Owners Corner
fitness trend. There are no more
late night infomercials flooding
the airwaves, but if you look hard
enough, you might find a Tae Bo
DVD sitting in the clearance bin of
your local Wal-Mart or Target. If you
Google it, you’ll even find a nostalgic class on a group exercise schedule somewhere.
Well, much like the music industry
where a genre will recycle itself
every ten years or so, fitness kickboxing has reinvented itself and is
back at the top of the charts. Martial arts schools everywhere are
enjoying the success of this latest
fitness trend. Some school owners
are even investing into stand-alone
kickboxing facilities with great success.
It is a known fact that the fitness
industry generates billions more in
revenue annually than the martial
arts. So from a business viewpoint,
it would be smart business to buy
into some type of fitness franchise
if it resonates with your values.
Having been part of the last kickboxing trend and now this one,
I offer it because I believe it is a
great service for our moms. I have
learned through the challenges I
have experienced in implementing
it alongside my traditional martial
arts curriculum, to make sure it fits
every aspect of the culture of my
school.
For example, if you run a familyoriented facility and use suggestive
images of air brushed models with
six-pack abs and sprayed on tans to
promote your kickboxing classes,
it could conflict with your brand.
We choose to use candid images
of people in class sweating, smiling, and having fun. We believe this
shows that it is accessible to anyone
who wants optimal health.
We also stay away from marketing
copy that says things like “We guarantee that you will have a tighter
butt in 90 days.” Now don’t get me
wrong, this type of marketing has
Dojo Digest • April 2014
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