Poster/Leaflet

Hey Guys,

I wanna design a new leaflet/poster for my class, for you guys who advertsie this way, is there anything you like to put on there and things that should be avoided.
when i was teaching karate and kickboxing it was easy as most people have some idea of what there dealing with.

matt

Hi Matt

I'm probably the worst guy to offer advice when it comes to advertising.

My usual mistakes are to put too much information on the posters and fliers, making them too busy and this puts people off reading them.

Depends what kind of client/student you want to attract but for me, I am avoiding lots of aggressive looking images and going for something that has lots of smiling faces, where people viewing the poster see others having fun.

Just get the basics on there - where, when, how much, and your contact details
Give them something that leaves them wanting more info and how they can get it - once they are on the phone or emailing you, then you can offer more info and explain why your club is the best to train at.

A good friend of mine runs marketing courses, not for martial arts business, but it's all applicable.
There's lots of clever things you can include such as key words which are more likely to draw interest such as, DISCOVER the SECRETS, LEARN How You CAN, etc etc
Lots of advertisers use words like these to draw people in.

However, so long as your adverts are truthful and show integrity I'm sure they will be fine.

Anyone else on here with relevant experience?

Thanks Al,
I Apreciate the response. I was making the mistake of putting some of the more agrressive pictures on my poster and think this was probally scaring a few people off, before they came to the class and i could explain why and how these techniques are performed.

Its all a learning curve though

matt

Hello Matt

My day job is the head of a marketing team, which has always helped me in communicating my martial arts. If you are trying to attract students then just some key points from me:

1. Have a good website. If you’re not on the web, you don’t exist.

2. Get on You Tube. Talk is cheap, its 2010 and people want to see the product, therefore you need to provide video representation of what you do. I have a series of videos on You Tube and they are the reason most people find my website and contact me.

3. Your marketing messages = the students who walk in the door. If you make your marketing macho, corny, clichéd and dramatic – you’ll end up with a room of Bruce Lee wannabes. If you make it intelligent, honest and articulate then your students will be a reflection of that.

4. Flyers and posters are a fairly cost effective way to drum up interest in your local area. However, after your description (see point 3 above) I would just put the night of the training, a rough location, and then ask them to visit the website. Putting everything on there is an open invite for muppets to turn up and waste your class time.

5. Your greatest adverts are your own students. Most of the people who have come into my clubs have done so on the personal recommendation of my students – free advertising. Try to get your students to recruit, offer deals for recommend a friend, because friends tend to show up more often and stay longer at the club.

Good luck

MW

What, Where , who for and when Are the most important. You should never be scared of putting the price on your flyer but be carefull. to cheap and your rated as no good, to dear and your rated as elitest.

Thanks guys,

taken all the info in...now its onto the drawing board.

Great advice guys
Mick x