Info for Martial Arts School Owners and Instructors

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8 Types of Video That Can Help Your School Stand Out

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video marketing for martial arts schools
white belt child kicks with instructor watching

Get Certified as a Martial Arts Instructor Online

MATA Martial Arts Instructor Certification Course

Module 21-The Proper Use of Student Instructors

by Scot Conway, Esquire

The $25,000 Volunteers

Excerpt from the Martial Arts Instructor Certification Course:

Using upper ranks to teach classes has been a long-standing martial arts tradition. But, is it legal?

A California instructor had his black belts teaching under-rank classes at his studio. In exchange, he no longer charged them tuition.

This continued until one fateful day when the owner and a black belt student had a disagreement.

The vindictive student contacted the California Labor Board and reported that his instructor had been employing assistants by requiring that they teach classes each week.

This can constitute an Employer – Worker relationship. The only thing missing was payment for the workers and the taxes the government would collect if they were being paid.

The State of California investigators concluded that the owner, over the years, had a total of 25 black belts teach classes.

They defined them as uncompensated employees, which is illegal under the laws of California, and fined the instructor $1,000 per incident.

The final bill: $25,000 for the volunteers.

Lesson: Know your state laws regarding utilizing assistant instructors.

8 Types of Video That Can Help Your School Stand Out

In case you haven’t noticed, video is huge for marketing. Studies show that 3x as many people will watch a video rather than read the same information.

Since virtually every school website uses the same stock images and promises the same benefits, video is where you can make a strong personal connection that is virtually impossible to do with text and/or images.

Here are eight videos to include on your website and Social Media platforms like Facebook and YouTube, to help grow your martial arts school.

1. Promo Videos
Short videos that are less than 30-seconds for Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.

Sample Promo

2. School Highlight Videos
Everyone has a video camera with them. Each year, ask your students to submit their best clips to you. Combine those with your own and edit a one-minute highlight video that you can share on social media and your website.

These samples are from many moons ago but they have energy. Imagine a highlight reel for every year of your school’s existence.
Sample 1992
Sample 1988

3. You Teaching
Rather than just advertise your trial program, why not show highlights from an actual class? You don’t have to post the entire class, but edit together a 3-minute series of segments that best convey what your school stands for and how it is delivered.
Sample

4. Testimonials
Shoot these from the chest up. Make sure there is no ambient sound unless you have a lapel mic on the speaker. Then, it works if there is action around the testimonial as long as the audio is strong.

Edit the full video into short sound bites. Let the subject know that they can do a retake if they feel they stumbled. Some people get really nervous in front of the camera.

  • Here are some questions.
  • Why did you choose our school?
  • What improvements have you seen since starting here?
  • What was the biggest surprise for you once you began training here?
  • How would you describe our school to someone who was looking for a martial arts school?

Sample USA Karate
Sample Tim McCahan After-School Sports

Here are some tips on creating a good testimonial video.

5. Media Coverage
Every school needs to have a PR strategy to keep you in the news. Media coverage is like an implied endorsement. Have a Media section on your site that is a gallery of your media hits.

You can also take advantage of the powerful, “As Seen On” line. Even if you didn’t get on the news broadcast, maybe your press release got picked up by Fox News Tampa. You can then use the Fox News Tampa logo with a link to your article. This positions you as an expert.

How to Get Major Media Outlets to Run Your Articles

6. FAQ
What are the common questions and concerns people have about joining? Answer them in person via video. This helps create a connection and personalize the experience.

7. Overview of Your Program
Without going into detail, you can create a fast-paced, exciting rundown of your various programs. This helps people to visualize the program in ways that text and images can’t.

8. Your Bio
This can backfire if you go deep into your personal martial arts lineage. Which do you think the average visitor to your website will understand easier? You earned your Shidan or you completed and passed the Martial Arts Teachers Association Instructor Certification Program?
Sample John Graden Bio
Sample John Graden Bio 2
How to Write a Bio

Don’t be afraid to use humor. It never hurts to bring a smile to someone’s face.

Here are more tips to improve your video marketing.

Offline Marketing & Sales

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