Business Ideas | Small Business Ideas: How to Run a Successful Martial Arts Business

Thursday, February 13, 2014

How to Run a Successful Martial Arts Business | Martial Arts Instructor Career

Primarily, as in any businesses, a good foundation is what most likely prolongs the lifespan of the business. One source of a good foundation is nonetheless passion. Putting up a business takes a lot of dedication.

What does it takes to run a Successful Martial Arts Business? Know how to start it smart from funding the business rightly, looking for the right location, right staffing, and right facility to having the right policies and advertising strategy.

Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practices, which are practiced for a variety of reasons: self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, entertainment, as well as mental, physical, and spiritual development.

What is Martial Arts ?

Although the term martial art has become heavily associated with the fighting arts of eastern Asia, it was originally used in regard to the combat systems of Europe as early as the 1550s. An English fencing manual of 1639 used the term in reference specifically to the "Science and Art" of swordplay. The term is ultimately derived from Latin, and means "arts of Mars," where Mars is the Roman god of war. Some authors, most notably Donn F. Draeger, have argued that fighting arts or fighting systems would be more appropriate on the basis that many martial arts were never martial in the sense of being used or created by professional warriors.

How to Run a Successful Martial Arts Business ?

Most often than not, owners of martial arts businesses have a heart for that sports. It is better to ensure that you have more than enough passion for martial arts to be able to extend that passion to profits successfully.

Here are some pointers on starting a martial arts business be it a training school or a martial arts equipment selling business.

Remember to always provide quality and convenience especially on scheduling lessons and accommodating a newbie. It needs to be full of fun and learning at the same time.

To sum it up, a successful martial arts business is dependent on both proper planning and execution. Plans alone will not take your business to where you want it to be unless it has been implemented properly and accordingly. Nevertheless, having a good plan at hand is a good way to start.

Martial Arts Instructor Career

What is the best way to break into the field? Our guide can tell you the basics.

To gain experience in teaching, you can apply as martial arts instructor in self-defense schools, health clubs, gyms, recreation centers, and community centers. Usually, you’d be employed as a part-time teacher and get paid by the hour. This is the best way to continue to develop your craft for a pay. Another advantage of starting as a teacher in an established institution is you can use your experience to support an independent practice later. And you don’t get to rent or lease a space to perform classes. Later, if you have established your name as “master” not only in the field of martial arts, but also in teaching, you can open your own studio.

First is to consider the scope of your martial arts business. Questions like, how much capital is in need? Who will finance the business? Will it be a sole proprietorship, a partnership or a company? Will it concentrate to training kids, men, women or everyone? —having a clear picture on how you want to run the business is the best place to start.

Next is to look for a strategic location. Location plays an important role. It should be made accessible to the target market; locating your competitors will do great help on choosing your location. Make sure that the location is clean and safe so customers feel comfortable while having their classes. There should also be enough space for the facilities and adequate parking for customers.

Consequently, look for your possible suppliers of facilities and equipment as well as staffs. Staffing includes hiring of instructors and assistants. Be sure to have professional instructors, which will also add in building the reputation of the business. Good instructors help in promoting the business.

Comes next is the advertising and promotional activity needed to make the business known. If the business is in large-scale operation, select those with wider coverage such as magazines. However, there many low cost advertising techniques, which are also effective for both large and small martial arts businesses.

It could be through advertising in local newsletter or school papers. This will help the business reach the youngsters, which is most likely to be your target clients. Likewise, flyers are another advertising method. You may include in it some discount coupon or even free sessions. Sponsoring a free martial arts lesson and encouraging members to bring in friends will also be an effective low cost promotional method.

Are you an expert in one or more forms of martial arts? With a good communication skill, you can start a career in martial arts instruction. What are the usual requirements to teach karate, Kung Fu, judo, or Tae Kwon Do?

Martial arts is a form of self defense, but it is also often practiced to develop coordination, confidence and to cultivate the mental and spiritual aspects of the performer. Have you been practicing karate, Kung Fu, judo, or Tae Kwon Do for a long time and it is your dream to teach the discipline to others? You can become a martial arts instructor. You don’t have to have a high educational attainment to teach the discipline. Years of practice is the usual qualification. A black belt might be required to teach in established schools.

But while skills and solid foundation on the arts are the basic requirements for a teaching career, they are not the only requirements to become a good teacher. One must also have good communication skills and confidence to be able to deliver the lesson and execute kicking and blocking techniques to a class. To augment your qualifications, you can enrol and get certification in physical education teaching. You can also get certifications from recognized martial arts associations like the American Taekwondo Association.

If you want to start a private practice and you want to get your services known, you can offer free or “discounted” introductory lessons. Or give free demonstrations in schools where most of your students may come from. When marketing your services, remember that usually they’d be attracted more by your ability to relate to them rather than by your awards and trophies. What you know would not matter if you cannot impart your skills and knowledge. Also, a large part of becoming a successful martial arts instructor is to enjoy what you are doing and help your student feel the same. This, while emphasizing that to be skilled in the arts, patience, perseverance and years of practice are needed.

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Martial Arts BusinessFebruary 14, 2014 at 5:33 PM
How to Run a Successful Martial Arts Business, Martial Arts Business, Martial Arts Instructor Career, Starting a Martial Arts Business
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Easy Tips and Ideas to Start Business

Although anyone can start a business, many people fail because of a bad product or improper research. If you want to start your own business, you can improve your chances for success before you even begin. In order to make your business successful, start strong and make sure that your idea will hold out for the long haul.

Have a Good Product

Ensure that you plan to sell something useful. Although you may think that your product is important or special, that doesn't mean the general public will agree. Ask friends, family and strangers what they think of your product. If they don't seem that interested, ask them why. With their suggestions, you can either improve the product or scrap the idea completely. According to Brad Sugars of Entrepreneur magazine, most small businesses fail because they sold a product that didn't have an adequate market. This also applies to small businesses that provide a service. A lawn-care business might be useful for part of the year in a northern state, but it is in-demand year-round in the south. Consider whether people will actually want to use your service and get constructive advice from those not afraid to give their opinion.

Research Local Businesses

Research local companies before starting up your own business. This will not only give you an idea of the amount of competition you will have, but it will also help you price your product or service. If you're looking to start a wedding photography business, you may find during your research that the market is over-saturated in your area. If not over-saturated, you should contact each business and ask them for a price list. Alter your prices so you can stay competitive with the competition in town. Researching similar local businesses will also help you decide where to locate your business location. Try not to start up a store or office close to another business of your type. If your small business is located away from similar business types, this will cause locals to choose you over businesses that are farther away from where they live.

Get Professional Advice

You may know someone who has started their own successful business. Ask him for advice and listen to his stories of how he started his company. You may gain useful advice on the good and bad ways to start a business. Local entrepreneurs can also introduce you to local product providers or advertisers that you may not have met without their help. Accept any advice with open arms, especially if the advice is coming from someone successful in the area.

How to Calculate Business Start Up Costs

Starting a business in no easy endeavor. It takes a great deal of research, perseverance and hard work. While sweat equity will make your small business more successful, you will most likely need real capital to get the business started. Before you start raising capital and/or investing your own funds, the first thing you need to do is determine the total start-up costs.

Step 1

Determine your costs of sales. For most small businesses this means inventory, the cost of raw materials, manufacturing equipment, shipping, packaging, and warehousing. However, not all businesses sell products. In this case, the cost of sales is primarily the direct labor involved in making the sale. For example, to open a small shoe business entails purchasing enough inventory ($10,000) to stock the store.

Step 2

Determine professional fees. Planning your business structure, i.e., limited liability corporation or general partnership, means hiring an attorney. There may also be the need to pay an attorney for help with establishing trademarks, copyrights, and patents. In this scenario, that puts total professional fees at an estimated $20,000.

Step 3

Determine technology costs. Technology can greatly reduce the cost of labor for small business if used effectively. Most small businesses require computers, printers, cell phones, website development, Internet access, software applications, information security, data storage, and outsourced information technology (IT) consulting. If the cost of technology is $10,000 to start, add an additional $5,000 a year for maintenance (hint: maintenance is not included in start-up costs).

Step 4

Determine administrative costs. This varies with business types and may include items such as business insurance, office supplies, product packaging, parking, rent, express shipping, desks, chairs, fax machines, phones, or anything else necessary to operate the business daily. A good estimate for start-up administrative costs would be $5,000 for the first six months.

Step 5

Determine initial sales and marketing costs. Now that you have your product, you need to let folks know about it. Sales and marketing costs generally include marketing materials for presentations, printing stationery, business cards, advertising, trade show events, and public relations. These initial sales and marketing costs can add up to $3,000.

Step 6

Determine the wages and benefits needed to secure a staff. This includes employee salaries, benefits, workers compensation, and payroll taxes. Let's put the cost of wages and benefits estimated at $20,000 for the first three months of business.

Step 7

Add all costs associated with starting the business for a total. Be sure to only include business start-up costs that will be incurred in the first three to six months of operations. For this example, the calculation is: $10,000 + $20,000 + $10,000 + $5,000 + $3,000 + $20,000 = $68,000.

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