Member? Want Expert Publicity for Your School?
As I was flipping through one of the martial arts business industry trade journals I got further confirmation that a prediction I made a few years back is just about in full swing.
The entire post is a few blogs down.
Basically, I predicted fragmentation amongst industry service providers. Less cooperation or just cooperation totally based on politics. I predicted many service providers would come and go.
So when I opened up one of the journals this month I saw it clear as day right in front of my eyes.
Most won’t notice what I noticed.
But here it is…
While reading the articles and columns you can easily tell who works for the industry group and who doesn’t. What you end up with are “inside contributors” and contributors who do their own thing.
What I noticed was how their no longer are “bio boxes.” The bio box is a short paragraph that says. “Your name is the owner of yada yada in yada. He’s also a super guy. He can be reached at yoursite.”
Of course it varies a little, but that is the basic structure. As side note. Every blog you do should have one. And if you ever contribute to any publications you must get your bio box published.
It is just common courtesy in the world of UN-Paid contributors. My assumption would be the outside contributors to this publication are not paid but I could be wrong.
So why the hell is this a big deal?
I wrote a column for a martial arts business industry mag from 2005 to the summer of 2007. My bio box was published and it was key in letting the readers know who I was and how they could reach me. Plus, it’s just fair exchange of value.
Who knows maybe it’s really no big deal. But it does strike me as a little off.
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