How to market a BJJ gym

Good martial arts marketing for a BJJ gym starts with being easy to find and easy to try. Keep your Google profile complete, put your timetable, prices and a trial booking button on your website, show real classes on social media, ask members to bring friends, and ask every new person how they heard about you.

This guide goes through each part of a gym marketing strategy for a BJJ gym, roughly in the order I'd do them: Google, your website, the first class, social media, referrals, events, ads and measuring what works.

What works in martial arts marketing for a BJJ gym?

The marketing that works for a BJJ gym helps someone who is already curious about BJJ take the next step, so make the first class easy to find, easy to book and easy to come back from.

These are the gym marketing ideas worth doing first, cheapest first:

1. A complete Google Business Profile with your class times, photos and reviews.
2. A website that shows your timetable, your prices and a button to book a free class.
3. A fast, personal reply to everyone who books a trial or sends a question.
4. Social media that shows what a normal class at your gym looks like.
5. Referrals from members, with a reason for them to bring a friend.
6. Events, such as seminars, open mats and beginner courses, that bring new people onto your mat.
7. Paid ads, once the steps above are working and you know what a new member is worth to you.

How do you get a BJJ gym found on Google?

Set up and complete your Google Business Profile, because that's what people see when they search "BJJ near me". Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and prominence, and that businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up.

• Categories and description: say clearly that you teach Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and add your other disciplines.
• Opening hours and class times: keep them up to date, including holidays.
• Photos: the mat, a real class, the changing rooms and the entrance, so a nervous beginner knows what to expect.
• Reviews: ask happy members for a review after a good moment, such as a stripe or their first competition, and reply to every review.

Google also says that more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. A review that mentions your beginner classes or your coaches helps the next beginner who reads it.

How does gym SEO work for a BJJ gym?

Gym SEO for a BJJ gym means having a website that answers what people search for: BJJ classes in your area, the class times, the price and what to expect at the first class. Give each of these its own clear page or section, with your town or neighbourhood in the text.

• Home page: what you teach, where you are and a button to book a free class.
• Timetable: the real, current schedule as text, not only as an image.
• Prices: your membership plans and what each one includes.
• Beginners page: what to wear, what the first class looks like and how to get started.
• Coaches: who teaches, with their belt and a photo.
• Location: the address, parking and public transport.

In Matpass, your public schedule page shows the current timetable for each location, with a "Book trial" button for visitors. You can embed it on your own website, so the timetable there is never out of date, and show your membership plans and prices next to it.

Should a BJJ gym show its prices online?

Yes, show your prices on your website, so people who compare gyms before they visit don't have to wonder whether they can afford yours.

Plenty of gyms still hide them. In our price checks, 30% of the US gyms and 20% of the UK gyms we found didn't show an adult price online, and the big affiliations hid them most often. If you publish yours and the gym down the road doesn't, you've answered the question your competitor makes people ask.

If your price is above the local median, show what it buys: the number of classes a week, open mats, coaches and facilities. Our checks of BJJ prices in the US and BJJ prices in the UK give the medians by region and city. White Belt Club's guide on how to find the right jiu-jitsu gym shows what students look for from their side.

How do you turn interest into a first class?

Offer a free first class, make it bookable online and answer every booking or question the same day. 65% of the UK and US gyms in our price checks advertised a free trial, so a free first class is what most prospects will expect.

Most of the work happens after the booking: telling the visitor what to bring, meeting them at the door and booking their second class before they leave. The guide on how to follow up after a BJJ trial class has a full schedule and example messages.

In Matpass, a visitor books a free trial class from your public schedule without making an account. The booking form asks about their BJJ experience and how they heard about you, and the visitor gets an email with the class details.

How should a BJJ gym use social media?

Use social media to show what a normal class at your gym looks like. Social media marketing for a gym works best with real footage and real people, because the person watching is asking one question: would I fit in there?

• Show the beginners: a fundamentals class, a first stripe, a warm-up that doesn't look terrifying.
• Show the coaches teaching a technique, in short clips.
• Celebrate members: promotions, competition results and long-time members.
• Post the practical things: timetable changes, holiday hours, open mats and events.
• Ask first: get permission before you post someone's photo or video, and respect anyone who says no.

I'd post two or three times a week, so your page looks alive. A gym that last posted eight months ago looks closed.

How do you get more members through referrals?

Ask your members to bring a friend, and give them an easy way to do it. Your members already know people who are curious about BJJ, and a friend on the mat makes the first class much less daunting.

• Bring-a-friend days: a regular class or open mat where members bring someone new, with a beginner-friendly plan for the visitors.
• The right moment: ask after a promotion or a good class, when members are proud of their gym.
• A small thank-you: such as a free month, a rash guard or a discount for the member and the friend.

In Matpass, a discount code can be limited to new members only and used once per person, so you can give each member a code for their friends' first month. Ask "How did you hear about us?" when people join, so you can see how many new members came through friends.

Should you use seminars, open mats and beginner courses for marketing?

Yes, events bring new people onto your mat, and each one is a reason to post, share and invite. A seminar with a well-known instructor draws visitors from other gyms, an open mat welcomes travellers, and a beginner course gives complete beginners a clear start date.

The guide on how to host a BJJ seminar covers the instructor, the fee and the tickets. Invite every visitor to a free trial class afterwards.

In Matpass, each seminar or beginner course gets a public event page with its own price, a member price and a waiting list. The share button sends the page to WhatsApp, Messages, Facebook and other apps, or shows a QR code for a poster. Visitors who register without an account become leads in your members list, so you can follow up after the event.

How do you stay in touch with people who didn't join?

Keep a list of everyone who tried a class, came to an event or asked a question and agreed to hear from you, and invite them when you have something new: a beginner course, a women's class or an open day.

Send only what's useful, and give everyone an easy way to unsubscribe. I'd send about one message a month, each about something they can act on.

In Matpass, a campaign goes to the people you choose by status, such as leads, people on a trial or former members, and by location, by email, in-app message or push notification. Automations can send a welcome message when someone becomes a lead, and remind trial members who haven't come to a class yet.

Should a BJJ gym pay for ads?

Pay for ads only after your Google profile, website and trial follow-up work, because ads send people to them. Start with a small monthly budget, aim the ads at people near your gym and send them to a page where they can book a free class.

Work out what each new member cost you: divide what you spent on ads in a month by the members who joined through them. Compare it with what a member pays you over the time they usually stay, and stop the ads that don't pay back.

How do you know which gym marketing works?

Ask every new person how they heard about your gym, and count the answers every month. Write down the answers people give, such as a friend, Google, Instagram or a seminar, and compare how many of each became members.

In Matpass, the "How did you hear about us?" question is part of signing up, booking a trial and registering for an event, with answers such as "Friend or family", "Search engine or maps", "Social media" and "Event, seminar or competition". The Source report shows how many people joined from each source and what share of them became members.

Key takeaways

• Make your gym easy to find and easy to try before you spend money on ads.
• Keep your Google Business Profile complete, with class times, photos and replies to reviews.
• Show your timetable, prices and a free trial booking button on your website.
• Reply to every trial booking and question the same day.
• Use social media to show what a normal class looks like, with members' permission.
• Give members a reason and an easy way to bring a friend.
• Use seminars, open mats and beginner courses to bring new people onto the mat.
• Ask every new person how they heard about you, for example with the Source report in Matpass, and put your effort where members come from.

Frequently asked questions

How much should a BJJ gym spend on marketing?

There's no reliable benchmark for BJJ gyms. Start with the free channels, then set an ad budget you can measure against the members it brings in, and raise it only while each new member costs less than they pay you in their first few months.

What is the best social media platform for a BJJ gym?

Use the platforms where people in your area already follow local businesses, usually Instagram and Facebook, and add short videos on TikTok or YouTube if you have a coach who enjoys making them. Post regularly on one platform before you add another.

Should a BJJ gym have its own website?

Yes. A social media page is easy to set up, but your own website lets you show your timetable, prices and beginner information in one place, and it's what Google links to from your Business Profile.

How do you market a BJJ gym with no money?

Complete your Google Business Profile, ask members for reviews, post real classes on social media, run a bring-a-friend day and host a free open mat. All of these cost time rather than money.