Effective Follow-Up and Communication (the most overlooked and most important topics in the fitness industry) - Never forget your members, prospective members, or customers. Effective follow-up begins immediately after the sales presentation, when you call or write to say, "thank you." Beyond this, there are several effective ways for you or your staff to follow up that ensure your fitness facility or business is always on the customer's mind:
1. Let members and customers know what you are doing for them. This can be an email or it can be more informal, such as a phone call. Whatever method you use, the key is to constantly stay in touch.
2. Write former customers personal emails frequently. "I was just sitting at my desk and your name popped into my head. How is your exercise program going? Is there anything I can do for you?” Or if you run into a former customer at an event, follow up with an email: "It was great seeing you at the Group Fitness Seminar. Hope you enjoyed it.”
3. Keep it friendly but professional. Emails make it easy to communicate, but the personal touch is often lost.
4. Remember special occasions. Send birthday cards, anniversary cards, and holiday cards.
5. Share information. If you read a fitness article or hear about a new book a customer might be interested in, email to let them know.
6. Use emails to build your business. When you contact existing customers, always ask for referrals. With everything your existing customers can do to help grow your business, there's simply no reason not to stay in regular contact with them, so follow-up.
7. Focus on retention, not just making sales. Salespeople, especially those who get paid on commission, focus on closing sales instead of the quality of the service. Remember, a long-term member or customer is more important than merely closing a sale. Research shows it costs six times more to attract a new customer than it does to keep an existing one.
It’s time to surrender to modern technology. The strategies you learn and practice now, when the economy is flat, will serve you now and many times over in the future.
For more information on this subject, give us a call at 925-672-4800 and we will gladly do our best to answer your questions. You can also visit our website at www.globalfitnessassociation.com/info for more information.
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For more information on this subject, give us a call at 925-672-4800 and we will gladly do our best to answer your questions. You can also visit our website at www.globalfitnessassociation.com/info for more information.
