OVERVIEW
Telling you how it is!

The International Martial Art Alliance as industry leaders have outlined some of the elements that will assist new and seasoned martial art instructors get the most out of their martial arts career.

This page is just an overview of the various areas we can help you start up or improve the profitability and longevity of your martial art school.

MARTIAL ARTS QUALFICATIONS section in this menu will give you a run down on the types of qualifications that bring you the most benefits and point you in the direction of where to obtain them.

MARTIAL ARTS INSURANCE section in this menu will give you a brief on the types of insurance relevant to our industry, what they mean and direct you to where you can obtain the cheapest and most appropriate policies in Australia.

MARTIAL ARTS INDUSTRY NEWS section in this menu is just the start of information vital to those people who need to know changes in the industry before or as they happen.

PROTECTION section in this menu all businesses have threats and we show you how you can minimize them and turn some of them around into assets. This is a work in progress to give you vital information to aid the longevity and profitability of your school.

FINANCE section in this menu is a place where you can get advice on financial matters or take that further and seek out discounted rates on all sorts of loans, merchant and personal credit card rates through the Westpac Bank.

MARKETING SUPPORT section in this menu helps you with things like free advertising opportunities, making available expert marketing products and showing you how to make your own multi media marketing material. Now with our own Martial Arts TV Show we can showcase even more martial art instructors.

REVENUE MAKERS section in this menu tells you all the different ways you can bring additional income into your school and save money through our ‘Group Deals' section, negotiated on your behalf. With over 60,000 members we have the negotiating power and drive to track savings on various products and services relevant to your business.
Check out what Jackson Raine has to say about creating more revenue for your martial arts school Go to article

Like to get a brief understanding of the IMA? Go to ABOUT IMA
Meet the Chairman and let him explain what the IMA is all about in one short video (WMV video 2mb) or (Quicktime video 2.3mb)

Before you go off to any of those other sections continue reading below to identify your position in the industry and potentially where you stand or where you want to move to.

The industry has come a long way in the 30 odd years that I have been involved in it and it will continue to grow and diversify. Students now demand more for their buck, they want more than just one style they expect it all. Gyms are doing very well because they now include martial arts style cardio workouts as well as weights, yoga etc. Will these students learn any real martial arts skills? Probably not but they think they are so they will keep going. Martial arts school owners need to change to compete as the general public has been exposed to so much we have to offer them more too. Now is probably a good time to evaluate your status as a martial art instructor and decide where you want to go or what position you would like to hold. The growth and changes are far beyond any one individual or group, it is just progress and it can't be stopped we just have to adjust or get out. Some instructors will have to change their philosophy and teaching methods or stop teaching but I believe there is a place for everyone if you know where you stand.

I have divided up instructors into three categories: Private/Family Club (small), Semi Commercial Club (small-medium) and Full Commercial Centre (medium-large). I personally have schools working in all three areas and of course know the status of our IMA members too. It is with a considerable amount of experience and knowledge that I present martial art schools in this manner.

Private/Family Club: (low priority for government regulation)
Position: An instructor who works from home only and does not hire any external venue.

Reason: This instructor maybe teaching from home by choice or may not know how to take the next step to hiring a venue. He may have limited time and finds it more economical to operate from home. He may be a very traditional teacher and only wants to teach a handful of dedicated students. He may just be very casual about training and classes are just friends getting together and having a workout.

Potential Concern: This instructor may not be qualified to teach and could be a danger to the students. Inappropriate teaching methods may result in student injuries or death. These instructors generally do not or can not obtain insurance to cover students.

Can the Instructor still operate in the future? Instructors have been teaching like this for decades and will so for many more decades undisturbed unless a student perhaps gets hurt lodges a lawsuit, then things might change. Or in the future there maybe a new law to prevent backyard operations unless they meet a certain criteria.

Are these instructors going to make a lot of money teaching this way? Certainly not and many are not in it to make money just to share knowledge in the kindest possible way. Let's face it how did the old masters pass on their knowledge to their disciples or in many cases just one successor, it was in a very private setting, probably the master's home. I believe there should always been a place for that type of teaching/mentoring to preserve some of the art form not taught in commercial schools.

Obligations : All instructors/mentors have a duty of care to their students even in your backyard.
Options:
(1) Stay as you are but keep in the loop by being part of an industry group / association if you qualify but remember your duty to your students. Don't complain when you see commercial schools drawing lots of students.

(2) Look at ways to upgrade your skills and qualifications. Cross train with other instructors to keep your skills current and perhaps expand your knowledge. Enroll in the new nationally recognized qualifications. Find out how you can expand your student base by hiring venues and increase your revenue.

Semi Commercial Club (low-medium priority for government regulation) Position: An instructor who works out of a local hall or community centre hiring a venue.

Reason: This instructor maybe teaching out of this type of venue by choice or may not know how to move into a full time centre involving a commercial lease or a direct purchase. A full time centre can be viewed as a major investment and the instructor may not be prepared for that sort of commitment both in time or energy.

Potential Concern: This instructor may not be qualified to teach and could be a danger to the students just like the home operator. Most venue hire places will not ask a person if they are a qualified teacher of the particular activity they are running. However they are becoming more and more diligent in making sure the operator has their own insurance. It is also getting harder for instructors to obtain insurance unless they can substantiate they have what is deemed acceptable qualifications /certification.

Can the Instructor still operate in the future? Instructors have been teaching like this for decades and some schools have already been shut down through a number of reasons; relating to non compliance to insurance and not having the appropriate qualifications /certification.

Are these instructors going to make a lot of money teaching this way? There are many schools prospering and many on the brink of closure but this can due to so many reasons. The community will ask instructors what their qualifications are and if they are not happy they will not join. Likewise if the school does not have the diversity in each class range they still might not join.

Obligations : All instructors/mentors have a duty of care to their students especially in the public arena (hired venues), because there is much more chance of litigation.
Options:
(1) Stay as you are but keep in the loop by being part of an industry group / association if you qualify but remember your duty to your students. Don't complain when you see gyms and full time commercial schools drawing lots of members.

(2) Look at ways to upgrade your skills and qualifications. Cross train with other instructors to keep your skills current and perhaps expand your knowledge. Enroll in the new nationally recognized qualifications. Find out how you can expand your student base by offering government recognized programs.

Full Commercial Centre (medium-large priority for government regulation) Position: An instructor who works out of a full time centre who is either leasing or buying it.

Reason: This instructor maybe teaching out of this type of venue by choice because he wants to make a career out of it and teach more people from a professional purpose built facility.

Potential Concern: This instructor may not be qualified to teach and could be a danger to the students just like any other operator. However new workpcover laws (fines up to $250,000 and jail terms) for safety breaches may make an operator work more professionally.

Can the Instructor still operate in the future? Instructors have been teaching like this for decades and some schools have been shut down through a number of reasons; not meeting council or workplace safety requirements etc.

Are these instructors going to make a lot of money teaching this way? There are a growing number of these types of operations performing very successfully with 100s of students. It seems that these centres can offer a lot more than the church hall operations with the feeling of added security, more classes, more equipment and amenities. Almost all of these people have gone the qualification pathway to empower them with vital skills to make their centre work or they risk a lot more invested than the other operators.

Obligations : All instructors/mentors have a duty of care and to adhere to workplace safety laws.
Options:
(1) Stay as you are but keep in the loop by being part of an industry group / association if you qualify but remember your duty to your students.

(2) Look at ways to upgrade your skills and qualifications. Cross train with other instructors to keep your skills current and perhaps expand your knowledge. Enroll in the new nationally recognized qualifications. Find out how you can expand your student base by offering government recognized programs.

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