Yes, we all want to have a full house of hooping bodies when we open the doors on our workshops, hoop classes or retreats but it is not always a case of “build it and they will come”
Here are some powerful ways successful hoop teachers attract their ideal hoopers.
And just to keep it fresh…none of these includes Social Media strategies (shock horror…I know!)
Offer solutions
Get really clear about the service you offer, your special sauce (we dig deep into that in Hoop Love Coach Training) and the solutions you provide. Communicate them in all of your promotion.
Tell people about the benefits and changes they will experience. Do not simply focus on what (7 pm hula hoop class) focus on WHY (fun fitness with friends or core strength for seniors…whatever it is that you are offering)
Put yourself in the shoes of your potential students. WHY would they want to come to your class?
Give yourself plenty of time
You want to allow at least 6 – 12 weeks before your class or event to consistently promote and reach as many potential students as you can. Within that time you will have peak promo periods. You want to enthusiastically and vibrantly shine your promotional energies when you first launch sign-ups, when any offers/early birds or discounts are ending and then again as the doors are closing.
Too little, too late is a common problem that you want to avoid.
Multiple sources
Do not rely on only one source of connection with your students. Especially if you are new to teaching hoop dance you might not know where your students “hang out” If you are only using Facebook updates and shares as your way of spreading the word about your classes then you might be missing a whole group of people who would love to come to your class if only they knew about it in time.
Knowing where your tribe hangs is super helpful and you can get feedback on that by reaching out to multiple sources. Spreading the word through friends, fliers, hoop jams, cafes, your email list, dance studios, meet ups, print media, newsletters and yes a splash of Social Media is going to mean that you are reaching a broader audience and therefore more people who are likely interested in your class.
Temp, Tease and Give a Taste
Offer a taste of your classes, workshops or events in other places. Offer a cameo hoop show at a local fair or expo in exchange for flier drop or other promo. Start a hoop jam or join another jam and ask if you can share a move/sequence as a teaser for your upcoming workshop. If you are running a retreat or specialty workshop share teasers in your classes and promote the bigger event. Partner with a hoop maker who has a market stall and offer to help them out for a day or two in exchange for you being able to share some beginner moves with customers and promo for your beginner course. Offer to do a hoop dance warm up in a friend’s class or another teacher at the same studio. Share a move on YouTube and explain that it is one small part of your signature workshop. Come up with creative ways that people can get a taste for what you are offering.
Your email list
If you do not have your very own email list of students and community then how are you directly communicating with your tribe? Your most powerful source of direct contact and feedback online is your own email list that you are building through your website and student lists. These are the people who are already interested in what you offer, they respect you as a teacher or hooper and they have opted in to receive fun updates from you.
Send your tribe an email, let them know how excited you are to share our special event with them and invite them to join you.
If you do not have an email list of friends and customers build yourself a website, create an email management system and connect now. It is so much easier but more powerful than you realise. Talk to your people (not through the crowded wash of feeds that is Social Media)
So there you have five ways to fill your hoop classes, retreats or workshops. These essentials are sometimes overlooked but make all the difference to whether you are stressing out about numbers or having more free time to work on planning a fabulous event and showing up for your tribe.
How do you make sure that your classes are filled? How do you attract more students to your classes?
Want to dig more deeply into understanding your special sauce as hoop teacher and get excited to share it with your community? Join me for Hoop Love Coach training.