Often when we meet with yoga studio owners, we find out that they are struggling to increase the visibility of their studio. Many established yoga studios are finding that they are losing students to new studios. New yoga studios are more interested in building a a nice base of students and continuing to grow. After you create a brand and a website for your yoga studio, what can you do to promote new business? There are proven ways to help get the word out about your business and attract new students to your studio. Follow these tips and watch your business grow!
Become a master networker. Attend and present at every event in town. Your contribution to the overall community will make you one of the first people that come to mind when they consider joining a yoga studio.
If you don’t like the events you are attending, invent your own! This is a great way to find like-minded people in your community. New connections, new students!
Attend community events, street festivals, and farmers markets; offer demonstrations; and pass out cards good for one free class. Remove the intimidation factor! Once customers have a sense of who you are and what you have to offer, they will become regular students.
You have something of value to offer others. We are in an unprecedented time where yoga, mindfulness, meditation, breathing, and stress management are widely recognized by mainstream America as necessary for a healthy lifestyle. Your expertise is needed and can be helpful to others. Host a chat on Twitter once a week to answer questions about the healing benefits of yoga.
Create your own podcast–interview yogis at all levels of practice. Interview other studio owners. Interview business owners who are interested in wellness for their employees. People love to tell their story, and by highlighting them on a podcast you make an instant and meaningful connection.
The secret to getting the most out of a group or organization is not just to attend but to lead. Served as the president of of your local chamber of commerce, professional membership organization, or other nonprofit organization. This will allow you to rub elbows with the most connected people in your area.
Many local organizations are not all that expensive to sponsor for a year. Your studio will get exposure every time the organization sends out an e-mail and a mention every time they meet. Attendees always remember and appreciate companies who sponsor their favorite organizations.
If you want to stay in relationship with your customers, there is nothing simpler than creating a weekly Email that provides something of value. Of course you want to drive up attendance for the upcoming yoga workshop, but you should lead with something of value for your audience. Share a series of poses that is especially helpful for digestion, or a 5-minute yoga break designed for people who sit at computers all day long. Keep your studio, and their yoga practice, top of mind so that they keep coming back.
It doesn’t necessarily matter what the cause. If you are interested in the environment, host a zero-landfill vegetarian BBQ every year for Earth Day. You will teach others to be mindful about their waste and demonstrate simple ways to reduce their environmental impact. Meanwhile, you will fill their bellies and create goodwill, new connections, and future customers!
When thinking through what your studio will give away make sure it’s something they won’t want to throw away or easily lose in their desk or bag (think pen). The best type of swag is the type that provides value. Offer a pocket card with chair-based asanas for stress relief at work…along with all the details about your studio on the back, of course.
Remember that marketing your yoga studio is a process, there is no silver bullet. The important thing is to have a plan and follow through! At some point you need to say NO MORE PLANNING! TIME TO TAKE ACTION! There are a lot of ways you can promote your yoga studio locally and on the web. We recommend that you test out some of the strategies we suggested above and see how they work for your studio. It’s time to take the next step in growing your yoga studio.
10 Quick Ways to Increase your Yoga Studio Website’s Conversion Rate
10 Tips for Better Yoga Studio Email Marketing
5 Common Online Marketing Mistakes Yoga Studios Should Avoid in 2016