Yoga studios are quite popular. You probably have quite a few in your area. And perhaps you’ve been thinking about a career in yoga. You may dream of living the yogic lifestyle and even spreading the beliefs to others. You may be attracted to following a belief system that stresses non-harm and the search for inner happiness instead of chasing for a dollar.
There is a lot to say for living the yogic lifestyle. You’re encourage to be truthful, righteous and wise. You’re asked to live simply and spiritually and sacrifice the ego. Self-discipline, study and contentment are also key qualities encouraged of yogis. Yes, it’s a difficult lifestyle but so rewarding. Living the yogic lifestyle can cause you to be more focused on what’s truly important in your life. And by focusing on what’s really important and ignoring all of the incidental and unimportant things in life, you may find that your stress levels begin decreasing.
But, if you take the steps to immerse yourself in yoga, first by learning to practice yoga, and then learning to teach yoga, how can you begin spreading the lifestyle to others? There are many career paths for yoga teachers. There’s corporate work – teaching lunchtime yoga classes at offices. Or there’s freelance work, subbing for teachers in studios, teaching classes at churches, hospitals, or even farmer’s markets.
But, one of the most rewarding ways to live the yogic lifestyle and spread the message of yoga and immerse yourself in the yoga world day in and day out is to own your own yoga studio. Yes, running and launching a yoga business like owning a studio is a huge responsibility but, if it’s done right, it’s worth. Read on for more information on running a yoga business. This article may inspire you to begin your journey to starting a yoga business.
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5 Steps to Successfully Start a Yoga Business
After you’ve studied for and earned your Yoga Teacher Training Certification, there are a few more steps you will need to take before the start of a yoga business. The most important step you’ll need to take before establishing your dream yoga business is to have a business plan. Many businesses have failed because business owners lacked the knowledge to successfully run a business. We’ll give you some tips below on how gain the business acumen you need to have a thriving yoga business.
We’ll also go over some of the other important aspects to starting a yoga business, such as creating your brand, picking a good location for your studio, and choosing the right style of yoga to teach. Now, check out the five most important steps you’ll need to take to start a yoga business:
1. Have a Business Plan
It’s risky to start any business, let alone a yoga business without a yoga business plan. You may want to take a business course in order to learn how to create and run a business. Or, there are yoga teacher training programs that also teach you how to develop and grow a yoga business. That could be quite helpful to study yoga and business altogether instead of taking two separate programs. You’ll want to get all your ducks in a row such as whether you’ll be running the entire business online, or perhaps will have a brick and mortar studio but also offer online classes. Decide what the business is going to look like first and you’ll be well on your way to create a great yoga studio. And there are people out there who will help you plan your business. Many public libraries have free business discussions. Also, there may be free seminar held by your city or county as to how you can start your own business. Take advantage of all the free information you can get by calling your library, city, or county and seeing what is offered!
You can also talk with other yoga business owners for guidance as to how you should craft your business. Plus, through your yoga teacher training, you may have lifetime communication channels open with your teachers and fellow students. Some teacher training courses allow students access to teachers and all of the yoga teacher training information for life. And, with more and more teacher training classes offering sections on starting a yoga business, you’ll be able to review the information and you plan your new business.
2. Establish a Website
You’ll need a great website. With the advent of online yoga classes, you’ll want a website that not only offers your schedule of in-person classes; you’ll also need the technology so you can teach classes online. And, for either the in-person classes or online classes, you’ll want great descriptions of each class. You may want to hire a marketing firm that can not only handle the technology but can write all of the text that will be displayed on your site. And, don’t worry if you can’t afford a marketing team at the start. There are plenty of freelance web designers and other marketing professionals out there that may be willing to trade their wares for yoga classes. Trading is pretty common in the independent contractor and freelancer world so don’t hesitate to barter your services.
Just remember that nowadays, students and prospective students expect the high-tech touch. Many people will take one look at your website and if it doesn’t offer the latest and great technology, social medial links and the like will bypass your business and go to the next one.
3. Establish a Brand and Sell it
A great logo will make you stand out from the crowd. And remember to use that logo everywhere. A marketing firm can help you create your brand. A great logo will help grow your business so make sure it is recognizable and memorable. And, along with establishing the brand, why not sell branded items in your yoga studio? You could put your logo on yoga mats, T-shirts, water bottles, etc., and market them to your students. Some yoga studios even get into to marketing hand creams, lotions, and other health and beauty items. You’ll want to get your logo out into the community so think outside the box.
A great way to get your name out of the public is to call up a local TV station and ask if you could do a yoga demonstration on their morning show. You’ll get tons of eyes on your name and yoga and will probably get a lot of business from the segment. There are also natural-themed magazine and newspapers that you could write yoga articles for. It doesn’t hurt to ask. And, although you won’t be able to demonstrate your yoga, you could see if you can get interviewed on the radio.
4. Find a Great Location
Establish a welcoming location, in an area with a lot of foot or car traffic. Make sure there’s parking nearby. But, even though you want to be in an area where people will notice the business, the environment will also need to be quiet. There’s nothing worse than trying to relax in a yoga class but being distracted by the roar of traffic nearby. Also, make sure the yoga space is neither too hot nor too cold. You’ll want your students to be comfortable. A great yoga space will be one that has its entryway and lobby placed away from actual yoga practice space. Even better is one that has all that, as well as a meeting space, where you could hold seminars and other events, like music or movie nights.
Or, if you’re planning to start a yoga business online, create a space where you can teach yoga, one that looks pleasing on camera. But one that is also relaxing for you. If you want to get into a meditative space in your mind and teach meditation courses to your students, but the room you’re in is distracting, that will defeat the purpose. You’ll need to put your money into a good camera, high bandwidth internet and professional lighting if you want to compete with other online yoga teachers. There are yoga videos that have over a million views and the reason why is that, besides being fantastic at teaching yoga, the teacher put in the effort to buy up level equipment. It’s not a thing you can skimp at, because people will know. And, if they think that you’ve got a bargain basement YouTube channel or online teaching platform, they will click off and look for another yoga teacher.
5. Pick a Type of Yoga
Typically, a yoga studio will concentrate on one type of yoga. For instance, a studio could specialize in Ashtanga yoga. Yes, they may offer some beginner Hatha classes, but the majority of the classes will either be actual Ashtanga or have aspects of Ashtanga yoga to them. By concentration on one type of yoga, you’ll be able to attract a clientele interested in that type of yoga. Ashtanga students will want to try out a new Ashtanga studio. Jivamukti students will all be curious about the new Jivamukti studio in town, and so on. But, make sure you are adept at the type of yoga you plan to teach. Ashtanga, for instance is a very specific type of yoga with specific poses and sequences.
Going Forward with Success
If you want to throw off the chains of the 9 to 5 world and be your own boss, there’s a lot to be said for starting your own business. And there is nothing more meaningful then successfully starting a yoga business. A yoga business is still a business, to be sure. But it’s so much more than that. A successful yoga business is a community. A gathering place where people come together to work on themselves, inside and out. You’re helping the community. Making people healthier, more conscious of their bodies and their minds. Above, we went into the ins and outs of starting a yoga business. There’s a lot to think about. But, thankfully, we gave you the 5 steps to successfully start your yoga business. We hope you took a look at all of the important information we offered, information that will help you break into the yoga world and run a success business. And of course, you definitely will need the information we offered about making a living as a yoga teacher. Teaching yoga is time-consuming but so rewarding in the end. We’ve all seen businesses fail, so by learning what makes a successful yoga studio and reading about all of the pitfalls and circumstances in which a yoga studio can run into trouble or go out of business, you’ll be armed with the ammunition you need to go out there and be a success. We think that running a yoga business can be a positive venture for both you and the community so why not look into it further? It doesn’t hurt to make some inquiries. You may like what you see and take that leap!
