How do you advertise your school?

[tallgeese]

To date, my schools advertising is nearly entirely web based. We run a regular YouTube channel and Facebook page where nearly all of our activity comes from. While we maintain a website (and I really think it looks great) we really don't get much business from it. Almost all of our non-referral based customers come to us thru social media.

We've held off doing more due to limited space that we're rectifying now by opening up part of our basement. The plan is flyers and direct mailers. Maybe I'll have a better estimation of their importance by next year.

Patrick put me on to the concept of content based marketing, where you're building quality and getting hits off of like minded individuals attracted to the brand. That's really the direction we've tried to push and focus on.

Internally, people seem to love the social media presence because they are always pulling pictures off our page, etc.

[JR 137]

I just want to add, as a non-instructor, that for Millennial, a web presence is vital. You could have grown up on Okinawa, learned from Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Relson Gracie, and Steve Seagal, trained BJ Penn and Ronda Rousey, and won Olympic Gold metals in Judo, Boxing, and TKD, but if you don't have at least an active facebook, if not a Web site as well, you may as well be a scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do. When I see a school I've never seen before, the first thing I do is Google it. You HAVE to make sure you can be located online in this day in age. A web page is such an easy thing to set up, if you don't have it, people will be asking "What else doesn't he have? Running water? Power? Real MA training?"

Ouch! And I'm NO "scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do." I don't have a website/facebook, our Hombu doesn't have a website, and neither of us truly want a website, and my reasons as to why can be found somewhere here at KF!! Btw, I'm quite finished defending our/my reasons for not having/wanting a website!!

A WEBSITE MEANS NOTHING...IMHO!! Why? Proof is ON THE FLOOR, and not in some website! I've known and seen so many schools of the MA that have running water and power and real MA training, but their ineffective across the board.

I take offense to being lumped as a fake, and this is what I'm being told that that I am. If I am, then so is our Soke, Dai-Soke, student body, and Shindokan!!

I've more important things to worry about than creating and managing a website, like, teach Shindokan, and administrate the SKKA!!

I respect those who do have a website, but I'm/we're lampooned and lambasted mercilessly because I/We don't have a website!!

I think you took his post the wrong way, sensei. I'm pretty sure he was referring to public/uninformed potential students' perception than reality.

When looking for a dojo, the one I chose didn't have a running website (it was down), and the Facebook page wasn't very good. It's sole purpose was to let students know of scheduling changes due to weather or the like, remind them of special events and times, and post some pictures in case students wanted them.

They now have a simple website -

http://www.adirondackseidokarate.com

I think it's crucial to have a web presence. Doesn't have to be elaborate; just something stating who you are, what you do, how to contact you, and when classes are available.

I don't have Facebook (yes, that one person in the universe without it is me!) nor care for it, but it's a good way of easily communicating a student body and potentially making things more personal. Have a look at our dojo's page -

https://m.facebook.com/AdirondackSeidoKarate

If you scroll down to the photos section, I'm in the first pic, standing with Tadashi Nakamura

[sensei8]

I just want to add, as a non-instructor, that for Millennial, a web presence is vital. You could have grown up on Okinawa, learned from Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Relson Gracie, and Steve Seagal, trained BJ Penn and Ronda Rousey, and won Olympic Gold metals in Judo, Boxing, and TKD, but if you don't have at least an active facebook, if not a Web site as well, you may as well be a scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do. When I see a school I've never seen before, the first thing I do is Google it. You HAVE to make sure you can be located online in this day in age. A web page is such an easy thing to set up, if you don't have it, people will be asking "What else doesn't he have? Running water? Power? Real MA training?"

Ouch! And I'm NO "scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do." I don't have a website/facebook, our Hombu doesn't have a website, and neither of us truly want a website, and my reasons as to why can be found somewhere here at KF!! Btw, I'm quite finished defending our/my reasons for not having/wanting a website!!

A WEBSITE MEANS NOTHING...IMHO!! Why? Proof is ON THE FLOOR, and not in some website! I've known and seen so many schools of the MA that have running water and power and real MA training, but their ineffective across the board.

I take offense to being lumped as a fake, and this is what I'm being told that that I am. If I am, then so is our Soke, Dai-Soke, student body, and Shindokan!!

I've more important things to worry about than creating and managing a website, like, teach Shindokan, and administrate the SKKA!!

I respect those who do have a website, but I'm/we're lampooned and lambasted mercilessly because I/We don't have a website!!

I think you took his post the wrong way, sensei. I'm pretty sure he was referring to public/uninformed potential students' perception than reality.

When looking for a dojo, the one I chose didn't have a running website (it was down), and the Facebook page wasn't very good. It's sole purpose was to let students know of scheduling changes due to weather or the like, remind them of special events and times, and post some pictures in case students wanted them.

They now have a simple website -

http://www.adirondackseidokarate.com

I think it's crucial to have a web presence. Doesn't have to be elaborate; just something stating who you are, what you do, how to contact you, and when classes are available.

I don't have Facebook (yes, that one person in the universe without it is me!) nor care for it, but it's a good way of easily communicating a student body and potentially making things more personal. Have a look at our dojo's page -

https://m.facebook.com/AdirondackSeidoKarate

If you scroll down to the photos section, I'm in the first pic, standing with Tadashi Nakamura

To the bold type above...

You might be absolutely correct!!

We've defended our stand in this issue for quite awhile, and I'm more passionate about it than I care to admit because both Soke and Dai-Soke could care less about opinions, and for the most part, I'm the same way. Yet, however, albeit, it can hit a nerve just right when we're defined in an less appealing tone, and I feel that I'm not only defending Shindokan, our student body, our Hombu, but mostly, Soke and Dai-Soke.

Facebook is the rage of the page. Yet, it's no secret here that I'm computer challenged...no...I'm a computer IDIOT...dumbest on the planet. Facebook is the bane of my existence because I can't navigate around it to save my soul, even after I've been shown how to or have read the latest Facebook For Dummies.

Facebook and me are an oxymoron, to say the least!! I've cancelled my Facebook at least 5-6 times, vowing that I've never return, but I come back to FB in the hopes that I can finally figure it out...I doubt it, but it's worth a try.

As far as the Hombu is concerned. Soke and Dai-Soke refused to approve the Hombu/SKKA from having a website. Whenever pressed as to why, they'd say..."Because I said so!!", and who can argue with that. Arguing with them about certain things was like arguing with anything and everything about a car...who gets to drive the car...who puts gas in the car...things like that we fruitless because they OWNED THE CAR!!

Finally, they allowed us to explore the parameters of having a website, even an information based website only. BUT, and it's written in the By-Laws, the SKKA Hierarchy MUST be in a 100% agreement in ALL aspects of the website, and if not, then there will be NO website!! That's where we STILL stand, many years later. We can't agree on everything, and I've many times put my foot down and instructed them all to JUST GET THE DARN THING FINISHED NOW!!

But, to no avail, not every T is crossed and not every I is dotted!! We can't even agree on the stupid FONT size and style, and I don't care about the stupid font size and style....JUST USE THE DEFAULT and quite being difficult and unreasonable.

Per Hugh Beckworth, our Lead Legal Counselor says that the way the By-Laws are written, it takes a unanimous vote, i.e. 100%, to amend, and some can't be amended!! I'm no lawyer, but Hugh is, and the By-Laws are "quite binding" across the board.

I've lost faith that we'll ever approve on a website/FB/Etc. in my lifetime!!

[tallgeese]

I just want to add, as a non-instructor, that for Millennial, a web presence is vital. You could have grown up on Okinawa, learned from Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Relson Gracie, and Steve Seagal, trained BJ Penn and Ronda Rousey, and won Olympic Gold metals in Judo, Boxing, and TKD, but if you don't have at least an active facebook, if not a Web site as well, you may as well be a scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do. When I see a school I've never seen before, the first thing I do is Google it. You HAVE to make sure you can be located online in this day in age. A web page is such an easy thing to set up, if you don't have it, people will be asking "What else doesn't he have? Running water? Power? Real MA training?"

Ouch! And I'm NO "scam artist teaching fly-by-night Rex Kwon Do." I don't have a website/facebook, our Hombu doesn't have a website, and neither of us truly want a website, and my reasons as to why can be found somewhere here at KF!! Btw, I'm quite finished defending our/my reasons for not having/wanting a website!!

A WEBSITE MEANS NOTHING...IMHO!! Why? Proof is ON THE FLOOR, and not in some website! I've known and seen so many schools of the MA that have running water and power and real MA training, but their ineffective across the board.

I take offense to being lumped as a fake, and this is what I'm being told that that I am. If I am, then so is our Soke, Dai-Soke, student body, and Shindokan!!

I've more important things to worry about than creating and managing a website, like, teach Shindokan, and administrate the SKKA!!

I respect those who do have a website, but I'm/we're lampooned and lambasted mercilessly because I/We don't have a website!!

I think you took his post the wrong way, sensei. I'm pretty sure he was referring to public/uninformed potential students' perception than reality.

When looking for a dojo, the one I chose didn't have a running website (it was down), and the Facebook page wasn't very good. It's sole purpose was to let students know of scheduling changes due to weather or the like, remind them of special events and times, and post some pictures in case students wanted them.

They now have a simple website -

http://www.adirondackseidokarate.com

I think it's crucial to have a web presence. Doesn't have to be elaborate; just something stating who you are, what you do, how to contact you, and when classes are available.

I don't have Facebook (yes, that one person in the universe without it is me!) nor care for it, but it's a good way of easily communicating a student body and potentially making things more personal. Have a look at our dojo's page -

https://m.facebook.com/AdirondackSeidoKarate

If you scroll down to the photos section, I'm in the first pic, standing with Tadashi Nakamura

To the bold type above...

You might be absolutely correct!!

We've defended our stand in this issue for quite awhile, and I'm more passionate about it than I care to admit because both Soke and Dai-Soke could care less about opinions, and for the most part, I'm the same way. Yet, however, albeit, it can hit a nerve just right when we're defined in an less appealing tone, and I feel that I'm not only defending Shindokan, our student body, our Hombu, but mostly, Soke and Dai-Soke.

Facebook is the rage of the page. Yet, it's no secret here that I'm computer challenged...no...I'm a computer IDIOT...dumbest on the planet. Facebook is the bane of my existence because I can't navigate around it to save my soul, even after I've been shown how to or have read the latest Facebook For Dummies.

Facebook and me are an oxymoron, to say the least!! I've cancelled my Facebook at least 5-6 times, vowing that I've never return, but I come back to FB in the hopes that I can finally figure it out...I doubt it, but it's worth a try.

As far as the Hombu is concerned. Soke and Dai-Soke refused to approve the Hombu/SKKA from having a website. Whenever pressed as to why, they'd say..."Because I said so!!", and who can argue with that. Arguing with them about certain things was like arguing with anything and everything about a car...who gets to drive the car...who puts gas in the car...things like that we fruitless because they OWNED THE CAR!!

Finally, they allowed us to explore the parameters of having a website, even an information based website only. BUT, and it's written in the By-Laws, the SKKA Hierarchy MUST be in a 100% agreement in ALL aspects of the website, and if not, then there will be NO website!! That's where we STILL stand, many years later. We can't agree on everything, and I've many times put my foot down and instructed them all to JUST GET THE DARN THING FINISHED NOW!!

But, to no avail, not every T is crossed and not every I is dotted!! We can't even agree on the stupid FONT size and style, and I don't care about the stupid font size and style....JUST USE THE DEFAULT and quite being difficult and unreasonable.

Per Hugh Beckworth, our Lead Legal Counselor says that the way the By-Laws are written, it takes a unanimous vote, i.e. 100%, to amend, and some can't be amended!! I'm no lawyer, but Hugh is, and the By-Laws are "quite binding" across the board.

I've lost faith that we'll ever approve on a website/FB/Etc. in my lifetime!!

That last parts a bummer. Not because it has anything to do with the quality of what you do, a website can't make or break that, but because fewer people will have the opportunity to run across info about what you do.

We don't have to like the current business model for MAs (heck, I'm hip deep in them and it drives me crazy) but we can't deny they are effective for today's society. Not just young people, but 20-somethings and up have been raised on internet commerce. It's a natural thing for them and certain bias' will have been developed.

I can see how it's frustrating for you.

As to your own feelings about working the web (or lack of ability in your perception) it's something that you can fall into. I'm a computer illiterate as well. However, I have learned to cope. On the end user level, most stuff now is getting easier and easer to just use. Forget about setting it up

To that end, there's almost someone around the dojo always willing to help in the more complex things. Once of the people at are school makes sure everything talks to each other. That's beyond me.

Even if you don't like FB (and I get it) it's still a good business tool for the time being. We put a lot of effort into our website, and we turn WAAAAAAY more traffic over our FB page. Not to mention the FB page is free, easier to manipulate, and less work to maintain. Just getting an organization or individual school on there is a great networking tool.

Just some thoughts.