How a chess academy launched its second branch with one committed student—and reached full capacity before the month was out.
Client: Ruy Lopez Chess Academy Location: Tandang Sora, Quezon City Timeline: 3 Weeks Services: Brand, Campaign & Content
From a single committed student to a fully subscribed branch in weeks
During the campaign period
Growth in total views over the period
Follower growth rate during the launch
Ruy Lopez Chess Academy had everything a chess program needs—experienced coaches, a proven teaching model, and a complete learning environment that went far beyond lessons. But when they opened their second branch in Tandang Sora, Quezon City, only one student had committed before launch.
The service was strong. The market just couldn’t see why it mattered yet.
Brand Repositioning
We shifted the academy away from generic chess coaching messaging and repositioned it as a purposeful chess development environment—Built for Serious Improvement. Rooted in Supportive Community.
Organic Content
We created launch content that showed the academy in action—students training, coaches guiding, tournaments happening. The goal was to make parents see the experience, not just read about it.
Soft Opening Tournament
Before running a single ad, we recommended a soft opening tournament on February 1 that filled the new branch with energy and gave us authentic proof to market with.
Free Trial Campaign
On February 8, we launched a grand opening offering free 90-minute trial classes—a low-friction entry point that let parents experience the academy before committing.
Hyperlocal Meta Ads
Paid ads ran for 14 days targeting parents near the new branch. The campaign objective was conversations, not clicks— turning inquiries into trial bookings.
In 3 weeks, the Tandang Sora branch went from one committed student to full capacity. All free trial sessions were filled. Hundreds of parent inquiries were generated. The client later shared that they had to turn away additional interest.
“The branch had reached capacity.” -Ruy Lopez Chess Academy
Your business maybe better than your marketing makes it look too. Stride Digital Labs helps ambitious Philippine businesses turn real proof into sharper positioning, content, and campaigns that bring in the right customers.