GROW YOUR SCHOOL WITH WOMEN'S SELF-DEFENSE WORKSHOPS

“It doesn’t matter why they come in. All that matters is that they do. If people were coming in to get free pencils, that would be just fine.”

- FLOYD BURK

Those words come from a wise man who used to work at the dojo I attended. Stated another way: Before people can enjoy all the benefits martial arts training offers, they have to sign up for lessons, and before you can sign them up, you have to get them in the door. It’s hard to argue with his logic.

Back in the 1970s, our dojo would organize women’s self-defense workshops through the Chamber of Commerce in our city. Every time one took place, at least one or two attendees would join the karate school afterward. That really stuck in my brain, which is why this column focuses on leveraging women’s self-defense workshops to grow your school. I won’t tell you how to conduct the seminars — you already know that — but I will offer some suggestions on where.

After I opened my own school, I developed our curriculum and taught WSD classes whenever there was an opportunity. In the ensuing years, my wife Martha and her team took over and expanded our reach into the community.

We all agree that the most obvious place to hold a WSD workshop is your own school. Because you won’t have to rent the venue, you can offer the class for free. Some instructors believe that it’s better to charge a nominal fee even if it’s in your dojo because many people assume that if something is free, it’s not worth much. I say it’s more about how you present it, how you word the flyer and how professional you make the class.

You can offer the course to family members and friends of students, but you want mostly friends because families are already part of your dojo. If a friend wants to bring a friend, encourage it.