Creating Demand for Cheer in a Small Town

If you own a cheer gym in a rural area or you’re the first program in your community, your biggest challenge is simple: education. Parents can’t buy what they don’t understand. In this episode of the Cheer Biz Podcast, Dan Cotton shares how to educate a small-town market about all star cheerleading, build awareness fast, and position your gym as the go-to destination for youth sports training. Dan breaks down three practical strategies that work especially well in rural communities: show up at every public performance opportunity (and capture leads while you’re there), use social media to show what you do beyond flyers, and host community events at your facility that double as lead-generation machines. He also explains why your follow-up system matters more than your ad budget—and why paid ads are wasted if you don’t have automation, waivers, and email/SMS follow-up in place. If you’re building a cheer gym in a small town, trying to grow enrollment, or launching a program where cheer isn’t mainstream yet, this episode gives you a clear plan to create demand, capture leads, and corner your market.