The fitness industry is finally moving away from contracted trainers and toward making them all employees. This is a good thing for all parties, except the occasional coach who is either a true rock star entrepreneur, or doesn’t need much income.
Regardless of your structure, the education and certifications that coaches receive never include training on sales. If you’ve read some of my other articles, you likely know that I am a proponent of finding one coach with sales skills and funneling all leads through this person. Whether you follow that system or you allow all coaches to sell, it helps if the salesperson understands a few important things.
- People tend to purchase from people they like. And people like people who listen to them. This means that the best way to win over somebody with fitness goals is to get them to talk about their fitness goals. Put down the clip board, look them in the eye and ask them what their goals are. Then, keep looking at their eyes, and say, “Why are those goals important to you?”
- Get them sweaty. I don’t care about FMS or gait. I care about the prospective client actually experiencing a session. Would you buy a Tesla before driving a Tesla? No, so why would you expect a person to purchase training without experiencing it? Email jason@jasonlinse.com with “coaching” in the subject line and I will get you a document that takes you through the hour you spend with each prospective training client.
- Don’t be afraid of money. Many coaches are sympathetic to folks on a tight budget, but you have to believe in the power of your ability to change lives. If you believe your coaching rates are 100 percent worth it, you will make sales. If you don’t, you won’t, which brings us to my last point.
- Get away from packages and move toward small group training memberships. It is much easier to sell a coaching membership for $39 per week versus a $1,200, 25-session package.
This time of year is the best time to get your members hooked on coaching. Everybody needs a fitness coach, just like all gyms need a fitness business coach.
Keep changing lives.
