We’ve just wrapped up an awesome two-days at the KBL mastermind. My brain is brimming with notes and ideas that I’ll be implementing as soon as I get back to Cyprus next week. I’ve summed up some of the best notes I took from the last couple of days so that you can use them to help your business.

Your Core Values & Turning Clients into RAVING FANS

• Every month, sit down and revise your core values, your vision of where you want to take the business and why, your customer avatar, and what you can do to make your clients into raving fans.
• Lay out your standards and culture before they sign up, so that they know what to expect.
• Tell them with confidence that you expect them to follow you on Facebook and put comments up after each workout.
• Pair each new client up with an Accountability Partner – one of your bootcamp veterans.
• Always have your group give a well done and applause to a new client after their first workout
• Always give a new client a check-up call the day after their first workout to see how they are and if there’s anything else you can do for them
• Get name tags for all your clients and coaches to make everyone feel more familiar with each other

 

Client Retention

• Think of client retention the same as dating. Keep yourself interesting no matter how long you’ve been with the client. Most trainers make the mistake of ‘getting married and then getting fat’. Don’t get lazy and remember that your current clients need MORE attention and love than any prospect ever will. Don’t lose sight of the forest for the trees.
• Invite your top clients out for a coffee once or twice a month (paid for by you of course). Use this time to ask for their feedback on the sessions, ask their opinions and suggestions and ask if you can interview them on what’s helped them get great results. When you post this interview up on your blog or Facebook page (or print it and hand out at bootcamp) that client will love the recognition and ‘fame’ you’ve given her.
• Your clients most likely have had a crappy day before they come to see you. Make sure you break this negative mood by making your bootcamp or PT the one time of day they actually look forward to. Make them associate your sessions with the escape from the drudgery of everyday life. You do this by giving them incredible gratitude and giving them the feeling of excitement and achievement – every single session.
• Hold a bring-a-friend day once per week, and have the ‘friends’ fill out a waiver form, which captures their email and phone number.

 

Building a Local Email List

• Aim to do 2-3 public speaking events per month (if you think it’s a good fit for you) and have every attendee fill out a form that captures details.
• Even if daily deal promotions are saturated in your area, keep using them just to collect email leads

 

Summary – The Most Important Thing You Need to Do This Year…

Overall, I think the biggest lesson going into 2013 was that you have to start living life and running your business on your own terms. STOP chasing ‘ninja’ tactics and ‘jedi’ strategies to get one more client, and don’t waste time on things that promise “36.7 new clients in just 30 days!!”

It’s all magic bullets, and in 2013 the time of magic bullets and “me too” business is finally up. Sam and the top guys have been saying this for a long time, but now it’s finally here. This year is crunch time, and if you can’t get results, and don’t focus on creating an incredible, unique experience (the one thing that NO ONE can ever copy from you) then your time in this business is quickly running out.

The most important thing really is creating a culture in your business – your own set of rules, principles and values, and only looking for and accepting people who are willing to fit into that.

Do not bend, change or lower yourself to suit someone else, and don’t drop your rates to please bargain hunters. I know it’s really tempting to slash your rates if times get hard but look at the evidence around you: commercial gyms are slashing their rates month after month and they are still going down. In fact, slashing their rates is one of the reasons they are going down! If you are already bleeding don’t be slashing yourself even more. Losing more blood is not the answer.

Look within. Put the lead boxes down. Put the plastic gift cards away for a bit. Turn the computer off for a few days. Forget Google SEO and keyword stuff. Heck, even forget a website. You do not need that stuff.

If you are in a position where you are killing it in your town and are head and shoulders above the rest, you have an awesome family in your business and your clients are raving fans that pull referrals into you every week, THEN you should consider some external stuff. But by that point, you probably won’t even care about that stuff. It just won’t be worth your time.

Times have changed, and so must you. I really believe this may be your final warning.

Look within. Create a business that pleases you. That’s the only way to find fulfillment.

 

Justin Devonshire

Owner, Bodyshape Bootcamp (Cyprus)