The Onboarding Process That Took a Pilates Studio to 600 Members Without a Single Ad (7 Steps)
32m 6s
The studio has grown to 600 members over eight years without using paid advertisements or a formal referral program. Instead, growth has been driven by a strong brand identity and organic community building. The studio positions itself as a "lifestyle brand" rather than just a Pilates studio, emphasizing intentional design, attention to detail, and a welcoming atmosphere. The founder avoids focusing on competitors to maintain mental clarity and prioritizes authenticity. A seven-point member experience checklist ensures consistency: after purchasing an intro offer, members receive a welcome message with community guidelines that explain the studio's values and set expectations. New members are offered studio tours and personalized greetings, with staff using their names repeatedly and introducing them to existing community members. The studio's philosophy is "come as you are, leave feeling better," creating a judgment-free space where movement is collaborative and teachers focus on teaching people about themselves. The target audience includes local business owners, creatives, and parents who value organic discovery. The founder believes that niching down and being intentional attracts the right people without needing paid marketing.
You got 600 members at good times. Yes. What percentage of those came from ads versus from the community? I don't think any came from ads. Get far. Actually, really? Well-- Well, hang on. So is there a referral program? You're not really. So 600 members-- I'm just going to write this down, man. So 600 members at a politice studio. No ads. No paid ads. No. We have run paid ads in the past. But it hasn't been like your full strategy. Not really. And no referral program. No. So I mean, I've got questions. No. I have a final question. I know you've got these seven point member experience checklists that every member-- You mean this guy over here? Every member experiences before they even touch a reformer bed. Right? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. But before we get to there-- because I want to know the juice. But before we got there, he was 600 fucking members. But no paid ads or no referral program. I mean, we've been going for nearly eight years as well. So we have a lot of history and skin in the game. That's the remark. We're not the new kids on the block. It's what I'm trying to say. So in the eight years, then you've probably seen from Politis Studios coming go. They pop up. Maybe there are 10 new versions of you guys. Yeah. What where do you see-- like, what's wrong with how much studios try and get referrals or how they try and grow? Well, I can only speak from my own experience. I'm not 100% sure how other studios work. But what works for us is allowing people to feel like they have found us organically and making-- I cast a discoverable-- Yeah. --what the discovery process. Good times isn't a Politis Studio. It's a lifestyle brand. And that's the-- [LAUGHTER] Wow. You just happen to be Politis Studio. But you're a lifestyle brand. Yeah. OK. Because people that are attracted to us are attracted to the lifestyle of being part of this community, of being part of somewhere that cares about the little details, cares about-- I mean. You know, we do like tours around the suburb showing people our favorite places. We-- What with your members? No, like on Instagram, sorry. Right. Yeah. I see. Yeah. We are part of something bigger in somebody's life. We're not the-- like we might not even be the only studio they go to. I don't know. But we tell a story about who somebody is, not what they do. What do you see everyone else do? Like help. OK. Yeah, sorry. We got back-- No, no, no, no. That's good. Don't worry. Don't worry. I don't actually know what other people do. To be totally honest, I don't pay a lot of attention to other people. That's interesting. Yeah. Why not? Because other people like worry about competitors, right? Yeah. Because I don't-- not that I don't worry. It's more that it causes way too much fucking noise in my head. Like, it's not healthy for me. Avoid the noise. Yeah. It's really-- I find it really unhealthy. And I get like those jealous and envious feelings and not nice in your body. So I follow other studios and other business owners. But I often put them on mute on Instagram so that I am not fed what's going on with them. Because I find it unhealthy for me. So like, when we walked in this place, it's always 20 minutes to get up East End. Because that bins from that like a designer, they got-- We have the AD tour. Yeah, we fully have the-- Yeah. And like, everything in this joint is so intentional. What the bins-- Yeah. Yeah. The tiles in the bathroom, the taps in the toilet, like-- Yeah. It's all very intentional and very-- it tells a story about the type of person who comes here is discerning enough to even know what these brands are or appreciate that they are here. So does that connect to the lifestyle brand? I think so, yeah. Yeah. I think it's the whole thing. But it's all about the details. Everything is also in the studios talking about kind of taking a while to get up here is designed to make people smile. It's designed to leave people feeling better. Like, that is our-- our North Star is-- Here we go. --come as you are-- --and a minus all. --feeling better. Come as you are. You can write that down. So everything comes back to that. I mean, I don't know what other people do. I think-- What do they do? --to be totally honest with you. I know that you have built a business on this, but I think sometimes people overcomplicate it. No. [LAUGHS] Dude. [LAUGHS] There's-- I can some arm. And look, I know that I don't have all the answers, and I could definitely do with some better processes in my business and like free up some more time in my life absolutely. But-- --but-- Yeah, before me. Yeah, I don't know. It's working. Like, it's working. We've been doing this for a while. It's-- I'm also part of the community. Like, I'm in the studios doing classes nearly every day. Right, sure. Like, so I am-- I'm like the-- I'm the North Star. You know, I'm making sure that all of these things are done every time. What's your all and what's Dave's role? Great questions. [LAUGHS] That was a day. I'm more the creative director, and I am the CEO, and Dave does maintenance, does finance, does build studios. He's a huge-- What number are we up to now? We're about to start. We're starting to build number four. But yeah, my role is actually whatever it needs to be on the day as well. At the moment, I'm teaching, which I haven't taught in like five years. So I've been teaching nearly every day. Like, I'm teaching 630s and 30s and 30s. I-- I love it. But it just so happens to be that that's-- Season. This season, exactly. That's what I kept telling myself. And I'm enjoying it. It's a lot of mental work, but I'm enjoying it. You got the parents to you, right? Yes, we have a 12-year-old or 13. Oh my gosh. 13-year-old and a four-year-old. Yeah. Yeah. So full. Yeah. Great. Everything is so intentional. Yeah. Good times is a lifestyle brand not applied this year. I think that's a massive backdrop. I think a lot of people, you know, maybe awful in some gaps here then. Because we obviously see all sides of it. We have people knocking in front of all the players, studios, you know, there's whatever's-- Yeah. And they're doing the opposite of this. Who are you? A players studio. Why do you exist? Five or 50. I get a nut you're off of. Yeah. Like, why do you actually just-- I don't know. We just love players. It's like, I know, but like stand for something. Yeah. By fucking stand for something. Yeah. Like, we constantly think about what problem we're solving for people. What is that? I think we are somewhere that people want to go. Whether they're not being told what to do. They're not being judged. They are welcome. They know their name. It's somewhere that they can come exactly as they are and not feel like they need to be anything other than whatever they're doing on the day. However, they're feeling on the day. There's no pressure. There's no performance. It's-- we know your name. We're here for you. Like, that's how we start every class, which is probably one of the seven things. One of the seven things. You know, when we do our check-in or when we do our introduction, we say, you know, welcome to you good times class. I'm Kat. We don't ask for injuries. We say, like, if there's anything I need to know about you, let me know, because that invites anything that might be happening. So, I say, somebody's, you know, on the spectrum, or they need some help with the lighting is too bright, or they don't want to be neither fans. Like, it's not just about injuries. It's about the human being and making a space where they feel like they can just talk to us. And we also talk to, like, options. We give lots of options. We make-- movement is an invitation. It's a collaboration. It's not-- we stand up. We don't even call ourselves instructors. We don't stand up here and tell people what to do. We stand up here and collaborate with the people in the class. We're teachers. We teach them. We teach them about themselves, I think, more than anything. Like, yeah, we teach Pilates, but we teach people to feel confident in themselves and competent in themselves. Do you think they like it out there? Potentially. Well, I mean, I don't go to a lot of other studios anymore. We're moving just out there in life. Yeah, maybe. Yeah. I think this is a space where people feel, yeah, they can be authentic. And our teachers, like myself and our teachers, really hone in on that. And we ourselves are vulnerable, authentic, individual human beings. And so we create a space where other people can feel like that too. So intentional, hey? Everything is so-- And we always talk about business and life by design. And I think you guys and this space and everything about you too is almost the epitome of that. It is intentional. Most people, what happens is they've got generic offers, generic programs, a generic studio. And a lot of them are trying their best. And they're almost just kind of falling into this trap of I don't want to be too specific because I'm going to wipe out a lot of the market. So what they're trying to do is-- Yeah, speak to everybody. Speak to you. Speak to nobody. That's what happens. Yeah, totally. And I get that. Especially when the industry is evolving, it can be scary to knuckle down on something. because. "Oh, well, this person's doing hot mad, "or this person's doing weight, "so this person doing this." And it's like, "Well, if the more you niche down, "the more you're gonna grow and develop." That's clearly what has happened here. And that's always the way that I've thought about it because the right people are gonna find you. This is why we don't do paid ads because the right people find us. Our people don't wanna be sold to. They don't wanna be told what's cool. They wanna find out what's cool on their own. Or they want, you know, it's an organic thing by design. When you think of what they do for jobs or whatever, like what do they do when they're not here? Your particular avatar. - Okay, a lot of them own their own business or they are in creative fields or like work and hospitality. They live locally, a lot of them are parents. - I'm joining some dots here, can it, as you're talking and while I'm in this space, it feels like you guys have grown to the 600, and it hasn't been paid ad strategy or we're not looking at posters on the wall talking about if you refer or friend you get two weeks free. It has been from your brand experience. - Yes. - And everything that you guys, it's like brand identity, brand experience. And attracting the right people who have become your ambassadors out there. - Absolutely. - Where's this cup from? - I did it, hold on, it's gonna be really full. - Is this special cup? - So, what's this? - This cup is a collage. He got, this was the one I wanted, but I actually wanted to tell a different story. So, one of our clients owns a business up the road called that paper shop, and I took the team and we did a like team just hang, and we all made collages. But this is a collage that I did for, I think it was an Instagram competition actually and you had to like find the fake tattoo on someone. But it's all the team. - This is all you take on this mug? - Yeah. - That's so fucking cool. - Yeah. - How many's in the team? - There's 20 ish. - Where's Dave? - That I don't think Dave's in there. I use that. - This was a while ago. - Oh yeah, so everyone's collage that they made, I made them into mugs and like gave them a mugs. - And then we'll get in a mug. - Yeah. - How many stuff? Oh sorry, how many teachers? - Teachers, there's about 20. So we've actually just, we're kind of in a bit of a flux at the moment. There's some people coming, some people going. - Yeah. - We're working on our covers team and building that out so that I hopefully don't have to work every day, teach every day anymore. But yeah, about 20, in our head teaching team S3, customer service S2, which we call community support. And there's Dave. - I want to unpack this branding spirit stuff. I want to know what this branding spirit is. So it sounds like, let's go through this cat. Let's go through the flow. So walk through the seven things that a member experiences in order before they even touch a reform event. - The when they purchase an intro offer. - Yeah. - They get a welcome text and an email, which is pretty stock standard. - Yeah. - But it has a link to our community guidelines. - At Honeys' sale, they get a link. - Yep. - To a community. And this can also be after they touch the reform event. - Yeah. - What is on that? - The community guidelines was like, something that we built out over time. But it explained through we are and like why we exist. And it sets people up for success, which is one of our key values is about setting people up for success. - And that's a text, right? - Yeah, it's a text and a link to the website. - That's a text. And does it go to emails as well? - Yep. - So text and email, as soon as they buy. - Yeah. - Yeah. - So it tells them about how to book their first class. If they're first time like how to set up, leave your phone in the lockers, come 10 minutes early. BWO's Sock Stringbottle, SweatTowl. Arrived early, please don't be late. - Just for the viewers, so I'm gonna grab this. - Yeah. - Like even this is, this is a design experience, right? Like this is an email that's copy-paste. - Yeah, no, no, no, no. We have a web developer who designs all of this for us to do. - Right. - But it explains everything. - Yeah, we're just like, if you're not watching this on YouTube or Spotify, we're looking at this community guidelines page off their website and it is, I mean, you can tell the effort that's gone into this. We'll wait, let's pregnancy, return and refund policy, you and your body, please tell your teacher before class. So you said teacher before class, there's something we need to know about you and all your bodies. So everyone's gonna feel welcome, like great. Okay, cool. So that's what happens. Okay, so we've got to start here, link on your website. Good time, guys. This is our intro for our current intro for. So it's got that and then-- - Full class, two weeks, 59. Many mover teas of full class was 59 yet. - And then it says-- - Come as you are. - Yeah. - Okay. - So is that the first time someone sees it? - Potentially. - So this is their first time that they've started to feel probably comfortable? - Yeah. - Or like they've had interaction with your values. - Yeah. And like the colors also say-- - Happy. - Yeah, they leave people feeling better. Like that's the idea. - It's a surprise and delight. - Okay, so come as you are. New deplied is just new to good times. Our first time teaser is the best way to start anything with us. Try it all our classes. It's get a feel for our studios. Many our friendly teachers experience how good times will fit into your life. There are some studio tours. Fitzroy, Brunswick. So-- - And then there's a reform one once. - Okay, so these links take you to tours, which I can find on our Instagram. So this is our Instagram page. And then the tours are highlight. It's me. Taking them on the AD tour. - Right. - You know, cute stuff. Talks about me designing it. And then there's, oops. That'll be-- - Like that, Brunswick. - Yeah. - Yeah. - Okay. - So it's me wearing silly outfits and touring people. - Yeah. - I can see the touch points starting to connect now. - Yeah. - So they've probably seen all that. They've transacted. And they've got something on the other side that actually provides some congruencies, what we call it, between what they're suddenly outside and what they're seeing on the outside after the purchase. - Yes, yes. - All right. Was that number one? - Yep. - What's number two? - That was before-- - That's before booking. - Yeah. - Yep. - Great. Then what happens? What's on this seven step checklist? - So step one is the message in the email. Step two is the tours guides. - What, you're told to expect? - Yeah. - Okay. That's great. A lot of the research around how to never lose a customer, which is a great book. Sophie, have you guys, do you want, anyways? Sophie, that's one of the bookstashies, like, studied heavily. And a lot of that is sending those expectations at the start because otherwise you get that gap. - Yep. - And that purse purchase kind of rational. - And that comes into the setting people up for success thing. It's like, yeah, there's no ifs or buts. We try to make things easy, smooth, even like, there's one intro. It's pretty simple. You book your classes. - All right, I've got here step three was the arrival experience. Yep. So run us through the arrival experience. That's what we just had. - Yeah. - Does it take everyone else 20 minutes to get up the desk? (laughing) After I take north of 10. - So yeah, we often have dogs at the studio, which is kind of fun. That's a great arrival experience. (laughing) But I'm-- - So paint the picture for somebody who's never been here before. Like, what is the feeling that you wanna create with your arrival experience? - We want people to feel welcome. So this comes into, we can see that somebody's new on the checklist. We've only ever got maximum 10 people in the class. So giving somebody the time that they need to feel welcome is actually really easy when you've only got 10 people. And there's, you know, max gonna be two new people of their class. But everybody gets welcomed by name. They get asked if they would like a tour of the machine. A lot of the times these days, that's unnecessary because a lot of people have done Pilates before. But I did class besides somebody this morning at Fitzroy who'd never done reforma before. And so she got the full tour. We reinforce that by using their names like 20 times throughout the first class, specifically. Yeah, they'll get the tour. They'll get asked if they have socks because it is our policy that they wear socks. But it's also like, it's your first time. If you don't have them, it's okay. We're not gonna force you to buy a pair of socks. - They do it. - And it's a huge red and a drop. - Yeah, last one day. Thank you so much for doing it. And it's a huge red and a drop. How much do you charge for socks? - 22.95, whatever the standard retail that move active. But we've got custom made socks and then we get other socks as well. - Yeah. Studio tour, name 20 times. - Yeah. - What else? - Like often we'll try to introduce them to another community member. I find that that is a really big one. It's something that doesn't happen all the time, but when it does, it's really special. I remember that happened to me the first time I ever did Pilates. - Okay. - And I still remember the person's name. Her name was Gabby. And we had a chat. And I was like, how do I, I don't know what I did yesterday, but I remember this person's name from what 15 years ago. - It was having that make you feel. - It made me feel like I was part of something bigger. - Bingo. - Yeah. So that's really important. It's also just showing them around, like making them feel really comfortable. - It might be, runs would be slightly bigger studio, but it might even be like walking somebody up the stairs saying we recommend to go on a machine or pick a machine that is near the middle so that you can see what's happening around you. But if you prefer to be on the end, that's also okay too. - Sling through stuff online.
followed your Instagram stuff, like the vibe, I'm gonna transact, I go on the website, I hit it, on the other side of it, I get a text and an email that'll link to the community guidelines, the who, the why, the values, and then what it's all to expect to set me up for success, then I turn up and you talk, my first name, you give me or you offer me a tour, connect to me with someone and you may be supposed to be accountable. - Yeah. - Right. So, three and, was your rival experience, and then that also included some of four, which is how they're entering into the room. So just like-- - Yeah, I think the arrival experience is more about the name and the, this sounds a bit esoteric, the vibe. - Yeah, yeah. - Of the space. It is, like you said before, it's congruent with the messaging, the what they've been told to expect. They don't, I think the arrival experience actually is a separate thing because people, you know, anybody can be cool on the internet. Anybody can like say they're cool or like say they're interesting. And then you get to the studio, you get to the space and it's dirty or it's messy or it's, it just feels like you know when you go somewhere and it just feels like it doesn't make sense for what you expected. - Yeah. - So that arrival experience makes sense. And then intro is name to a feeling comfy. And then the, what the teacher does is also using the name. - So number five, what the teacher does for a first time. It's all, what we're coming through to. - Introduction that we do at the start of class, the check-in and the check-in is, this list is kind of more what we would go off than this list, but I think they tie in well. It's chatting to the teaser people. So we call out intro a teaser, if that didn't, it wasn't obvious already. Okay, we asked them about their day. We, you know, chat to them about, have you done reforma before? Have you done politis before? Do you have a regular movement practice? We asked them about, you know, if they're wearing a cute outfit, we might comment on it. Like there's little things that you can do to make people feel at home and feel welcome. That aren't just like, you're welcome here, saying it, you know, it's about introducing people to other people in the class. It's about commenting on something so that they feel seen, but not something that's like, you look pretty today or like your hair looks cute. It's more like, yeah, exactly. Something that's for them and not about their physicality, but it's about them feeling like they've been seen. - Gotcha. Okay, so I'm gonna write, I'm gonna write seen down. - Okay. - That's really important. That's another feeling. - Yeah. - Feeling here, feeling there. - Yeah. - Feeling there. - Yep. - Feeling here. - Yeah, they know. - Come as you are, Lee, feeling better. - There's a lot of feelings. - There's a bit of feeling going on. - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - Right, 'cause people never forget that. - Exactly. - Beeping 40 years ago, shout a gav. - Yeah, true. Don't know where she's at now. - We talked to them to get to know more about them. Like during the class, we might tell an anecdote about our lives. So people get to know us better. I'll say, us, I mean us teachers. We might tell a silly story while they're doing something 'cause it's kind of hard or challenging or maybe mundane. Like this morning, I was in class and we were doing side lying legs and I fucking hate them. And so I was just complaining the whole time but also telling stories about, it's asking Peter the teacher about teaching original moves and just, which is one of our class styles. - You're intentional about a lot of things and then you're also intentional about not taking certain things two seriously. - Yeah, yeah. - Okay. - Taking ourselves two seriously. I think that's it. It's like everything is serious in terms of the space. But when we're interacting with human beings, that's not serious. That's like friends. Like we're friends with all of our community members. That's the whole vibe is about having fun and being connected to other humans. - That's kind of what the name. - When I was a politist teacher. So I've taught for maybe three years before I started good times. And I used to, I don't know where it came from but I used to hashtag like polities good times. It just stuck. So 2014 was when I started teaching. So I started doing that then and I was like, when looking for something, it just totally made sense. It was gonna be a good time studio for quite a while and then the SS, the double S really bugged me the way that it looked when it was written out. - Good times, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - Fully. - Yeah. - Like a VARL. - Yeah. - And I'm also all about making things simple and setting people up for success. So it had to have polities in the name 'cause otherwise people might be like, "Well, what do you do?" - What are you doing? What is it? - Yeah. - You've got polities, don't you? - This is YouTube basically in action. (laughing) No, genuinely. Like this is, I didn't even know this was a thing and I was like, "It's seven fucking things." In this order, otherwise you wouldn't have a building. Do you remember like we wouldn't have four studios? - Yeah. - We wouldn't like-- - I know, okay, here we go. I wrote this down 'cause I didn't want to forget. The post class message, it actually doesn't really have a CTA. The CTA is to book again. Like the CTA is-- - The comeback. - Yeah, just come back. Always thank people for coming to class. - Is that right? - Go ahead, run me through it. - It's literally like-- - I understand it. - Thank you all so much for being here. I had so much fun today. Really lovely to get to know you all. Hopefully see you next time. - Yeah, right. - Although it might have been not be like a follow-up, it might just be, I say that after every class and most teachers do. And there's also a moment where if I'm in class, I always thank the teacher for their time and for bringing the vibes. So that for me is the non-negotiable post class moment. - Then talk to me about the follow-up message, which is number seven, brings it home. - Okay, bringing it home is right after their first class, it's just a check-in. It's almost like I hope you're feeling better than when you arrived. - So you've got the post-alignment. - So you've got the situation. Yeah. And the CTA is to book again. 'Cause we want to see them again. There's nothing hard about it. It's very much like we're building momentum together. We're not trying to push you into something that you don't need or you don't want. - So you've basically closed the loop. This is what, so they've gone from, this is what's happened. This is what you've actually done. You've actually done it. You've completed the loop here. We've gone from discovery. This is cat's eye, this is data. This is how you guys work so. So cat's likes, we want them to go through discovery. - Yeah. - You've got 30,000 people on Instagram. Not applied this year a lifestyle brand. I've seen that. I can see that visually. I can, there's intentionality behind the palette. The stuff that's happening in this year is not just the white box with some reformer beds in there. There's a message that's coming through around coming as you are and leave feeling better. You've said feeling a lot of times. - A lot of times. - And you're via signaling. So then what happens is someone, bang, they've transacted. And now we're seeing whether reality matches what you're sitting out there in the world. From the point of style, text, email, link to community gollans who we are, what we do, what you're told to expect. We're coming out here. There's your rival experience. So far it's a match. A tour connection, talk to Sally, make it feel comfortable. In the session, they're in-trote into the room that made them feel seen. We're not just throwing silly one line around. They're actually going something. - Yep. - Okay. We call that a tailored touch part of our five-star session experience. - Yeah. - The one I've touched us for the first time, into the post-class moment. And then finally, the closer loop. - Yeah. - Can't you brought it home strong? - And the follow-up for us, yeah. Is that-- - Did we actually, yeah, it's almost like, did we actually deliver on this promise? - Exactly, exactly. - Fucking nailed it. - Or like the people who find us want to feel like they found us on their own. - Discover it, yeah. - It's all about it feeling organic. - Yeah. - So our sales process is this. It's not callbacks. We don't do callbacks. We don't do ads. We don't do a lot of things that I know that you teach a lot of people to do. But we do do this and we do it fucking well. And we don't compromise on that. - On what? - On the-- - And how they're returning to the room. - On the experience. So on the in-studio experience is top fucking notch every time. And everything is thought about, like you said before, like I'm looking at the elevated class experience. We do check-ins, we give options, we name the exercise, we check the machine settings. Like, 'cause it's not the first class, it's every class. We always check the machine settings. We always give people options. We always check the lighting and the music. Like it has to be right for that class and those people in that class. It's not a one-size-fits-all thing at all. - So definitely hearing you loud and clear, how do you build a successful plighted studio via your brand experience? - Yeah. - From all touch points. From the first reel they see on socials, right through to ask on a bed. Let's say someone heard this. So much as David dropped us. And it's Monday morning, they come into the studio and go, "I've just listened to this episode, "but I'm a fucking mind. "Where should they start?" Like a tiny job to start and not get overwhelmed. Like what is we call the Pringle, which is like a-- - Oh, that's a good one. - Which is less than two minutes, but once you pop, you can't stop. - What would that be? Would it be just maybe even having a look at these seven and just seeing how many of these seven they actually do, like doing a bit of an audit? - What I do, myself, is I pretend to be a client very often. I actually signed up for a membership the other day, literally paid for a membership with the business card and then had to refund it on the business card just to make sure what the follow-up process was. And like, 'cause you can go into your marketing suite or whatever the fuck you're using, moments, whatever, whichever CRM you're using. and you can see them there.
unless you actually experience it as a human being, you don't know what it feels like to get those messages or to be contacted that way. So I actually realized that I'd signed up and I got an email that I had an updated something in the email, so I went back and updated it. It's like I'm always checking and checking and re-checking and evolving. But yeah, maybe that's pretend you're a client. - I love that. - I feel like that's a good pop. You can't stop situation. - Yeah. - You can even send me to a mission shop then, like Mystery Client. - Totally. - I actually put my referred stats in there which I don't know if you want to know what they are. 28% said they were referred by Google. - Yeah. - I don't know if you can see this. 23% walked past. - 23% - 23% - Another client. - Yeah. - And 10% Instagram. I don't know if that exactly equals 100. They were like, I rounded up and down and missed a couple of shit ones. But yeah. - Awesome. - 23% another client is a lot like word of mouth matters and walking past matters like for us being on main roads is a massive one. People have an idea of what to expect because they can see what's out the front. - Yeah. Dave. - Now what? - Ah. - Thanks for tuning into today's episode. If something wasn't any with you, then do one of two things. Are the lever review or send this episode to our mate who's in the industry who might need to hear this. But if you want more right now, because you're head not spinning and you're like, all right, those are what the hell do I do right now, then in the show notes, you'll find a link to week and book him for a free 15 minute checkup on your studio. We'll be get to have a look at how you're going right now and where some of the kind of quick win opportunities are to get you moving faster. I can't wait to be back in your ears next week. And if you're listening to this right now, I'm what you know that I love you. I appreciate you. I'm grateful for you and I'm in your corner. You are on the right track and I believe in you. So keep going and I'll see you next week.
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
The studio grew to 600 members without paid ads or a referral program, relying on organic discovery and brand experience over eight years.
The studio positions itself as a "lifestyle brand" rather than just a Pilates studio, focusing on community, intentional details, and a "come as you are, leave feeling better" philosophy.
A seven-point member experience checklist ensures consistency
The founder avoids focusing on competitors to reduce mental noise and emphasizes authenticity, vulnerability, and intentional design in every aspect of the business.
The target audience includes local business owners, creatives, and parents who value organic discovery and dislike being sold to.
Summary:
The studio has grown to 600 members over eight years without using paid advertisements or a formal referral program. Instead, growth has been driven by a strong brand identity and organic community building. The studio positions itself as a "lifestyle brand" rather than just a Pilates studio, emphasizing intentional design, attention to detail, and a welcoming atmosphere.
The founder avoids focusing on competitors to maintain mental clarity and prioritizes authenticity. A seven-point member experience checklist ensures consistency: after purchasing an intro offer, members receive a welcome message with community guidelines that explain the studio's values and set expectations. New members are offered studio tours and personalized greetings, with staff using their names repeatedly and introducing them to existing community members.
The studio's philosophy is "come as you are, leave feeling better," creating a judgment-free space where movement is collaborative and teachers focus on teaching people about themselves. The target audience includes local business owners, creatives, and parents who value organic discovery. The founder believes that niching down and being intentional attracts the right people without needing paid marketing.
FAQs
They grew organically over nearly eight years by building a strong brand and community. Their focus is on creating a lifestyle brand that people discover naturally, rather than using paid advertising.
The North Star is 'come as you are and leave feeling better.' Everything they do, from the studio design to the class experience, is centered on making members feel welcome and uplifted.
They believe their ideal clients don't want to be sold to; they prefer to discover the studio organically. This aligns with their lifestyle brand approach, attracting people who resonate with their values.
Members are welcomed by name, offered a machine tour, and often introduced to another community member. The staff use their name frequently throughout the first class to reinforce connection.
They receive a welcome text and email with a link to community guidelines. These explain the studio's purpose, values, and how to prepare for a class, setting the member up for success.
They position themselves as a lifestyle brand rather than just a Pilates studio. They focus on intentional details, community, and making members feel like they are part of something bigger.
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