Let me start by acknowledging that it’s been a challenging period for many business owners and industries, and, we’re no exception. You’d have to be living under a rock to not recognize the effects of the greatest recession since the Great Depression. However, many thrived during troubling periods. Others experienced crisis which, when viewed in retrospect, will turn in to a valuable opportunity to retool and launch to greater heights (although I freely acknowledge in may take years to appreciate the learning opportunities provided).
A few observations and predictions about an important and growing segment of our industry — the MMA and resurgent adult market.
You may or may not know, but I’ve been the “Guru” behind some of the largest MMA schools in the world for nearly 10 years. In reality, my background with Jhoon Rhee (and his pal Bruce Lee) and Jeff Smith introduced me to MMA in 1969. While the huge UFC popularity is new as the dominant grappling art (as in BJJ versus Judo), the concept and execution in not particularly new. For those who aren’t old enough or haven’t studied the history of their own industry, the industry made a dramatic shift during the first “karate kid” days, going from predominantly adults to predominantly kids. The advertising opportunities and expected results changed dramatically then as well.
At one time to have a highly trafficked school all you needed was a big yellow pages ad and someone competent to answer the phone. The current version of that is, of course, Google. And today, if you are decent at SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Pay-Per-Click with a halfway decent website you can create about as many new students as you’d ever need. As a cautionary tale, I’d warn those schools to review history and master other “channels” for gaining new students. Jay Abraham refers to that (one source) as a diving board that may get you killed. You always must have a Parthenon of sources to gain students or risk be decimated if the web traffic slows down or dries up.
Another observation about the MMA boom: In many ways, and not in a good way, this has been a “back-to-the-60’s” period. Elements that we consider to be common in traditional schools now, such as character development lessons, life-skills curriculum and respect and community involvement — those are relative new. The trend was facilitated by many, but probably impacted most by Jhoon Rhee and accelerated by me and my friends and peers. In the late 1970s Jhoon Rhee began an emphasis on good grades, a student creed, and “leading by example.” His quote: “Martial Arts Without Philosophy is Just Street Fighting” is as valid for the “MMA Gym” as it is for a traditional school.
At times I get strange looks when implementing character development lessons, reading assignments, leadership programs and other mental skills training and life-skills training into MMA, Krav and Kickboxing schools.
However, the route to sustainability and, frankly, to long-term value for your students, is to move beyond the physical to mental and emotional development for your students. Ultimately, we all know that success, whether it be in the sport of MMA or in any endeavor, is more about mental skills and attitude than just technical proficiency. Look in any arena. The success of the United States Military Academy at West Point and our Navy Seals is almost purely about developing character and mental fortitude.
I’m convinced that in the long-run MMA schools go down a dangerous path if the screw up the language and miss the most valuable component of what they can provide. Language missteps (in my opinion) include calling teachers coaches, the school a gym, and dropping martial arts courtesies, such as bowing and formal titles for teachers. Another big misstep is in going for “volume” over value given the current high demand environment.
Ultimately, the high value student is one who will train with you long-term. One who will be dedicated to his or her training. One who’s a positive contribution to your school and your environment. Those students tend to be a little older, not the 21-year-old kid who wants to be Brock Lesner, and more educated, with a college degree and professional career, for instance.
Finally, a big misstep is to look at Bally’s and 24-Hour Fitness and model their format and operations to run your school. Professional Martial Arts schools have been down that path. The successful format actually evolved mostly from the dance studio business (now making a comeback), not from gyms, be they fitness centers or boxing gyms. That lesson’s been learned — don’t fail to learn the lessons.
Ultimately, if I’ve had one advantage that most others “giving advice” miss, it’s likely both having been at the center of most of the leading developments in professionalizing the industry (given my lucky ties to Jhoon Rhee, Nick Cokinos, Jeff Smith, Bill Clark and a few others). It’s also that I’ve actively studied the history of our industry’s development along with many others that are parallel. In most cases I can pretty quickly show MMA schools how to double or triple their results. Often it’s a “Paradigm Shift” for them, but ultimately the best strategy for a business designed to last 10, 20, 30 years or more and not be just a “flash in the pan.”
I’m excited about the future of the adult market. Many VERY high quality schools are developing with my guidance. Others are doing fine now but are likely to perish if their Google traffic dies down — just as the Yellow Pages died for traditional schools in the past.
