Devin Meister, Content Marketing Manager at ClubReady and Clubessential Holdings, shares insights on why speed to lead matters and smart ways to accelerate your communications.
It takes time to create a habit. When a prospect makes the emotional decision to join your facility, it’s the first step of creating a habit and their first impression of you. Time is critical. That’s why your speed to lead – how fast you and your team can respond to a new inquiry – makes all the difference in moving your business forward.
Why it Matters
We’re used to being served quickly, ordering exactly what we want with a few clicks and having it delivered in minutes. When a prospect decides they’re interested in your club, minutes matter. If you don’t make a quick connection, they could be lost forever, along with the time and money you invested to get them there.
It’s not a secret that staffing is an issue. Between overworked teams and turnover, challenges are everywhere. Throwing in a tangled mix of multiple systems and getting timely outreach is next to impossible.
How to Improve Speed to Lead
What’s needed is a single system that enables you to see, manage, and connect with prospects and members. Using a platform with a built-in CRM, you can create and send communications, view notes, and see your results from one view. Combined with a mobile staff app and your personal responses aren’t limited by space or location. This dramatically increases efficiency and enables you to fine-tune your efforts from the store to enterprise level. With that platform in place, utilize these tools and steps to reach out quickly and ensure every interaction is on brand and recorded to measure results.
Automate Lead Nurturing. The first contact is just that – the first of hopefully many. Use automated emails and text messages to create a personal connection and set expectations for that first visit. The latest advancement is the progression of Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI can ensure that your message is personalized and delivered quickly, and results recorded, freeing your staff for face-to-face interactions.
Customized Tablet Sales Presentations. When leads arrive at the club, it’s up to you and your team to make that experience worth investing in and close the deal. It’s critical that your sales team knows and stays on message. This is important as a business scales. Customized tablet presentations ensure that you have a consistent presence that’s gets the details and communicates the brand message appropriately.
Online and In Person Lead Capture Tools. The space between online and in person experiences can create a gap where leads fall to never be heard from again. Was it a lack of digital follow up? Were they disappointed on-site? Using one system for both online and in-person lead capture bridges that gap, providing data and insights to close more deals and move the business forward.
Leads will always be the lifeblood of growth in fitness. However, the expectations for how a lead wants to be treated are accelerating. Make sure that you can deliver the speed to lead experience and expectations they have and increase your conversion rate.
