1. By appointment only. No dropping in to see what they are doing – you must book an appointment and stick to your appointment.  (They called two times before to make sure we would be there.)
2. Must bring kids and myself – not just me, as he wanted to meet the kids to see if THEY would be a good fit – turning the tables on us, in essence.
3. He let them try some lessons – and made it easy and fun.
4. He showed them all the other kids in his regular classes (kids have four classes a week – plus three family classes they could go to as well). NOTE: He has (on average) 30 - 35 kids per class – a sign he is doing something right.
5. He explained how they can get different colored belts.
6. He refused to let us sign up for less than a year (too easy to quit after a month or two – give it a year and you are hooked).
7. He charges a big premium over others.
8. Has a monthly print newsletter.
9. He caters to his ideal client (the kids) – make it comfortable for them and fun – and they are customers for years to come – AND, ultimately, he can get their parents in as well!

The big lessons I took from his marketing systems:

1. YOU, the business owner, should be the one setting the rules for your clients – if they want to do business with you; it is on your terms, not theirs.
2. DO NOT make yourself too accessible – make them work to do business with you.
3. Give a test run – something free they can try – then they can decide if it is for them.
4. Make the decision hard enough on the price point, but with ample reasons why a premium price is better.
5. Constant communication with students (and, in this case, their parents).
6. Explain all the different offerings (belts) and what it means to you personally.
7. Definitely NOT competing on price – a no-win battle – the market for upper-end products and services is THE FASTEST GROWING market segment in North America.

Overall, I am really enjoying the martial arts – and watching a master marketer at work!