Social Media Is A Weapon For Your Business

Muay Thai as a business is growing and while the sport is still niche it is growing at a rapid pace. Social Media is a large part of that growth.

Facebook, Instagram, and websites all help people reach each other faster and easier. It’s effortless to schedule an intro lesson, to read (and write) reviews, or even scout gyms in Thailand from afar.

Yet many gym owners still haven’t tapped into the networking power of social media. Here are five easy things you can do to leverage social media for your gym.

1. Use Your Fighters As Influencers

Fighters are not the target market for gyms as they generally don’t bring in direct revenue. But, these athletes have value as influencers and leaders for your business. They are proof of your gym’s programs, culture, and ethics.

Nak Muay serve as rallying points for the larger community. After all, there is nothing more bonding than going on gym trips to fights. Helping prepare an athlete for an event is a gym project. The boxer needs sparring partners, cornermen, people holding pads, etc.

A community that helps will be invested in that athlete’s success both long and short term.

• There are easy ways for your fighter to support your business.
• Have them show their workouts at the gym on Instagram,
• Post fight results and events,
• Take group photos to celebrate their success (whether it’s a great day of sparring at the gym or winning a championship).

Here is a great example from 8 Limbs Academy in Philadelphia. They banded their students together and had them wish good luck to their fighters participating in the recent USMTO tournament.

This reinforced the gym community, showed support to the athletes, and displayed that 8 Limbs was active in promoting its members and athletes.

2. Build The Culture Of Your Gym

Culture is why people will stay at the gym. You can have the best technique in the world but if you and your staff are assholes, don’t expect people to stick around.

The culture of a gym is built both from the members up and the leaders down.

So it is important to control the community’s morale to keep them engaged and along the path you want to see them grow on.

One great way of doing this is through mat chats. Mat chats in traditional Martial Arts are a way to instill lessons in students. These talks are usually given in the gym. Yet, with the rise of the internet, you can create online Mat Chats for your students and members.

This is especially useful if you or your members don’t have immediate time for chats.

Talks can cover a wide range of topics about different styles in Muay Thai, weight cutting, ego in the gym, good training habits, and more.

Head trainer of Pinky Muay Thai, Pinky Donald, does a great job with his regular “Pinky Rants.” Pinky spent 9 years training and fighting in Thailand. Now he’s able to share his cultural experiences with both his students and the world using Youtube talks. It is a natural advertisement for his gym as well.

3. Network With Surrounding Businesses

People like to do business with people they know. If you want to grow your business then network with people in your industry, and your local community.

These connections can come in handy when times are tough or open up new opportunities.

Need catering for a holiday party? What about the Mexican restaurant you go to?

Want to upgrade your CSM for your gym? Have you made connections with other business owners to ask for their advice?

You want your fighters to market themselves better and you need new photos for your website. Want about the photographer you met at the last fights?

These people will be much more likely to help you if you’ve already helped them. All businesses, big or small, need and want help with advertising. Easy posts about relevant services also help your gym members.

Patrick Rivera of Valor Training Center does a great job with this. He is constantly supporting other businesses.

This is a great lesson to teach fighters for their sponsorship path as well. Check out here for more info on sponsorships. 

4. Show Technique

Often there are gaps between what is taught and what is learned and applied. Using social media to create how to videos is a great way to close that gap.

This genre of videos does especially well. It is often saved online for further reference. This creates long lasting value for your gym. It takes members several “touch points” to come in through your door. So creating as many as you can is a great way to market.

How to punch, kick, knee, etc. videos are as important as higher level videos. These creates a great library for your members and instill how you want your staff to teach.

Here young up coming star Smilla Sundell  of Fairtex Training Center in Thailand shows how to get better at elbows.

5. Educate Your Members

There can be other skills that might be harder to teach. These skills might only apply to a very select few. But, they can be paramount to a gym’s success.

For example, understanding and knowing how to corner is an important skill for any coach, or fighter to own.

Having that extra person around can help out a fighter without a corner or when you are short handed.

Rudi Ott of Smash Gyms has been in the ring and in the corner with some of the greats. Here he teaches how to corner.

Pro Tips:

Post regularly. Try to aim for 3-5 times a week. Getting results on social media is like getting results in the gym. You need to show up consistently.

Batch content. If you are doing instructional videos batch together two or three. Try to produce as many of one type of content as possible and then plan out when you will publish it.

Try easy first. A great idea is to explain the different fight styles in Muay Thai. Film yourself and post it on your gym blog, instagram, and or Facebook. You can use this article as reference.

Schedule the days of the week. Having set days of the week for content will make it easier to come up with ideas.

For example:

• Monday – Fight News
• Tuesday – Culture
• Wednesday – Network with a Business
• Thursday – Show Technique
• Friday – Educate your Members