For Those Who Advertise Their Schools

[Vash]

I know we have a few instructors who actively advertise and recruit for their respective schools. I was wondering if they, or anyone with marketing experience, would be willing to discuss the "tricks of the trade" of getting potential students into their schools.

[wiz cool c]

i would also be interested in this.

[MasterKiller]

1. Open school
2. ????
3. Make money

[EarthDragon]

word of mouth and people seeking you specifically is the best advertisment you can ever have for new enrollment.

You can do all the regular advertising you wish (but very costly) however truth is people will seek you out if you are a qualified good teacher and teach a good ciriculum.

I have 5 BB that came from heavily advertised Mcdojo's but sought me out after they questioned thier training. with little or no advertising ( I personally have tried everything).

sign up boxes placed around the town is good offer free classes and call everying who fills them out and tell them they have won a free week.

good location is key here as well be on a busy street to people see your sign ( free advertising after sign is paid off), a inexpensive way when you first open up is to pass out flyers in the immiediate neighborohod and offer free classes. once a student joins offer them a free month if they bring in a friend. let your student advetise for you at school work etc etc. join the chamber of commerce its free.

I am a school owner for 14 years so hope this helps

[MightyB]

Believe it or not, Movie Theatre Ads worked really well for us. They weren't super expensive and you get a captive audience of teenagers. I'm talking about the slides and commercials that continuously run in the theatre prior to the preview and movie reel starting.

[David Jamieson]

I think Mike Parella did a whole thread on this at some point.

[mooyingmantis]

Believe it or not, Movie Theatre Ads worked really well for us. They weren't super expensive and you get a captive audience of teenagers. I'm talking about the slides and commercials that continuously run in the theatre prior to the preview and movie reel starting.

Agreed! Marketing studies have shown this to be the biggest bang for the dollar.

Local community newspapers bring me the most students when advertising my concealed carry forearm classes. I never got any students from phone book or internet ads, but smaller community newspapers/newsletters were worth every penny.

[MasterKiller]

Honestly, If you don't have A) a nice website and B) a Facebook page, you are missing 50% of your target audience.

[xcakid]

Honestly, If you don't have A) a nice website and B) a Facebook page, you are missing 50% of your target audience.


90% of our sign ups come from the webpage. Which we spend money on Google Adwords and Yahoo.
about 5% from our demos such as Asiafest, Plano Balloon Fest, etc.
the other 5% from Facebook or Youtube which eventually points them to the website. We are also in the process of starting a Facebook Ad.

[EarthDragon]

Honestly, If you don't have A) a nice website and B) a Facebook page, you are missing 50% of your target audience.

totaly disagree, websites do not advertise to the local area. its called the World wide web, and you get hits form everywhere, a waste of money, the internet is horrible for advertising so is the phone book. people need to walk into the school and see the school, watch the class and see the talent of the instructors. pass out flyer up and down the streets surrounding your school. offer free classes and get them in the door.

[Shaolindynasty]

totaly disagree, websites do not advertise to the local area. its called the World wide web, and you get hits form everywhere, a waste of money, the internet is horrible for advertising so is the phone book.

Outdated thinking. Google ad words can be set to target only people in your immediate area. I've got a very good response from these ads for very little wasted money. Of course you need a good website to link the ad to

[GeneChing]

We list everyone that distributes our magazine.

To be a distributor, all you have to do is carry a minimum of ten copies of our magazine, which you get at wholesale rate by contacting Joan Chien at 1-800-628-6652 X108. You can even make money on the deal if you can sell them, but I'll be honest with you here and say that unless you have a very active pro-shop in you school - and by active, I mean one that's big enough to attract a significant number of patrons that are not your students - you probably won't sell them all. However, they also make good incentive awards or perks for your instructors and at about $10 a month, that listing reaches a lot of people.

I get a lot of cold calls and emails from people looking for schools. I refer them to our distributors. ;)

[David Jamieson]

~G's got his mind on his money and his money on his mind.

[Tainan Mantis]

totaly disagree, websites do not advertise to the local area. its called the World wide web, and you get hits form everywhere, a waste of money, the internet is horrible for advertising ... pass out flyer up and down the streets surrounding your school.

I get about 90% students and calls from website.
Have passed out thousands of door hangers. Never got a sign up.

Here is my website. My student helped me so that it comes up in top two if you search for kung fu in Tampa

www.tampakungfu.com

[EarthDragon]

I must be old LOl or have old way thinking.

If I want a good meal I ask around, if someone drops off a coupon at my door I would go there and try it. If I was hungry I wouldnt search the web to find a resturant.

the fanciest website and the best adds cost money and YOU paid for it as a student, and is only the shiny lure to get you in.

The coolest and most hard core kwoon I know in Buffalo is a run down smelly dirty old fashion training hall.
I think they have a phone number and thats about it. they dont advertise and often turn people away.
Remember you might be able to get them in the door with flashy ads and a cool website or goolge yourself but your teaching ability and skill level will keep them.... nothing else, but hey its your money some schools depend on advertising and spend 1000's a month, these are usually ther Mcdojo's with high turn around so they need to constantly lure in new students.

[MasterKiller]

I get about 90% students and calls from website.
Have passed out thousands of door hangers. Never got a sign up.


This is my experience, also. Everyone who comes in my door has already spent time looking on the web at my site and my competitions. Also, I get many walkins from MySpace and FaceBook. It's a different world...

[yutyeesam]

ED-
If it works for you, that is awesome.

What works well for the schools around here is to have a good website, and a contact form on the website for a free offer. That contact form is what really makes the difference, and you can use google to set it up pretty easily.

If you just have a static phone number and email address posting, you're really missing out on a lot of opportunities. Make it interactive.

[GeneChing]

Hey, someone's got to pay the rent around here.

In the S.F. Bay Area, there are so many martial arts schools that it's a highly competitive market. Plus everyone and their dog has a website around here, so that's a given. You're not even in the game without some sort of web presence. Schools get a lot of mileage from demos. There's always a street fair, public school events or some sort of community gathering where your students can demo. That's where lion dancing is a huge cash cow for schools, especially during Chinese New Years.

[aktionmancer]

for those that are just setting up a new website for their school and are on a budget

google ' office live'

it'll bring you to a microsoft office site for small businesses that helps you create a very decent website for free.

free domain registration
free web hosting for a year (about 12 dollars a year after that. CHEAP)
lots of customizable templates

dont forget to add your list your school's location onto google maps

if you want to check out our website that i made, it is

vancouverclf.com