Loved the response we had from yesterdays post about what we would do different if we where to open again
So today, I want to share the things that went well & that we would 100% do again 💪
You know that feeling right?
You get home from work with a big smile on your face & think… wow! That went well 😉
We had this a number of times with the studio & today I wanted to share with you 4 key things we did that where game changers
1️⃣ Buying Kit Slowly & Never Having A Finished Gym
Many might have a different view on this, but for us, never actually having all the kit we needed when we opened helped big time with growth
After all I have visited plenty of studios & thought…. Where is their kit 🤷♂️ 🤣 As at the end of the day, not every studio needs a crazy range of equipment to get the results for their clients
For us, by buying kit slowly over the years, asking clients what they wanted to see, then when it arrives, they all feel like it was Christmas! This really did help with retention
On buying kit, something I would 1000% recommend is buying kit on INTEREST FREE finance!
Cash in the bank is KING 👑 you don’t want to have that dreaded day where you need to pay a big bill & you don’t have the money, therefore be sure to buying big expensive kit on interest free finances to keep as much cash in the bank as possible 💪
If you are on the flat rate VAT scheme too, I would also buy your kit in bulk, in order to claim back your VAT, for more details on this, reach out to Debbie Hancock
2️⃣ A Good Story Gets You Hooked 👊
And FitHub30 was all built around a story!
We wanted to create a special place that was designed for a specific audience & we nailed it!
Building a community aspect is key to keeping retention high & most of the time, you don’t need to do anything crazy, just simply get them talking to each other
As they where all a specific type of person, they all had many common traits & goals, which made a community aspect happen quick
There where WhatsApp groups going on, groups going for nights out & many unexpected friendships forged
Plus to keep the conversation going & the community in tacts, we would have out of gym events booked in advanced that help with retention, but also give the clients plenty to talk about pre & post
Build a community & no-one will want to leave
3️⃣ If Only We Did This One Sooner 🤷♂️
Towards Q3 last year, we made a massive change to the way we brought clients into the fitness business
We had always been, pay today, start Monday, yet we always noticed it took a good number of session for the new client to feel part of the community
& if they had a bad experience in those first few session, the chances of staying on would be slim to none!
After all, the profit comes from long term clients, therefore we needed to find a way to get new clients past the 6 week mark & into our long term programmes
The change in clients starting was noticeable almost within the first week of doing it
What we did was simple… instead of starting on a Monday each week, we would start a new challenge every 3 weeks, which meant all new clients started at the same time
They would pay at any point leading up to the start date, we would then have a group onboarding session, put them all in their own dedicated 6 week chat & 🚀
The conversations where happening + friendships & feeling part of the community was almost instantaneous, & most of all the conversion to long term membership grew massively
If only we did this sooner 🤣
4️⃣ A Range Of Front End & Payment Methods
One of the biggest things we got right from the get-go is having different payment methods on the front end
What I mean by this is accepting cash, Strip & PayPal on the front end purchase, after all, this is usually the most challenging payment stage for a new clients
Keeping them calm, letting them pay in their preferred method to just get them going was key! Once we have them over the line, the only option to pay on the long term was Stripe
We also had 3 levels of front end too, as not everyone is ready to spend the amount you desire right away
You will have some who want to spend more & others who just need to dip their toes in before really committing
Therefore having an upsell & downsell, made it easier to get more front end clients over the line initially
So there you have it, few things we would have definitely change from yesterday & 4 things we would 100% carry on with today 💪
Now, I am off to PerformX down in London, if you are about, come & say hello
You got this 💪
David 🙂
