When looking for a Martial Art what first attracted you to look at your current dojo/art?

Question

What kind of advertising drew your attention? Yellow Pages Ad, Web Site, Public Demonstration, Flyer, etc? I'm trying to get an idea of what more we can do to get people in the door, and I'm curious what worked for/on you.

Answer 1

Martial Arts Instructors Desk Reference
by Sang H. Kim, PH.D.

This is a book made for instructors. It has ideas ranging from warm ups to drills to handling problem students to marketing ideas. I bought it and have got some good ideas from it. If you have any more questions contact me.

PS What drew me to my current dojang was the reputation of the head instructor. I've worked with him in the past.

Answer 2

"Breaks out crying uncontrollably and bangs head against the wall"... If you'll look, you'll see that this question has been asked upwards of 3,000 times!!!! There is NO BEST MARTIAL ART (that means there's not one, zilch, zip, nada). That's like asking what the best color is. The answer will always be an opinion. While I may say Ninjutsu, someone else will say Judo or Jujutsu, or Kempo. In the end it all depends on the practitioner and the quality of their training. Rather than worrying about what style to take, take a look at ALL of the schools in your area. Choose the one with the best teacher and whatever he teaches will be the best martial art available to you.

Answer 3

I was just driving by the dojo and decided to take a trial class. (I had taken some Tae Kwon Do lessons at the local YMCA about a year before and I really enjoyed it.) After the class I signed up and have been attending the school almost everyday since then! Next month I will be testing for my Red Belt!

Answer 4

Word of mouth, I was recommended to go my dojo by various people who had heard how great the trainer was.... I was looking to change dojo's as I didn't like the techniques I was learning in advanced level of my old discipline (they didn't seem realistic to me) soo I asked around and kept getting referrals to a few of the same gyms, I signed up with one of them and am extremely happy, I wish I had of found this gym first and not the other one..
So basically if you train well and get a good reputation, word of mouth will be the best advertising you can get...

p.s. (not sure what discipline you are teaching), but maybe participate your dojo in a few local fight night's in your area, great advertising and if you train well and have a few people from your dojo winning fights regularily you will have no probs attracting people..

Answer 5

iv'e been training to long to remember.but what i can tell you is i had 7 dojos at one stage all taught and ran by myself and i got most of my students by word of mouth.or just by ppl recognising me and striking up a conversation about ma and then they 'd turn up at the next training session.other than that i found the best way of advertising is in the local newspaper,it's normally cheap and most ppl in the local area read it.if your just starting off quite often they'll even do a story on you and an advert for nothing.the other way is letter box drops or notices at local shops and malls.malls are good because a lot of ppl go there when there bored,if they see a notice on the board it grabs there attention because like i said there bored?shirts are good to or a sticker on your car,it's surprising how many students you will get just from someone walking up and starting a conversation because they see a shirt or a sticker or even a ma tattoo,i wouldn't recommend that as a way of advertising though.lol.

Answer 6

Let's see, trying ever martial arts school within 10 miles of my house or work and finding one that I really enjoyed. Most advertised two week trial and free uniform for $29.99 but in reality that just means, two free weeks of lessons and $29.99 for the uniform. I never paid a dime for trial classes and just wore sweatpants and a t-shirt to those classes. If you are looking for a martial arts school, this is probably the best advice I can give you...take advantage of free classes and don't decide until you tried them all in your area!

Answer 7

Years ago I before I started practicing Muay Thai, I was actually looking to take up boxing. I was looking for someplace or gym that had a decent boxing ring. I had just moved to Richmond, VA and a friend of mine I just met told me to come out to the studio where they do martial arts. After watching a couple of class sessions and seeing how much boxing was involved, it was not very long before I was clinching necks and kicking the banana bag myself.

Answer 8

Try and get involved with your local Parks & Recreation department. That's how I got started: my mom was looking through the catalouge with all the parks & rec programs and saw TKD, so she started me. I know that's what my instructor first started was only with parks & rec, then from that she gained enough students to open her own studio. Your city may already have a martial arts instructor with parks & rec, so in that case this may be pointless, but definitely check it out!

Answer 9

Word of mouth.

I went there because they were hosting a full-contact swordsmanship tournament open to all schools and styles (so long as your protective gear qualifies).

I went down and chatted with the teacher for the better part of the morning and afternoon and played with some of his students.

I sparred (sword) on a number of occasions with his students and eventually joined his non-weapons classes.

Answer 10

Well I was basically referred to it by a friend, who trained there for 5 years nearly every day and was a 2nd Level Dan. After showing my some kicks and teaching me a bit, I went and signed up.