| Friend,
So what's the big deal about direct response marketing? Isn't that just guys on TV selling aerosol bald spot spray and rotisserie ovens?
And why should a martial art school owner get excited about direct response marketing? Why does it benefit a martial art school owner to know about this stuff?
These are all good questions, and I'm going to answer them in time. But first, let's define what direct response marketing is (sometimes called"direct marketing" which is a bit of a misnomer), so we have a better idea of why we need to be familiar with it.
What Is Direct Response Marketing?
Webster's defines it as "marketing by means of direct communication with consumers." I think that's an apt a description as any; however, there's more to it than that. And to understand what makes it so useful to us, we need to delve a bit deeper.
In truth, it is what it says... marketing that is designed to get a direct response from the recipient consumer. This sets it apart from all other marketing methods, and makes it particularly useful for our needs.
With traditional marketing, you might run a TV spot or an ad in a magazine, and wait around for it to gradually take effect and drum up more business. That's the sort of marketing you see used by companies selling products like cars, cologne and perfume, lines of clothing, computers, smart phones, and so on.
See, those companies don't sell directly to the consumer. Instead, they sell to retailers, who in turn sell those products to their customers. So, the manufacturer will use "awareness marketing" to encourage end user sales, which in turn ensures that retailers keep ordering their stuff.*
As I've mentioned before in previous emails, awareness marketing is slow, inefficient, and it takes a hell of a lot of money to implement. For those reasons, that sort of marketing is practically useless to small local business owners.
Why Martial Art School Owners Need Direct Response Marketing
Again, direct response marketing is marketing that is designed to elicit an immediate response. This is a crucial delineation, because unlike large corporations who have IPOs, investors, and a crap-ton of operating capital to work with, the small local service provider or retailer has to eat what they kill.
Meaning, the marketing we do today has to pay our bills tomorrow. And that's why it's so important to use marketing methods that get consumers to respond immediately.
Unfortunately, many dojo owners make the mistake of thinking they have the luxury of time in their business. Because we basically operate as a subscription model of business, the knowledge that they have "X" number of students paying them monthly tuition lulls some school owners into a false sense of security.
This is a critical, and often fatal, mistake.
As I explain in The Profit-Boosting Principles, students come and students go. And no matter how good you are and how much you think your students love you, attrition is a constant in our business.
So, to grow your dojo—or even to keep your enrollment at a constant level—you must constantly replace students who leave with new enrollments.**
Students On Demand...
Here's why school owners should get excited about direct response marketing: - Direct response marketing allows dojo owners to get students on demand.
In other words, these methods will allow you to attract new students whenever you need them.
Now, as exciting as the idea of getting "students on demand" might be, there's a pitfall to this concept that you need to be aware of...
And that pitfall is, when a school owner knows that all he has to do to get more students is turn on a marketing campaign, the temptation is to only market when enrollment numbers drop. This is a huge mistake, because you'll never grow your school by playing catch up.
Still, having the knowledge and skills to create new business on demand is like the holy grail to most dojo owners. And, having that ability can solve many of the issues new and struggling school owners face, which almost always stem from a lack of revenue.
Coming Next...
Now that we know what direct response marketing is and why we need it, next I'll reveal what goes into a good direct response ad or marketing campaign.
And, I'll start discussing various marketing channels that work well for direct response marketing. Stay tuned!
Until next time,
Mike Massie MartialArtsBusinessDaily.com
Quick-start Guide to My Books and Resources: - Looking for a list of books and resources I've written? Click here! - Need business coaching to grow your dojo? Click here…
P.S. - *Ironically, and despite all the "awareness marketing" that is done by manufacturers, retailers often have to use direct response marketing to actually get consumers through their doors so they actually buy all the stuff the retailers get from manufacturers.
P.S.S. - **When a school owner tells me, "I never lose students," what they're really saying is, "I never track my stats." All martial art school owners lose students, every single month. It's simply the nature of the business.
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