The Rise of Events: New Data on How to Grow Your Yoga Business

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 1 Rainbow yoga mats stretch out in front of you as your attendees push back into downward dog. The yoga teacher reminds everyone to breathe as they flow through their .

Then, out of nowhere, a goat jumps on a yogi’s back. A few yogis pause to take a photo as the goat bleats. At the end of class, yogis celebrate with a kombucha toast — and you celebrate a job well done.

Yoga has been around for thousands of years, and it’s more popular than ever. In fact, according to a new survey on the yoga trends and habits of 2,000 Americans by Eventbrite and OnePoll, 67% of people have tried yoga before. And 64% want to practice more in 2019 than they did in 2018.

But the yoga experiences offered today have never been as numerous or unique as they are now — goat yoga is just one of many examples. This rise in popularity brings a whole new set of challenges for the creators of these classes and events.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 2 The bottom line: Competition for yogis is fierce. Your yoga experience is one of a kind — but yogis who are choosing between practicing at a gym, studio, or even in their own room using an app or video don’t realize that. To them, your experience might seem just like the class included in their gym membership, except at a higher price tag.

“Don’t think creating yoga experiences is an easy job or easy money, because it’s not,” says Jimmy Naron, the founder and CEO of Rocky Mountain Goat Yoga. “You need to be prepared to work very hard to make your yoga experience stand out.”

Take a deep breath: You’re not going it alone. Whether you’re a yoga teacher looking to open your own studio or an events professional growing an established yoga festival, this guide holds everything you need to know. Use these insights from a survey of 1,200 yogis and interviews with yoga experts to learn how to turn your passion into a thriving business.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 3 This guide is for: Events professionals and yoga instructors who want to grow their business, whether they host classes, workshops, retreats, or festivals.

You’ll learn how to: • Price and market your yoga experiences to attract more attendees

• Connect with the yogi community by understanding why they practice

• Tap into other wellness trends and partners to expand your business

About the study: Eventbrite and OnePoll teamed up to conduct a survey examining the yoga trends and habits of 2,000 Americans.1 We asked why they do yoga, how much they’re willing to spend on unique yoga experiences, and how to convince them to choose your class.

1This random double opt-in survey was conducted by OnePoll, a market research company and corporate member of ESOMAR and adheres to the MRS code of conduct. For more information about OnePoll’s research in the media, navigate to their portfolio.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 4 Contents

Set your intention Connect with your yogis 06

Balancing Sequence How to price your yoga classes and experiences 12

Find your flow Turn your yoga class into an experience 15

Reach for the sky Find your tribe on social media 19

Savasana Reach new heights for your yoga business 21

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 5 SET YOUR INTENTION Connect with your yogis

A great yoga flow starts with a centering exercise, and your yoga business should begin the same way.

Start by focusing on your yogis’ motivations. How do you want your yogis to feel when they leave your yoga class? When do they prefer to practice? Why would they come to your experience, instead of practicing alone in their bedroom?

Once you understand what motivates your potential attendees to attend yoga classes, you can make better decisions to create your own offerings. Use these insights from the survey of 1,200 yogis as a starting point.

Yogis practice for the physical and mental benefits When you see all those happy faces leaving your yoga class, their stress and tension erased, it’s obvious why so many love attending your class, and that’s worth celebrating. But most yoga offerings out there offer stress relief — so how can you help your event stand out?

The first step is to understand your attendees’ motivations for practicing. Why do they like attending class? And is there a need you can meet that other yoga offerings in your area are overlooking? Here’s what the 1,200 yogis we surveyed with OnePoll had to say.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 6 THE TOP 5 REASONS PEOPLE PRACTICE YOGA

54% 52% 51% Release tension Get stronger De-stress physically and mentally

43% 41% Feel happier Workout

These aren’t the only motivations our survey revealed, though. Yoga also helps respondents mitigate stress (38%), relax (31%), ease physical ailments (30%), get more “me time” in their week (27%), feel less lonely (21% ), and, it helps a surprising 20% unplug from tech.

Put it in action: Find your niche and run with it For Susie Martin, co-founder and creative director at It’s for Charity! Events, tapping into her attendees’ motivations and needs helped catapult her charity yoga event into a local phenomenon. After realizing her attendees were seeking a “happy vibe” more than an intense practice, she began incorporating animals into her classes. Now, she hosts goat, pig, and bunny yoga, as well as a pilates class with puppies.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 7 “Here, whatever a yogi is looking for, they can experience,” says Martin. “You’ll get a good workout, but you can also just come and cuddle an animal. And that’s how we market it: Come and get out of your head and don’t be grumpy.”

For Jimmy Naron, CEO and Founder of Rocky Mountain Goat Yoga, creating a space where yogis of all levels can unplug, unwind, and hang out with goats to help them relax has been a driver for his success. Since launching in 2017, he’s grown his business to six locations.

“We have professional yoga instructors, but the yoga sequences are designed for beginners,” Naron says. “Honestly, we don’t mind if people don’t want to practice the asanas. It’s their moment, their yoga practice, their experience and their time to share with the goats. ”

Yogis practice frequently — and usually in the morning You’ve got your regulars who attend like clockwork and the wild cards, who practice whenever they can. But then there are the newcomers, the yogis who attend once and never come back. So how can you turn more of the wild cards and newcomers into regular attendees?

You need to find the sweet spot for both when yogis want to practice and can actually attend. That’s why we asked our survey respondents how often they practice and when they like to fit classes into their day.

Yogis practice an average of twice per week, while yogis who prefer group classes practice even more often: Nearly two-thirds of them practice 2-4 times a week, while 16% of them practice at least five times a week.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 8 HOW OFTEN YOGIS WHO PREFER GROUP CLASSES PRACTICE

1X per week 15%

50 % 2X per week 22%

50 % 3X per week 22%

50 % 4X per week 15%

50 % 5X or more per week 16%

50 %

As for time of day, morning is the most popular, with more than a third of yogis (34%) preferring to attend class between 5-9 am. The lunchtime hour, between 11 am - 3 pm, was the least popular (15%), with a resurgence of interest in classes between 3-7 pm (18%).

Put it in action: Plug into your community’s daily rhythm When Martin was testing which times were best for her Happy Goat Yoga events, she found that time of day drastically affected attendance.

“Saturday late morning or early afternoon is the best time, that’s when we usually target,” Martin says. “[We also] pay attention to the season. For example, earlier morning sessions in the summer when it’s hot.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 9 Also, Sunday mornings in big cities and suburbs are okay, but for family- oriented areas, we do later, since they might be at church.”

Once you’ve found the time that works best for your audience, ask your repeat yogis what keeps them coming back. At Rocky Mountain Goat Yoga, “One loyal guest who happens to be a lawyer has been coming faithfully every single weekend for four or five months with his wife,” says Naron. “He comes to these classes because all week long, he deals with court cases and stress. But when he’s at goat yoga, he’s not thinking about that. He’s playing with the goats. He knows every single one of their names.”

Yogis value community One in five (21%) of yogis practice to reduce loneliness. With so much competition from online yoga videos and apps, this is a vital element to make your in-person classes stand out.

Our survey revealed 30% of yogis practice in group classes, while 27% their time between individual practice and group classes. But people feel the effects of individual and group practices very differently: 47% 56% 36% are more likely to of people who who practice maintain a wellness practice in group individually are “very routine when held classes are “very happy” afterwards accountable by a happy” afterwards class or teacher

When you see yogis arriving early or staying late to chat around class, you know you’re onto something that’s bigger than the poses alone — you’re helping people create a community. But there are active steps you can take to make sure this community thrives.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 10 Put it in action: Grow your community by being inclusive Turns out going to group classes can improve attendees’ feelings of happiness afterwards — a powerful motivator for attending more group classes, more often. To create and promote this sense of community for your yogis, consider:

• Opening your venue early so people can gather and talk

• Getting to know your student’s names and their physical limitations, and making your practice inclusive for all

• Organizing charitable activities outside of the practice, like a volunteer clean up at your local beach or a clothing, food, or book drive

“We stand out because each of our events is a fundraiser,” says Martin.

Every event we look at as a community event, and every event is dedicated to a local nonprofit. If people have the choice between a normal yoga class and one that will go to a good cause, they’ll follow their heart.

— Susie Martin, Co-Founder and Creative Director at It’s for Charity! Events

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 11 BALANCING SEQUENCE How to price your yoga classes and experiences

Some yogis are willing to drop $100 on leggings, while others can struggle with a monthly membership. So what’s the sweet spot when pricing your tickets? Here are some findings from our survey that can help you decide how much to charge for your yoga event.

Yogis will spend on the right experience

In a lifetime, the average yogi spends, on yoga, $62,640 $28,800 $33,840 on yoga classes on yoga equipment and apparel

Your yoga offering has to walk the line between what people are willing to spend and how much they can afford. To help you figure out what makes sense for your class or workshop, we asked the yogis who took our survey questions about their spending habits.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 12 Just under half of respondents (44%) said they spend $11-60 on yoga classes in a typical month. And when it comes to pricing for individual classes, 37% said that once the price hits $30, it’s too expensive.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t price up. There are big spenders willing to pay more:

14% 6% 8% 8% would spend up would spend up would spend up would spend to $30-$50 to $75 to $100 $150-$200

Put it in action: Add on elements that make yogis want to splurge Another way to encourage yogis to buy higher priced tickets is to enrich your experience with add-ons like healthful snacks or mindfulness lectures. The average yogi is willing to spend $40 on special, one-time yoga experiences like these — while 18% are willing to spend $50-100 and another 8% will spend even more than $100.

Consider incorporating other wellness activities like meditation or spa visits. After all, 22% of yogis already spend $10-50 a month on these activities. Plus, turning your main yoga offering into a bigger wellness experience can broaden your event’s appeal — more on that in the next section.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 13 We try to bring in as many local companies as possible. They’ll donate goods like kombucha or cold brew coffee, and we incorporate it as part of the ticket. It’s a fun extra for the experience.

— Susie Martin, Co-Founder and Creative Director at It’s for Charity! Events

There’s no reason your yoga experience can’t tap into the $33,840 yogis spend in a lifetime on yoga equipment and apparel, either. Partner with local brands to stock your event with supplies, or brand your own merch for yogis to flaunt around town.

If you don’t want to manage these additional elements yourself, reach out to partners and sponsors who will. “I usually let vendors set up at our events for free,” says Jimmy Naron from Rocky Mountain Goat Yoga. “Local kombucha companies, girl scouts, meal prep services, or yoga leggings brands come and create a better experience for our attendees.”

PRO TIP Price high, then offer discounts At Rocky Mountain Goat Yoga, discounts have been successful in enticing first-time attendees to try out classes. “Discounts are a big driver for sales,” says Naron. “Make your discount codes personal. We offer discounts for veterans or for residents of a certain city. It’s a blanket discount, but the personal promotion code.”

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 14 FIND YOUR FLOW Turn your yoga class into an experience

If you’re interested in bringing laughter yoga to your neighborhood and someone else already beat you to it, don’t panic. You can coexist in your city and thrive — as long as your yoga experience is differentiated enough from the competition.

Yogis want to try something new One way you can distinguish your event from the rest is to explore creative yoga ideas or piggyback on trends. And while it sounds counterintuitive if you’re a stickler for tradition, the results from our survey show there’s a growing demand for experimental forms of yoga.

The most popular is laughter yoga, with 20% of yogis wanting to give it a try. Silent disco yoga, , yoga, and made it on the list as well.

If cat yoga or laughter yoga isn’t for you, don’t worry. There are other ways to get creative about how you package your yoga offering to potential attendees while creating more value for them.

Add other wellness activities yogis have tried and enjoyed, such as in- person guided meditation (17%), spa treatments (21%), massages (39%), dance class (21%), and spin class (12%). Depending on your interests, you can marry the two together for an irresistible event.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 15 The top experimental yoga experiences yogis want to try

15% 17% 15% Cat yoga Silent disco yoga Aerial yoga

14% 13% 14% Naked yoga Dog yoga Beer yoga

18% 17% 13% Immersive yoga Heavy metal yoga Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 16 Put it in action: Keep a pulse on what’s fun and creative Staying connected with current trends has helped Martin stay creative. “I pay attention to what people talk about on social media, and talk to yogis at events about their interests.”

Once she’s picked up on a trend, she’ll build an event around it. From a couple’s essential oils class or to make-your-own-terrarium night, she’s tuned into what her yogis want — and what’s popular in mainstream culture.

“The first one we added was pups and pilates, we also do yoga and team up with shelters,” Martin says. “In 2019 we’re launching a new type of fun yoga, a combination of music and party called Groovy Yoga. Envision a disco party with a live DJ with a yoga class. Combining those favorites into a full-blown experience is trendy right now, and we’ll add enough elements to make it Instagram-worthy.”

Yogis want to get outside the studio (and their town) It can be a powerful experience for yogis to get out of the studio and into different types of atmospheres. From beautiful, unusual spaces like breweries or wineries to nature itself, there’s plenty of ways to shake things up.

The yogis we surveyed have done yoga in a wide variety of spaces, from the outdoors (32%) and the gym (43%), to their home (43%), a yoga or wellness festival (20%), and at special events at a unique venue, such as a church, farm, beach, or winery (20%).

And these experiences stand out. Currently, 66% of people do at least one class per year in an unusual setting, but 83% wish that they did. That’s a huge opportunity for your yoga class.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 17 Put it in action: Give your yogis a change of scene Looking for the right venue can be challenging, especially if you’ve got goats, bunnies, or puppies in the mix. But finding a unique space to hold your yoga event can give it the extra something you need to grow attendance.

“We’ve teamed up with many venues, including fun social ones like breweries and calming, relaxing ones outdoors,” says Martin. “If a venue is more popular or well known, the event will be successful.”

Not sure where to begin sourcing a unique venue? Start with this venue checklist.

PRO TIP Yogis will travel for the right experience We wanted to know how far yogis would travel for a unique experience, like a retreat or a class. Here’s what survey respondents had to say:

31% 9% 43% would travel outside are willing to travel are only willing to of their city outside their state venture out to their or further neighborhood or city

Only one in five wouldn’t travel for a unique yoga experience.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 18 REACH FOR THE SKY Find your tribe on social media

No matter how incredible your experience, most yoga events couldn’t survive without the help of social media to get the word out. Facebook and Instagram are where yogis come to chat and share recommendations.

Yogis find classes through friends, Facebook, and influencers The top two places where people discover yoga experiences are word of mouth (45%) and Facebook (44%). Plus, one in four (28%) follow yoga or wellness influencers on social media.

While you can’t control who tells their friends about your event, you can tap into the people they follow online to spread the word.

“We invite local bloggers and Instagram influencers to our events for free and they share the experience,” says Martin. “While we do focus on wellness and yoga influencers, we’ve also noticed that influencers who are just active and social in the area drive a good turnout.”

While you might not be able to afford the type of influencer who has, say, millions of followers, micro-influencers like local bloggers or wellness gurus are actually more useful partnerships to pursue. These are highly active people on social media who have hyperlocal and engaged followers.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 19 Put it in action: Find the right influencers for your event Use these strategies to hook influencers that reach yogis in your area: • Look at Instagram’s Explore tab for posts tagged locally or with relevant hashtags to find people who have followings and would be fans

• Make sure their following is engaged by checking how many likes and comments they get per post compared to the number of followers

• Investigate their background in events by looking at what kind of content they’ve created in the past and whether it’s in line with how you want to communicate about your event

• Engage with them on social media and show interest in their content

• Hook the influencers with photos and videos of your event, and explain how your relationship can benefit them

Once you get your influencers on board, it’s time to build your partnership. For example, offer them free tickets in exchange for sharing posts and stories at your event and tagging you.

If you partner with other wellness brands and sponsors around your event, they count as influencers too. “We did a contest with Mika Yoga Wear,” Naron says. “It was a strategy to boost our followers, and it encouraged our audience to follow them as well.”

PRO TIP Feature “Get Tickets” buttons on Facebook and Instagram Once influencers drive people to your profile, don’t let them leave without getting tickets. If you use Eventbrite, it’s simple to add a “Get Tickets” button on your Instagram business profile page or Facebook Event page. Don’t underestimate the impact it can make on your sales once you simplify the purchase process.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 20 SAVASANA Reach new heights for your yoga business

To create an experience that stands out to yogis and attracts a growing audience, you can’t use a ticketing system that stresses them out. After all, there’s nothing worse than getting excited about a new yoga class or workshop, only to be forced through a convoluted checkout process.

The best thing you can do for your yoga business is partner from the start with a ticketing partner that makes everything stressless. Get started in minutes on Eventbrite today.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 21 Powered three million events Get started in 2017. Eventbrite brings the world together through live Set up your next event experiences. More than 700,000 organizers used Read more Eventbrite in 2017 to drive ticket sales, promote and Contact us manage events, handle on-site operations, and analyze results across multiple sales channels.

Grow your event More than 200 million tickets were issued in 2017.

Simplify your planning Impress your attendees Promote, manage, and Delight with ease of analyze your event from purchase, convenient any device. ticket access, and speedier entry.

Eventbrite.com The Rise of Yoga Events Page 22