School Owners · Enrollment · Events

The Crowd Showed Up... Now What?

Five steps for any event that can enroll them all

Chief Master Greg Moody, Ph.D. · October 22, 2026

A school owner just finished her first after-school enrichment program in a long time. About a dozen students, graduation in two days, and she wanted to make the most of it without turning graduation into one big sales presentation.

She also had a problem every owner knows. She'd told families that anyone involved in transportation, finances or custody needed to be at the enrollment conference. She kept getting one parent.

My “Lots of Intros” training says "Having lots of intros at the same time is a great situation…!" It is, but it can be overwhelming when they all show up at once.

It's not just enrichment programs

Any event that puts a crowd of new families on your mat at once works the same.

Event	What the crowd looks like	The adjustment
After-school enrichment graduation	Kids you already know, parents you mostly don't	You've had weeks to rank the families before they walk in
Big birthday party	Guests, not prospects yet	Pre-call the guest list and set the first lesson before the party – follow the Birthday Party process.
Live spin-wheel event	Lots of names, little context	Put the free trial on every slice (the prize is a bonus), use GREAT appointment setting skills.
Scout class	A troop, a leader and a few parents	Book each family's next class at the door (the leader can't do it for them)
Parent night out	The kids are here and the parents are gone	Check in and check out!

One owner collected about 300 leads at a spin-wheel event and set about 20 appointments. Only one of his 12 prizes was two weeks free (the rest were nunchucks, T-shirts and other prizes), and 100 percent of the families who won two weeks free booked an appointment.

Why it feels like a problem

The “Lots of Intros” training named two reasons. "#1: It doesn't fit our "normal" intro and enrollment process." You can't sit down with 12 families one at a time in the same 45 minutes.

The second one costs more money. "The staff assumes that since they "won 2 weeks free" they need to use the whole 2 weeks before they enroll." This is NEVER the case. A family that came in from an event enrolls the same way as any other family, and they get credit for what they won. It doesn’t matter what offer someone came in on, the process stays the same.

Don't pitch the group

You probably already know this: DON'T do a "mass intro" like a presentation to the group "hey everybody, if you liked what we did today, go over to the front desk and we're gonna give you a free special for today and sign you up at a lower price" or some variation of that. That's a bad salesy vibe.

It also does not work. The training put it plainly: "This has low rates of success and often if you have one vocal parent complaining it may have zero success." One parent says "That's a lot of money for karate" in front of 20 people, and now the other parents are thinking it too. Research on groups backs this up; one negative member can drag down the behavior of a whole group (Felps et al., 2006).

The only time I've seen a group pitch work, the owner had a ringer. An instructor nobody knew sat with the new parents, yelled that it was the best deal he'd ever seen and handed over his credit card. Personally, I don't see that as ethical.

DON'T say this	SAY this
"Everybody gather around! Sign up tonight and save!" (to the whole room)	"Hey! Johnny is doing fantastic! Would you like to hear about what the next steps are to doing martial arts are here?" (to one family)
"No problem, just call us when you know your schedule."	"That's ok, let's pencil in a time and you can let us know if it doesn't work. I have Wednesday at 5 or 7 available, which one is best for you?"

The five steps

Five steps for any and all of these types of events (short version, the details are in the “Lots of Intros” training):

Check in (schedule the next 4 classes/intro 2)

Stage on floor (let them know where to sit before class and that the parents stay)

Class (a big intro lesson, during this one of you is picking out parents based on above)

Check out (wrap up on any you can do now - ok to stay on this and the motivated ones don't mind waiting a bit, and when they checkout give them a copy of your book, other stuff and confirm their next lessons)

After get everyone in the automated reminder system for all next 4 classes, and personally CTE as well for confirmations.

Step	What happens	Why
1. Check in	Book the next 4 classes, with the next one as intro 2	Once they leave they're headed for ice cream, so book it while they're standing there
2. Stage	Show them where to sit and tell parents they stay	Parents who can see their kid having fun are easier to talk to
3. Class	One staff member triages parents while the class runs	Triage! The families most ready to start can enroll that night
4. Check out	Finish any enrollments, hand out the prize and gifts, confirm the next lesson	The prize at checkout gives them a reason to stop at the desk
5. After	Automated reminders for all 4 classes, plus a personal call, text and email	A family who got a reminder and a call is more likely to come back

### Step 1 – Check in

One key is setting up their next classes (with the next being first intro) as they walk in (before the event) so no matter what you have them on the schedule. Again, before they get on the mat, their next classes are scheduled.

The door is where you have control. At the end of class they're on their way to get ice cream. Don't say "Come see us at the end of class." Say: "The first thing we're going to do is get your next four classes setup over the next 2 weeks." My full staff script from the training:

"Hi! My name is _______your name the ______title here and you are?"

"Great! Let me get your file! The first thing we're going to do is get your next four classes setup over the next 2 weeks. Let's take a look at the schedule... Your next one after today will be a one on one with an instructor."

When a company mailed employees a flu shot reminder that asked them to write down the date and time they'd go, vaccination rates went up 4.2 percentage points over a 33.1% baseline (Milkman et al., 2011). A phone script that asked voters when and where they'd vote raised turnout 4.1 percentage points (Nickerson & Rogers, 2010). Across 94 studies, a specific when-and-where plan had a medium-to-large effect on actually doing the thing (Gollwitzer & Sheeran, 2006).

Expect about 90% of event families to say they have to check their schedule or check with their spouse. If your staff accepts that, you'll have a lousy appointment rate. Use the tentative time script and set the appointment!

### Step 2 – Stage

Before class, tell them where to sit, where shoes go and that parents stay. Seat the parents close to the mat so they can see how much fun their kid is having!

### Step 3 – Class (triage)

Second key is triage as Grand Master Oliver says - identify the ones with both parents and high motivation and enroll them during and after the event. We've gotten a high percentage of them the same day.

Think of the TV show M*A*S*H (if you’re old enough). The helicopter lands, and the doctors sort out who needs help right now and who can wait. While the instructor runs a big, fun intro lesson, one staff member walks the parent area. Both parents there, excited, asking questions? That family goes to the top of the list. You can usually rank most of them before they arrive (you met them at the program or the party).

Families we triaged closed around 80% for us, about our normal rate (yours may be different of course). The training says "3-6 can get enrolled in 45 minutes!" with one intro room – maybe you can do better.

A family that says "we just want to watch today" gets a friendly "Great, we'll talk more at your one on one" and you move to the next family.

### Step 4 – Check out

Finish any enrollment you can. Motivated families don't mind waiting a few minutes. Hand out the prize they won here, never at check in, along with any gifts (a book is a great one), and confirm the next lesson out loud, in writing and follow up.

### Step 5 – After

Load every family into your automated reminders for all four classes, and confirm personally (that means a HUMAN) by call, text (with a video message) and email. NOTE: Confirm BOTH parents (or even more if Grandma or nanny need to be there). Everyone involved gets a full reminder set. With reminders and confirmation calls our show rate ran about 60-70% (50% on an event like this is ok but if it's less you need to fix your system). Follow up with 100% of no-shows right away.

When only one parent shows up

At this point again reiterate the other parent/caregivers/anyone-in-charge-of finance, schedule, transportation or custody thing…

Say it at check in, write it on the card and say it again at checkout. Then make it easy. Offer 6:15 and 7:00 for the one-on-one, not right after school. If only one parent comes, you'll usually hear "I need to check with my spouse," so offer a time both of them can make.

Do not send them home, either. One owner had 60 appointments and 20 show, and eight of those 20 never got an intro because the owner required both parents. That rule cost 40% of the people who'd already driven over. The four intros his team ran on the spot that month closed at 100%. Do the intro, and book the second conversation with both parents.

The summary

Question	What to do
Which events?	Any crowd: enrichment programs, birthday parties, spin-wheel events, Scout classes, parent nights out
Group pitch?	No; one vocal parent can sink everyone
When to book?	At the door, before they step on the mat: the next 4 classes, intro 2 first
Who to enroll tonight?	Triage: both parents, high motivation, ranked ahead of time when you can
What about the prize?	At checkout, never check in
One parent?	Say it three times, offer evening slots, run the intro anyway, confirm all parents!
After?	Reminders for all 4 classes, personal confirmations, 100% no-show follow-up

This week: think about who runs check in and who triages at your next event. If you get 3–6 (or more!) families enrolled before the last one leaves, that's a great night, and if you want help setting it up, reach out and we can get you the more detailed training!

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