Creating a Martial Arts Website That Gets You More Students

September’s here and I know a lot of you are beginning to plan out your marketing and events for the upcoming 2012 year. I wanted to share some of my secrets on how to turn your school’s website into the most powerful weapon in your marketing arsenal before the January rush.

I’ll be covering some of these and more during my upcoming webinar. It’s totally free but I’m limiting the call to only 97 schools, so register as quickly as you can.

A lot of you already know me by now or have at least heard of the success of the products my company creates and builds for school owners.

For the most part, besides our Licensed Fitness Kickboxing Program – the iLoveKickboxing.com program (I’ll include the link to explain it on the bottom of this blog) we build the industry’s only pure “Student Sales Websites”.

In other words, I make websites that actually enroll people online and have them pay you before they ever come into your school. And apparently I do this pretty well…

The Sales Website and online marketing programs that my company built for schools over the last 21 months have generated an incredible 47,291 online enrollments! That’s right; almost 50,000 people have whipped out their credit cards and purchased an online Martial Arts offer we created.

How many actual people is that? It’s about this many people –

It’s about the number of spectators that the new Yankee stadium holds: 52,325. Just to give you some perspective.

Have I got your attention? I hope so, because I really want to help you to get the same kind of results even if you and I never decide to do business together. You see, I’m totally committed to our industry and I’m on a mission to help schools learn how to market and recruit more students using my proven Internet strategies.

Let me first explain the difference your school’s website and the kind I’m talking about, ‘cause I know you might be scratching your head right now.

A Sales Website doesn’t list all the info that you want your students to see; the upcoming events, photo albums, lineage, full class schedule, social networks, etc.

A Sales Websites just gives prospective students the information that they are looking for so that they can make a decision on whether or not your school is for them. No distractions, no music, no shiny bells or whistles … nothing that takes their attention away from your ‘Online Sales Presentation.’

After a prospective student visits your Sales Website, one of three things happen;

1. The student reads it through and decides that it’s not for them. No worries, on to the next person.

2. The student enters their email as you have piqued their interest but they are not ready to ‘buy’ right now. You can now build a relationship via e-mail and send them cool content and show them that you are the ‘man’ (or woman) in your community when it comes to Martial Arts training. You have a chance to get them to buy later on.

3. The student enters their e-mail and decides to take you up on the awesome online offer you’ve presented them with. It’s not any type of free offer – ‘cause people don’t buy free – it’s an introductory offer.

A low-barrier-of-pain, few classes or a few weeks for a small fee and including a uniform, gloves, etc. This person is now the most qualified prospect out there; they’ve actually paid you online BEFORE ever coming into your academy.

Some people still ask me from time to time if people will really ‘buy’ Martial Arts online and isn’t it better to do a Free offer, a month, a week, a lesson, etc.

First let me tell you this. YES! People love to buy things online and Martial Arts or fitness training is no different.

Secondly, we’ve tested free offers vs. the paid offers and guess what? Paid offers crush free offers. You see, nothing in life is free and everyone knows it. So they’re always looking for the ‘hook’ or the gimmick sales pitch.

But once they pay for something, they experience a mental shift – they’ve exchanged money for good/services and it’s a transaction that makes sense to them.

Here are my 9 Essential Elements to a Great Sales Websitethat’ll I’ll be covering in my upcoming session:

Now, I’m not saying that you can’t sell lessons online without one or all of these elements; I’m just saying that these work for my clients and me. Check your Martial Arts website to see which ones you have and which ones you’re missing. I’ll cover these in detail on the Webinar.

1. Compelling Headline
2. Opt-In Box w/ E-mail Capture Program
3. Ethical “Bribe” in Exchange for their E-mail Address
4. Gripping Sales Copy (Story)
5. Success Stories
6. No Risk Guarantee
7. Low Risk Offer
8. Sense of Urgency
9. Payment Checkout System to Process Payment

Here’s one example of an awesome sales website that my company made for a cool dude named James Terlecki in Youngtown, OH. Hit him up on Facebook or contact him through his site – I’m sure he’ll be happy to share with you how he gets amazing results for his Kids Martial Arts, Muay Thai, BJJ and Kickboxing programs.

If any of you are interested in the iLoveKickboxing.com program, please check out https://MyiLoveKickboxing.com or call me office at 516.543.0041.

About the author: Michael Parrella is the founder and CEO of Full Contact Online Marketing, a Martial Arts Website Design and Development company, the iLoveKickboxing.com Fitness Franchise, MAPRONewsletter.com, and several top-grossing kickboxing facilities in New York. He is also a published author and an MASUCCESS Monthly Columnist.

Michael has several Coaching and Mastermind programs that he runs for Martial Arts school owners of all levels and styles. You can reach him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/michael.parrella1 , email him at Michael@FCOnlineMarkeitng.com or contact him at 516-543-0041.