Put your Martial Arts School on the Map!
One of the quickest and easiest ways to develop your online presence is to put your Martial Arts school on the map – or as many online maps and business listing directories as you can!
Online maps, search engines and business listing directory sites are vital in helping prospective students discover your Martial Arts business and find where you’re located. Search engine map listings in particular have a huge role in local SEO ranking; pushing you up search engine results and helping to boost traffic to your website.
Having your business listed on search engines, such as Google, is integral to increasing your local reach. For example, a potential new customer will open Google and search for, let’s say Karate Classes, in their local area. They will discover that your school is just a few minutes away from where they live, click on the link through to your website, and bravo – with minimal work your end, you’ve already scored a new potential customer.
Another huge advantage of the majority of online map and business listings sites – they’re FREE! All that’s required is a little bit of time to set your listings up and you’re good to go. Many of the sites also offer paid services, such as Google AdWords or Yelp Advertising, which are worth considering to help increase your reach.
It’s integral to keep all of your map and business listings up to date, such as changes of location or an alteration to your website or telephone number. Otherwise customers may struggle to get in contact to find out more information, or they could even get lost when turning up for their first class!
For NEST Customers: Don’t forget to keep your profile, school and class details on Get Into Martial Arts up to date via myMA too!
Google My Business
Getting your Martial Arts business listed on the world’s most popular search engine, Google, is your first, and probably most important step. This can be done through Google My Business, Google’s easy and free to use business listing tool.
Along with your address, you can also list vital information about your business, such as your opening hours, contact number, your website and photos. You can also select a category that best describes your business (e.g. Karate Club). Think carefully about which category you choose, as your selection is hugely important to how Google ranks your business and where it will appear in search results.
You can add several locations if you run classes at multiple sites, helping customers find their nearest classes. Locations can be set up to display different information, such as different opening times for when your classes are on, whilst maintaining your company contact details.
Customers can also leave reviews on your Google business listing. Your average review score appears at the top of your listings in both Google Maps and Search. A low score can deter potential customers away from your business, so it’s important to keep your customers happy and encourage them to leave reviews!
Google are always adding new features to help small businesses grow their web presence, including insights into how customers search for and where they view your business, and the actions they take on your listing. Google’s latest feature is ‘Google Posts’ which are social-media-style updates about your activities and promotions with the aim of helping to drive traffic to your website. You can find out more on Google My Business on the ‘Posts’ tab.
Head over to Google My Business to get started!
Apple Maps
As the default mapping app for iPhone’s and iPad’s, Apple Maps is the most frequently used mapping app on iOS – more than all other maps (including Google Maps) combined! Therefore, it’s important not to overlook the importance of your school being listed on Apple Maps which can be a powerful platform for your business.
You can either manually add, or claim, your business on Apple Maps through Apple Maps Connect. You are required to enter your basic business details, website address, phone number, hours of business and pinpoint your location. You can add photos as well as connecting to social media accounts – including Facebook, Twitter and Yelp.
Visit Apple Maps Connect to begin!
Anywhere else?
There are many different online maps and business listing directories that you can add your Martial Arts business to: the more the better! It’s particularly important to add a link to your website where you can, as strong link building is vital to improving your SEO.
Some of our top recommendations are below.
Facebook
Although you most likely already have a company Facebook page, don’t forget to ensure that your location is on your page – making it easier for customers to find where you’re based. At the same time, check that all your contact details are up to date too!
Bing Places
As the world’s second largest search engine, and the default search engine in Internet Explorer & Edge, Bing is another great place to connect your company with local consumers. Bing Places is incredibly easy to set up and works in a similar way to Google.
Yelp
Yelp is one of the biggest go-to resources for visitors looking for information on local businesses – with over 60 million registered users! Claim your business, and you can add your business details, as well as responding to any reviews and converting visitors to your Yelp page into customers.
Yell
The yellow pages is now online! Yell is the UK’s leading online business directory and you can get a free business listing to help potential customers find you.
Get into Martial Arts
Get into Martial Arts is our very own Martial Arts school directory, helping prospective students find their local Martial Arts classes and book a free trial lesson. The website exclusively features NEST clients. If you’d like to find out more about getting your Martial Arts school listed, get in touch with us on marketing@nestmanagement.co.uk.
More to consider:
- Foursquare
- ShowMeLocal
- Yahoo!
- Free Index
- Thomson Local
- Local Pages
- CYLEX Business Directory
- MisterWhat
But don’t just stop there! There are tons of great business listings sites that are out there, and if you think there’s value to being listed, then definitely do so.
Are there any other business directory sites that we haven’t mentioned which you rate highly? Get in touch and let us know, and we can add them to our list!
For a chat about how our service can help you grow your Martial Arts business, email us on marketing@nestmanagement.co.uk or call us on 0115 945 5030.
