This week, the ball will drop in Times Square and people from all over will be getting ready to start their new year’s resolutions. This is the busiest and most exciting time in our business, and can truly make or break your entire year in just the first few weeks.
While hopefully your new year’s sales plan has been firmly in place for the past several weeks, there are a few other keys to keep in mind this January in order to set yourself up for success. Here are the three landmines to avoid in the next few weeks:
1) You forgot about your old leads – Hopefully you’re going to have a huge outpouring of new prospects through your doors this January, but what about the people who have already been in the club before? If you aren’t reaching out to old leads and former members with a special offer, you’re missing a huge opportunity. Clearly these people were interested in joining a gym – and more specifically, yours – at some point, and there’s a good chance that they’re back in the market for a gym membership. Spend some time calling, e-mailing or even sending a mailer to these folks ASAP.
2) You forgot about your current members – With all of the tours, assessments and everything else that comes with ramping up new members, you might be taking your current members for granted. Be sure to reach out to your members and offer them an incentive to help kick off the new year right. After all, healthy people attract those aspiring to be healthy, which means they have the potential to be your best sales people.
3) You forgot to get online – There’s buzz inside your club – that’s a good thing. But there’s also going to be buzz about your club online in the next few weeks, and you need to be listening to it. It’s no secret that people do their research online when it comes to finding new fitness clubs, which is why you need to be monitoring your social media presence, answering every single e-mail and making sure your website is looking its best. If you aren’t paying attention to what people are saying about your club online, you could be setting yourself up for a rough ride the rest of the year, trying to undo potential damage that could have been avoided with just a quick Facebook response or e-mail.
No matter how prepared you feel for the New Year, take a moment this week to make sure you aren’t forgetting anyone or anything important this January.
Patrick Strait is a communications manager for Snap Fitness.
