How To Sell Fitness (or more of it!)
Posted by Steve Hochman on Thu. Mar. 21st, 2013
In order to have a thriving fitness business you’ve got to be an excellent trainer AND an excellent salesperson as well. If you’ve been in sales you know the most difficult part is closing, and it’s no different when selling personal training.
I’ve come across lots of excellent trainers who have no clue about the psychology of selling and how to close, so I’m going to explain the most effective way of closing most fitness clients without ever having to sit down or waste hours of your time.
If you get five or six people coming through the door every day looking for fitness training, you certainly don’t want to spend six hours a day dealing with people who end up making excuses and coming up with the same run of the mill objections.
Knowing how to sell personal training and how to sell fitness effectively gets easier, and for many of us who already “get it” closing rates can be anywhere from 90% to 100% and it will only take a few minutes every time.
Give Nothing Away BEFORE Getting a Commitment
When you haven’t got much of a clientele you’re desperate to get anybody in through the door. Unfortunately many trainers make the mistake of offering a free training session before ever finding out anything about the prospect beforehand. This is a complete waste of time and effort. That’s why you must...
PreQualify
When somebody walks in or calls saying he’s interested in getting fit or losing weight, the qualifying process must start by asking them why.
Most people will say because they want to lose a few pounds or go down a pants size. Don’t be satisfied with that answer. Dig deeper and keep digging until you find the real reason.
They may be going to a wedding and they know somebody they’re attracted to is going to be there. Maybe the men in his family all die by the time they reach 50 and Mr. Prospect doesn’t want to end up like them.
That is his hot button – his ultimate goal - and you should keep reminding him of it.
When you’ve reached the right point in the conversation you can address each of the following 5 most common objections for not joining a fitness program:
- I’ve got to discuss it with my partner
- I’ve got to check my finances
- I can’t afford it
- I’m not sure if I can squeeze it into my schedule
- Let me think about it
Don’t wait for these objections to come up, address each one beforehand and this is even easier on the phone.
First ask them if joining the program is a decision they can make themselves - they haven’t got to go off and ask their partner. If the answer is yes, great.
Now you address the cost of your programs by giving them the average cost of, say, a six-month program with three sessions a week and then simply ask if that’s in their budget. If they say they can’t afford it, asked them how much they can afford and how much achieving their goal is worth to them? (Press that hot button!)
If they really can’t afford it you just saved yourself a lot of time. If they say they can, tell them it’s going to take two of three hours a week (or whatever it is) to achieve their goal. Would they be willing to commit that time?
At the end of the conversation you should impress on Mr. Prospect that you only work with clients who are serious and then ask if he can get started after his free session.
Be energetic on the phone, you’re busy, you’re a professional but you’re friendly. You want to help the person but you don’t want to waste your time or his.
If his answer is no to any of the five objections he wasn’t serious in the first place and not the kind of person you’d want to work with anyway.
When your prospective client turns up for his training session you have to focus completely on him. You’re delighted he turned up, mention the hot button reason for coming and act as if he’s absolutely made your day simply by showing up. He’s very important to you and you’re looking forward to working with him.
When you’re done with the workout just say this: “How did you enjoy your workout?” That’s it.
The Final Frontier – Getting that Credit Card Info and a Signature
One of the best techniques I’ve seen for getting people to make the final commitment – and that is handing over their credit card information – is to treat it like it’s no big deal.
Don’t sit down with them and definitely don’t stand over Mr. Prospect rubbing your hands like Scrooge. Hand him the agreement, show him your most suitable package - put a big arrow by if you have to - show him where to sign the liability waiver, give him a pen and walk away.
He has no reason not to sign he even has a pen in his hand!
It is magic watching somebody who knows how to sell fitness training when it comes to closing clients.
Prequalifying is essential to the process, and when you discover just how well this part of selling personal training works you can save many hours every week and get on with what you want to do.
Posted in Boot Camp Business, Boot Camp Strategies, Closing and Sales Techniques, Fitness Marketing by |
