7 Ideas to Grow Your Yoga Studio’s Clientele This Summer

42% of Americans feel pressured to have the perfect beach body for summer, but in the summer, gyms and fitness studios get less traffic than at other times of the year.

People want to get toned and show off their fit bodies. Unfortunately, the endless stream of family barbeques, vacations, weddings, and festivals—and kids being home from school—all make it hard for clients to commit to a regular yoga schedule.

So how can you combat the slow-down and grow your clientele and revenue in the summer?

We’ve got plenty of ideas to bring more yogis through your doors.

1. Switch up your new student special

Most yoga studios offer some sort of new special for students, such as three classes for $40 or a 14-day all-access pass for $50.

Why not switch things up for summer? To get more clients through your doors, try making your new student special even sweeter. Lower the price by 20-50% for a couple of months. Use your website and social media to encourage people to take advantage of the deal while it lasts.

2. Offer a summer deal for existing clients

If you really struggle to retain clients during the summer, it’s not enough to adjust your new student package. You should also offer current clients something extra special.

Summer specials can be tricky—you don’t want to heavily discount your pricing and make clients feel frustrated when it’s time to go back to the original pricing.

So, instead of lowering the price, think of something you can add. If a client purchases a pack of 10 classes or a monthly membership, sweeten the deal with a free weekend workshop, an extra two classes, or a retail discount. In your promotional materials, make it clear that this deal is available for everyone but for a limited time.

3. Create a class or day camp for kids

Unfortunately, summer is a challenge when it comes to the battle against childhood obesity. Without PE classes to attend, summer months lead to excess weight gain and reduced physical activity for many kids.

You can help kids stay healthy and increase your revenue during the summer by creating special programming for youth. Offer weekly classes for kids (or kids and their parents). You might also create a week-long day camp where you mix yoga with other fitness activities and art projects.

4. Utilize email and SMS marketing to the fullest

As a small business owner, you have a lot on your plate. You don’t have time to become a master marketer, but you need to get the word out about your programs.

We’ve hand-picked a few of the best marketing tactics for email and SMS campaigns:

• Segmented blasts – Create client groups based on behavior. For example, you might promote your loyalty program to clients who’ve been with you for longer than six months. Or, you could notify clients who attend two or more classes per week about a special event.
• Automated win-back campaigns – Set up automated win-back emails and text messages to encourage clients to come back to your studio. You could set the criteria to reach out to people who haven’t attended a class in over two months. Remind them to book a class. Then set up a separate campaign for people who’ve been absent for over four months and offer them a coupon as an incentive.
• New student nurture sequences – You can also create nurture sequences for people who purchase your new student special. Create a series of emails and text messages that showcase everything your studio has to offer. This way, new students will get the full experience and be more likely to purchase a membership or package.

5. Launch a loyalty program

A loyalty program is a great way to increase client retention. You can offer points when clients purchase packages, attend classes, buy products, refer friends, and more.

Use a platform like WellnessLiving that automatically tracks rewards points for you and allows clients to cash in points for freebies and discounts from your website or mobile app.

If you already have a loyalty program, you can update it for summer. Consider offering clients 2X the points for the month of July. Or, give them 3X the points for any referrals they send your way from June through August.

Use your app’s push notifications, email, and SMS to encourage people who aren’t part of your program to sign up and to let existing registrants know about the opportunity to earn more points.

6. Host a summer attendance contest

Boost client attendance and retention with a contest. Send an email and SMS to all active clients telling them that the top three people with the highest attendance during July will win a prize. The prizes could be a high-quality yoga mat, a bulk of free classes, or a combination of products and class savings.

At the end of the contest, announce the winners via email and give away the prizes in person during class. This will spark some friendly competition and encourage other attendees to participate during your next contest.

7. Create a seasonal class or workshop

You can also increase your foot traffic with a brand-new class called Summer Yoga. Crank up the pace of the music and play summer-themed songs. Consider adding some light weights, Pilates, or high intensity intervals to help people achieve their desired beach body.

If you live near an ocean or lake, you could even add a Beach Yoga class where students meet you at the beach instead of in your studio. This temporary outdoor class could boost your visibility and inspire passerby to sign up. You could even bring an assistant with you to take peoples’ information and enroll them with your mobile staff app.

If you don’t want to add a whole new class to your schedule, try creating a summer-themed Saturday workshop instead. Sell passes as a buy-one-get-one-free deal so that current clients can bring a friend—who will hopefully love your studio so much, they’ll sign up.

You could also reach out to local businesses about workshops and outdoor yoga. Many companies are looking for team-building activities and will pay a hefty fee for wellness classes. The employees who attend the classes might join your studio later.

Being creative and proactive goes a long way in the summer. Help your clients get fit while having fun, and you’ll grow your business, too.

Want to reliably grow your yoga studio? WellnessLiving offers the best features, customization, reporting, and support. Request a demo of WellnessLiving.