Imagine if all your clients had to complete a tiebreaker in a quiz or competition. How would they complete the above phrase? How do they see you? Why do they train with you? And does what you sell match what they are buying?
Good listening is one of the most important skills if you are going to be an excellent personal trainer. You need to listen to your clients’ needs, which are constantly changing. Let’s explore how you can learn more from them, and use this feedback to help your business to grow and evolve.
Understand your market and your clients
The world has changed. You need to understand your market and your clients now more than ever. Many people have less money and more time. Yet they are more concerned about their health and fitness. This is a massive challenge, but also a massive opportunity for you as a personal trainer.
Successful PTs who are growing their business today are focusing more on support, coaching, and client feedback. Selling blocks of six sessions, and simply putting your clients through their paces each week is going to be a tough business model going forwards. You need to adapt; add value outside of sessions, or even offer packages that do not involve meeting for appointments.
Don’t only sell the best, some people want the rest
Online services are widespread. People have become more used to buying and consuming digital products lately. While you might feel you are not able to deliver your best package remotely, some clients will be grateful for a reduced service at an affordable price.
One of the gyms I work with has provided vouchers as a reward for members that supported them in lockdown. While the PTs are being paid to deliver these sessions, the real opportunity is to maximise the pull-through by talking to members about their needs, and delivering appropriate services going forward.
At the top line, they’re offering monthly subscriptions for 1 - 4 PT sessions, which might also include a protein, supplement, or CBD oil deal. Then they also have a second-tier option of monthly online PT which includes a programme, motivational messages via messenger. The PTs are not spending an hour a week or even a month with these members. However, they are delivering extra support and value, and the occasional check on good form in the club. By staying engaged, they are ready to deliver a paid session when it is needed or affordable.
Ask for referrals every time
Knowing what your clients get from you is key to retaining them, but also to selling more. All great coaches and PTs ask for a referral at every appointment. But you should also ask for regular testimonials or structured feedback.
If you are doing a good job, getting your client to highlight why they value your service will be easy. If you are not doing a good job, you will find out how to do better!
There are a few ways of getting testimonials from your clients. The most effective is a phone interview, but you could also send a link to a survey form, send an email asking the questions, or even hand them a sheet of paper to fill in.
Get someone else to collect your testimonials
Taking yourself out of the feedback loop is a good idea, as you will get a more honest response, and it doesn’t affect your relationship with the client. A personal assistant (PA) could call and interview a client from around £20 an hour (2 or 3 client interview per hour). Depending on your position, you could ask another member of the team to reach out to your clients on your behalf. Just be sure to let your client know they will be getting the call.
Your PA or colleague will find out why and how your clients benefit from your service. They could also write up the testimonial for you. It is likely that you will learn a lot from this kind of exercise. It will help you to understand your clients better, and enable you to sell yourself more effectively.
This third-party interview method can also help with retention. It will reaffirm why the client works with you, and also strengthens their commitment when they tell someone else what they’re getting. They might even bring you a referral, particularly if the interviewer always asks about referrals!
What are you really good at?
You need to focus on selling what you are good at and what you enjoy. You hopefully already know what you enjoy. So, checking what your current clients say you are good at is a must. If you do not have that many current clients, talk to ex-clients. If you are starting out, offer some low-price (not free) services, but make feedback and testimonials a mandatory part of the deal.
Once you know what your clients say you are good at, you can evolve and grow your business. It is also one of the keys to keeping your clients for longer.
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