I am the sole proprietor and lead instructor of Renaissance Yoga. It is a one person operation that started out with 1 class per week 4 1/2 years ago and I now have 15-20 offerings per week including public classes, corporate classes, schools, community events, private students, seminars, workshops and more. Last year I released my first yoga CD title Diva'nishi and more lately have been podcasting on the history, culture, and philosophy of yoga. I do everything from a grass-roots low budget approach (most of the time!).
HERE IS WHAT HAS HELPED ME:
- E-Mail List: I send out 5 - 6 mailings a month including a weekly yoga update. This keeps everyone in the loop and people around town know what I am doing even if I have not seen them for a while. I am now up to 900 addresses on my list and growing - all local people who might attend a class. Many of the announcements and news in my emails links to either
my website or blog for further info and or pictures. That way people can scroll through the email easily and quickly - and get more info on any topic of their choosing This list has been the lifeline for Renaissance Yoga.
- Bartering: I have had some very successful bartering endeavors with local professionals such as for my logo and website design as well as for my CD design. This has been a huge boon. In your e-book, you did not seem to emphasize the importance of a logo, but for me it has brought Renaissance Yoga to life. I like it; my students like it; people know me by it. My website, blogsite, T-shirts, buz cards, window decals (free for students), car design, banners & more all featuring my logo. And I got it by having a designer do it and we traded yoga for the design. It has been invaluable. I also barter with my photographer when I need someone to cover events etc.
- Local Halls: I teach all my classes at a wide variety of local halls that I rent by the class. I pay all the halls at the beginning of the month and offer the classes cheaply so all local residents can attend. It has been a win-win for everyone. I get entrenched in the community and they get yoga near their house and their halls get public exposure. In return, they rent the halls at a reasonable rate. By this way I am free of high rental rates and the 24/7 marriage to the studio.
- Personal Connection: Yoga has been my life for 20 years so it was a natural fit to teach. By being the administrator, teacher, blog writer and email communicator, a good link gets established between teacher and student. I know them; they know me. There are no surprises and we all benefit by it being a friendly link rather than an all out business relation. In so many ways this transfers into a mutual feeling of personal trust and responsibility.
- Media: My website and blog come up extremely high (#1) on Google in a number of different searches. This has been good in many respects. But I must say that word of mouth has been an equally strong if not stronger force. This has been a key element. And the two are really solid combination. In addition, I have been blogging on Yoga Journal Community for a year now and that has opened various doors and gotten me in touch with a larger yoga community. It has been quite beneficial.
- Professional Services: I have paid for some professional services that have has raised the standard of Renaissance Yoga. I paid printers for high quality business cards; I paid a blog designer to do a makeover of my blog and they did an absolutely outstanding job (they did a lot of work and gave a lot of ideas); I paid a company to mass manufacture my CD's and that was worthy every penny. All these investments have helped but I never ever spend/invest beyond my means.
There are certainly other aspects, but these are the major things.
Satyam
Renaissance Yoga Website: http://www.renyoga.com/
Renaissance Yoga Blog: http://www.renyoga.com/blog/
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Wonderful Reading - Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI have been working with Tamara for a few months now, and she is inspirational and her book a must have! - that's if you want to succeed. be prepared for hard work, nothing comes easy....and of course you develop not only your business, you expand yourself greatly!
I too agree with Satyam about the Logo, I have a logo for each side of my business and people get to know the logo and it looks professional and is a theme throughout all your marketing material, including classes passes, business cards, website, blog etc. I too like Satyam work in the community and hire local halls and have built up a good database all around the corner from where I live. I have good relationships with all of my students, due to regular emails, workshops and classes and that is a great foundation for both teacher and student to learn from eachother. I am inspired and grow from them all and i am immensely grateful to share a practice that has the potential to change their lives. and of course this changes mine.
It is really inspiring to read Satyam's success and continue to work with Tamara.
Namaste
Michelle
http://www.yogarelax.co.uk
http://yogarelaxationm.blogspot.com/
Thank you both for your valuable input into this subject, in which we all strive to get the right recipe for our growth and that of our students.
ReplyDeleteI have a long way to go but have long yearned to master the skills involved in making the best of my mission, and am inspired by Tamara, Michelle and this testimonial from Satyam
Nigel