What does your school do to bring in students?

[Tainan Mantis]

I am looking for success stories on what worked for making people come in to the school.
My school is very low key, outdoors on a semi deserted street.

I put up signs in front of the school.
I put up ads on craig's list
I set up a website for the school http://www.thekungfugym.com/
I wear kung fu shirts
I post on KFO
I post videos on youtube http://uk.youtube.com/user/KevinBrazier
If a student brings in someone new the old student gets $25 off the tuition that month.

THE RESULTS
KFO article about me brought in some students
Craig's list has brought a bunch of offers of parents who want to send their daughter to study with me two hours a day 5 days a week. I need to find them a place to live also! I just need to send info on how they can wire money to my bank account.
The sign at my school brought in a student
I get the rest of the students from referrals

Besides that I am thinking about peppering Tampa with yard signs at every intersection.
I am thinking about putting door knob hanger ads all over the local neighborhoods.

Thoughts?

[MightyB]

but the biggest spike that I can remember at my Sifu's mantis school was after he bought an ad at a local movie theatre. It was nothing more than a slide (posed photograph of a bunch of students working out) and the basic info that you'd put on a flier. This ran with a bunch of other similar slides for small businesses prior to the reels being turned on in the theatre. I believed he was at around 50 students prior to the slide- and after a couple of months of running it- he topped at about 110 students.

[Tainan Mantis]

Thanks Mighty B,
Haven't been to the theatre in so long I forgot about those slide shows.
Sounds like a great idea!

[Oso]

THE RESULTS

Craig's list has brought a bunch of offers of parents who want to send their daughter to study with me two hours a day 5 days a week. I need to find them a place to live also! I just need to send info on how they can wire money to my bank account.

you do know this is probably a scam, right?
especially if there are multiple offers.

[Tainan Mantis]

Yes, I know it is somehow a scam, but I don't know how it works.

Some people must sit and read every craig's ad in every city and send out these poorly worded misspelled con letters all day long.

[SoCo KungFu]

My Hung Gar sifu I found on yellowpages.com

My BJJ gym I found on Google.

Now that I moved the new MMA gym I will be going to I found on Myspace.

Yellowpages.com is usually the first place I've always looked when I am looking for anything. Dunno how much it costs to put up your ad there. The thing is its all those websites/searches are free for the seeker. And they are all things that someone that doesn't know a thing about martial arts would possibly go through. Unlike KFO. And chances are if they can swing the money for monthly tuition in a MA school then they probably got internet. And you will still get the people without a phone book because well, who has those anymore? Cell phones are cheaper.

Just be sure to link your website. Its annoying when you find a number and there's nothing to look through to check up on some background before contacting the instructor.

Maybe its just me. But yellowpages.com and and mapquest are like my best friends.

[GreenCloudCLF]

Retention is cheaper than new enrollments. If what you do is good enough your students will stay, and refer others.

Buy a mailing list with phone numbers in your area. Mail to all the prospects and follow-up with phone calls 5 days after mailing.

[brothernumber9]

Incentives for current students to refer new ones. Get the prospective student after referal to try an intro class or few. If the prospect joins, his referal gets some reward. ex: credit toward any supplies, or recurring fees like testing, or discounts to their tuition. Free private lesson(s) with the head instructor of the school or one of the seniors.

[MightyB]

Right now's a good time to contact local schools to see if you can put on a MA demonstration/Rally. You have to be creative in making it relate to a school goal- something like "the power of motivation and commitment to a goal". Contact the principal and discuss what it is you want to show- and let them know it's free of charge. Afterwords hand out fliers on where and when your classes are. Now's a great time 'cuz Kung Fu Panda is releasing on DVD so the interest level should be high.

[packard]

I would look at the content of your web site again and make it a little easier to navigate.

You may wish to look at the way it is written and how it comes across. Put you feet in the shoes of some one who knows nothing about martial arts and then re-read your content. I understood everything, but a new reader may be put off by terminology and content.

Try google ad words as a way of advertsiing on the net as well - may get a few more clicks.

P

ps our paths crossed in a park in Taiwan about ten years ago. I was travelling with a freinds, met you and another guy and we sparred some. Small world!!

P

[SimonM]

My school:

Yellow Pages Ad
Signs in front of the school
Webpage
Youtube channel
Facebook account
Participation in forms (much more prevalent in the 1990's - much less so now, boxing, kickboxing, jiujitsu and (most recently) some low-level amateur mma events.

[xcakid]

Believe or not our school just has a website and a youtube page. We get 80-90% of our sign ups from that.

Small ad on yellow pages. I don't think we get anything from that.

The other 10-20% are just walk ins.

I believe our enrollment has been steady at around 80-90students. 50/50 mix of kids an adults. This has been steady for 2yrs now.

[ktkungfu]

Karate contest boxes

this what ussd shaolin kempo schools use(they have 150 dojos plus) bailey total fitness, golds gym, 24 fitness use to bring people in.

By 30 boxes and place them everywhere. Can't sign someone up if they dont stop in the dojo!

[SimonM]

That's actually how I first came to my first dojo. Won a contest through the children's museum for a month of free lessons.

[Tainan Mantis]

ps our paths crossed in a park in Taiwan about ten years ago. I was travelling with a freinds, met you and another guy and we sparred some. Small world!!

I think it was Neil?
I recall you had the wicked right eye poke.

I have tried to make this site as user friendly as possible

http://www.thekungfugym.com/

It still needs a lot of work, I try and change or make it better every few days.

ktkungfu,
I don't know exactly what a karate contest box is.

A contest for what?