Posts Tagged ‘Business Owner’

After 8 years of coaching people on how to start and run martial arts schools (12 if you count the time I spent doing it for free for my friends) I’ve heard just about every excuse for failure imaginable. The other day, I was telling a client that I was starting another studio. He asked me if I’d been out of it long, and I explained that I sold a studio in ’09, and that I am re-entering the market because I believe now is a great time to be a school owner. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s Time To Go Back To School With Some Old School Marketing

In this day and age of the internet, texting, and social networking, it’s easy to overlook some of the old school marketing and retention methods.

However, in some cases those old school methods of reaching out and contacting people are just as effective, if not more effective, than those that use modern technology.

And, since many of your competitors are flocking to technology with the hopes of finding “push-button” marketing success (it doesn’t exist), you can step in and fill the void left by using some tried and true old-school marketing methods…

All of which will definitely serve to set you apart from your competition.

Old School Marketing That Still Makes The Grade

So, here are three old-school marketing and retention tactics that still work well for generating leads, enrollments, and renewals: Read the rest of this entry »

Using Testimonials in Your Martial Arts Marketing

There are many ways to market your school, and providing potential clients and customers with testimonials is one of the best ways to super-charge your martial arts marketing.

The power of testimonials should never be underestimated. In this day and age, consumers will only purchase products or pay for services they trust; typically, this means that product or service has been referred to them by people they know.

Since this is something that the small business owner has no control over, he has to do the next best thing… which is to get testimonials from his past clients.

Benefits of Using Testimonials

There are many benefits to collecting and using testimonials in your marketing:
Read the rest of this entry »

Simple Honesty And Convenience Can Really Make A Difference In Your Bottom Line

So, think you have some powerful “sales kung fu”?

If so, you likely are aware that your customers see the enrollment process as a buying process. They are shopping you along with your competitors, and will likely make their buying decision based on how good you are at convincing them to join your school.

Now, having said that, you should know that I am not a fan AT ALL of sneaky tricks and hard sell tactics.

So, before we go on let me present you with the number one rule I want you to live and die by in your sales process:

Massie-ism #674:

“When you have the truth, you don’t need tricks. Always tell the truth to your customers.”

No matter what you’ve been told, and no matter who told you – slick tricks work against you and not for you when you are building your enrollment.

Growing a school over the long-term is about building trust and a reputation for honesty in your community. Being known as the local used car salesman of martial arts instructors is not the best way to achieve that goal.

With that in mind, let’s look at a few key areas where you can use honesty and common sense courtesy to your best advantage to increase your sales and conversions.
Read the rest of this entry »

Speed Kills…

In the past six months, out of the hundreds of site members we have, I’ve had just three site members contact me to tell me they were either closing their schools or scaling back on their operations…

Although this is an extremely low percentage of failure – especially during an extended recession – I believe that it will be instructive to examine reasons why these schools didn’t make it, in order that we can all avoid making the same mistakes.

In each case, these folks were new school owners or instructors who were in the early stages of launching a school. In two of the three cases, the instructors were teaching in part-time locations, yet they both cited a lack of cash-flow as the reason for their having to “close” their schools. (Note: In the third case, the instructor lost his lease and couldn’t find another suitable location within his budget – a reason totally beyond his control.)

What went wrong here? Upon further probing, the reason in each case was made plain. In their impatience with starting a new business, they just moved ahead too fast and it killed their schools – a very common mistake. This is something I’ve had experience with in the past myself, and which led to my developing the Small Dojo Big Profits method of starting a martial arts school.

Now, before I go on here let me state that there’s no shame in making mistakes when you’re starting a business. Believe me, every successful business owner can rattle off a least two or three major mistakes they made when they were first starting out. The only shame is in not learning from your own mistakes or from those of someone else, which is why you should read this article carefully to avoid these very common mistakes. Read the rest of this entry »

Life As A New Martial Art School Owner

Being a new business owner is scary, mysterious, and exciting all at once. On the one hand, starting your new business represents an exciting new adventure, as well as the potential for financial freedom and getting to do what you love for a living.

On the other hand, not knowing what to expect can work on your nerves and make your first few months that much more difficult. Starting a martial art school is stressful enough; the last thing you need is additional stress based on uncertainty.

In addition, you may have unrealistic expectations that can later work against you when life as a school owner doesn’t turn out to be the smooth trip you thought it would be.

So, I thought I’d quickly share the following with you… Read the rest of this entry »

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Success Or Failure Is Often Determined By Internal And Not External Factors

Why is it that some school owners can open a school under the worst of conditions, yet meet with great success…

While others may open their business under the best of conditions and fail miserably?

I think it’s apparent that success or failure is more often determined by internal rather than external factors.

And I would have to say that, in most cases, it has to do with three qualities: confidence, commitment, and the willingness to experience failure. Read the rest of this entry »

Oftentimes, prospective martial arts business owner start their schools without ever taking the time to write out a specific game plan for their success. I know that I was guilty of this mistake when I made my first few attempts at opening my martial arts business. Oh, I did all the “business owner” things; I secured a location, had business cards printed (they made me feel like I was officially in business), put an ad in the paper, and told everyone I knew about my programs. Yet, my first few attempts at opening a martial arts business were Read the rest of this entry »