The Studio CEO: Business Coaching For Yoga & Pilates Teachers & Studio Owners

Jackie Murphy
  • 4.9 (60)
  • Marketing
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome to The Studio CEO, the only podcast that empowers yoga and Pilates teachers and studio owners to step confidently into their roles as CEOs. If you're ready to take your business seriously, show up with passion, and scale your studio to new heights without burning out, you're in the right place. I’m your host, Jackie Murphy, an award-winning, certified business coach with 12+ years in the yoga industry I’ve seen firsthand what it takes to turn your passion into a powerful, scalable business. Join me as we dive into strategies, insights, and real-world advice to help you grow your revenue, build a thriving team, and create a business that serves you as much as you serve your clients. It's time to embrace your CEO mindset and make more money without working more.

  1. 2d ago

    Re-Air – Make Your After Class Announcement Effective

    Send Jackie A Message! In this episode, I teach you exactly what you should be doing in your after class announcements. This will apply to you, whether you're teaching group Asana classes, a Meditation Teacher or a Studio Owner. Here's why I'm so passionate about this: In my first year teaching yoga full-time, I drove 40,000 miles in one city, teaching class after class — and that year, I only made $15k. Why? Because I didn't have the business skills I needed to make sure the time I spent teaching turned into more revenue. I didn't have anyone telling me "You need marketing and selling skills, and you need to create an irresistible offer." I was just hoping my after class announcement would make people want to do a Private Session with me, or join a Retreat with me. But just saying the logistics of your next offer out loud will not generate revenue. When you do these announcements right, your students will rave about their experience at your studio or in your class, they'll refer more people to you, and your sales will increase! IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL LEARN: How to differentiate delivering from sellingWhat most Yoga businesses do wrong hereWhy the Bystander Effect keeps people from jumping on your after class announcementExactly what you need to make a clear, well-crafted offerHow many logistics to include in your announcement (hint: zero)Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  2. Sep 8

    What I Did to My Business Before I Went on Maternity Leave

    Send Jackie A Message! Most studio owners do not have a time problem. They have a dependency problem, and those two things have completely different solutions. In this episode, Jackie Murphy walks through what she did to her business before her third maternity leave. She pulled herself out early, on purpose, so she could watch what broke while she was still there to fix it. You do not plan for your absence. You rehearse it. She breaks down the five places she had to work: team (why she stopped hiring people who execute and started hiring people who build the system), decisions (handing off the call, not just the task), client delivery (building a bench instead of being the product), marketing (what keeps running when you stop), and money (funding a paid three month leave instead of chasing a bigger revenue number). If you have ever answered a sub text from a pool chair on vacation, this one is for you. Your version of this deadline just has not landed on the calendar yet. TIMESTAMPED OUTLINE [00:00] Why Jackie left her business before her leave started[02:00] What happens to the podcast during maternity leave[04:02] Why this matters even if you are not having a baby[06:08] Time problem or dependency problem: how to tell[07:43] Doing the job vs. building the system[11:00] Doubling the team and hiring builders instead of doers[14:20] Handing off decisions, not just tasks: the decision ladder[16:16] Client delivery: build a bench instead of being the product[19:52] Why marketing came fourth on the list[21:56] The money: funding a paid three month leave[25:02] The leadership work underneath all of it KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ You do not plan for your absence. You rehearse it while you are still there to fix what breaks.  ✓ Efficiency fixes a time problem. Only a different business fixes a dependency problem.  ✓ Someone who executes gives you labor. Someone who documents while they execute gives you an asset.  ✓ Handing off the task is not the same as handing off the decision. Write the decision ladder.  ✓ If your marketing stops when you stop, you do not have a marketing system. You have a task you perform.  ✓ A paid leave is a different goal than a bigger revenue year, and it takes a different plan. PULL QUOTES "I wanted to know what would break while I was still here to fix it." "You do not have a time problem. You have a dependency problem." "One of those is labor. The other one is an asset." "Do not just document the task. Document the decisions." "The standard was not keep things running. The standard was keep clients growing." "Sometimes bigger revenue is not the goal. A paid maternity leave is the goal." FAQs How do I prepare my studio business for maternity leave? Start early and remove yourself before you have to. Hand off decisions, document systems, and staff the gaps while you are still there to fix what breaks. What is the difference between a time problem and a dependency problem? A time problem means you need to get more done in the hours you have. A dependency problem means the business cannot run without you. Efficiency fixes one. Team and systems fix the other. Should I hire someone to do the work or build the system? Hire the person who documents how the work gets done while she does it. She costs more and is harder to find, and she is the one who makes the business less dependent on any one person. What is a decision ladder? A one page document listing which decisions your team makes alone, which they bring to you, and which only you make. It stops the constant questions. Can a studio run without the owner teaching or coaching? Yes, when results come from the business you built rather than your personal presence. Build a pipeline of people who deliver as well as you or better. What should my marketing do while I am away? Keep awareness marketing running to find new people and nurture marketing running to serve the people already in your world. What you do today shows up in 90 days. Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  3. Sep 1

    Nobody's Signed Up Yet: Why Your Training or Retreat Isn't Filling (And What Fixes It)

    Send Jackie A Message! "Jackie, not enough people have enrolled yet." I have heard that sentence more than any other in the last few weeks. Teacher trainings. Fall retreats. Workshop weekends. And underneath it is always the same fear: if I don't fill this, what does that say about my offer, my students, my business, me? So we opened up the numbers. Not one of those studio owners had the problem they thought they had. One had 60 warm leads marked "interested" with no follow-up in a week and a half. Another had 200 people visit her teacher training sales page and only 3 fill out the form. Another had 25 leads and 3 enrollments. That is not a demand problem. People still want your training. They want your retreat. In this episode I break down how to tell whether you have a lead problem or a conversion problem, the math behind how many leads you genuinely need, the one move most studio owners skip, and why "I'll think about it" is not a decision. If you're selling a higher ticket offer this fall and it feels like crickets, this one is for you. It's a numbers game. Let's run the math. TIMESTAMPED OUTLINE [00:00] The sentence I keep hearing on coaching calls[02:21] Fall momentum and what "high ticket" means[04:05] Why 30% of your revenue should come from a premium offer[06:04] The red flag: negotiating your goal down before you commit[10:52] What the real numbers showed on three coaching calls[12:48] Step 1: Lead problem or conversion problem?[14:16] Step 2: The personal invitation list[17:03] Step 3: Messaging, follow-up, and the close[20:00] Deadlines, urgency, and the summary KEY TAKEAWAYS A lead problem and a conversion problem are two different problems with two completely different game plans.A genuine lead should convert between 20% and 30% for something like a teacher training. Want 8 people? You need about 27 leads.With 25 leads and 3 enrollments, going out to find new people is avoidance.The people you want to enroll are probably already on your list. Go through it name by name and personally invite them.If your sales page only speaks to the person who wants to teach, you are missing most of your buyers."I'll think about it" is not a decision. Help people get to a yes or a no.No deadline, or a deadline months away, changes who enrolls this week. PULL QUOTES "Not one of these owners had the problem that they thought they had." "The moment that you know which problem you're solving, the fear can get replaced by arithmetic." "How many people do you genuinely want before you start negotiating on what you think is realistic?" "60 people are raising their hand. The demand is there." "This move costs you nothing, it works quickly, and no one can do it for you." "It really is just a numbers game. We have to run the math first." FAQs Why isn't my yoga teacher training filling? Usually it is not demand. It is either not enough leads to hit your goal, or leads that are not converting because no one followed up or asked them directly. How many leads do I need to fill a teacher training? Assume a 20% to 30% conversion rate. For 8 students, you need roughly 27 leads. For 10, you need 30 or more. What is the difference between a lead problem and a conversion problem? A lead problem means not enough people have raised their hand. A conversion problem means the right people are already interested and are not being moved to a decision. What counts as a high ticket offer for a yoga or Pilates studio? Anything meaningfully above a class pack or membership: teacher training, retreats, private packages, mentorship, an intensive weekend. Roughly 30% of your revenue should come from this category. Do personal invitations really work for filling a retreat? Yes. One client wrote down 12 names on a Monday and had 4 sales calls booked by Tuesday. Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  4. Aug 25

    4 Beliefs That Are Keeping Your Ads From Growing

    Send Jackie A Message! Someone once told me, kind of proudly, that he scrolls right past every sponsored listing on Google. Like it was a small act of resistance. I've thought about it ever since, because I don't think he was talking about Google at all. He was telling me what he believed about paying to be seen. A lot of you believe some version of that about your own advertising. You're just not saying it out loud. It shows up as the ad you keep not running. This is the final episode of ads month, and we're going through the four beliefs you have to shift to grow your yoga or Pilates studio with paid advertising: that ads feel gross or "not who I am," that a $20 to $30 lead is too expensive, that your town or niche is too small, and that you couldn't handle the volume if it worked. You'll get real numbers: what a healthy business puts toward marketing, what a normal cost per lead looks like on meta ads, and why $5 a day is working against you. If growth has felt hard, listen before busy season hits. The Studio CEO Ads Agency application takes under two minutes. Link below. TIMESTAMPED OUTLINE [00:00] The Google conversation I've never forgotten[03:41] What the data says your marketing budget should be[06:00] Running the math on a $300,000 studio[09:17] Belief 1: Ads feel gross, icky, or not who I am[11:30] Why an organic listing doesn't mean better teaching[14:58] Belief 2: A $20 to $30 lead is too expensive[20:17] Belief 3: My town is too small, my niche too narrow[22:28] Belief 4: What if I can't handle the volume[24:31] The four flipped beliefs and your next step KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ Every business pays to get new students. The question is whether you're doing it on purpose or whenever the local magazine calls about their January issue.  ✓ Businesses under $5 million in revenue typically put 7 to 8 percent of gross revenue into marketing. Businesses going after growth run 10 to 12 percent.  ✓ A healthy cost per lead on meta ads sits between $20 and $30. Dialed-in ads with strong creative can hit $12 to $18.  ✓ Being the organic result doesn't mean your teachers are better. It means your website is set up the way the algorithm likes.  ✓ Your ad buys visibility. Your landing page builds the trust.  ✓ A small town or narrow niche is an advantage. You're not competing with national brands at national spend. PULL QUOTES "You are not buying credibility. You're buying the chance to be seen." "The route is never the point. The trust building, that's the point." "The paid listing at the top is just a business owner who knows what they're doing." "That's a next-level problem. That's a good problem to be solving." FAQs How much should a yoga or Pilates studio spend on marketing? The Small Business Administration recommends businesses under $5 million in revenue put 7 to 8 percent of gross revenue into marketing. Studios going after growth routinely run 10 to 12 percent. What is a good cost per lead for a yoga or Pilates studio? $20 to $30 is normal and healthy on meta ads. Strong creative and close management can bring it to $12 to $18. Above $30 means something needs work. Do paid ads make my studio look less legitimate than organic? No. How someone finds you doesn't determine what they experience once they're there. The ad buys visibility. Your testimonials and reviews build the trust. Will Facebook and Instagram ads work in a small town? Yes, and a small market is an advantage. You're not competing with national brands at national budgets, so your ad gets seen well by people who can walk in your door. Why aren't my ads working when I only spend $5 or $10 a day? Low budgets keep you in the platform's learning phase much longer. Meta and Google need data to figure out who buys from you, and small spend slows that down. What if I get more new students than I can handle? That's an operational problem, not a reason to wait. You control the spend, so you can dial in how many new students you can serve well each month. Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  5. Aug 18

    What Ads Really Cost: The Payroll-Savvy Way to Get New Students Every Month

    Send Jackie A Message! You want to be well known in your town. You want more bodies in the room, because a full class is more fun to teach. You want a predictable way to grow your membership instead of waiting on referrals. And you want fresh faces, because you have been rotating through the same people for a while now. Paid ads are the growth lever that changes all of that. Money is what stops most studio owners from pulling it. So this is the money episode. In week three of our month on paid advertising, I break down what running ads yourself really costs your yoga or Pilates studio, including the version you think is free. We run the hours, the skill decay, the cost per lead, and the four hurdles that drain your budget before a single new student walks in. The question was never whether you are smart enough to learn Meta ads. You are. The question is whether you can afford to keep being your own ads department. TIMESTAMPED OUTLINE [00:00] What every studio owner tells me they want[03:01] Why the Studio CEO Ads Agency exists[05:57] The four blockers: budget, knowledge, "I'll do it myself," time[09:23] Five hours a week is six full work weeks a year[11:45] Why ads knowledge expires and your sales skills do not[14:53] Where do-it-yourself starts draining your budget[17:30] The lead that went cold and the winning ad you broke[19:45] You are the talent: how CEOs divide labor[21:11] $15 leads versus $200 leads[24:48] Why $5K agencies do not fit a studio payroll[27:48] The runway of warm leads you are burning through[29:18] Your next step, and why this window is closingKEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ The real question is not "can I afford an agency," it is "can I afford to keep being my own ads department." ✓ Five hours a week on ads is 250 hours a year, six full work weeks in ads manager, priced at your CEO rate. ✓ Boosting a post does not reach new people. It shows your post to the audience you already have. ✓ At $15 per lead, $1,000 brings 67 people in the door. At $200 per lead, it brings five. ✓ Every business runs on a runway of warm leads, and it shortens every month you skip cold traffic. PULL QUOTES "Not what does an ad cost, but what did the whole machine cost, including the version that you think is free." "You don't have six work weeks a year at your CEO rate to be an ads manager for 20 minutes on a Thursday." "Not one thing on this list is about intelligence. It's a full-time attention problem happening to a part-time attention owner." "Everything else you're doing will not matter if new students stop finding you." "You are the talent. Your students and your team need you way more than the ads dashboard does." FAQs How many hours a week does it take to run your own studio ads?Owners running their own digital marketing report three to ten hours a week, roughly 250 hours a year at five hours. Professionals spend far more, with one media buyer describing 12-hour days in peak season.Does boosting an Instagram post count as running ads? No. Boosting shows your post to your existing followers instead of the cold audience you need. That is why owners try it, see no new students, and write off ads entirely.What is a good cost per lead for a yoga or Pilates studio? It varies by market. Jackie has clients paying $1 per lead online, $5 on Google, and $15 in studio markets. Unmanaged accounts can climb to $200 per lead.Why do my ads stop working after I change them? Every change to the offer, audience, creative, or landing page resets the platform's learning phase. Excited owners break winning ads by improving them.What does ads management cost for a studio? Many agencies start near $5,000 a month plus a $5,000 minimum spend. The Studio CEO Ads Agency is $1,000 a month with no minimum spend.How do I apply for the Studio CEO Ads Agency? Head to the website, click Studio CEO Ads Agency, and fill out the two-minute application. Strong fits get a call with Jackie before maternity leave begins in September.Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  6. Aug 11

    Ads Find Her, Your Content Convinces Her: The System That Fills Studios

    Send Jackie A Message! Ads Find Her, Your Content Convinces Her: The System That Fills Studios Do I run ads, or do I just keep posting organically? It's the question every studio owner asks... and it's not the right question. In this episode, I'm sharing the one number that should reorganize your whole marketing plan: people who see your organic content AND your paid ads are 61% more likely to convert than people who only see the ads. Ads and organic aren't competing for your budget, time, or energy. They're two halves of one marketing machine — and running either half alone is the expensive version of both. In this episode: Meta or Google? My honest answer in about a minute — and why your ad budget starts with MetaThe real reach of your organic posts (the average Instagram post reaches about 3.5% of your own followers — and what that means for your growth plan)Why referrals and organic are a bonus, not a marketing planThe 61% multiplier: what happens when someone sees your ads and your contentThe halo effect — how running ads makes your organic content work harder, including the study where searches for a brand's name jumped over 400%Why the first thing a curious stranger does is tap your profile (and what she needs to find there)Warm audiences: how the people your content attracts convert at 5–10% vs. about 2% for cold traffic — and how that quietly lowers your cost per member every weekYour one action this week: the two-question multiplier auditReady for ads?  The Studio CEO Ads Agency is enrolling a few new clients for August.  We only run ads for yoga and Pilates businesses; we're built to fit your payroll, and when you apply, we'll tell you honestly whether you're ready. The application takes less than two minutes.  Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  7. Aug 4

    Should Your Studio Run Ads Yet? The Cost of Waiting and the 5 Green Lights

    Send Jackie A Message! You've told yourself you'll grow organically first. Referrals, word of mouth, posting the right way. Ads are for later, when you're bigger. That sounds responsible, and it is costing you money every single month. In this episode, Jackie Murphy breaks down the invisible invoice your yoga or Pilates studio pays while it stays invisible: the luck ceiling of referral-only growth, the empty spots in your classes that add up to five figures in missed lifetime value, the attention shift that moved your future members onto their phones, and the unpredictability tax that makes every month feel like a gamble. Then she does the thing most people selling ads skip. She walks you through the five green lights that say your studio is ready for paid advertising, plus the one red light that means wait. By the end, you'll know exactly where you stand. TIMESTAMPED OUTLINE  [01:39] What's coming in this four-part August ads series [04:22] The invisible invoice: four costs of staying invisible [05:07] Line one: the luck ceiling of referral-only growth [06:30] Line two: missed member math and empty class spots [08:30] Line three: where new students are looking now [10:15] Line four: the unpredictability tax on your nervous system [11:46] What the data says about Meta and Google returns [13:36] Real math on a $280 monthly ad budget [15:12] Why organic content and paid ads multiply each other [16:21] Green lights one and two: a converting offer and knowing your numbers [18:20] Green lights three, four, and five: follow-up, capacity, budget [23:39] Inside the Studio CEO Ads Agency and what's nextKEY TAKEAWAYS Referrals are a bonus, not a marketing plan. Growth by referral is growth at the speed of luck.Ten empty spots at a $1,200 lifetime value each is $14,000 of revenue not walking in.83% of people on Instagram discover new businesses in the app. Paid ads are how you show up there.An ad's job is to bring a stranger to your front step. Your offer's job is to open the door.People who see your organic content and your ads are 61% more likely to convert.You don't need all five green lights today. You need an offer you know converts.PULL QUOTES "Being invisible is expensive." "Referrals have to be a bonus, not a marketing plan." "A business that grows on referrals is growing at the speed of luck, and luck has a ceiling." "It might be costing you way more to not have ads on in your business." "Ads are an amplifier. They make more people experience what is already happening in your business." "Anyone who sells you ads without checking this first does not deserve your trust." FAQs  Do yoga and Pilates studios really need paid ads? Referrals and word of mouth cap out at the size of your members' social circles. Ads are the channel that makes new student flow predictable instead of lucky.How do I know if my studio is ready to run ads? Check the five green lights: an intro offer that converts, a lifetime value number, a follow-up process, capacity for new people, and a budget you can commit to without panicking.When should a studio owner wait on ads? If you have no proof your intro offer converts, wait. Ads amplify what already works, so test the offer organically first.What kind of return do ads get for studios? Across small businesses, Meta returns about $4.20 for every dollar spent, and yoga and Pilates is one of the strongest categories on the platform.How much should a studio spend on ads? Clients in our agency spend anywhere from $5 a day to several hundred. Pick a number you can commit to for a few months without stress.Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

  8. Jul 21

    The Handbook Trap: Why a Handbook Won't Fix Your Team

    Send Jackie A Message! Everyone in the yoga and Pilates world is telling you the same thing right now: you need a handbook.  And they're right — until they let you believe the handbook is the fix. Because here's what the research shows: SOPs don't fail because they're badly written. They fail because nobody is holding the standard. In this episode, Jackie names the trap almost every studio owner falls into — asking a document to do a manager's job — and gets precise about three words we throw around like they're interchangeable: leadership, management, and systems.  You lead the direction. You manage the standard. The system remembers it for you. Miss the middle layer, and even a beautiful forty-page handbook rots in a Google Drive folder while you keep re-fixing everything yourself. In this episode: Why documents are inert — and why "I wrote it down" is not the same as "it's handled"The three layers defined: leadership (what matters and who you're being), management (accountability, feedback, and training — this week), and systems (the handbook, SOPs, and checklists that remember the standard)The story of a client, a Pilates studio owner, with forty-two pages of SOPs and a team following none of them — and the exact changes that made the handbook realThe 90-second coaching conversation to use the next time a standard slips (word for word)How to onboard so the handbook actually lands: walk it, shadow it, teach it backStandard of the week, checklists, public praise, and handing ownership to your leads — the rhythms that keep standards aliveThe one rule you can't break: hold the standard the same way for your newest hire and your biggest superstarYour action step this week: pick one standard that keeps slipping. Don't rewrite the SOP. Give it an owner who isn't you, put it where it will be seen, and add it to your next team check-in. One standard, one owner, one rhythm. A handbook tells your team what good looks like. Management is what makes it happen. Leadership is why they want to. Work with Jackie Murphy Say Hi on Instagram @studioceoofficialJoin The Studio CEO Program: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/studioceo-newThe Studio CEO Ads Agency: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/agencyFree Workshop Your Next 100 Students Free Workshop: https://www.jackiegmurphy.com/next100og

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Welcome to The Studio CEO, the only podcast that empowers yoga and Pilates teachers and studio owners to step confidently into their roles as CEOs. If you're ready to take your business seriously, show up with passion, and scale your studio to new heights without burning out, you're in the right place. I’m your host, Jackie Murphy, an award-winning, certified business coach with 12+ years in the yoga industry I’ve seen firsthand what it takes to turn your passion into a powerful, scalable business. Join me as we dive into strategies, insights, and real-world advice to help you grow your revenue, build a thriving team, and create a business that serves you as much as you serve your clients. It's time to embrace your CEO mindset and make more money without working more.

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