Trying to balance out specialized classes

[skribs]

You advertise based on the benefits that you can provide to the prospective student. They care surprisingly little about your rank or competition results, unless they're a high-rank already looking to continue their study, or they're trying to become a serious sport competitor. Most people are not either of these. Most people want to get some exercise, meet new people, gain confidence, defend themselves, etc.

People want assurance that I can meet my claims. Rank or record provides assurance that I know what I'm talking about. Any whacko can copy some generic lines off of another martial art school and say: "Come join our school! Learn practical self-defense and fighting tips." People might be interested, but is that guy for real? Or is he a fraud?

Now, when you put any of these on the advertisement:

• Master WaterGal is a black belt in five different martial arts and created her own system from them
• Sensei Skribs is a 7th degree black belt in this international organization
• Professor Buka has used these techniques when teaching advanced SWAT classes
• Founder Dvcochran learned this fighting method when he was in the Special Forces
• Coach Jobo honed his skills on his way to a 27-3-1 professional record

All of these are hypothetical examples, not real feats from these posters.

All of a sudden, those "practical self-defense and fighting tips" carry weight. The weight of someone who was ranked by several different organizations (which means it wasn't just one guy). The weight of someone ranked highly in an organization. The weight of someone who used these techniques in elite combat units. The weight of someone who has had success in competition against other professional martial artists.

 

[dvcochran]

People want assurance that I can meet my claims. Rank or record provides assurance that I know what I'm talking about. Any whacko can copy some generic lines off of another martial art school and say: "Come join our school! Learn practical self-defense and fighting tips." People might be interested, but is that guy for real? Or is he a fraud?

Now, when you put any of these on the advertisement:

• Master WaterGal is a black belt in five different martial arts and created her own system from them
• Sensei Skribs is a 7th degree black belt in this international organization
• Professor Buka has used these techniques when teaching advanced SWAT classes
• Founder Dvcochran learned this fighting method when he was in the Special Forces
• Coach Jobo honed his skills on his way to a 27-3-1 professional record

All of these are hypothetical examples, not real feats from these posters.

All of a sudden, those "practical self-defense and fighting tips" carry weight. The weight of someone who was ranked by several different organizations (which means it wasn't just one guy). The weight of someone ranked highly in an organization. The weight of someone who used these techniques in elite combat units. The weight of someone who has had success in competition against other professional martial artists.

For us, being successful was more of a grass roots approach with a local focus. I feel the strongest advertising influence comes from confirmation by local sources. Way back in the 80's I was able to establish May 8th as Martial Arts Day in our county. Had a big PR thing about it. The various city Mayors and county Mayor were there and all backed it. We trained all but one of the Mayors and was able to use newspaper articles about their training (with personal quotes) to promote as well. Things like this self promote and often bring in higher clientele. All of which stimulates more growth. I have never been afraid to go to any of our professional organizations and/or lecture and demonstrate. Once I got in with the first (chamber of commerce) organization the others fell like dominos.
So to your list of website bullets:

• Master WaterGal's credentials would carry more weight to an experienced MAist, not so much for someone new.
• Sensei Skribs would carry a big hammer within his organization and not much else. I have a high number but am very wary to play that card at large. When it is all said and done it is a number that designates how long a person has been training. To a large degree it should indicate how much that person has done to promote their school/system or some other metric, like competition, whether themselves or who they have coached. The latter I feel carries more weight in general.
• Professor Buka may carry more weight with traditionalist, and not as much with sports oriented people.
• Founder Dvcochran would be much the same as Professor Buka. The structure of the class(es) would mean more in both regards.
• Coach Jobo would really resonate with competitors.

It is easy to see how each one would/could be marketed differently.

I have only been using social media heavily in a MA context for a few years. I know it is still very different region to region, but it has been an eye opener for me on some things. I can see how temporal things are and how they are changing. For example, uniforms and belting. Not nearly as important in the national/global perspective as it was say 20 years ago. Systems continue to fracture. TSD has taken a huge hit. Karate is, who knows what these days. Kung Fu??? With the exception of a few organizations like WT/KKW and MMA/BJJ specific styles are slowly in the amalgamation phase. Because of such easily available information a Lot of blending is going on. And particularly with MMA/BJJ that is the whole model. Definitely a threat to the longevity any one style right now.
Keeping a school/system closed loop is nearly impossible, fleeting, and foolish. People are just too informed today. The % of people who can be sold a 'black belt' program are dwindling, and I never thought they were a good thing for MA's anyway.
You have to show you have a great program. Period. Point out the things that make it great. An instructor can use their credentials here but it should be a minor player. I should point out when I got the majority of our local government, social, and school programs going I was only a 1st or 2nd Dan. And I don't ever remember using rank as a tool. I imagine it helped that black belts were more scarce back then but it was never "look at me, I am a black belt!" That has lame written all over it. I feel the same is true when using it as a qualifier in advertising on a website.

 

[skribs]

For us, being successful was more of a grass roots approach with a local focus. I feel the strongest advertising influence comes from confirmation by local sources. Way back in the 80's I was able to establish May 8th as Martial Arts Day in our county. Had a big PR thing about it. The various city Mayors and county Mayor were there and all backed it. We trained all but one of the Mayors and was able to use newspaper articles about their training (with personal quotes) to promote as well. Things like this self promote and often bring in higher clientele. All of which stimulates more growth. I have never been afraid to go to any of our professional organizations and/or lecture and demonstrate. Once I got in with the first (chamber of commerce) organization the others fell like dominos.
So to your list of website bullets:

• Master WaterGal's credentials would carry more weight to an experienced MAist, not so much for someone new.
• Sensei Skribs would carry a big hammer within his organization and not much else. I have a high number but am very wary to play that card at large. When it is all said and done it is a number that designates how long a person has been training. To a large degree it should indicate how much that person has done to promote their school/system or some other metric, like competition, whether themselves or who they have coached. The latter I feel carries more weight in general.
• Professor Buka may carry more weight with traditionalist, and not as much with sports oriented people.
• Founder Dvcochran would be much the same as Professor Buka. The structure of the class(es) would mean more in both regards.
• Coach Jobo would really resonate with competitors.

It is easy to see how each one would/could be marketed differently.

I have only been using social media heavily in a MA context for a few years. I know it is still very different region to region, but it has been an eye opener for me on some things. I can see how temporal things are and how they are changing. For example, uniforms and belting. Not nearly as important in the national/global perspective as it was say 20 years ago. Systems continue to fracture. TSD has taken a huge hit. Karate is, who knows what these days. Kung Fu??? With the exception of a few organizations like WT/KKW and MMA/BJJ specific styles are slowly in the amalgamation phase. Because of such easily available information a Lot of blending is going on. And particularly with MMA/BJJ that is the whole model. Definitely a threat to the longevity any one style right now.
Keeping a school/system closed loop is nearly impossible, fleeting, and foolish. People are just too informed today. The % of people who can be sold a 'black belt' program are dwindling, and I never thought they were a good thing for MA's anyway.
You have to show you have a great program. Period. Point out the things that make it great. An instructor can use their credentials here but it should be a minor player. I should point out when I got the majority of our local government, social, and school programs going I was only a 1st or 2nd Dan. And I don't ever remember using rank as a tool. I imagine it helped that black belts were more scarce back then but it was never "look at me, I am a black belt!" That has lame written all over it. I feel the same is true when using it as a qualifier in advertising on a website.

In your example, you have newspapers, politicians, and achievements that you're using to back your school's reputation. Those are verifiable accomplishments that you can use.

Most of the students at my school (and at most schools that offer kids classes) are kids. The parents want to make sure that they're getting a good class. Now, I don't personally know how much about my Master these parents know coming in. I know a lot of them think it's Karate or something else. But I also know that his website lists his credentials and his military history. He's got pictures on the wall from when he was in the military, and another wall with his martial arts certifications and his college degrees. I know a lot of our parents who've stuck around know his military history.

I also know people will post questions on Reddit and ask "is this school legit?" Or they'll ask "should I go to this school or that school?" And I would almost guarantee you with 100% certainty that if you took two schools that listed someone with your credentials and someone with mine, my answer would be:

"Well, the dvcochran academy is run by someone who is Master ranked, in fact in multiple organizations. He probably knows his stuff. This skribs school isn't even owned by a Master. I'm not sure how he's even running a school. If anything, he probably has to go to the dvcochran academy for his students to test for black belt (if not another school)."

I know that's what I would say about it. So I know that's what others would say as well.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

In your example, you have newspapers, politicians, and achievements that you're using to back your school's reputation. Those are verifiable accomplishments that you can use.

Most of the students at my school (and at most schools that offer kids classes) are kids. The parents want to make sure that they're getting a good class. Now, I don't personally know how much about my Master these parents know coming in. I know a lot of them think it's Karate or something else. But I also know that his website lists his credentials and his military history. He's got pictures on the wall from when he was in the military, and another wall with his martial arts certifications and his college degrees. I know a lot of our parents who've stuck around know his military history.

I also know people will post questions on Reddit and ask "is this school legit?" Or they'll ask "should I go to this school or that school?" And I would almost guarantee you with 100% certainty that if you took two schools that listed someone with your credentials and someone with mine, my answer would be:

"Well, the dvcochran academy is run by someone who is Master ranked, in fact in multiple organizations. He probably knows his stuff. This skribs school isn't even owned by a Master. I'm not sure how he's even running a school. If anything, he probably has to go to the dvcochran academy for his students to test for black belt (if not another school)."

I know that's what I would say about it. So I know that's what others would say as well.

Much of that requires some understanding of certifications and organizations. Most parents won't know that stuff. The other bits your Master uses (college degrees and military experience) will matter to some folks. I'd guess the military stuff generally plays well with a lot of folks - more than almost anything else mentioned recently.

Point is, while folks will definitely ask the questions you mentioned, what affects the response is very different for most consumers than it is for those of us who have some knowledge and experience.

 

[skribs]

Much of that requires some understanding of certifications and organizations. Most parents won't know that stuff. The other bits your Master uses (college degrees and military experience) will matter to some folks. I'd guess the military stuff generally plays well with a lot of folks - more than almost anything else mentioned recently.

Point is, while folks will definitely ask the questions you mentioned, what affects the response is very different for most consumers than it is for those of us who have some knowledge and experience.

They won't know the details, but I guarantee you that they should be able to figure out that having a lot of black belts or a high degree is pretty good.

They can post the question online to people who do have that requisite knowledge, something Insee fairly often.

 

[dvcochran]

In your example, you have newspapers, politicians, and achievements that you're using to back your school's reputation. Those are verifiable accomplishments that you can use.

Most of the students at my school (and at most schools that offer kids classes) are kids. The parents want to make sure that they're getting a good class. Now, I don't personally know how much about my Master these parents know coming in. I know a lot of them think it's Karate or something else. But I also know that his website lists his credentials and his military history. He's got pictures on the wall from when he was in the military, and another wall with his martial arts certifications and his college degrees. I know a lot of our parents who've stuck around know his military history.

I also know people will post questions on Reddit and ask "is this school legit?" Or they'll ask "should I go to this school or that school?" And I would almost guarantee you with 100% certainty that if you took two schools that listed someone with your credentials and someone with mine, my answer would be:

"Well, the dvcochran academy is run by someone who is Master ranked, in fact in multiple organizations. He probably knows his stuff. This skribs school isn't even owned by a Master. I'm not sure how he's even running a school. If anything, he probably has to go to the dvcochran academy for his students to test for black belt (if not another school)."
I know that's what I would say about it. So I know that's what others would say as well.

I fully acknowledge I may undervalue social media opinion when evaluating a school. The bigger point I was trying to make was how we focused on Where our clientele actually come from, not far off virtual data.
I had no special 'ins' or connections with any of our local organizations or government. Establishing the connection with our school systems and working With them to create programs that they endorsed is/was pretty much an automatic pass with parents looking to qualify our schools/classes for their kids. And then it feeds itself. Little Johnny tells little Billy he goes to X "Karate" school and Little Billy shows up for classes (half the kids could not tell you the name of our school if asked). I cannot tell you how many free hours and programs I have done with our schools. Thousands I am certain. But I knew there was a payoff. And that is where social media can work for you. When you have something to advertise at the local level (yes that includes fb, twitter, newspaper, etc...). So you have to Do something within the community first, not Have something (rank/certificate). That is the tangible vs. intangible. This is where it doesn't matter what your competition is doing or how much competition you have; you have to out work them and do what You do better.
It is much more about the tangibles rather than the intangibles; for example, a person's military history (all respect given and I thank him/her for their service) swings a hammer but not with everyone. Little Johnny's mom may be much more drawn and affirmed by certificates/plaques on the wall from the local school system versus military history, But she would be much more affirmed seeing happy (not wild) kids working out in an organized, constructive class.
So instead of asking a Very general questions from a Very large circle of people on social media think about it from a very specific, local level. That where the meat and potato's really exist. Absolutely research and learn how others are doing things, but until you figure out how to apply it to your real, tangible, physical school it means nothing.
Especially in a service industry like a MA school a person cannot build a successful business from day one by building a paper resume. It just doesn't have that much value in today's society where so much can be easily faked. 99% of people use the smell test first and most of them have a pretty good nose. So having a stack of certificates to place on the wall about what You have done is the wrong approach for building your business. For building You? Absolutely. They are not mutually exclusive But do not have a 1:1 relationship either. To use analogy; you could be the best fighter in you area with tons of medals, plaques, and titles and still be an absolutely horrible MA teacher and businessman.
Build your spreadsheet and put your priorities in columnar form. Then fill in the weighted items and math to satisfy the priorities.
Make a list (plan). Scribble it out and start over. Some of the things you need to do can be started well before the door to your school opens. Had I known this I would have done the same. Research you local school(s) system. Find out who the Principles and P.E. teachers are. Meet with them, face to face. Tell them what you are doing and ASK FOR HELP. And be of help to them. Do the same with your local organizations. Physically/mentally in a tangible way get involved. Become someone/something seen as an asset. Yes, you may feel like an indentured servant sometimes. That is okay. Being a servant is not a bad thing. Quite noble in my opinion.
And there is a Ton of value in being able to weigh things and cull, really cull the things that have little to no value (like lofty things said on SM). Some people keep dragging them around thinking they have some kind of value when really it is just slowing them down. This is something I see people doing with stuff they get from social media. It is just stuff until you actually do something with it. There is no magic, it just takes hard work.

 

[WaterGal]

People want assurance that I can meet my claims. Rank or record provides assurance that I know what I'm talking about. Any whacko can copy some generic lines off of another martial art school and say: "Come join our school! Learn practical self-defense and fighting tips." People might be interested, but is that guy for real? Or is he a fraud?

Now, when you put any of these on the advertisement:

• Master WaterGal is a black belt in five different martial arts and created her own system from them
• Sensei Skribs is a 7th degree black belt in this international organization
• Professor Buka has used these techniques when teaching advanced SWAT classes
• Founder Dvcochran learned this fighting method when he was in the Special Forces
• Coach Jobo honed his skills on his way to a 27-3-1 professional record

All of these are hypothetical examples, not real feats from these posters.

All of a sudden, those "practical self-defense and fighting tips" carry weight. The weight of someone who was ranked by several different organizations (which means it wasn't just one guy). The weight of someone ranked highly in an organization. The weight of someone who used these techniques in elite combat units. The weight of someone who has had success in competition against other professional martial artists.

I've managed a school full-time for quite a few years now, and I thought the same thing when I was starting out. But, it turns out that most people really don't care about that stuff all that much. On your website, they want to see photos of happy students smiling and working out (for adults, intense looks while working out is fine), some copy about how you'll improve their/their child's lives, and a low-commitment trial offer that's easy to sign up for. They'll come and visit your school, and then you'll persuade them of your professionalism and teaching expertise during the trial or you won't. We do list the credentials of the instructors on the about us/staff page of our website, so someone who does want to know that can look it up, but it's definitely not something we base our advertising on.