Overview:
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Wheaton’s Martial Arts asked me to improve how the business shows up online and how it stays connected with its community so they could drive more new student enrollments and keep current members engaged. The core issue was not the quality of instruction. The issue was that the digital experience did not reflect the strength of the in person experience, and key touchpoints were not doing enough work to build trust, answer questions, and move people from interest to action.​
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The ask:

Wheaton’s wanted a clearer, more consistent digital presence that would do three things: attract new local families and students, convert them into trial visits and enrollments, and strengthen communication with existing members so the community felt active and connected.
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The challenge:
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Wheaton’s had a strong reputation locally, but that reputation was not translating online. Social media content was inconsistent and did not consistently communicate what makes the school different. The website did not provide enough proof, clarity, or next steps for someone deciding where to train. Community communication also lacked a consistent structure, which limited engagement and reduced the number of moments that reinforce belonging. Together, these gaps reduced visibility to prospective students and weakened the ongoing member experience.
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What we did:​
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• I built Wheaton’s first annual Customer Experience report to identify what actually drives enrollment and what creates drop off in the decision journey. I collected and synthesized customer feedback to understand how people discover the school, what they look for before reaching out, what convinces them to visit, and what makes them commit to enrollment. I translated those findings into a customer journey view of the experience, organized by stages from discovery to consideration to first visit to sign up.

• The research made two things clear. First, word of mouth was already a major driver of enrollment, which meant the product experience was strong and people were willing to recommend it. Second, the first impression created by social media and the website was the biggest opportunity. That first impression needed to communicate credibility, values, and fit more clearly, and it needed to reduce friction by making the path to take action obvious.

• From there, I delivered a prioritized action plan across the highest impact touchpoints and defined what success would look like using practical measurement targets for reach, engagement, and conversion.

 
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What we changed:
 
Social media
I set a clearer content direction that focused on consistent local visibility and consistent value communication. The content approach emphasized community relevance, location signals, and a steady cadence so prospective students would repeatedly encounter the brand and understand what Wheaton’s offers. I also recommended specific post types designed to increase engagement and trust, so the account would feel active, credible, and worth following.
 
Website
I updated the site content to match the questions people ask when choosing a martial arts school. I added testimonials as proof points, clarified the values section so visitors understand what the school stands for, and added a detailed calendar of events so families could see what participation actually looks like. The goal was to improve conversion by reducing uncertainty and making next steps easy.
 
​Measurement and Reporting​
 
I established a repeatable measurement approach so the team could track what was working and improve over time. That included defining the key signals to monitor across the funnel, such as local reach and engagement on social media, website behavior that indicates intent, and the specific actions that show progress toward enrollment. The goal was to support an ongoing test and learn loop instead of one time changes.
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The Impact​
 
​​This work improved the clarity and consistency of Wheaton’s brand experience across the touchpoints that matter most. The school became easier to discover, easier to understand, and easier to take action with. The updated social presence increased community visibility and engagement, and the improved website strengthened trust and reduced friction for prospective students. Together, these changes supported stronger enrollment momentum and a more connected community experience, with a measurement plan in place to keep optimizing going forward.