In Depth Audio Interview…

SOS Member Adam Grisko

 He is one of our Personal Coaching Clients and a SOS member.

In this Interview we cover the 7 Success Keys that he focused on to open up 2 schools in the past 19 months with almost no cash! Very Imformative and really gives you a “Check up from the Neck up”.

Listen to the Interview Now (Approx time 37 minutes)

Now that summer is almost over, we will have a HUGE chance to harvest fall and winter students. But, planning starts now.

Why not renew or create some goals for the rest of this year? Click Here to get started with setting some goals and a action plan.

 Five Tips and Tactics for Thriving in a Tough Economy

What do people typically call the present status of the economy? A recession?  A downturn?  Whatever you call it, the rate of income growth across US businesses has slowed to a crawl, and that is scaring the pants off of a lot of people. Your own business may not be affected in any way, but the fact is that many people are worried about their future… very worried.

Bad news?  Obviously, in some ways, it really is! Those worried folks only spend less money these days and don’t buy anymore on impulse, making each and every transaction, making each sale a little bit harder.

But for those of us with the right approach, there’s hope. A sure hope and opportunity. You will ask, “Why?” The fact remains to be simple and true and that is while everyone else is capitalizing with less vigor and determination, you can do the exact opposite. As what Paul Lemberg puts it that while timid business owners are pulling in their horns and “conserving cash” you can outmarket them. As the unemployment rate creeps up, you can acquire their staff more easily.  And good businesses are for sale and can be bought on the cheap. How about that?

Here are a few martial arts business tips and tactics that will definitely help when things get rough.  These tips apply whenever your School needs a boost.  You can think of them as turnaround tactics.

1. Market Harder

Make sure to advertise your business harder!  Hey – either they will enroll in your school, or not.  And if they don’t, there are plenty of other clients and prospects, so who cares. But when students and prospects are feeling the pinch they become circumspect about how they spend their money, and it takes more persuasion to get them to enroll.  Research shows that it takes as many as seven – even ten – “touches” to get someone to take action.  And sales data shows that most people stop closing after the first try, and even professional folks usually quit after the third time.   Advertise harder.  Ask more often.  Use stronger arguments. Go back to your people repeatedly and make them see the need!

2. Narrow Your Focus and Broaden Your Lines

This may seem like a paradox – narrow and broaden at the same time.  It isn’t.  You’ve got to free yourself from all distractions.  Prune outlying ventures and offshoots that aren’t really part of your core business.  Narrow your focus and spend all your energy on strengthening the core materials and services that contribute most to your income.  Next, make it easier for your good students/clients to spend more money with you.  Figure out what related promo or services they want and need and make the strategy to offer it to them.

3. Spend More Money On Marketing

Most business owners “budget” for marketing, which only makes sense if you think of it as a cost.  Instead, if you see marketing as a income generator, you should be willing to be spend some defined fraction of that income to acquire yet more income!  That fraction should be a function of your average customers lifetime value.  If you follow tip 2 above, you will quickly increase your average lifetime value, and therefore be willing and able to spend more.  Test first. Make sure your programs work before you roll out big.  One more thing; in tough times, you may also want to think about increasing that fraction itself.  If you normally consider spending 10% of lifetime value to acquire a student, you may want to increase it to 12% or 15%.

4. Establish Your Referral Systems

Teach your Martial Arts Buisness to market itself. How do you do that? Well, it start’s with being REMARKABLE! What is your Buisness Story? This is a great place to start. Create your School’s story, why your passionate about teaching martial arts and how it came to be. Create a great looking sheet to give to prospects, Have a mural painted in your school of the story. This will train your students to TELL your buisness story to others. Also, use social media (video works best) to feature students. You will find when you put up a “student of the week” video on your blog or fan page that your students will be sending them to your page to check it out. Buddy Days, Contests and all other referral tactics only CONSITENTLY produce results when you have made every part of your martial arts business UNIQUE! Think of the last time you had a GREAT experience dining, you wanted to TELL everyone you know to go there. When you run Tactics such as a buddy day WITHOUT being REMARKABLE your students have no impetus to bring your referrals. SPECIAL NOTE - We have a great new Video Training on our REFERRAL FLOOD SYSTEM, watch your inbox for detals.

5. Clarify Your Value Proposition

Remember: even if there really is a ‘recession,’ people are always going to spend money.  Perhaps not as easily or as much, but we all still have needs and wants, and we are going to try to satisfy those.  That means that while people aren’t rushing to pull out their wallets for every offer that comes along, they will still spend on things perceived as valuable.  What does that mean?  Before you may have gotten away with a lot of fast talk.  Now you have to prove it to them.  Spell it out; show them exactly how they will benefit – in financial terms like how martial arts can prevent them from hospitalization bills and other aspects of their lives.  Use case studies, testimonials, examples, demonstrations.

BONUS TIP – Sweeten Your Offer

Get OUTRAGEOUS! create a offer that your prospects can’t refuse and then sweeten it more. Check out your compettitors offers and make yours 10x better. I suggest using FREE trial offers with a touch of “Velvet Rope -Take away” in the process. Offer them a 2 week Trail and at the end of the 2 weeks we will BOTH see if it;s a good fit. Offer them a bonus gift right after the 2 weeks are up and give them little bonuses throughout the 2 week trail. This will make you UNIQUE and don’t forget to INVITE them into your membership or GRADUATE them into your club at the end of the 2 weeks. Once they have been ACCEPTED it makes it easy to ask them for the names of 3 friends, nieghboors or co workers. I like to do this on the 4 week Check Up call!

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What was your biggest “Takeaway” from this post. Please Share your comments with us below.

The so-called martial arts business-building gurus have it all wrong…

There’s a whole bunch of nonsense being fed to school about the cause of such struggling within the profession.

And, it really ticks us off!

Today, you’re finally going to hear the truth about why so many school owners never reach their financial goals, and the *one* thing YOU can do to make sure YOU do.

Be honest, how many of these have you heard blamed for the reason why so many schools are barely getting by:

1. Martial Artist don’t get the respect they deserve.
2. Martial Artist still really isn’t accepted as a legitimate option to change lives.
3. The economy is hard and no one is buying martial arts training right now.
4. There are way too many martial arts schools in this town.
5. People don’t understand the immense value of martial arts training.

So, how many of those have you heard???

If you’re like most school owners… almost all of them.

Well, none of those reasons are the REAL cause behind most school owners struggles. None of them.

What is then?

Well, I’ll tell you what Dunn and Bradstreet, the largest credit reporting business there is, says…

‘Of the small businesses that fail, 90% do so because of a lack of skills and knowledge on the part of the owner.’

Did you get that?

‘…a lack of skills and knowledge on the part of the owner’. (And that’s not me saying it, it’s Dunn & Bradstreet).

90% of business failures, including martial arts school, are because the owner of the business – the martial artist– lacks the necessary skills and knowledge to build a sustainable, highly-profitable business (school).

It’s not because of competition. It’s not because of economy. It’s not because of consumer education. It’s because of a lack of knowledge and skills in certain key business-building areas.

For most school owners, they don’t want to hear this. They want to hear another reason, or another answer, or another solution.

But, there’s not one.

As a martial arts school owner, whether you like it or not, you’re an entrepreneur with your own business. You’re a business owner. And, this is your life. This is your livelihood. You’re playing for keeps here.

This isn’t a hobby.

And, as a business owner you always have to be mature enough to see things as they really are. You can’t lie to yourself or delude yourself into seeing something that’s not there. Or, to NOT seeing something that *IS* there.

Fact is, if you’re not getting the results you want in your school— the new students, the referrals, the student retention, the cash flow, etc. — you need to recognize there’s some skillset or knowledge you’re lacking.

Don’t buy into any other cause or reason. Don’t!

Now, once you realize you’re lacking the knowledge in a certain area, there are only two things you can do:

1. You can go out and gain the knowledge you need to go from struggling in an area to thriving.

Personally, this is the course we always take. And if you are struggling with your online marketing then please attend our “Free Online Martial Arts Marketing Revealed.” Even if you are a veteran we would encourage you to attend. You just might find the 1 or 2 things that could skyrocket your business.

Now we know the thought of ‘learning’ business-building skills is probably painful for you. We understand that.

However, whether you want to hear it or not, we’re going to tell you…

What you don’t know about building your martial arts business is going to set the height of your schools success. It’s not what you DO know. It’s what you DON’T know about building your martial arts business that determines your level of success. Period.

If you’re *truly* serious about creating a thriving martial arts school that gives you the lifestyle you’ve always wanted, than there are certain business-building activities that need to occur in your school on a regular basis.

You either need to know (knowledge) how to do them yourself (skill) or you need to have someone do them for you. Regardless, they need to be done if you’re going to create that thriving school.

The other option you have, if you just refuse to learn the skill-sets yourself, is to have someone else who has the knowledge and skill do it all for you.

And, quite frankly, this is why we are conducting this free webinar entitled “Free Online Martial Arts Marketing Revealed.”

Click the link below to register now. There are only 97 spots available.
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Don’t forget about this Thursday’s FREE Webinar!
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Register Now For Thursday’s FREE Webinar! Only 100 slots available
Title: “Free Online Martial Arts Marketing Revealed”
Date:  Thursday, October 29, 2009
Time:  11:00 AM – 12:15 PM CST
Register now by clicking the link below:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/158466362 <==
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Talk to your tomorrow when we will go over the 3 Martial Arts Marketing Tools That Will Absolutely Grow Your business.

Until then… happy marketing,

~Duane and Dion
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/158466362 <==

Focus For The Martial Arts Business Owner

Focus is the one thing which sets apart a successful Martial Arts Business owner from those others who have not managed to make it. It can not be denied that any business, from start-up to those which are already established, that there seems to be a lot of things which must be done, covered and attended to in order to make it in any business. A day always seem to be filled with many issues and ideas which poses several trade-offs and impacts.

For some very lucky individuals, the trick to getting everything done is to have someone do it for them. However, not a lot of us are very fortunate to have individuals at our beck and call. Even those who have other people at their disposal would still agree that despite the disposal of resources and manpower, not everything gets done still as time may not always be on their side. Budget and time-constraints present to the individual an opportunity to make a choice and consider trade-offs.

This dilemma does present pressing questions among individuals. Pressing questions which makes the entrepreneur weigh all the matters which must be done which are presented on their plate. It can not be denied that while these matters are important, they are of different impact and effects; some may offer the possibility of more reward, while some may offer greater risks with maximum of benefits.

One of the most powerful piece of advice anyone can give to anyone about dilemmas like these is that the individual must focus on the one thing which they believe matters the most and divert their focus on the said thing. It must be understood that some priorities must be sacrificed in order to give in to other priorities which are of higher value. There are attachments and priorities which can be let go in order to attend to the one thing which matters the most.

Time and resources may not always be on one’s side as there may be things which must be done preferably prioritized over others. There are some questions which must be considered in order to determine the value of the things we have on our plate. These questions help to determine which must be prioritized and sacrificed in order to reach success.

Which item would prove to have the most significant impact? What will provide the most profits? Which can prove to be most successful? What is the most rewarding? What takes up most of your time and if done would help free your time? What will be the most strategical if done first?

These questions will succinctly address what is the most essential to your martial arts business success. These questions help one focus on the one thing which require attention as it yields the best and most profitable results. Focus on this one thing, and it will surely help you avoid being overwhelmed with having too much to do.

TRY School Owners Secrets Insiders Club for $1

Please comment on what the top 3 things you wished you did not focus onin the past  in your school…

We just had our Q & A call for our paying SOS Insiders Club Members and we thought you would like to get a preview of what these calls are like.

In this 60 minute call we cover everything of how to structure your offer, school owner productivity, cool new automation tools, how to get the most out of your birthday parties, outdoor signage and snipe signs and a bunch of other really good questions from school owners like yourself. Don’t forget, you can either listen to the call online or download the MP3 file for use on your MP3 player.

All this stuff pertains to your Martial Arts School Business and marketing.

Instead, of commenting on the call Duane and I want to know what are your most pressing questions.

If you don’t have any then comment on what has been working for you to enroll students…The best tactic you have used in the past 3 months.

Comment below.

Now click on the audio player and ENJOY!

Download the file Q & A Call SOS Insiders 7-2009

This is a sample of what’s inside of SOS insiders club. Business Wisdom Briefs is a distilled action plan from the top business books so that YOU don’t have to read them. You only get the actionable items from these book summaries.

	Identify every point of contact, and every purpose for contact between your customers and your company.
	Schedule a weekly ‘contact improvement meeting’ to continually brainstorm and discuss ways to improve each and every contact.
	Adopt this job description for your customer service team: “Make the customers happy. Make the prospects happy. Make each other happy.”
	Prepare a list of questions and statements for customer service reps to use that include questions about the customer’s situation and needs, statements about your company and your products, and ways of asking for the sale.
	Give things you already do special names — e.g. if you want your customer service reps to get to know your clients, you’re going to want to have them ask questions, right? Well, if you’re in the B2B space for example, why not call it the “5 Minute Business Breakthrough Assessment”. Then your customer service rep can say, “It sounds to me like you could benefit from our ‘5 Minute Business Breakthrough Assessment’ that my boss prepared… do you have 5 minutes to learn how we can make or save you thousands of dollars?”.
	Schedule a meeting to brainstorm all the products and services you can deliver QUICKLY, SIMPLY AND EASILY by extending, separating, or leveraging your current products and knowledge.
	Identify your new customer’s honeymoon period, and find a way to activate the referral during that specific period in time. Make it irresistable.
	Automate the request for testimonials… and when you get one, give the client a call to say thank-you and to introduce them to your referral program.
	Initiate awareness of the need to refer even before a person becomes a customer.
	Consider allowing customers and partners to EXTEND your product offering with 3rd-party content or services.
	Develop a product for potential partners to give away — something that makes THEM money.
	Schedule a brainstorming meeting identify a special experience you can give to your new customers. Pick ONE cool idea and implement it EXCEPTIONALLY well.

]]> http://www.schoolownersecrets.com/duct-tape-marketing/feed 0 http://www.schoolownersecrets.com/no-bs-ruthless-managment http://www.schoolownersecrets.com/no-bs-ruthless-managment#comments Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:59:16 +0000 admin http://www.schoolownersecrets.com/?p=711

This is a sample of what’s inside of SOS insiders club. Business Wisdom Briefs is a distilled action plan from the top business books so that YOU don’t have to read them. You only get the actionable items from these book summaries.

	Stop trying to make the workplace fun. Instead focus on expressing the MISSION and PURPOSE of your company.
	Have a break room with a computer, a phone, and a sofa. Everywhere else is 100% workspace.
	Be yourself! Flaws and all. Hire thick skinned employees who can handle you at your extremes.
	Make your most important jobs BETTER jobs — by making that job more profitable so you can afford to pay well, etc.
	Educate your employees during orientation that THEIR job is to make themselves so valuable to the company (profit-wise) that the company wouldn’t want to see them go.
	Make every job a profit center by redefining the job & adding marketing-related goals.
	Be on the lookout for excuses… they indicate “activity” without “results”.
	If an employee is not an “A” player, redefine the job description, develop the employee aggressively, demote employee to a better matched position, or free up that employee to seek a better match at a different company.
	Find a way to use the combination of MEASUREMENT + COMPETITION to motivate your employees. This requires public display of individual performance. Your best employees will love it. Your worst employees will quit.
	Consider buying a 50” HDTV for the office that constantly displays employee numbers. It’ll cost you just $150 a month or so on credit, and the rewards will be exponential.
	Systemize all the small things in operations manuals.
	Apply the 5-step system below to get SPEED into your business model.

Let me ask you, what do you picture when you think about a velvet rope? Oscars. Right, when we say velvet rope, we visualize red carpet, looking at Hollywood stars, guards, and waiting in line. Wouldn’t it be great to create this kind of feeling about your martial arts business? Where all your clients are lining up to train in your school.. We say, this is possible. It really is.

Here are 5 simple marketing that get students to be hungry to train with you.

1. Create a blog with good copy.

This will bring more people in your website when you create blog not just to give information that YOU think is interesting but give information that your customer wants. As more people join and read your blogs, they will post comments and makes you the expert.

2. Market yourself in the community in the means of TV, newspaper, magazines and etc.

Marketing yourself is the easiest way to create the velvet rope. People think that media people are considered as the experts. When you use this, potential prospects will be thinking why else the media chose you if you weren’t the best? Start building relationships with the media by contacting them through email and send press releases. As we know, that they are busy and you want to make their life easier for them build a bargain for them. Like offering them free training, or create 5 story ideas for them to use, and build content that is easy for the media to use. My favorite is to attain a column and write regular articles on parenting, fitness and personal protection.

3. Have lots of testimonials

Aggressively pursue testimonials from your loyal clients. Use them to inspire other new prospects to join. Collect as many testimonials as possible, if you have enough arrange them for reaching out to a variety of people who have the same goals as them. One of our favorite tactics is to have a members appreciation day at which time you have someone walking around asking your students questions like ” What was your best day at training?” What positive impact on your life has happened as a result of training at ________?”.

4.  Find your niche

Finding a niche will help you become more exclusive with the people you work with. If you have a potential client who doesn’t fit your standards, then in polite way explain that you are focusing on whatever type of student and would love to refer her/him to another school who would be suited for their needs. The person, who you just have turned down, will tell to their friends what happen, eventually it will increase your velvet rope feel around your business.

5.  Create good newsletter to send to your lists.

90% of your newsletter must be content base providing them the information that they are seeking. You could add some personal touch in the newsletter.

When using newsletter to promote your service, indicate and make them clear that you don’t accept every person. Use phrases with application process or trial period, state the expectations that you have for each client and if those expectation are not met then you have the right to stop working with them. Do not beg or plead a potential client to train with you. This will help you boost up your number of clients because of how you set standards with each and every client and with good customer service. It creates credibility within yourself as well as your martial arts business.

Those are 5 ways to get clients waiting in line to get you to work with them. We can personally tell you that this works and recommend you to GO OUT AND DO THE SAME.