Posts Tagged ‘health club’

Health Club Management – Coaching your Team towards a Goal

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

Health Club Management

Over the past few weeks I’ve been doing a lot of consulting with club owners in regards to club management. This is one in particular that I’m very passionate about, mainly because that’s where I got my start in the fitness industry. It really drives me bananas when I walk into a health club and there are no systems in place. I can only imagine how aggravating it must be for the members and employees to be part of a chaotic environment. So that being said let me stop venting and give you a couple of tips that will help you on the road to developing in house marketing, sales and management systems.

First things first, let’s look at marketing.

A few rules to remember when marketing for new gym members.

1. Sale Solutions – When a member joins a fitness center they could care less about how fancy your equipment is. Planet Fitness has proved this. If you walk into any Planet Fitness you will find the same boring cookie cutter equipment. So why are they so successful? The answer is because they are selling a solution. The solution is an environment that anybody can feel comfortable in. That’s there brand and that’s the secret to their success. A good marketing piece we’ll sale a solution. Here are a few examples of the solutions people are looking for when they buy a gym membership: low price, weight loss, risk free money back guarantee, great social scene, no pressure environment, etc.

2. Go Big or Go Home – A fitness center’s marketing budget should be a minimum of 10% of your current draft per month. You may be asking yourself, “How can I afford to spend that much on marketing every month?” A better question would be, “How can you not afford to spend that much money on marketing?” I know some great and inexpensive ways to market your health club that I will go into in a different post. The main thing I want to get in your head is that you have to spend money to make money. And your marketing should be both proactive and reactive.

3. Budget, Budget, Budget – Setting up a marketing budget is the key to successful marketing campaigns. So you ask, how should I go about setting up a marketing budget? Well, I already gave you one key: spend at least 10% of your monthly draft on marketing. There’s a lot more to creating a marketing budget for your gym, so feel free to shoot me an e-mail or give us a call and I can give you a few more free tips.

Next we’ll look at sales.

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Fitness Sales - 3 Secrets to Success

Saturday, October 31st, 2009

Fitness Sales

Fitness Sales is very easy if you understand a few key facts.

OK so let’s look at this for a minute. For this example my name is John. I walk into your health club expecting to get some pricing on how much memberships cost. Now I’ve never been a member of a health club in the past, but my doctors tell me that I need to start exercising if I want to live a little longer and increase my sex drive. So, reluctantly, I drive down to my local gym and now find myself standing at your front counter. The conversation will go something like this:

Joe Gym Owner:
Hey, how can I help you today?

John:
I would like to know what your rates are.

Joe Gym Owner:
Well, we have several rates. What exactly are you looking for?

John:
I have no idea. My doctor just told me I need to start exercising. So here I am.

Joe Gym Owner:
No problem. You can take a look at this rate sheet here, as you can see we have several plans.

John:
Okay well thank you very much. Do you mind if I take a look around?

Joe Jim owner:
No problem, help yourself.

Now I’m no rocket scientist but I’m pretty sure that John won’t be signing up at “Joe’s Gym.”

All John is thinking is:

You want me to pay you money to make me sweat? You must be joking!

I want to give you 3 keys to increase fitness sales. Each one of these keys depends on the next, if you take one of them away, the system won’t work. One of the best things about training someone to do fitness sales is that they’re learning curve is very small, and with proper training anybody can sell more fitness memberships. So let’s get right into.

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A Contours Express Testimonial About A Fitness360 Health Club Promotion

Saturday, October 17th, 2009

See what a customer has to say after we completed a health club promotion for Contours Express in St. Louis.

Stephanie - Contours Express

Saturday, October 17th, 2009

Health Club Promotions

Thursday, October 8th, 2009

Health Club Promotion

How to Get the Benefits and Avoid the Expense of Health Club Promotions.

Too many times, clubs that wish to gain new members through health club promotions literally try to ‘re-invent the wheel’. Creating a successful promotion is a business art all of its own. The tools and knowledge to run successful health club promotions would take years to learn. The effort it takes to effectively coordinate the campaign and maintain the records of the new members generated is too much for many busy club owners and managers to handle so they turn to professional companies to manage their health club promotions. This can prove a costly and frustrating enterprise as many unscrupulous companies promise unrealistic results and charge large upfront fees.

Not all health club promotions are handled so poorly however. You can find a marketing company that will promise reasonable return and achievable financial results. Pie in the Sky promotions that sound ‘too good to be true’ usually are. You want to work with a health club promotions company that can not only provide reasonable results, but will work on a commission basis – not charging you any upfront fees. When you are looking for a health club promotions company you now know not to pay upfront fees or believe outrageous ‘results’ claims – but what else should you be looking for?

Experience counts in health club promotions. A company that has a good deal of experience in bringing in new members is great, but not if they do not have the experienced sales staff to convert those enquiries into memberships. The company that runs your health club promotions should be skilled at both marketing and sales. Not only do you want the promotion to raise your club in public awareness, but you want to end the promotion with higher membership roles. In the end run, the goal of all health club promotions in increased membership.

The benefits of well run health club promotions include raised profile in your community and increased memberships. There is no reason for you to spend a fortune to achieve these benefits. With the right marketing company managing your health club promotions you will pay nothing out of the gate, but rather share a portion of the profits from the number of memberships sold. In addition, the marketing company will handle the entire promotion from beginning to end, hiring staff, managing advertising and selling to prospective members. Well run health club promotions are key to your businesses long-term effectiveness.

Also feel free to fill out a Club Profile to see if your club qualifies.

Until we speak again I pray God Blesses your family, business and life……!!!!

Joshua

How to Sell a Gym Membership - How to Increase Gym Membership Sales Using Common Sense.

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

Do you spend a lot of time wondering how to sell a gym membership to more people? Are you a gym owner that would like to increase the number of gym members you have? Do you wonder how to sell a gym membership to people who never come to the gym? There are several key factors which help gyms like yours get new members. The best new member is a long term member, not just a short term ‘trial’ member. Residual business is the only way to ensure your business has longevity. With that in mind let’s look at the ways how to sell a gym membership that lasts.

Statistics show the average person needs to see a business name seven times before changing from consumer to patron. The key to how to sell a gym membership is to get your gym’s name in the news, both in print and on the local radio. When you are working out how to sell a gym membership, consider holding events at your gym and having these events published as community announcements. Other methods of how to sell a gym membership include putting ads on billboards or the sides of buses. Small “giveaway” items such as key-chains and bumper stickers get a surprisingly large amount of eye contact – and it’s even better in the hands of an existing gym member where it adds endorsement to the name. Get your gym’s name into public spaces and the question of how to sell a gym membership will become moot.

One of your best assets is existing membership when it comes to how to sell a gym membership. These members are already sold. So, offer a free month to any existing member who brings in a new member. Give your personal trainers a bonus if they sign up new members. Personal Trainers are second best asset. Another great way how to sell a gym membership is to offer the choice of yearly contracts or a onetime annual fee (which is lower than the combined monthly payment).You achieve the same thing, immediate cash, but get a long term member. The key to how to sell a gym membership is to think outside the box.

How to sell a gym membership comes down to getting you name into the minds of new customers and removing the barriers that keep them from joining. Remember, the focus should be not just on selling, but on how to sell a gym membership that lasts.

I hope this was helpful in some way. Remember to stay positive and trust in the fact that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.

Joshua Fleming

Knowing When to Call in the Consultants

Wednesday, September 9th, 2009
Fitness Consultants

Fitness Consultants

Could your health club or weight loss business benefit from fitness consulting? In today’s market, every member counts and many businesses are struggling to maintain membership roles as people make spending cutbacks. Deciding whether fitness consulting is the right thing for your business can be tricky. After-all, as the recession affects your member’s pocketbooks it affects yours. Many club owners are tempted to ‘batten down the hatches’ and attempt to weather the storm of economic uncertainty. Before you do that, however, there are some basic things you can consider to see if fitness consulting is right for your business now.

Fitness consulting from highly qualified professionals with solid industry experience could be just the thing to strengthen your business and help you weather the storm of economic uncertainty. One of the keys is gaining market exposure. It is possible to gain new members from the ‘couch potato’ set – those people who would not normally walk into a health club. Fitness consulting can help you create a marketing plan that reaches out to these people. Getting a broader spectrum of people through the door in the first place is one of the prime goals of fitness consulting. But what do you do with these people once they arrive?

Working with an experienced fitness consulting company, you can learn the steps to effectively sell memberships to the ‘uninitiated’. Someone who has never worked out in a gym before or thinks of gym as the place of school days torture will be sceptical about the benefits. They are likely to come through the door with a ‘prove it’ attitude. Working with a fitness consulting company you and your staff can gain the skills needed to effectively sell the benefits of working out at your club. Good fitness consulting is specifically aimed at helping you look at your business through fresh eyes – to see what the customer sees, and understand what they need.

In the end role, a fitness consulting company is there to help you re-evaluate your business, to expand upon the things that are working, and to make changes where necessary. With a focus on proper promotion, fitness consulting can help bring in new members from that segment of society that is not already on-board with the fitness revolution. If your business is flourishing, adding new members and expanding services in today’s economy, great! If not, you should call a professional fitness consulting company.

Call today and ask about how our Consulting Programs could help you.

You will receive 1 FULL hour of consulting for FREE!

Thank you!

Joshua Fleming

Fitness360

Health Club Owners Bait the Baby Boomers

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

fishing-cartoonEver thought of making money in a sector with a massive market demand, unique expansion potential and giant revenue possibilities? How would you like to position yourself strategically and take advantage of one of the biggest trends in the history of mankind? Look no further. This book will exhibit to you how the HEALTH and WELLNESS industry holds the key to any budding businessman on how to realize a profit on a rising trend.

Note :
Remember health club marketing is more than just direct mail and lead boxes. You must go after the right shoppers for your well-being club and market to them. Gyms that try to be everything to everybody end up being nobodies to everybody. Fitness marketing is health club marketing companies main goal.
Now, think back :

What trends were the most up to date at their time?

‘ The Microwave
‘ The VCR
‘ The computers and the web

What next?

Imagine if you were there and you started it. Or what if Bill Gates was to form Microsoft in the beginning and was trying to find investors and investors, what would you be doing?

Would you be telling your grandkids how you cashed in and made a fortune? Or would you tell them how missed it and how others are making theirs?

In this book you’ll learn all about how

‘ Baby-boomers in America modified the markets in the world forever
‘ What are this up-trends and downtrends yesterday, today and tomorrow
‘ What a multi-billion dollar demand will look like in a few years time
‘ How network selling companies are cashing in on the wave
‘ How YOU or Anyone can link into this market and make a fortune!

Read on to unlock the secret

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Desperate Times Call For Desperate Measures - Health Club Marketing Is Not Begging For Sales

Friday, August 14th, 2009
Dont beg for a gym membership!

Dont beg for a gym membership!

The homeless that are begging on the streets in cities around the world have nothing on business owners-or do they? In these tough times, it can seem like an appealing solution to beg, plead, and do whatever it takes to get the sales that you need, but standing on the street rattling your tin cup probably isn’t the way to draw a crowd to your gym or health club.

Every business has their sales promotions. The homeless aren’t the only ones begging on the street, these days, either. Other businesses just do it in a much more tactful manner. Have you ever driven down the street and seen a man in a pizza suit or a hot dog costume? Or perhaps you’ve gotten phone call after phone call from car dealers that you’ve talked to, practically offering to give you a car for nothing, just for the business. Today’s businesses are doing everything that they can to increase sales. However, when it comes to health club marketing, a giant protein shake or dumbbell standing out in front of your business probably isn’t what you had in mind.

When it comes to health club marketing in these tough times, there are some things that you CAN do, though. It’s hard to own a gym or a health club right now, because people are cutting unnecessary expenses like crazy. It’s not like people are saying ‘Forget the electric bill, it can wait. I’ve got to get a gym membership!’ It would be nice for your business if this was the way that people thought, but until you can acquire the tools and skills to brainwash the general public into this type of thinking, you’ll have to come up with a better way to promote your business.

Sales, promotions, and print ads can be a much more effective means of communicating your need for business. Try to present professional advertisements with realistic offers that people will be able to enjoy. If you give them too much or act too desperate, they probably aren’t going to look twice. Wooing your customers is a lot like dating. You have to be confident, interested in their needs and desires, and not too desperate. The confident guys always get the girls, and the confident business will always get the clients. There are plenty of health club marketing solutions out there, no matter what type of gym or health club you’re running. So please, get up off the sidewalk, give your cup to someone who needs it and look into promotional health club marketing to see how you can increase your sales with confidence, not desperation.

To you Success…

PS. Maybe one our Health Club Promotions is what your club is needing right now. We are now booking promotions  for the months of October and November.

Space is limited so fill the FREE club profile TODAY to see if your health club qualifies and we will give you a call to discuss the details.

Shut & Listen…. A 10 Step Plan To Get The Sale

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

bid-easyAttention Health Club Owners!!

I have a friend in the health club industry who never gets tired of talking. And in most conversations, she is the only one who seems to be interested in the things she has to say. So all of our other friends tend to avoid the circles whenever she’s around, and she doesn’t notice how she has become socially handicapped - gradually affecting the people in her environment.

One key to self improvement is to LISTEN and TALK to a trusted friend. In the health club industry listening and talking can be your two greatest strengths or weaknesses. Find someone whom you find comfort in opening up with, even the most personal topics you want to discuss. Ask questions like:
“Do you think I am ill-mannered?”
“Do I always sound so argumentative?”
“Do I talk too loud?”
“Does my breath smell?”
“Do I ever bore you when we’re together?”
In this way, the other person will obviously know that you are interested in the process of self improvement. Lend him/her your ears for comments and criticisms and don’t give him/her answers like, “Don’t exaggerate! That’s just the way I am!” Open up your mind and heart as well. In return, you may want to help your friend with constructive criticism that will also help him/her improve him/her self. As a result your health club marketing will be communicated in the most positive way possible.

One of Whitney Houston’s songs says, “Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all.” True enough. In order to love others, you must love yourself. Remember, you cannot give what you do not have.

Before telling other people some ways on how to improve themselves, let them see that you yourself are a representation and a product of self improvement. Self improvement makes us better people. We then inspire other people, and then the rest of the world will follow.

Stop thinking of yourselves as second-rate beings. Forget the repetitive thought of “If only I was richer… if only I was thinner” and so on. Accepting your true self is the first step to self improvement. We need to stop comparing ourselves to others only to find out at the end that we’ve got 10 more reasons to envy them. Remember, you are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God Himself. You have everything you need to be successful in the health club industry in you right now. You just need to learn how to draw it out of yourself.

We all have our insecurities. Nobody is perfect. We always wish we had better things, better features, better body parts, etc. Life does not need to be perfect for people to be happy about themselves. Self improvement and loving yourself is not a matter of shouting to the whole world that you are perfect and you are the best. It’s the virtue of acceptance and contentment. When we begin to improve ourselves, we then begin to feel content and happy.

After years in the fitness industry and selling tens of thousands of health club memberships, I’ve learned many tactics that can secure a sale. None are more valuable than the one I am now going to share with you. So take notes!!

When I meet with a potential member and they are avoiding making a commitment that day it’s for one of four reasons:
1. They are lazy.
2. They are afraid of commitment.
3. They need time to think about it.
4. All of the above.
I’m going to tell you how you can get over the most difficult objection of them all. The, “I need to think about it” objection. There are ten questions that this potential member needs answers to before having the comfort level needed to make a decision that day. If I can answer these ten questions in a positive manner, then I have overcome the objection.

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