If you really want to show off your dojo and everything you have to offer, a free trial is by far the best way to go about it. You can host an open house or offer a free session using your gym software – whatever works best for your schedule. No matter which type of free trial you choose, there are a few things you need to practice to get a black belt in marketing your martial arts classes.‍

#1 – Advertise Everywhere

‍If you want to actually bring people through the door of your martial arts business with your free trial offers, then you’ll need to let people know that you’re offering one. You can do this in a number of ways, but some of the best involve things like search engine optimization, blogs, Facebook posts and ads, and even flyers scattered through the community. The key is to do some market research, discover your demographic, and then put up posters and notifications advertising your martial arts programs where these people will be. Make sure you’re asking them to set up an appointment for their free trials so you can keep better track. You can advertise these free classes as self-defense training or fight for fitness classes.

‍#2 – Use It as an Opportunity to Show Off

‍The entire purpose of giving people a free trial is to show them what you have to offer and interest them enough to become paid customers. Make sure that you’re putting your best face forward during your free trials. One of the absolute best ways to do this is to have your free trials come in only on one day of the week. You can ask your best martial arts teachers and black belt students to attend that day in order to provide the newcomers with the best possible experience. Be careful that you don’t go too overboard. After all, you don’t want to give the people visiting on a trial basis the wrong impression.

‍#3 – Make the Experience a Seamless One

‍You’ll need to make sure that you organize everything very carefully. Gather information from the people who want to participate in the free trial, and ask them to sign any waivers you may need for legal reasons. Discover which classes these individuals are interested in and which ones they’ll actually attend. Following the free trial session, gather feedback from both the student and the instructor to discover how things went and whether that particular student will fit well with that instructor, or even whether another instructor would be better suited to help that student.

‍#4 – Manage the Process Carefully

‍It is up to you to manage the experience from the standpoint of both the martial arts school or dojo and the student. After all, it is your goal to convert people to paid members, so collecting feedback is vital. When students join as members, ask them why they chose to do so. You can focus on these things in the future. Be sure that you also check in with those who chose not to join and ask them what ultimately turned them away. This gives you something to think about in the future.

‍#5 - Use Systems to Streamline Your Free Trial Process

‍Your prospective clients should see the times available for a Free Trial from your website. They should be able to book in themselves. Your system should collect the details necessary for them to attend and also assist you with attendance tracking and class management. Clubworx is a management software for Martial Arts Dojos which provides you with a workflow for managing your trial class students. It all happens automatically and makes your business look professional to prospective clients. After all, systems are there to make your life easier. Playing phone tag to book someone in for a free trial is not the best use of your time.

‍Get Started Offering Your Free Trials Today

‍A free trial is a fantastic way to get people in the door to see what happens in your dojo on a day-to-day basis. A day trial gives them an opportunity to actually experience what you have to offer. It’s up to you to stay organized, to manage things, and to collect the feedback that will help you and your students the most.