Sadness, joy, nostalgia. Music is a delight, a universal language that becomes the soundtrack of our lives but it’s also an industry in which knowing about musical marketing is a must to succeed. 

Music is an industry that is transformed by technology that today makes possible things that just decades ago seemed unthinkable. For example, an artist can succeed without the distribution of a record label or can broadcast one of their concerts live for their fans without the help of any television station.

Today the industry is growing but it’s mainly driven by digital platforms for streaming music. According to the 2018 Global Music Report which publicizes the current state of the industry, 54 percent of the profits are driven by streaming. It also said the future of the industry will be in the hands of musicians who know how to take advantage of the benefits that technology offers.

Source: Global Music Report 2018

The love for punk music, a divorce and a lot of music marketing—both online and offline—have made Chingadazo de Kung Fu one of the revelations of punk not only in their local Mexican scene but in other Latin American cities, too. They started in 2014 but it wasn’t until 2017 when they played at the Vive Latino rock festival which has changed the musical scene of the region over the last 20 years.

Getting there took a lot of networking and marketing through different channels. But the band’s main motivation came from an unlikely place: the personal catharsis of lead singer Marino following his divorce.

To cheer him up after the breakup, another band member encouraged Marino and another friend (now the band’s drummer) to rehearse some covers and some of the old songs that Marino played with another band when he was younger. “The idea was to forget about our adult life full of responsibilities for a while and get drunk to the core, it seemed like a great idea so we decided to get together and rehearse,” he says.

From there, the pain stirred memories and helped Marino compose several songs and encouraged him to record a new album with the help of his brother. He then turned to a Mexican musician and producer friend and decided to take advantage of all the post-production resources he could to make the most of what he and band members Beto and Ale already recorded.

Doing the Work

The material came together well and the marketing work began. If you want to make a living as a musician, it’s not only important to be a good musician, but you have to know how to sell yourself and your music.

“You can record a thousand songs and have the best album in the world, but if you don’t effectively communicate this message to people, it won’t be worth anything,” explains Shaun Letang, the creator of the site “Music Industry How To” and author of the book “An Introduction To Music Marketing.”

Caption: Music marketing can be done online or offline. Ideally, both strategies come together in a harmonious way. 

If you’re starting out, you probably don’t have the means to pay someone to do the marketing work for your music, so you need to do it yourself. Here, it’s essential to take advantage of music’s power to create an emotional connection with people.

In his book “7 Claves del Marketing Musical,” musician and digital marketing specialist Miguel Galdón says, “The important thing is to get an emotional connection with our audience, that listening to our music is a unique experience and we are able to awaken in our fans an interest in sharing our musical project.”

The goal, beyond selling records or singles–which in the end, is what will make you thrive–should be that you connect with your audience. If you do it the right way, it’s very likely that the rest will come alone.

Take Advantage of Digital Media

By the end of 2017, there were 176 million users who paid for a subscription to a global music platform 64 million of which were new subscribers according to a study conducted by the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry).

This proves that streaming services are the engine of global growth and the transformation of the music industry representing an enormous opportunity for artists. It’s a great time for dedicated musicians who are willing to use all available resources to publicize their projects.

Source: Global Music Report 2018

In this sense, Chingadazo de Kung Fu knew they couldn’t rely on performing for their friends to become successful professional musicians. Instead, they decided to take advantage of digital platforms to make themselves known on a larger scale.

They uploaded their music to a platform called Bandcamp for $20 which included a thousand free downloads. Bandcamp is an online music store that allows independent artists to launch and promote their music so that it could be downloaded for free by the public.

In addition to Bandcamp, Chingadazo de Kung Fu’s album was also available on Spotify, Apple Music and other digital platforms. To be available on these platforms you need a music aggregator to act as a mediator between the platform and you. Simply choose one and follow their specific set up and procedure.

For their next album, the band already knew what to do. “The new album was uploaded to digital platforms a week before the presentation show, there was already a song with over 100,000 reproductions,” explained Marino. “People already knew the new material just a week before the show. Fifteen years before that was impossible because you needed to go to a record store and the CDs didn’t always arrive on time. Now, this immediacy is incredible.”

Networking and More Networking

Ale, Beto and Marino didn’t cross their arms at all when their music was uploaded to the first musical platform. It was the beginning stages of promoting their material. As music has always been present in their lives, they had connections with other musicians. 

To make these connections, Marino would reach out to bands from Mexico as well as other countries. He would offer to give them rides when any of them were touring in Mexico (his native country), too. So for years before the band existed, he had created a network that would help them grow as a band.

When the album was ready, they just had to pull those threads. “We spread the word with friends who had other bands or media and, from there, it came to a Mexican rapper who shared it in their networks,” Marino explained.

“That gave us some relevance and more people started downloading the album. This is how it came to radio stations, both FM and digital and other specialized music media, where at the end of the year we appeared as one of the top albums of 2015. Those initial $20 helped a lot.” 

One of the great lessons that Marino learned at the beginning of Chingadazo de Kung Fu was the value of networking. “You should never be rude or despot with anyone. In the end, you don’t know who you can get help from,” he said. “Do good things and good things will happen to you. Do good without looking at who, you never know how that can affect the future.”

This is important in any field, but in the music industry, it’s even more important. Networking is one thing that can catapult you to success. If you add a good digital marketing strategy to that, success will be much easier to achieve. If you don’t already have contacts in this area, start making them.

“You have to meet people, attend events, chat with colleagues, learn from their successes and their mistakes… and above all, believe in what you do,” explains Miguel Galdón. “In the age of the enterprising musician, you must be proactive in finding opportunities and maintain a positive attitude in any circumstance.”

Find Opinion Leaders in Your Musical Genre

Find sites that can promote your music and that can help you establish relationships to get you known on a larger scale. Letang lists several:

• Sites that promote your musical genre

• Online radios that broadcast the type of music you play

• Music forums

• YouTube channels

• Facebook and Twitter groups and pages that are dedicated to promoting your genre

“These sites have two things in common,” he says. “There are people who like your type of music watching them and have a greater reach than you alone. People who listen to these channels and read these websites respect what their owners have to say. Therefore, if an owner of any of these platforms tells his followers that you are the best option, you will surely receive an influx of people who will visit your website and take note of you.”

Searching for presentations is another excellent way to promote yourself. You don’t need to do it in a large auditorium, you can start looking for small bars and cafes. There are many sites that are dedicated to promoting talent in the making and that will be happy to listen to your demo and give you a chance.

Who Listens to You?

If you don’t know your audience, it’s time to start researching. You need to know who they are, what they like, what sites they go to, what social media they are most comfortable with, what other music they listen to, how often they listen to music and other specific details. If you have social profiles, analyzing them is a great way to get to know your followers.

Tools like Followerwonk allow you to analyze your Twitter followers and know their language, sex, religion, location, age, number of followers or frequency of publication. For Facebook, you can use Facebook Audience Insights which is a free tool that lets you find out demographic information such as age, sex, marital status or level of education.

All of this information can help you narrow down your main fanbase so you can better understand them and cater directly to them instead of the general public.  

Use Social Media

Social media are a great channel to connect directly with your fans. If you already know who listens to you, what they like and in what social channels they use, it will be much easier for you to do this. Being a musician, you are a music lover so think about your favorite artists and how they communicate through their networks. What do you like to know about them? When you have it clear, you can share content with your followers.

Don’t forget to target your market and pay to have a better reach among a certain audience. You don’t need large amounts of money, you only need to get close to the right people so knowing your main audience is important.

“Thanks to social media, our most listened to song on Spotify and Youtube has, in sum, more than one million reproductions,” explains Marino. “When I had my first band it was impossible to think a song of yours could be heard without the support of a transnational label or MTV.”

In addition, social media allows you to have much closer contact with the public, who will be happy to follow the day-to-day events of their favorite artist. For example, Instagram stories are an excellent tool to publicize the recording processes and offer more intimate details of a band. This will inevitably bring the band or artist closer to their fans who will grow more invested in them.

IG stories have become like watching television and allow you to develop a much more personal bond with people since they think that in some way they know you and you are close to them because you invite them to see your daily life,” Marino says. “It’s amazing because when people come to talk to you at shows, they don’t do it as if you were unattainable but as one more friend. That generates a nice inertia and has given us a very special connection with our audience.”

While social media is a great tool for musicians, you have to remember that these networks shouldn’t be used as a sales platform. “If your goal of having a presence on social media is to sell more tickets or discs, you will only find the frustration of not achieving it, however, if what you want is to connect with people interested in the musical style that most identifies you and communicate with them, you will be able to establish a connection with them and maybe they will see your next performance,” Galdón explains. 

It’s very likely that you can’t sell your music through social media, but if you manage to connect with your audience, they will surely come to see you at your next performance. This is best achieved by following the 80/20 rule.

80 percent of what you share on social media should be valuable content to your followers and 20 percent should be self-promotion.  

You also need a web page that can function as a reference site for your followers, will inspire confidence, collect all your information and monetize it as best suits you, explains Galdón in his book.

“It [Your web page] will be the place of reference for your followers,” he writes. “You will find any information related to your upcoming concerts or tours, the release of your new album, even the merchandising of your band.”

Make your Fans Your Main Ambassadors

If you can connect with your fans on a deep enough level, they can promote you and your music for you. In marketing, word of mouth is the most effective channel. Imagine if thousands of people like your music: The first thing they will do when they meet up with their friends will be to put on one of your songs. To achieve this, you need to get involved and interact with your fans. 

“It’s not about you answering each of your fans personally for every little thing, but you must make an effort to thank them in the updates of your social profiles,” recommends Letang. Social media is an excellent tool for this.

The Power of the Media

Using the media is a great way to gain popularity, too. If music is a long-term career goal, you’ll inevitably want the recognition that the media can give you. It’s not about sending them information once a year in a press release.

You have to be present periodically and relevant to provide them with useful information that is valuable to them in some way. They’ll begin to recognize you over time and will seek you out eventually.

Reaching out to media outlets isn’t complicated. First, make a list of media related to the music industry, including those that deal specifically with your genre. Next, go to each article and note who wrote each one.

Usually, there are several reporters or opinion leaders who are immersed in your specific genre. They’ll sometimes include their email addresses in their article byline making it easy to reach out to them. You can also search for their name on Google and it will probably give you more details about that person including their contact information.

You can use their social profiles to reach out to them, too. The idea is to make a list as complete as possible of the people who can help promote you before you begin actually contacting them.

Be careful not to send information in a generic way. While it’s much more comfortable and takes less time, remember that you are a brand and are promoting that brand. Send personalized information that is useful to that particular person. This will help increase the chances of them taking note of you and can make them more inclined to get in touch with you.

Don’t forget to make a press dossier about yourself. This is a document that contains information about you such as your biography and discography. Of course, don’t forget to include videos, albums and materials so they can listen to your music. Send it along with the information you want to get to the media.

Galdón suggests the following tips to do well here:

• Learn to write press releases. Look for examples that can help you make your own and be sure to proofread it for proper spelling and grammar.

• Pay attention to the design. This won’t necessarily help you get interviews but it will give the journalist a good impression of you and, in the end, first impressions count for a lot.

• Don’t be a nag. Follow up accordingly but be careful not to write too frequently as this can be annoying and will hurt your efforts.

Caption: Central 11 is a program on Mexican public television especially designed for young people where Chingadazo de Kung Fu appeared as they grew more popular. 

Hopefully, these musical marketing tips have given you a new perspective on promoting your work. Remember, it takes more than talent to make it in this highly competitive industry. Use these new ideas to brand yourself properly and make your mark in the music world.

The post Musical Marketing: 8 Keys to Succeed appeared first on Kolau Blog.

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Looking for marketing tips for Yoga as an instructor? Yoga is becoming more popular! More men and senior citizens are practicing yoga than ever before, going from 4 million men and 4 million 55+ old practitioners in 2012 to about 10 million and 14 million respectively. It’s not hard to see why. Ongoing research continues to find endless mental and physical health benefits for practicing yoga. 

Not to mention, for many people, yoga is a meditative and spiritual practice. That may be why it can feel inauthentic or contradictory to create a marketing plan for your yoga business. The truth is: marketing is necessary for a successful yoga business and there’s absolutely nothing wrong or contradictory about implementing it.

There are ways to create a marketing plan that fits your business authentically without compromising the core values of yoga. In fact, being dishonest can hurt your business much more than help. Marketing is about making your business discoverable and connecting with people who want to connect with you.

#1 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Find your Niche

The first question you need to ask yourself is: do you know your clientele? Who is in need of or enjoys your classes? This is directly connected with what kind of yoga classes you offer. Do you teach beginners’ classes or mostly advanced classes? Can your yoga help with back problems or relieve stress? 

You have to understand your clientele, what they look like, and what they’re looking for in order to be able to find them using a marketing strategy. Take a look at your current classes. Are your clients older or younger? Why did they sign up? Do they have health problems or are they particularly fit? Are there many long-time students or more beginners? Do these things change depending on what class you’re teaching?

If you’re a new yoga instructor, this may be more difficult to identify. You’ll have to look at the yoga classes you offer and think of all the benefits someone could get from them. Is your yoga especially fun or spiritual? Do you teach a yoga class particularly useful for losing weight? According to a study conducted by the Yoga Alliance,

61% of people start yoga for increased flexibility, 56% start for stress relief, and 49% start to improve their health.

When marketing, it’s good to emphasize these benefits. Consider what makes you or your studio different from other yoga instructors or yoga studios. Maybe you teach classes not many other kinds of yoga studios teach. Having a niche can be very beneficial, whether the niche encompasses only one class or your whole studio.

There tends to be less competition for niche categories which can lead to good business for you. For example, you’ve probably heard of yoga studios that specialize in teaching pregnant mothers and their families. Ready Set Grow is a great example.

They teach prenatal yoga, postpartum yoga, and family yoga, which is a great niche category. There will always be new mothers who feel they no longer have time for yoga and there will always be pregnant women looking to stay healthy and take care of their body.

The physical restrictions of pregnancy may be difficult for yoga practitioners, so a class meant for them and their physical needs will put their minds at ease and prevent them from stopping yoga altogether during their pregnancy.

You don’t have to dedicate your whole studio to a particular group, though. Offering, for example, a class for people over fifty, a beginners’ yoga class, or a class with a focus on body positivity will bring in a group of students who may not do yoga otherwise. 

The same study conducted by the Yoga Alliance found that the top reasons for people not trying yoga were: being unsure if yoga was right for them, not knowing how to get started, feeling out of place, and feeling like their body is not right for yoga. Providing a solution for these reasons will help you stand out among the crowd and fill a demand not many other people have been able or have thought to.

You could also think about providing services apart from yoga. For example, if a significant percentage of your students are parents, you could do what Yoga Union does and offer a childcare service.

It’s true Yoga Union is located in a community wellness center and so it makes sense for them to provide more services for the community around them, but if you have the means it’s worth considering filling pain points such as these that may be preventing your potential students from attending your classes.

#2 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Create Your Yoga Website

When it comes to online marketing, you should, at the very least, have a website for your business under a custom URL. Your website should at least have your business contact information, your yoga classes schedule, the cost of a class or a membership, and the location of your yoga studio.

Most yoga websites’ menus look like the one below:

There’s the homepage, which broadly introduces your visitor to your yoga business. Your homepage is a starting point, so providing easily accessible links to your registration page or showcasing special deals or incoming events is a good way to go.

Yoga Union’s homepage is very well done, starting out by introducing their visitors to a set of goals (honor, support, and connect).

If you hover over Honor, Support, or Connect a short description of how they fulfill that goal pops up. Below that, Yoga Union showcases links to encourage visitors to become members, view the class schedule, or see what events are coming up.

The About page is also a basic necessity for your website. The Breathing Room’s “About” consists of a map to their location, an “Info to Know” section, and a section with their contact information. They also have links, accessible through the menu, directing visitors to descriptions of their teachers and information for new students.

Yoga Union, on the other hand, uses the “About” section to answer frequently asked questions and to link to a photo gallery and to testimonials. It’s a good place to put the information you think is important for your potential or current students to know.

The “Offerings” section on The Breathing Room’s menu is used as a link to classes and the class schedule. It’s reasonable to put prices and membership benefits under the same section, though The Breathing Room has it in its own category (which is also fine). The important thing is to make it easy to find your pricing and membership information.

Lastly, the contact page is necessary but pretty simple and straightforward. That’s where you put the location of your studio (even if you also have it in your “About” page), a phone number a visitor could reach your business at, and typically an easy way to send you a message or email.

Those are the basics, but if you do anything else like write a blog or organize events or offer yoga teacher training, your website is definitely a great place to include that information. If you’re proud of your space, showcase photos of what it looks like. After all, the environment in which you teach your yoga can be important for a lot of people.

If you have a newsletter, encourage your visitors to sign up. If you’ve created videos, show them off! You may think newsletters, blogs, and videos don’t benefit you and take up too much energy but content marketing has been repeatedly proven to be very effective.

#3 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Using Content Marketing

Content marketing is all about ongoing quality. It’s not the kind of marketing strategy that will get you results instantaneously and it doesn’t work if you don’t put in genuine effort. Hubspot found that companies who published more than sixteen blog posts per month got about 3.5 times as much traffic than companies who published less than four.

This goes to show that content marketing is effective but it’s especially effective when done consistently and frequently.

You can utilize content marketing for your yoga business in a multitude of ways. You can write e-books or blogs or make videos or podcasts about yoga, teaching others what you know or sharing your journey. These are all great ways of extending your reach while helping people learn something or engage with you.

You can also put out content that is somewhat related to yoga but not necessarily about yoga. For example, you could keep a travel blog, make lifestyle videos, share health tips or healthy food recipes. Anything a yoga practitioner might be interested in or find useful is something to consider making content about.

Barre3, a workout company with multiple studios throughout the US, for example, has their own online magazine that posts articles about things from slow cooker recipes to interviews. 

Their message of empowerment is also reflected in their articles. For example, their article titled “We’re Revolutionizing The Fitness Before + After” is explicitly about denying the “unrealistic, unattainable… unhealthy before and after photos” and making the after photo a happy ending (instead of a comparison of weight). This particular post also includes a call to action, prompting their readers to take their version of a before and after photo on Instagram.

Call-to-actions, especially ones that encourage participation from your visitors that feels normal and natural, are a great way to keep your visitors engaged. Referring them to social media encourages long-term engagement as well.

#4 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Try Email marketing

Email marketing can be a huge opportunity for your yoga business. Yoga is so often about creating and nurturing a community. Sending consistent, authentic, relevant emails can help with that. Not to mention, emails can help remind your students about upcoming events like retreats or special yoga classes. It’s often about keeping your current students in the loop about what’s going on with your business.

Sending out emails is a great way of connecting with newer customers and keeping current students interested in your business. Don’t spam your email list though! Keep a schedule. Decide if you want to send out emails biweekly, weekly, or monthly. Be aware that if you send too many emails, they might get marked as spam, your recipients might give up trying to keep up with them, or they might unsubscribe.

Make sure to customize your emails according to your target group too. Don’t just send the same email to everyone. See where they are in their relationship with your business.

• If they’ve signed up but have yet to attend a class, send them an email reminding them to give it a try.

• If they’ve just gone to their first class, send them an email congratulating them and suggesting more classes.

• If they’re a longtime student, send them emails about class, teacher, or schedule changes.

Customize further by sending out birthday offers. Wishing your students happy birthday creates a positive association with your business and strengthens your connection with your customer. Emails about special events or deals are good ideas as well. All your emails should contain something of value for the person who is receiving them.

Remember when creating emails to make them functional on mobile devices. Many people read their email on their phones. Also, follow all the rules for the CAN-SPAM Act, which includes making sure you offer recipients the option to unsubscribe and identifying email ads as ads. For more about email marketing, check out our article on how to tailor your email marketing campaign to each customer.

#5 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Make Yourself Seen on Social Media

Social media is all about engagement and has been found to work wonders for yoga businesses, particularly on platforms like YouTube and Instagram. Yoga jumped in popularity between 2012 and 2016, according to the Yoga Alliance, going from 20.4 million practitioners to more than 36 million. The same study found that:

65% of practitioners practice yoga at home and 50% of practitioners cited cost as the most important studio trait.

It makes sense many of these people would choose to practice at home through videos or apps and it also makes sense to meet those people where they are.

When it comes to social media marketing, posting online consistently is key. It doesn’t always need to be original content. Sharing articles you enjoyed or propping up other yoga instructors is an option as well.

YouTube

YouTube is the most popular social media site in the United States. According to a 2018 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, 73% of Americans use YouTube. There are countless yoga YouTube videos out there. YouTube is a popular website for sharing classes with an online community. They can be however long you want, ranging from ten minutes to an hour.

This is a great way of finding beginners or people who can’t afford to go to in-person classes. Many yoga teachers also use free online classes as a way to build their online following. Often, they offer longer online classes for a fee on a separate website, usually through their own yoga website.

A great example of a yoga instructor who successfully utilized YouTube and created a huge online community is Adriene Mishler. She has four million subscribers on YouTube.

Adriene Mishler has been posting videos on YouTube for six years, uploading several times a month (sometimes a week) and accumulating more than 345 million views. Her success is rare, but it also shows what you can achieve with great marketing and dedication.

Her consistency–posting videos frequently for six years–and the accessibility of her videos definitely play a part in her popularity. She sets challenges, such as her 30-day challenge titled “Dedicate,” that are doable both for beginner yoga practitioners and more advanced ones.

If YouTube class videos is a direction you choose to go, it would be a good idea to post a decent number of classes that are accessible for beginners.

There are other types of YouTube videos you can post that would also be beneficial. You can post informational videos. Your videos could explain the benefits of yoga or define Vinyasa or share what you know of the history, for example. Making videos, in this case, is both social media and content marketing.

Instagram 

Instagram is a popular place for yoga. You’ve probably seen (or even posted) photos of fit yogis in difficult poses. These kinds of pictures are expected from a yoga account and you should absolutely post them on your Instagram. Though, it wouldn’t hurt to add some variety to what you post. This is true for nearly all social media platforms, not just Instagram.

First, decide if you want to market yourself or your studio on Instagram. If you’re marketing yourself, your account will have to focus a bit more on your personality and most pictures will likely include you or someone your followers might recognize. Take a look at Rachel Brathen’s page. She identifies as a “Yoga Girl” and a mom in her Instagram bio.

Her photos reflect what she’s told us in her bio. We see her meditating on the beach (some of her other photos also show her practicing yoga more clearly). We see her with her children and with her romantic partner. Her Instagram appears personal. She has a good mix of photos that appear to be taken herself (such as photos of her kids and selfies) and photos that appear professionally taken with gorgeous backgrounds such as the one below.

The real marketing comes in, casually, in her bio, where she writes, “JOIN OUR YOGA RETREATS + TEACHER TRAININGS!” She includes a URL that will take those interested to the yogagirl.com website.

Rachel Brathen also has a YouTube channel, which she uses to post the occasional yoga videos but, unlike Adriene Mishler, also has many videos about her and her family in the style of lifestyle YouTubers.

If you choose to market your studio instead of yourself as a yoga teacher, you can go about it a different way. You can still post photos of you or your fellow yoga teachers (or students) in impressive yoga poses. You can also showcase events happening at your studio or show off what the studio itself looks like. You can post pictures of classes, such as the one below by the yoga studio, Parallel 45.

Of course, you could do the same with an individual account. The main difference is that an account for a studio will inherently be more focused on community, not just one person. 

Facebook 

When it comes to social media marketing, you can’t forget Facebook. It’s the second most popular social media platform in the United States, losing only to YouTube. According to the same Pew Research Center survey mentioned earlier, 68% of Americans use Facebook.

At the bare minimum, you should create a business page for you or your studio–somewhere people searching can find information. Your Facebook business page can be a great place to bring in new students curious about your business and keep current or long-time students updated on events and classes.

Parallel 45’s Facebook page does a good job in many ways. They advertise a special event (CandleLight Restorative Yoga), making it easy for people who come across the post to RSVP or save the event on Facebook. Facebook also lets the user’s friends know they are interested in the event, spreading awareness.

Next, they have their 5-star rating showcased on the right side. If you’ve gotten positive reviews on Facebook, show them! They increase trust in your business. The Spiegel Research Center found that displaying reviews can increase conversion rates by 270%. Same with the “Community” section. Parallel 45 has a decent amount of likes and follows, showing that it’s not just a few people that think they’re great.

More tips on Social Media Marketing

Apart from making you seen by potential and current students, social media has the benefit of helping you keep in contact with other yoga instructors or even to connect with instructors you hadn’t known previously. You can prop up other instructors through your posts or give them credit when they give you an idea for something. Chances are some will do the same for you and you might even end up co-teaching or hosting an event together one day.

Here’s something to keep in mind: social media is only one part of a successful marketing strategy. When talking about Adriene Mishler’s success, it’s important to note that though most of her content makes its home on YouTube, she also shares on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Not to mention, she also participates in and shares events, has her own website, runs a blog, and sends out a weekly e-letter. Rachel Brathen also does some content marketing, including participating in a podcast and creating yoga practice videos.

Another thing to keep in mind: try to keep things real. People can tell when you buy a stock photo and post it to your Instagram instead of taking a real photo of real people. Also, posting consistently is important but try to engage your followers or subscribers as well. Respond to their comments and like the Facebook posts they mention you in. Retweet and share their stories about how you helped them find a home in yoga.

#6 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Use Google Ads

Using Google ads can be a great way to grow your business but if you’re lost about how to go about getting started or making your ads effective, you’re not the only one. There can be quite a bit that goes into creating and using Google Ads. We’ll only go through the basics, but if you’re interested in learning more check out some of our other articles about Google Ads.

You’ve likely noticed the paid results that appear when you search something on Google. Google (partly) decides which ads appear on the first page using an auction, in which you set how much you’re willing to pay for keywords. However, Google also takes into account the quality of your ad, user experience, click-through rate and a variety of other things, all of which add up to your quality store.

The combination of your bid and quality score determines how much you’ll pay each time someone clicks on your ad.

Focusing on a location–for example, San Francisco if you are based there–reduces how many clicks you’ll get from users who wouldn’t actually be interested in attending your classes. If someone searches for yoga studios in New York but you’re based in San Francisco, you don’t want your ad appearing to them.

You should also pay attention to how your keywords are doing. Keywords are the words your potential students would use in a Google search to find your business. For example, someone might type “private yoga lessons.” If you offer private lessons, then you should include the phrase in your list of keywords so your ad appears when they search it.

Let’s look at some examples of yoga ads.

Most of these do a decent job. The first ad emphasizes meditation and health, attracting people who may be interested in that. The second ad emphasizes yoga for “All levels,” attracting people who might be beginners. They both showcase what makes them stand out.

Second, most of these show off an offer. For example, the first one offers a sign-up fee of 99 cents, which is a great deal. Alternatively, the next two offer free trials, which is also appealing.

Third, two of them show their positive ratings as well. As mentioned earlier, positive ratings increase trust in your business. Gaia.com has over 4,220 reviews, making it that much more reliable. It makes sense they would be the first to appear.

Google also offers another kind of ads: display ads. You see Display ads when you’re browsing a website and a banner or a video ad relevant to your interests appears on the top or side of the page. Sometimes, it’s an ad from a website you had clicked on earlier. They look like this:

You can use these kinds of ads to target people who browse through yoga websites and may be interested in classes or to people who visited your site and left without taking action (known as retargeting or remarketing).

#7 Marketing Tip for Yoga Instructors: Use Offline Marketing Tactics

Yoga is often about community and so you can’t forget about your offline marketing. This is all about connecting with your fellow yogis in real life.

Advertising on Magazines

Have you ever received a free magazine in the mail? If you’ve ever flipped through one, you’ll notice that some ads contain free offers, such as coupons for a free book or a free beginner’s yoga class. For a yoga business, connecting with and bringing in the community around it is important and paying to advertise yourself in a local magazine can help you bring more members of your community into your classes.

Print ads are the most trustworthy form of ads, according to MarketingSherpa. While only 61% of people trust search engine ads (the highest trust rate for all online ads), 82% trust print ads.

It’s not enough to just make yourself known, though. Like with many other marketing tactics, you should focus on something you can give your potential student. What is the benefit for them? You can use the whole ad to highlight the great things about your yoga practice, studio, or qualifications, but it won’t work as well as giving the reader something they want.

So, if you’re holding a free class, advertise it in magazines popular with your community or ones they receive without having to pay or opt-in for. Or use coupons as a one-time cost waiver, so that whoever uses it can take a specific class for free. If the coupon is for a recurring class, it’s best to put an expiration date or to keep the coupon (rather than handing it back) after its been used to prevent abuse of the offer.

You don’t have to limit yourself only to free yoga classes. Give away free yoga products if someone shows up to one of your classes or give away entry to a special event. Whatever it may be you’re giving away for free, make sure you know the audience you’re advertising to.

When picking a magazine, investigate their audience and if it overlaps with your marketing targets. Fitness, women, and community-based magazines may contain the demographic you’re looking for, especially if they occasionally (or often) write about yoga or local businesses, but chances are magazines about cars or birds won’t work as well for you.

Generally, you should be honest about what you’re offering. Don’t try to hide it if your offer includes fees, such as shipping and handling. If, for some reason, signing up for your offer will incur other fees, make it as clear as you can. For example, if someone comes to your studio and discovers what they thought was a free class is going to charge them to rent a yoga mat or that the coupon only covered 60 minutes of a 90-minute class, they may not be happy with you.

The same is true if you require them to do anything other than show up–for example, if the coupon is only valid if they sign up online or through the phone first, you should request they do so in the magazine ad. Any conditions should be made clear. You don’t want to trick them into paying for something. You want to gain their trust and make them pleased enough they’ll return to your studio.

Word of Mouth (Referral Marketing)

You can’t underestimate the power of word of mouth. The Yoga Alliance notes that 65% of yoga studio owners take into account their friends and professional acquaintances’ referrals when hiring new teachers. 40% of people get their yoga information from their friends and 33% of people take up yoga because of their friends.

Often, “referral marketing” happens naturally. You just have to provide the best service you can and engage meaningfully with your students. If you’re good at what you do, you’ll be recommended to others. 

Though, you don’t have to just hope you’re students will recommend you to their friends without saying anything. Encouraging students after a class to tell a friend about their experience or about an upcoming event or special class is something to consider. If someone compliments you or your yoga practice, suggest they tell their friends about it too.

You could also offer incentives. For example, if someone convinces a friend to sign up for a month, you give that person free classes or a gift card.

This is a good example. The longer the referral lasts, the better the incentive, but also take a look at the headline. “Yoga Is Better With Friends” encourages the visitors of this page to refer friends for their own benefit and happiness. “Wouldn’t yoga be more fun with your best friend?” it asks.

Keep good relationships with other instructors

Networking and maintaining positive relationships with other instructors will help you in the long run. As mentioned earlier, when hiring, many owners take into account what other instructors say. Not to mention, connections will bring more opportunities such as co-teaching and substituting. Just remember to return the favor!

Keep the cycle of giving and receiving going. If you’re just starting out as a yoga instructor, the connections you build will help you get going and find students outside of the online world.

Volunteer at community centers and occasionally give free classes

According to the Yoga Alliance, the third most common way practitioners began yoga is through a free class. Advertise it well online and around your neighborhood (such as local magazines, as mentioned) and you’ll bring in plenty of beginner students or even students looking for a new studio.

Volunteering at a community center or giving a donation class will expose you to more people, especially people trying out yoga for the first. You’ll have the opportunity to connect with more professional acquaintances as well. Not to mention, you’ll be doing something good for your community!

Hold special events

Like Parallel 45’s CandleLight Restorative Yoga event, special events will create a stronger community within your studio, attract new people, or even bring back people who may have temporarily stopped practicing.

Fun, community-oriented events such as bingo where the winner gets a limited amount of free classes–something else Parallel 45 has done as a New Year’s Event–are great ways to encourage current students to continue attending and grab the interest of potential students.

Hopefully, you found these marketing tips for yoga instructors helpful! If you did and you’re interested in any more social media strategies, we’ve written an article about social media strategies for small businesses. Check it out!

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