Sales people develop routines. They are victims of habit. Many come in at exactly the same time, start their day the same way, eat lunch at exactly the same time, and check e-mails at the same time. Change is not something that many sales people adhere to. Many sales people believe that everything will be OK. In the book “Who Moved The Cheese” written by Dr. Spencer Johnson, the character Hem and Haw always thought that they would never run out of cheese, but the characters Sniff and Scurry always went looking for more cheese. Do you have sales reps like this? Do any of your sales reps feel a sense of entitlement? Do they feel there will always be enough prospects?
There will always be enough prospects, but that does not mean that they will be attending your health club. Today people have many choices — other clubs, personal equipment, videos, running trails, biking, hiking, etc. We have to understand that we are in competition with each of those choices. We have to go and get people to our facility, we have to meet them out in public, we have to go out and find new people, and we have to always be prospecting. There is never enough prospecting. Start with a daily plan, do 5-10 things differently each day. Have fun with each opportunity; create a numeric value to each activity. Keep looking, keep talking and keep setting the pace. The saying “never let grass grow under your feet” comes to mind. You have to always be moving or else you will be guilty of entitlement.
Handing out passes to current members, handing out passes to anyone you meet during your social rounds, seeking referrals from current members, getting ambassadors to work for you within the club, doing community outreach, setting up tables at community events, sponsoring community activities, networking with all guest at your club, networking with party guests, networking with people who rent meeting rooms — prospecting is nonstop. There are never enough prospects to secure in your system.
Make sure you document all your work. Document your phone calls, document your notes, make sure each prospect has a profile. Spend all your time doing activities that will lead to sales. Sales reps should never fall into a routine, because being busy will always turn down one road and then lead you to another. I suspect that if you are locked into a routine you are bored. Get out and share the word, get out and tell people how great fitness is and how great your club is. Don’t sit still, do not let grass grow under your feet, but be the person who wears out the carpet. Go have some fun!
Chuck Hall is the executive director at Big Vanilla Athletic Clubs.
