By FRNation.com
Numbers.
What’s your revenue?
How many leads did you get?
What’s your closing percentage?
What’s your marketing budget?
What’s the cost-per-click?
Numbers.
Know your numbers.
It’s so easy to get caught up isn’t it?
It’s so easy to think of everything as a number on a spreadsheet.
It’s not.
Don’t get me wrong. Numbers are important. If you ignore them you’ll probably be closing up your business soon, but what are they really?
People.
Every number is a person.
Leads are when PEOPLE express interest in your service.
Closing percentage is how many PEOPLE joined your gym vs. how many PEOPLE didn’t.
It’s so easy to forget that everything you do in your business is based on relationships.
When you’re putting your sales process together and you’re thinking about
- all the steps in the script
- how to overcome objections
- how to make your service look as good as possible
- how to present your pricing
- And how to look like a good person all the while…
You may be forgetting the most important thing:
Your relationship with your prospect has already started.
What kind of relationship do you want that to be?
It’s not enough just to get someone to “sign on the dotted line.” You want them to enjoy being at your gym. You want them to LOVE it!
That love doesn’t come from your squat rack or the type of bands, dumbbells, or flooring you have. It doesn’t come from your programming, as cool as it may be.
It comes from you.
Every single book, blog post, interview, or anything else about selling talks about “building rapport”.
What does that mean?
For some people it means asking the penetrating question, “How are you doing today?”, showing them all the cool equipment they have, telling them how awesome their gym is, and showing them their pricing.
Another number on the spreadsheet.
The Merriam-Webster dictionary (remember dictionaries?) defines rapport as “a friendly, harmonious relationship.”
Focus on the word “relationship” there.
If you’re thinking about just building rapport during your sale, you’re missing a HUGE piece of the puzzle.
Think about it as creating the foundation of a relationship you’re hopefully going to have with this person, as a member of your gym, for years. How do you do that?
Two ways.
The first one is a little more philosophical, but here it is:
1. Care.
Really care.
They are coming to you because they’re in pain. Maybe physically, maybe emotionally, maybe both. Something is wrong and they’re looking to you to help fix it. For some people, admitting that even to themselves is incredibly hard, let alone admitting it to a stranger.
That this person is coming to you with this is a gift. And it’s fragile. They’re putting their trust in someone they barely know and it’s you.
How does that make you feel? Honored? Humbled? Like you’ve been given an important responsibility?
You remember what Uncle Ben told Peter Parker (Spiderman if you don’t know), “With great power comes great responsibility.”
Someone asking you for help is giving you great power. What will you do with it?
This all sounds great in theory, but it’s a lot to take in. How do you actually do this with someone you don’t even know?
That’s where we get to the second part.
2. Ask questions, and listen to the answers.
This is how we really find out how to help someone and THAT’S how you build relationships.
When you ask someone why they may want to join your gym and they tell you, “I need to lose weight,” ask them why.
“Because my doctor told me to.”
Why?
“Because if I don’t get healthier, I may wind up like my Mom.”
Why is that important to you?
“She died young. I want to be around to see my kids grow up and be able to play with my grandkids someday.”
So it’s not just about the weight, it’s about being here for your family?
“Yes.”
Let’s fast forward a few months when your new client misses a workout or two. Call her and ask how her kids are doing and mention how happy they’ll be as they see their Mom’s health and energy improve.
Don’t you think that’ll make a bigger impact than asking what her scale read that morning?
This may be tough if you haven’t thought like this before and you may be asking how to do this.
You can do it with 4 simple words.
When you’re in a sales meeting with a prospect and they say something you’re not quite sure how to respond to, there are two easy phrases that can break open the dam.
- Why?
- Tell me more.
“My shoulder pain is getting in the way of everything I love to do!”
Tell me more.
“I really need to get more active.”
Why?
“When the Martians invade Earth I need to be ready!”
Tell me more.
“I need to have enough energy to walk on one leg for 2 miles, switch to the other leg, and be able to sing “In A Gadda Da Vida” the whole time.”
Why?
You get the idea.
Think about this the next time you talk to someone about joining your gym. I promise you, it will not only lead to better numbers, but it’ll lead to better relationships and a better and more fulfilling business.
Fitness Revolution helps fitness business owners build and scale successful businesses they love running. Through Strategic Business Coaching, powerful tools and metrics, and live training events, FR is able to help these studio owners tackle their biggest, most pressing challenge. For more information, visit https://frnation.com/.
