{"id":3885,"date":"2026-10-09T07:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T07:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/martialartswealth.com\/go\/?p=3885"},"modified":"2026-06-27T02:06:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T02:06:28","slug":"positioning-your-martial-arts-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/martialartswealth.com\/go\/positioning-your-martial-arts-school\/","title":{"rendered":"Positioning Your Martial Arts School: Grow the Market, Don\u2019t Fight for Scraps"},"content":{"rendered":"

Years ago I read a fascinating book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind<\/em>. A few of its ideas run counter to the direct-response approach I usually preach — but a couple are pure gold for a martial arts school. The biggest one: how you choose to position your martial arts school<\/strong> determines whether you grow the whole market or fight your competitors for scraps of a small one.<\/p>\n

The IBM Lesson<\/h2>\n

When IBM launched its first personal computer, the market was a fragmented mess — Apple, Osborne, Kaypro, Tandy, Commodore, all with competing systems and no standard. IBM could have positioned its PC against those direct competitors. Instead, it did something smarter: it promoted why everyone<\/em> should own a personal computer at all. Its ads — built around a friendly, non-threatening mascot — explained the value of a PC in the home and office, never once mentioning a competitor. The logic: grow the entire category, and you’ll naturally be seen as its leader.<\/p>\n

\"Scott<\/figure>\n

Why This Works Perfectly for Martial Arts Schools<\/h2>\n

For a beer or soft-drink brand fighting over a shrinking market, that approach would be lousy. For a martial arts school, it’s ideal — because our real opportunity is convincing more of the population to train at all, not stealing students from the school down the street.<\/p>\n

Beginning in 1983 in Denver, I deliberately emulated IBM. My ads always promoted the benefits of martial arts instruction and our approach to it, and never so much as hinted that any other business taught the same thing. The result: for years, when someone in Denver thought of martial arts lessons — especially for kids — at least nine times out of ten, they thought of us.<\/p>\n

Have any of us truly saturated the market for children’s or adult instruction? Not even close. I’d much rather work to convince a higher and higher percentage of my community to value our activity than fight other schools over a sliver of a small market. And here’s the counterintuitive part: if my competitors do a great<\/em> job, the whole market expands and everyone benefits. If they’re hucksters or poor teachers, the market shrinks for all of us.<\/p>\n

Make Your School Memorable<\/h2>\n

If you’re going to advertise consistently for years, a few details matter enormously:<\/p>\n