Yoga is one of the most popular forms of movement in the world. Millions of people practice it everyday---and it's only getting more popular. Does your brand work with yoga-lovers? If so, this article is for you.
With popularity at an all-time high, a whole slew of yoga related products and services have come about. And your brand may be part of this wave. But, we both know competition is high. Whether it’s yoga tools like blocks and bolsters, yoga pants and other clothing, or enrollments at studios, each yoga brand has to communicate their unique offering in a compelling way without losing their brand voice and tone in the pursuit of sales.
I'm happy to share that your brand can stand out in the sea of vinyasa flows with these helpful tips on writing for the yoga niche. Use these tips and tools in your emails, product detail pages, web copy, advertisements, and anywhere you communicate with your clients.
Lead with an inspiring message
Yoga is loved by so many because it leaves practitioners feeling inspired, connected, and enlightened after each session. Yoga consumers want to feel like your products or services can help them reach their higher selves in ways that they haven’t before.
When writing your homepage copy, a new blog post, or a Facebook ad, always lead with an inspiring message. For example, a client I worked with, Yoga Pearl, asked me to revamp their homepage with a new, inspiring headline. Before I started working on it, their homepage had no headline at all. Yikes! How can you expect customer and clients to get to know you and your offerings without a warm and inspiring homepage message? The answer is, it's tough.
So, we decided to go for something that would turn heads and delight visitors right out of the gate. We settled on: “Come as you are, leave transformed.” This communicates to potential customers that they can arrive to this yoga studio in any way they’d like, but can expect to leave the studio feeling renewed. That's the transformation many yoga-lovers are looking for, so we communicated that clearly in the headline. Good messaging that connects with your ideal clients can make it easy for them to choose your studio and not someone else's.
Describe who your product or service is for and why
One mistake yoga studios make is that they say “all are welcome”, but when a total beginner arrives, they are intimidated by the advanced level of the peers around them.
Yoga is for everyone, but perhaps your studio, accessory, or workshop is not. Be clear and honest with your customers and clients. Is this yoga class for all-levels? Or is it for advanced practitioners?
It sounds counterintuitive to be that specific about your product or service because the goal is to gain as many customer as you can, right? And the answer is yes, you want to grow your brand and business, but the key is to attract the right customers.
Being specific about who your offerings are for allows customers to understand clearly what's being offered, what it's supposed to do, how to participate, and if it's the right choice for them. Being crystal clear about who your product or service is for allows customers to enter with the right expectations and leave with the results they’re were looking for.
Be detailed about the different types of yoga
Believe it or not, people may not know the difference between vinyasa and yin yoga. It’s best to assume your client is not a 10-year yogi veteran who’s gone through a 500-hour yoga teacher training.
Many students come to the practice totally new and with fresh set of eyes. Take the time to break down what each discipline is and how they differ from one another. What is vinyasa? What is yin? What’s the difference? Consider creating separate pages in your web copy to break down the different disciplines your brand may offer or expand on it.
Another benefit of being descriptive about the different disciplines of yoga is that it builds trust and credibility for your brand. It creates clarity around which practice a potential client may be interested in. This allows the client to make the best choice for them based on your offerings, and will likely leave them with a more desirable outcome.
Stand out with personality-packed copy
As we know, yoga is a saturated niche. It can feel like there are a million and one brands making yoga accessories, starting studios, and offering retreats. Honing in on your brand’s voice and tone with personality-packed copy can help you stand out in the sea of downward dogs and chair poses.
Most importantly, voice and tone copy helps communicate your brand's unique personality. This helps the consumer choose between one studio whose messaging speaks to their soul and another one whose messaging misses the mark. For example, CorePower Yoga, leads with a high-intensity, athletic, and competitive voice and tone on their copy. It’s clear from their website that their offerings are ideal for people who see yoga as a workout opportunity
While my client, Yoga Pearl, is a small boutique studio based in Boulder. Their brand voice is more spiritual, calm, welcoming, and grounded. Their ideal client is someone who practices yoga for its spiritual and mental benefits. They offer specialty classes that mix health and wellness mediums like acupuncture, massage, sound healing and more.
By honing in on your brand’s personality, voice and tone, you help your brand stand out, and in turn, allow the consumer decide whether your products and services are the right choice for them.
Stay top of mind with enlightening emails
Sending frequent emails to your list is a great way to stay top of mind in the yoga niche. The purpose of emails is to drive sales, enrollments, etc, but also to keep your list inspired. You can do that by sharing quotes from yogic philosophers, upcoming workshops, and specialty-offerings like yoga teacher trainings.
The yoga niche is unique in that it needs sales to survive, but it also has the ability to provide free inspiration to its customers. Freebies like quotes, tips, and free events can reinforce brand loyalty and trust.
I recommend sandwiching the content in your email with one freebie (like a quote), one paid offering (like a class or tool), and one freebie (like an upcoming free workshop). The sandwich technique, where you are offering something for free with something that's paid, can lead to a long-term reciprocal relationship with clients and customers. It's perceived as generous to give free things can therefore inspire the reader, client or customer to give back.
Make memberships seem like a no-brainer
These days, memberships are king. Whether you’re looking to get subscribers to your yoga accessories brand or you’re a studio looking for a steady flow of students, make memberships or subscriptions seem like the easiest choice in the world.
There are a couple good way to do that. One, is to compare non-memberships with memberships. Show the price of taking one class and compare it to the price of taking multiple classes. Showing a comparison in a chart, sales page, or with a button can be an effective way to show the value of memberships and make it seem like an easy choice for convenience, price, and overall benefits.
In addition, discussing the value of memberships in depth is worth doing. Even including one section that outlines a bullet-point list of benefits for subscribing with a call-to-action at the bottom can be a very effective way to show value and make signing up a no-brainer.
The goal is to sustain your business without putting too much money and time into acquiring new customers. The better you can communicate the benefits of becoming a member, the more likely your brand is to reaching their goals, and maintaining loyal for the long run.
Need a writer for your yoga brand?
If you learned a lot from this article, but still aren't sure how to make the copy for your brand come to life, work with me. I've written web copy for yoga studios like Yoga Pearl and I can help your brand, too. Check out my packages page to how I can help you reach new yoga clients with powerful, conversion copy and content.