Referral programs are one of the best ways to attract new clients, while keeping your current yogis engaged. Earning recommendations from trusted sources, such as family and friends, is an assured step to seeing a surge in new members. Though it’s possible that your current clientele will help you spread the word, it’s often beneficial to move things along by offering incentives to your members.

Use Social Media

A popular method of encouraging referrals is using social media. Many organizations use Instagram to introduce contests, in which users must follow the page and tag a few of their friends to be entered. While only one or a few followers will win the prize, holding a contest can help skyrocket engagement and show that your studio is willing to give back to the community in some way. Social media can also be used to remind your followers about your referral program.

If you’re running your first contest, use your prize to incentivize your current members to share the post(s) and/or tag their friends, so that they can be entered to win. This specific function will aid in your referral program success, as potential new members are already becoming aware of your content through a trusted source.

Provide Credit to Their Account

A referral program can easily be incorporated with your client management system, through a point system. For every set number of individuals that a client refers, you can provide them with credit on their account, whether this is in the form of discounted membership fees or free classes. While free swag is always fun to receive, studies have shown that people appreciate cash or money-saving incentives more.

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Ask Your Students to Spread the Word

Sometimes, being straightforward is the best way to get referrals. Ask your clients to spread the news in person, through social media, and in your newsletters. Emphasize how yoga can be an even more positive experience with loved ones and provide your clients with image assets to share through their own social media channels. You can also remind your clients verbally about your incentive-based referral programs and ask them to spread the word, so that they can personally reap the benefits.

You may want to take some inspiration from crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, by introducing stretch goals. You can incorporate this by laying out plans for new classes, additional studio perks like adding a juice bar, or a host of other new features, based on the number of new memberships gained within a specified time period. This can bring about the added bonus of uniting your members as a team to accomplish something great for the studio, which further strengthens your bond and retention rates.

Focus on a Great Experience

While offering incentives can inspire your clients to refer their friends and/or family, running an exceptional yoga studio should be the most important focus. Start with hiring great staff and make sure that they’re highly trained to provide the best customer experience possible. Continue to grow your studio through providing a variety of classes, in order to keep things fresh. After all, an extraordinary experience will always encourage word-of-mouth to spread organically.

The most important facet of any referral program is ensuring that you’ve clearly outlined what you’re offering your members, as well as how your referral program can benefit both your members and your studio. To advance the efficiency of your yoga studio, Xplor Recreation’s yoga studio management software offers an intuitive, cloud-based platform that manages your memberships, marketing, class scheduling, POS, and billing. Keep growing your studio effectively, while automating administrative tasks.