team-development Archives - Grow Pro Agency

Build Your Martial Arts School’s Brand on LinkedIn

Grow Pro — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 15:00:00 +0000

What’re you doing to build your martial arts school’s brand?

LinkedIn is a commonly used platform for individuals to connect and share their career achievements and much more.

But not only that, LinkedIn is an excellent space for employees and companies to network on a professional level.

LinkedIn is not just a website to network with other individuals; it can also help bring in businesses similar to yours.

Being on LinkedIn can bring your school’s brand to life and network it in your own way.

You may ask yourself, “Why do I need to put my martial arts school on a networking platform?”

Martial arts school owners should be on LinkedIn because it provides a platform to connect with other martial arts business owners, share industry news, showcase their school and its offerings, and attract new students and instructors.

Schools can also use it to stay informed about industry trends, reach out to other martial arts schools to collaborate, and use it as a marketing tool to promote their school and its programs.

Additionally, you can use it to connect and network with potential investors and partners.

Now on to the tips and tricks on how to build your school’s brand on LinkedIn:

Build your martial arts school’s brand

With over 810 million members, LinkedIn is one of the largest social networking sites for organizations and professionals. For lead generation, it is 277% more effective than Facebook and Twitter.

How does your school stand out from others in your industry? What makes your business marketable? Why should someone give you their business?

Building your martial arts school’s brand on LinkedIn makes your business more reliable. LinkedIn lets your students get a more robust understanding of what your programs have to offer.

You might think, “Isn’t that what my website is for?”

Yes, it is, but having a professional profile on LinkedIn can bring in a different clientele for your school. In addition, it can help parents to see that your martial arts school is professional and gives your students more information than your website.

Climbing the ranks of relevant search results isn’t going to happen overnight.

Here are a few tips on how to optimize your school’s profile to increase its chances of showing up on the first page:

Complete your profile
Add a captivating headline
Add the relevant keywords
Complete the ‘about’ section
Add your location
Be specific about the programs and services your school provides

Help rank your school’s name on Google

Having a higher-ranked school name on Google can benefit your school because it will show up higher than your competitors. Ultimately, this will bring in more students and a better reputation.

When owning a martial arts school, the first thing students do when seeing your name online is look up your school on Google. Being ranked high on Google will help these students understand your programs and make you more trustworthy.

Creating a LinkedIn account for your school is the best thing you can do because it’s typically easier to get your LinkedIn page to rank on Google vs. your homemade website or online portfolio.

What to post

You may want to post exactly what you are posting on Instagram and Facebook. However, LinkedIn is a site for different content than other social media platforms.

If you notice your students are specifically really enjoying blog posts, webinars, or something else — start posting it!

How can you tell what content’s working?

Monitor comments, likes, shares, and clicks.

Content should be more professional and informative when it comes to posting to LinkedIn.

For example, you can highlight an article about particular martial arts gear that should be used for specific classes.

You can also talk about what exactly happens in each of your programs, anywhere from the warmup to the techniques used for different forms.

Looking at different martial arts school content to get other ideas is another great way to get post ideas.

Maintain an index of contacts

Have you ever heard the saying, “It’s who you know, not what you know?”

Having contacts and connections allows you to broaden your school to people who would’ve never been interested but now are. Connecting with people on LinkedIn will increase your contact list, which increases the number of people that know about your school.

Now, why is this relevant to martial arts schools?

This is very relevant because LinkedIn is just another social platform for clients to see your work and what your school’s programs offer.

LinkedIn is just a social platform for professional profiles, so creating a profile for your school can make it more dependable and different from other schools.

Seeing your competitors and their enhancements in their schools can be the driving factor for you and your school.

Stay up-to-date with news in your industry

Staying up to date on what is happening in your industry can be crucial for your school.

LinkedIn aggregates a timeline when you log in. You’ll find news updates from your connections, your groups, and your company there.

Keeping up-to-date on the news in your industry allows you to ensure your school improves.

When it comes to marketing, you always want to know what is going on in your industry. If you are left out, your school’s enhancements will be left behind.

Networking!

We have all heard this word many times before, but it is a word that needs to be in your vocabulary for your school.

Networking can not only help your school; it can also contribute to your social well-being.

Networking is about sharing and taking away ideas for your school. Everyone has different opinions, so networking with people in and outside your industry can bring your martial arts school what it is missing.

Networking is also a way to build your martial arts school’s brand through your connections.

To Wrap Up

Being on LinkedIn brings abundant opportunities for networking with people from all industries. In addition, networking can bring exciting and relevant opportunities to your school by connecting with others on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn has a messaging feature that lets you create instant messages by pushing a button. This allows you to network and connects with others faster and easier. It doesn’t hurt to message other owners to build your index of contacts.

To learn more, check out our webinar, How to Take Control of Your Online Reputation & Drive More Sales. This webinar explains that your online reputation can make or break your school. This is particularly true for Martial Arts Schools. You need to be seen as trustworthy when working with parents’ children.

These are only a few reasons to begin to build your martial arts school brand, and there are many more reasons.

The post Build Your Martial Arts School’s Brand on LinkedIn appeared first on Grow Pro Agency.

10 Black Belt Employee Recruitment Strategies

Grow Pro — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 15:55:48 +0000

As a school owner, we know you make having an impact in your community a priority.

You curate every aspect of your customer experience to attract new members and get them in your door.

You want your students to buy into your vision and stick around.

But do you give the same care and attention to your employee experience? If not, we’ve got you covered. If you want to create a black belt employee experience, you must start by with recruitment.

Let’s break down our top tips to level up your Black Belt Employee Recruitment to build a team of A-Players.

What is Recruitment Really?

Recruitment is the process by which you find and attract new talent to your organization.

If you want to create a black belt employee recruitment process, take an honest look at your strategy.

Is your focus “finding” talent or “attracting” talent?

Let’s be honest, today’s market is competitive.

You should be attracting the right employees in the same way you attract the right students.

When you shift your mindset and “attract” the right people, consider the following:

1. Black Belt Benefits Package

What do your employees and prospective employees find valuable?
And think big with these.

Benefits are not limited to health insurance and 401K.

Sought-after and mainstream benefits of recent years include:

Flexible schedules/remote working days
Discounted memberships
Continued education credits
Commission
Unlimited PTO

2. Black Belt Company Culture

Let’s first begin by defining what a company culture looks like.

Company culture is the beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors of the people within the company or – how you do what you do. There are a few different methods you can put in place if your culture needs a face-lift.

What we put our attention on dictates the direction of our thoughts and actions. It’s good to get a sense of where you want to be and to create the systems and processes necessary to get there. Core Values should act as a guidepost by which all decisions are made.

Think of it like Google Maps for goals, it will keep you headed in the direction of your destination. Create core values and leverage them in your black belt recruitment strategy.

When attracting the right people to your company, ask:

“How do you support your personal development outside of the work place?”
“What’s the thing that you feel sets you apart from other candidates? What’s your superpower?”
“What are the elements of an environment you can thrive in?”

Keep in mind, your core values will likely evolve with time, and as the size of your team grows.

If you want your team to buy in, get them involved in the evolution of your core. Collaborate with your team! This makes them feel heard and helps promote employee satisfaction. Once you’ve established some Black Belt core values with your team – get your reps in!

You MUST Read them.

Say them.

OWN them.

As martial artists you know that it takes drilling something over and over until it’s a reflex.

“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks. once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick. 10,000 times.” -Bruce Lee.

If you want to learn more, we recommend reading the book Traction by Gino Wickman. It’s a great resource to help build your team around your vision.

3. Be proactive!

Don’t wait until you’re desperate to start the employee recruitment process. That is not the black belt way!

This can cloud your judgment. Since we often times under utilize logic when we are in a rush to make tough decisions. This can also lead to poor hiring habits… like hiring people that aren’t a good fit for the company. If they do not align with the core values we spoke about, they likely won’t work out long-term.

A black belt employee recruitment strategy has the following mantra – ABH: Always Be Hiring. Even if you aren’t hiring, always act like you are. You never know who you might meet in your normal day-to-day interactions.

Say you meet someone with exceptional service skills at your local shop. Even if they aren’t looking for a job, they may be able to provide you with a referral for someone who is! It may take up to 4 or even 6 months to find someone who is both qualified and a right fit for your team.

Plan accordingly. Decide on a monthly budget for expenses ahead of time when you are actively hiring.

Putting some Ad spend behind job posts can help it get in front of more people. The more people that see it, the higher your chances of finding a rockstar.

Here are a few platforms where you can post jobs:

Linkedin (free and paid options)
Indeed (free and paid options)
– ZipRecruiter (3 paid tiers)

4. Brand Awareness drives perception

Brand awareness is not just for clients. It’s for your Black Belt Employee recruitment strategy too.

Not only do you need to ensure people know you exist, but you also need to show prospective talent how you can help them get what they want (financial freedom, work-life balance, professional advancement, etc.).

A Black Belt Employee recruitment strategy combines organic and targeted efforts. People will interact with your brand online. If they are wanting to make a career change, your online presence will act as a first impression – so make sure it’s a good one.

It can be as simple as posting team member shoutouts. Some of our favorite posts are pictures from team-building events or even vlogs of your team on the job.

Factor your business’ brand AND your personal brand into your recruitment strategy. Learn the Keys to Establishing Your Personal Brand.

Here are some platforms to grow your brand awareness:

Facebook
Instagram
Linkedin
TikTok
Youtube

5. Events are your friend!

Go to mixers, job fairs, and industry events with your team. Your team is your biggest advocate. So get them in front of people looking for a career change.

Now more than ever, people are prioritizing worker satisfaction even above earning potential. People value workplaces that allow for positive interactions with the whole team.

Don’t underestimate the power of putting in face time with the members of your team. Building rapport and leveraging employee advocates can level up any employee recruitment strategy.

6. Your Network is your Net-Worth

How can you leverage your network to find new talent?

It’s easy, just ask!

Combined with your brand awareness, you will have top-tier talent looking for a spot on your team.

7. Having a thorough Job Description

Try to paint a realistic picture of the day-to-day responsibilities.

What measures for success for this position?
What does the work schedule look like?
What does the environment/culture look like?
What are any skills or certifications required for the role?

People value transparency, so be upfront. In your job listing include: Expectations, Salary ranges , Timelines for training and Advancement Opportunities.

8. No more boring Job Applications

Let your application be a representation of your company culture.

One of our core values at Grow Pro is that we cultivate people’s strengths in a modern and fun environment. We wanted to highlight that in our application. That’s why ours now showcases things like creative interests, stats, and personal virtues.

9. Black Belt Interview

Start with building rapport. You’re going to be spending a lot of time with the members of your team. So, it doesn’t hurt to take the extra time to do some due diligence and ensure you actually like the person.

This is when Cris asks “Can we picture having lunch with this person?”

There are plenty of times we have interviewed people that are strong contenders on paper. Yet, when they come in and meet with the team, they show all the ways they are not a good fit for our workplace culture.

During the interview, the focus should be to answer this question: Is this the right person for this role? Want to learn more about fine-tuning your hiring process? Check out the book Who (Geoff Smart & Randy Street).

If the interview went well, you might want to consider “next steps”. At Grow Pro, we send follow-up assessments.

Ours includes tests on customer service skills, typing speed, and behavioral styles.

These will vary based on the role you are hiring for.

So, try to avoid generalized assessments.

Test specific skills that employees need to be successful in the role. There is a multitude of resources available for employers here:

Indeed
TestGorilla
GoodHire

10. Black Belt Job Offer

You’ve deliberated with your team and decided to move forward with your chosen applicant.

Now it’s time to craft a job offer letter.

This should include all the essential information prospects need to decide to join your team.

Start date
Salary
Important dates
Pay cycle information
Resources
Training Schedule
Policies: lunch, PTO, dress code

Conclusion

At Grow Pro, we want to help you take your business to the next level.

And with the 10 Black Belt Recruitment Strategies, we hope it’s a good start to work from the inside out.

That being said, we now want to take another look at your customer journey!

As a martial arts school owner, quality customer service is key to keeping your students happy and loyal.

But how can you take your customer experience to the next level and stand out in a crowded market?

In our FREE webinar, we’ll explore proven strategies for improving the customer experience.

This includes:

Understanding what you can do to improve your customer experience at every stage of the customer journey
Using customer feedback to drive continuous improvement
Streamlining processes to enhance the customer experience
and much more!

Whether you’re just starting out or looking to take your school to the next level, join us on January 19th @ 12 PM EST.

Save your spot here!

The post 10 Black Belt Employee Recruitment Strategies appeared first on Grow Pro Agency.