Whether you run a gymnastics gym, a dance studio, a swim school, a martial arts academy, a music program, or any other business built around kids, growing your enrollment usually comes down to the same three things: getting in front of more families, staying in front of them consistently, and doing both without adding hours to your week. Here are three practical, low-lift ways to do exactly that.
1. Build Strategic Community Partnerships
Your facility doesn’t exist in a vacuum — it exists in a neighborhood full of daycares, pediatricians, schools, and local businesses that are already talking to the same families you want to reach. The goal is to go beyond dropping off a stack of fliers and instead build relationships that put you in front of parents repeatedly, in places they already trust.
Who to partner with:
- Daycares and preschools
- Pediatricians and family clinics
- Other kids’ gyms and activity centers
- Schools and aftercare programs
- Local family-focused businesses (and don’t overlook restaurants, your local Chamber of Commerce, or your city/township — they all have channels to families too)
Go beyond fliers. Host a themed family night built around what you teach — a safety night, a skills showcase, an open house — offer exclusive partner discounts, co-host family events, or provide a short educational workshop for parents. Simple things count too — a shoutout on social media or a mention in your newsletter can go a long way, and they cost you almost nothing.
Make it mutually beneficial. The best partnerships aren’t favors, they’re trades. Think about who already touches your families’ lives: the bakery that makes birthday cakes, the pizza place that caters parties, the craft store that supplies party favors or recital costumes. These are natural partners for camp snacks, party supplies, or event materials. Cross-promote each other in scheduled emails and social posts, link to each other’s events, and show up together at community parades, fairs, and business showcases.
A simple tiering structure helps formalize the relationship. Here’s an example of how a company partnership might be structured — a business offering discounts to your families in exchange for visibility in your facility:
| Tier | What the Company Gets | What the Activity Center Gets |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 (High) | Feature in marketing materials, co-hosted workshops or events, annual scholarship donation | Discount for company employees’ kids, logo placement, 4 social posts/month, flyer distribution |
| Tier 2 (Moderate) | Brochures in welcome packages, co-sponsored community events, occasional fund contributions | Discount for employees, materials in lobby, newsletter mentions, 2 social posts/month |
| Tier 3 (Entry) | Business cards and flyers distributed, one-time donation | Small discount, lobby display, 2 social shoutouts/year |
A quick note: always consult an accountant or attorney about the tax and legal rules for discounts, donations, and promotional exchanges in your area before you formalize anything.
2. Automate Email and Text Marketing
Most class-management software is excellent at running your day-to-day operations — scheduling, billing, attendance — but it usually isn’t built to grow your enrollment. The businesses that get real marketing leverage are the ones that connect their class-management system to a dedicated marketing automation tool.
What to automate:
- New lead follow-up (inquiry to enrollment)
- Trial class follow-ups
- Session-ending re-enrollment reminders
- Waitlist nurture messages
- Birthday and milestone emails
Simple tools to use: Email platforms like Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign, your existing CRM or class-management software (many activity centers use platforms like Jackrabbit or iClassPro, but the same principle applies whatever system you’re on), and basic SMS/text reminders. Connect them through built-in integrations or a tool like Zapier, and you’ve created a marketing automation layer on top of your operations system — one that turns a cold lead into a nurtured prospect and an inactive family into a re-engagement campaign, automatically.
Set it up once, and let it run. Start with what you already have, add one automation tool, and build just three sequences to start:
- New lead follow-up
- Trial → enrollment
- Session ending → re-enroll
Once those three are running, personalize them with names, class levels, and specific details, and revisit them seasonally so they stay current.
Don’t overlook AI as part of this automation layer. Tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini can help draft social posts, blog content, newsletters, and staff training materials in a fraction of the time. They’re also useful for calendar-based reminders — if you know you host an annual fundraiser or signature event every year, an automated reminder ensures it never slips through the cracks, along with other recurring events and follow-ups on employee requests or concerns.
3. Turn Your Facility Into a Content Machine
Your facility isn’t just where classes happen — it’s your most powerful marketing asset, and most centers are sitting on content they never capture. Every day, real moments are happening on your floor, mat, stage, or pool deck: a first cartwheel, a first note, a first stroke, a breakthrough of confidence. Turning those into simple photos and videos gives you a steady stream of authentic marketing content, without hiring a production crew.
What to capture:
- Skill progress and milestone moments
- Instructor tips for parents
- Safety education relevant to your discipline
- Behind-the-scenes of classes
- Staff highlights (not just work — birthdays and personal milestones too)
- Office highlights (turn common front-desk questions into quick answer reels)
- Your team out in the community at events, volunteering, or visiting schools
Keep it simple. Film 10–15 minutes per day during classes, assign one staff member or rotate the responsibility weekly, and use a facility-owned device rather than a personal phone — this protects both your staff and your families, and keeps you on the right side of privacy expectations. And always get signed photo waivers before you start capturing content, and check your local laws around recording minors.
Create once, use everywhere: the same clip can go to social media (Reels, TikTok, Facebook), your email newsletter, your website or blog, and your Google Business profile. Authentic content builds trust with parents faster than any polished ad campaign, and it takes the pressure off “what do we post today?”
Two reminders worth repeating to your team: Keep it positive — avoid any content that shames instructors, students, or parents, even in a joking way. And always remember who your audience actually is: parents. Ask yourself what they want to see, not just what’s fun to film.
Put These Into Action
Reading about these tactics is one thing — actually rolling them out is another. The Find and Keep Great Families & Staff: Action Bundle gives you the templates, scripts, and step-by-step tools to put all three of these strategies to work in your business right away, without having to build everything from scratch.
Get the Find and Keep Great Families & Staff: Action Bundle →
By Christie Copeland and Galen Broido, 3rd Level Consulting