Running a Large Martial Arts School vs. a Small One

I’ve had the opportunity to be a student at “small” academies that grew into big ones and also have had the good fortune of watching my own Howard County Martial Arts academy develop into a “big” school as well.  One thing that I’ve noticed is how different it is to run a successful big program vs. a successful little program (in terms of developing students).

Running a successful small program is fairly easy, if the instructor is (A) Not crazy, (B) Actually qualified to teach, and (C) Wants to produce skilled students (as opposed to just make money).  When there are 50 students in  your program, its easy to keep track of everyone’s progress.  If you need someone to improve their Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, just spend some more time with them.  You know everyone’s weaknesses and strengths and can adjust the training regimen accordingly.

Now, running a successful big program is a little different.  When there are 500 students to keep track of, you better have a SYSTEM because there is no way you are going to effectively apply your time on a one-to-one basis to all 500 students.  The inability to break the link between the head instructor’s time and the effective teaching of the students is one of the main reasons why there is a trend for programs to develop their best fighters at the START of their business. If you think about it, this is very strange because you would expect that with more income coming in (with the larger student base), the later students in the program would be better than the first few; after all, the school probably has more classes, more advanced students, more sponsorship activities, more instructors, more training partners, etc. etc.

Developing this system is very difficult – as evidenced by the number of schools that have seen an inverse relationship between their school growth and “talented” student level. Of course, there are schools that have done it i.e. Lloyd Irvin Camp Springs.  Lloyd had a few good competitors when LIMAA was a small school and as his school has grown, his competition team has not only gotten bigger but also began competing at higher and higher levels (Brandon Vera in the Ultimate Fighting Championships).  Because of the success of his school, he can provide his students with a large professional facility, expansive schedule, and job and sponsorship opportunities so the dedicated students can continue to develop their skills and pursue their competitive goals.

more on this topic tomorrow…

*** REMINDER – Houston International Open Results will be posted to our Crazy 88 facebook fan page as they come in so become a fan if you aren’t already one! ***

Whats Up with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Associations?

Firstly, there is a difference between an Association and a Team.  An Association is oftentimes a business relationship and is usually centered around a head instructor.  Big teams can consist of multiple associations i.e. Team Gracie Humaita consists of Pedro Sauer as well as Saulo Ribeiro who run separate associations but will often fight under the same banner at International tournaments.

Secondly, every Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Association is different.  The first major distinction is whether the Association accepts new members (schools) who are not trained by members of the Association.  While most teams require some sort of training relationship prior to a business one, some Associations just require a monthly due and a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ranking of some sort.

To use a hypothetical situation – consider Dan Gable / Iowa Wrestling (probably the highest and most marketable pedigree in the United States for wrestling); only members of the Iowa Hawkeye wrestling program who were coached by Dan Gable can truly say that they can teach that “style”.  Now imagine if Dan Gable decided to allow any wrestling camp or team that would pay him $500 / month to represent “Dan Gable wrestling”.  Those are the two extremes of Associations – one is purely a training pedigree, much like degree from a University, while the other is more of a money for benefits exchange.

Iowa Hawkeye Wrestling and Dan Gable - The Most Marketable Names in Folkstyle Wrestling

So what are these benefits?  Firstly, joining a reputable associations is a good way for the new member to get the recognition and reputation of the association without necessarily being of the same quality.  Imagine a school that does not have any history of producing competitors and also lacks an instructor with solid credentials; the school owner would greatly benefit by joining an association that has those things.  Some associations also offer marketing assistance such as website templates and also training guides such as a consolidated curriculum.  Depending on the reason why the new member joined the association, either of those benefits could be huge.  A seminar blue belt with a karate school would definitely benefit from having a well-constructed Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu curriculum while a struggling MMA school, might need the marketing help.

If you’re considering a school that is associated with someone else, research what was the affiliate’s relationship with the main school / instructor prior to joining the association?  Do not mistake yourself into believing that the affiliate school offers the same training, same philosophy, or overall same quality as the main school if the relationship was formed very recently or if the main association head is very far away.  Evaluate the credentials of the BJJ where you will be training apart from the credentials of the association.  Ask yourself, if the head instructor is in California, how much possible contact can there be between him and his new affiliate instructor in Maryland?  If readily available, look at what the requirements for association membership are and think what those requirements imply about both the association head and the affiliate school.

Hope that helps…

PS – Team Lloyd Irvin Pan Am training camp started this week!  Make sure  you check out the video here.

Founded in 1998 – So What?

Customers find comfort in the fact that a business has been in existence for a long time. This is apparently a mark of dependability and continual success and so one feels comfortable developing a relationship with the proprietor with less worry that the business will undergo some bizarre twist of fate that causes it to fail, disappear, etc.

Unfortunately, for the individual looking to find quality Mixed Martial Arts training, this is often NOT the case and the quality of a Mixed Martial Arts program can only be determined by also asking…

• What level of competitor has the program produced?
• How many of those competitors has the program produced from scratch?

These questions have to considered in addition to how long has the program been in existence?

A quality training program must consistently produce top competitors.

Why competitors? Because that provides proof and a point of comparison with other schools. Never judge a school based on the # of colored belts it has because every school has different standards; a Black Belt at one school might be the equivalent skill level of a Purple Belt at another.

Why consistently? Because any school, given time, will eventually run across an athlete that has the genetic and societal background that will make him good. When I wrestled in high school, each high school always has that one kid that is good despite the rest of the team sucking. This kid usually came from a family wrestling background and comes in with years of basement and garage wrestling experience. This kid’s performance is in no way indicative of the school’s wrestling program however. Look the program that has ALWAYS been putting up good competitive numbers.

Why is the level of competition important? Lots of people can coach Championship Little League teams. Fewer can coach Championship High School Teams and once you get into the collegiate and professional levels, there are only a few programs that can coach that level of athlete. The same goes for Mixed Martial Arts schools. Nowadays, there are lots of little schools where you can roll around with your friends and shoot the breeze afterward. But if you want to be a UFC fighter or Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion (or an athlete competing at the highest level in any sport), look for programs that have actually produced that level of competitor. Trust me… if a program COULD produce that caliber of athlete – they would!

Remember that the numbers of competitors and titles for each school should go UP with each year that the school has been in business.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery…

During Crazy 88’s trip to the European Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Championships (part of our goal to continue to be Baltimore’s top BJJ team), I saw a funny Volkswagon commercial.  In each scene, there is a salesman talking with a prospective buyer.  Each salesman points out a particular feature of the car in comparison to a Volkswagon Golf. 

“See the interior – just like a Volkswagon Golf!” 
“Yeah, the safety ratings are just like a Volkswagon Golf!” 
“Nice engine huh?  We designed it after the Volkswagon Golf!”
etc. etc.

*** I FOUND THE COMMERCIAL ON YOUTUBE ***

Now I don’t know if VW Golfs are good are bad but the point is made – if everyone seems intent on just copying something –  there must be something to the original!

For an example right from our BJJ school – ever notice how every gi is compared to a Koral (the original “luxury” gi) and every light gi is compared to Vulkan (the original gi sold on virtue of its lightness)? 

Anyway, with the success of Crazy 88 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Team Lloyd Irvin (most of the marketing I use is derivative of my mentor Lloyd Irvin’s), I’ve noticed quite a lot of “flattery” from other martial arts schools in the area. 

So far I’ve noticed…

• More and more local MMA / BJJ school switching over to the 30 Day Free Trial
• Google adwords campaigns with a single word (usually location) changed
• “Fake” prospective students coming in to experience the new client tour / 30 Day Trial
• Website text directly cut and pasted
• New website designs copied; we are always putting up new websites to test what google likes and the successful ones get copied a few months later… LOL!

Anyway, I guess its true that its not IF your competitors copy you, but WHEN and also that we must be doing something right if everyone wants to copy us. 

PS – I will give a free sweatshirt to any current students who can find a direct example of any of the above.  Email me your submissions!  I am keeping a list!

Meet Our Newest Staff Member… Melanie Cebula

Welcome Mrs. Trainspotting!

My name is Melanie Cebula, I am Keith “Trainspotting” Cebula’s wife.   My husband and I know many of you.  Keith teaches Jiu Jitsu classes, I have attended the women’s Muay Thai classes and our daughter, Megan attends the tiny ninja classes on Mondays and Wednesdays.  I have been hired to run the Crazy 88 BJJ after-school program and to man the front desk.  My training started several weeks ago.  I met with Julius to review what Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai  is and the differences between the two.  I also watched a very good video regarding enrollments in a martial arts environment.  I would highly recommend the video to anyone who is interested.

Ms. Cathy has taught me how the tours are to be conducted, how she handles the calls and sets up appointments.  I have put in hours driving the new 15 passenger van that Julius purchased for the after-school program.  I have passed STAND  training (a child safety education program) and will be certified in CPR and First Aid.  I truly appreciate the opportunity that Julius has given me and my husband to work and participate in such a family friendly place as Crazy 88.

I think the after-school program is a great addition.  We will pick your children up from school, bring them here, keep an eye on them while they do their homework and get them ready for class.   As a mother of two, I found it difficult, after working all day, to pick up my children from daycare  just to turn around and take them to class. There were many nights that I decided to go home instead.  I would have loved the after-school program.

I previously worked the front desk at a small dermatology office and before that I worked retail for many years.  Working for Crazy 88,  I will be able to spend more time with my kids, meaning they will be with me all day.  This knowledge both scares me and excites me.  When both kids were born I was back to work within 6-7 weeks.  I will be able to try homeschooling Megan in the morning and I will be able to take both kids with me to work in the afternoon.  Please pray for our sanity.

I thought my husband was crazy when he took up Jiu Jitsu three years ago and started spending all his time here.  Now I totally get it and I will be here all the time too.  Correction! The entire Cebula family will be here all the time.

Melanie Cebula

How Do You Start a Mixed Martial Arts School?

Having been involved in the Martial Arts for almost 10 years now, I have noticed that Mixed Martial Arts schools come into existence in many different ways.

The first way is when an aspiring martial artist decides to become an entrepreneur and opens up shop.  This is how my Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu school and most others got started.  It’s a very similar situation to that of a sous chef at a fine dining restaurant deciding to open up his own place or a computer programmer who decides to start his own company.  Most of the individuals all share a genuine enthusiasm and love for their subject matter although they often differ in the quality of the product they are able to offer as well as their business acumen.  Unlike the examples given above, most of these individuals stay connected in varying degrees to their original teacher / business (lineage being very important esp. in the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu community).

The other extreme is the true franchise model.  A business man buys into the franchise, opens up a gym, and hires martial artists as employees to teach classes there.  Due to the popularity of MMA, these types of gyms are becoming increasingly popular.  I believe this is the LA Boxing model.

You also see lot of “fake” MMA schools popping up nowadays.  Many reputable coaches and fight teams will authorize usage of their name… in exchange for a fee, of course.  For example, American Top Team, a very successful professional fight team located in Florida, offers American Top Team School certification for schools that need to “tap into the hard-to-reach demographic: teens and young adults!”  So Evan Gideon’s Kung Fu (fictional), a traditional martial arts program, could present itself as an “official” America Top Team school after going through some seminars.  You also have the school owners who just changed their name from So-and-so’s KARATE to So-and-so’s MMA with no real difference on the inside.

For the potential student, I think it is important to distinguish how the program you are visiting came about as that information holds implications about what you, the consumer, can expect out of each program.  So make sure you do a little research prior to making a decision!