How to follow up after a BJJ trial class
· Co-founder of Matpass.
To follow up after a BJJ trial class, book the visitor's second class before they leave the mat, send a short personal message the same day and check in again after their second class. Make a clear membership offer within the first two weeks, and give one person at the gym the job of following up with every trial.
This guide goes through the follow-up step by step: what to do before and after the BJJ trial class, what to send and when, whether to offer a free class or a beginner course, and how to measure your gym trial conversion. How people find your gym in the first place is covered in how to market a BJJ gym.
When should you follow up after a BJJ trial class?
Follow up after a BJJ trial class on the same day, while the visitor still remembers how the class felt. The most important step happens even earlier, when you book their second class before they leave the gym.
This is the schedule I'd use for a free trial class:
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Day before the class | Confirm the time, what to wear and who to ask for at the door |
| After the class, on the mat | Book their second class together |
| Same evening | Send a short personal message with the time of the second class |
| After the second class | Ask how it went and tell them about the membership options |
| End of the trial | Make one clear offer, with the date it ends |
| Two weeks after that | Send one last message, and stop if they don't answer |
If the visitor doesn't come to their second class, message them that day and offer a different time, while they still want to come back.
What should you do before the trial class?
Before the trial class, tell the visitor exactly what to expect: when to arrive, what to wear, whether they can borrow a gi and who will meet them. Someone who arrives nervous and unsure where to go is already halfway out the door.
Ask one question when they book: have they trained before? A complete beginner needs a fundamentals class and a careful partner, and someone who has trained elsewhere can join a regular class. The coach should know the answer before the class starts.
In Matpass, visitors can book a free BJJ trial class from your public schedule without making an account. The booking form asks about their experience, from "First time on the mat" to "Experienced, visiting", and saves the answer as a tag on their profile so the coach can see it. The visitor gets an email with the class details and a link to their profile.
White Belt Club's guide on how to prepare for your first jiu-jitsu class is a good link to send with the confirmation.
How do you book the second class before they leave?
Book the second class at the end of the trial, when the visitor is still on the mat and feeling good. Ask which days usually work for them, suggest one class that fits and book it together, on their phone or at the front desk.
A specific plan makes people much more likely to show up. In a 2002 study of 248 people, information about the health risks of not exercising made people want to exercise more, without a real change in how much they exercised. When they also planned exactly when and where they would exercise, the effect on how many actually exercised over the next two weeks was dramatic. A booked class on Thursday at 18:00 is that kind of plan.
Introduce the visitor to the coach who teaches that class and to one or two members at their level. People who know others at the gym are more likely to keep training, as the guide on why BJJ white belts quit explains.
In Matpass, staff can add a person to any class from the class view, so the coach can book the second class straight from the mat. Set your trial plan to include two or three classes, so the second booking is already covered.
What should you send after a BJJ trial class?
After a BJJ trial class, send one short, personal message the same evening. Thank them for coming, mention something specific from the class and confirm the second class you booked together.
These are examples you can adapt:
- Same evening: "Great to have you on the mat today, Sam. Your guard retention drill looked good for a first class. See you on Thursday at 18:00, and ask for Mia at the door."
- After the second class: "How did Thursday feel? Most people are a bit sore after the first week, which is normal. If you want to keep going, the unlimited membership is £80 a month and you can cancel any time."
- End of the trial: "Your trial ends on Sunday. If you join before then, your first month is £40. Here's the link, and reply if you have any questions."
Write as the coach or the person who met them, and send it from a phone number or email they can reply to. A message with their name and a detail from the class reads like a conversation, so people answer it.
Keep each message to three or four sentences. The visitor should be able to answer from their phone between meetings.
What if the trial member doesn't come back?
If a trial member doesn't come back, send one message to ask if another time would suit them better, and one last message about two weeks later. After that, stop.
The reasons people give are useful, so ask for them: the class time didn't fit, the class felt too hard, they got injured, or the price was more than they expected. Write each answer down. After a few months, the list shows you which ones you can fix, such as adding an evening fundamentals class or changing who partners with beginners.
Keep the contact details of trials who didn't join, if they agreed to hear from you, and invite them when you start your next beginner course.
Should you offer a free class, a trial week or a beginner course?
Most BJJ gyms offer a free trial class. In our check of BJJ prices in the UK, 65% of gyms advertised a free trial, usually one class or one week, and 13% sold a paid beginners' course, at a median of £99.
| Trial | Works well for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| One free class | Any gym, and people who already trained elsewhere | One class shows too little of BJJ to decide on |
| Free week or two | Gyms with fundamentals classes on most days | Visitors who come once and let the week run out |
| Paid beginners' course | Gyms with a steady flow of complete beginners | A price that puts off people who just want to try |
Art of Ground Games in Helsinki uses both: complete beginners start on a six-week, twelve-session no-gi course, and people who already train join a regular class for free. The course groups beginners who start together, which the BJJ curriculum guide covers in more detail.
I'd give at least two or three classes, whatever the format. One class is rarely enough to see how BJJ feels once the nerves are gone.
Should you give trial members a joining offer?
A joining offer helps when it makes the step from trial to membership smaller and has a clear end date. A first month at half price, or no joining fee if they sign up before the trial ends, gives the visitor a reason to decide now.
Art of Ground Games added an offer for people who finish its beginner course. Its founder, Vann "Jungi" Nikkan, lists it among the changes the gym made to keep more people:
On our side we added Gym Managers at every location in May, a clearer path from the beginner course into regular training, and an offer to course graduates so the step to membership is smaller.
Vann "Jungi" Nikkan, founder of Art of Ground Games (full interview)
Keep the offer the same for every trial, so the coach never has to make up a price on the mat. In Matpass, a discount code can be limited to new members only and to one use per person, and it can apply to the first payment or the first few months. People who came for a free trial still count as new members, so the code works for them. The guide on how to price BJJ gym memberships covers discounts in general.
Who should follow up with trial members?
Give the follow-up to one named person, such as the head instructor, the gym manager or the coach who taught the trial class. When everyone is responsible, trial visitors fall through the gaps between shifts.
That person checks the list of current trials every day or two and makes sure each one has a booked next class or a message waiting for an answer. Jungi's advice for any number at the gym applies here too: "Give every number one owner."
The message itself should come from a person. Art of Ground Games decided against automated "we miss you" messages for members, so it's the instructors who get in touch when someone goes quiet.
Matpass shows a "Trials to follow up" count on the dashboard and a Trials tab on the members list. An automation can notify a staff member when a trial member comes to their first class, and again when a trial ends without a membership, with a link to the person's profile so the follow-up takes a minute.
How do you measure BJJ trial conversion?
Measure trial conversion as the share of trial visitors who buy a membership. Count the trials that started in a month and how many of those people became paying members.
Trial conversion rate = trial visitors who became members ÷ trial visitors × 100
Say 30 people tried a class at your gym in March and 12 of them bought a membership. Your trial conversion rate for March is 12 ÷ 30 × 100 = 40%. (These numbers are made up for the example.)
There's no published benchmark for BJJ gyms, so compare your gym with itself. Track the rate every month, and check it again after you change something, such as booking the second class on the mat or adding a beginner course. Also count how many visitors come back for a second class, because that number moves first.
The Members report in Matpass shows "Trials converted": the share of trials started in the period whose person later bought a membership or class pack. The report also shows where new people heard about the gym and how many of them became members.
Key takeaways
- Book the second class before the visitor leaves the mat, with a specific day and time.
- Send one short, personal message the same evening, from someone they met.
- Check in after the second class and make one clear offer before the trial ends.
- Stop after one last message, and invite quiet trials to your next beginner course.
- Give at least two or three classes, whether as a free week or a beginner course.
- Give one named person the job of following up with every trial, for example from the Trials tab in Matpass.
- Measure trial conversion every month, and watch second-class bookings as the early sign.
Frequently asked questions
Should a BJJ trial class be free?
Most BJJ gyms give the first class free: 65% of the UK gyms in our price check advertised a free trial. A paid beginners' course works too, especially when complete beginners start together as a group.
Should beginners roll in their trial class?
Beginners shouldn't do full-intensity rolling in their trial class. Let them drill and try positional sparring with a careful partner, and save live rolling for when they can tap, breakfall and escape the main pins, as the guide on when white belts should start live rolling explains.
How many follow-up messages are too many?
Three or four messages over a month is plenty: one the same day, one after the second class, one before the trial ends and one last message two weeks later. If they don't answer the last one, stop.
What if a trial visitor already trains at another gym?
Treat a visitor who already trains as a regular guest: put them in a normal class, ask what they're looking for and tell them about your membership or drop-in prices. Many are moving to the area or comparing gyms, so answer their questions quickly.