The Ugly Truth About Fitness Marketing [Part 5]

Now that you know about the Attract & Convert Units, let’s focus on the Deliver Unit.

The Deliver Unit is what most of our businesses have been built on.

If you’re like most of the people I work with, you’re better than most at getting results for your clients and that was a driver for why you started your business.

And that’s great…we can build around that.

See, the Deliver Unit is really shorthand for ‘Deliver a Dream Come True Result Through An Experience Your Clients Enjoy.’

It’s not ‘Deliver a workout.’

But that’s what most fitness businesses deliver.

A scheduled time to come in and sweat.

If you’re doing things right, you’re delivering something completely different.

You’re delivering a daily sense of accomplishment.

A feeling of connectedness and community.

Enhanced self-worth…not just through weight loss or whatever physical change you deliver…but also through the personal attention that each client craves.

You make them feel important…while others leave them feeling like just another transaction.

I know that’s my goal…and I’m guessing it’s yours too.

See, if clients enjoy the process, they’ll come more.

They’ll stay (and pay) longer.

They’ll become ambassadors for what you offer…because it’s a partnership.

They’re investing in your professional success because you’re making their life better.

But do you think the whole ‘let’s alienate our current clients who love us and have been around for years by flooding the gym with people who are gone in 42 days’ facilitates that type of partnership?

Me neither.

Challenges are fine to create more engagement in the current client base and to attract some new people who are a good long-term fit…but if your marketing to them is ‘we’ll solve all your problems for no cost in 6 weeks’ and they come in to find it was a bait and switch…

…do you think they’re your ideal long-term client?

So, when we Deliver…we need to be delivering what the long-term clients want and creating relationships with prospects and those who come in for ‘Front End Offers’ (a term I coined in 2007 that has been misused ever since…ugh) that result in those long-term relationships that you want.

And once you have those people who love you and your business, then it’s far easier to get them to become ambassadors for your business than most make it.

Most businesses want to try to turn them into commissioned sales reps with referral programs that basically say ‘we’ll pay you to go get us clients.’

A better approach is to earn their willingness to spread the word about you and then make it really easy for them to do.

Give them opportunities to bring friends.

Help them share their story.

Ask them for help in reaching more people who are like them.

But it has to be earned first.

And then it has to be easy for them to help you attract and convert.

One more thought on that…easy is different for every client.

They’re all unique individuals and should be treated as such.

One might be really excited to gift copies of your book to friends, another may be willing to work with you to document their journey in a way you can share with others…

…and still another may want to serve as the co-leader in a charity event that brings in dozens of people to connect with you for a great cause.

But if you follow this approach to business growth…

Attract > Convert > Deliver

You’re building on a foundation that will be around for the next 10, 20…even 50 years.

I used it 20 years ago to build a nationally competitive college baseball program where my competitors all had far greater resources.

I used it to grow my first local business to over 420 clients in 18 months…in a town of 23,000.

And I use it today.

But what’s even more interesting is that I can’t think of any service or experience businesses that have enjoyed sustained success and growth that don’t use this approach in some form.

My suggestion is that you use it too.

Dedicated to Your Success,

Pat