You are so fortunate!

Hey Fitness Pros.

"If you love what you do, you never have to WORK another day in your life!"

Today, I just wanted to build you up by reminding you what a blessing it is to do something that you're good at and that you love! You're making a huge difference in a lot of people's lives and that's worth millions! Just remember that what we offer the world is SO much more than just an exercise program.

Plus, your job could be a LOT worse. Check out this photo!



Keep making a difference and helping people reach for their personal best!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

Social Media your way to PT Success

Hey Fitness Pros,

So I'm quite the dinosaur when it comes to social media and new technology. However, I am open to learning and have made a strong commitment to utilizing tools such as Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, and You Tube to help grow our business.

I even went online and purchased a number of resource books so I could learn how this all works. I'm such a dork but it has been helpful.

So I got myself a blog - you're reading one right now :) I also have a blog for our clients "Shape up with Sherri". I read a book all about the ins and outs of blogging. Still don't quite understand who has the time to read all my blogs plus all the other millions of blogs out there but I'll keep going with it. Some of our clients really like it and email me to tell me it helps them stay motivated. Others just unsubscribe...

I also posted a personal and business facebook page and am slowly developing our fan base. It's created quite a little community amongst our clients. This has actually been quite fun and can be addicting so be careful. It's easy to get pulled in which can negatively affect your productivity.

I've been twittering but I totally don't get this. I post a twitter usually once per day but who has the time to read about what people are doing multiple times per day? But apparently this is a really fabulous way to grow your business outreach. I'm not sure how so I bought a book on Twittering. Will read and keep you posted on why you need to Twitter.

Last, YouTube has been fun to post testimonials, exercises, footage of events etc. This was surprisingly easy to learn to use so this is a definite keeper.

So my suggestion is yes to Blogs, YouTube and Facebook....the jury is still out on Twittering.

Are you an expert in this area?? Please leave comments so we can all learn. I'm no pro at this stuff and would love to learn more!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

Surveys help you grow stronger!

Hey Fitness Pros.

It's time to start planning for fall. Remember the saying "Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail". But before you start deciding what your clients want, remember to ask them first.

We just posted our Client Survey online at Survey Monkey. They are a professional, cost-effective option for small businesses. Plus, it's a service that is super easy to use! Then we email our clients the web-link and post on our website to collect feedback.

We host surveys three times per year; mid-summer to help us plan for Fall, mid-November to help us plan for the January rush and mid-spring to help us plan summer programming. It's also a wonderful way to assess how you're doing as a company. Clients will offer both positive and negative critique - all which will just make you a stronger business.

Click on our survey below to give you some ideas for your survey.

Click Here to take survey

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

Film yourself in action!

Hey Fitness Pros.

One of the best ways to improve your skills as a Personal Trainer or Fitness Instructor is to have someone film you in action. It's really impactful to see yourself as others see you!

Once per year we film our entire team - it just happens to be this month. Then next month, we sit down with our team and evaluate the footage. We don't have to say much - the instructor or trainer is always their worst critic! They will often pick out things like "Wow, I can't believe I say the same thing over and over again!" or "Why do I do that weird thing with my hair?!" or "Wow, I look kinda bored - I need to make my sessions more interactive or dynamic!" or "I can't believe I didn't pick up that incorrect technique in my client. I need to check them out from all angles when I'm spotting them!"

So if you're a manager or business owner, schedule this into your yearly plan. It really helps your fitness pros to be able to see themselves in action. If you're an independent fitness pro, ask a friend or family member to come and film you during one of your classes or training sessions. Then watch and learn.

Yours in health, fitness & business,

Sherri McMillan

Always finish a Training Session by Stretching out a Client!

If you want to enhance client retention, spend at least 5-10 minutes at the end of every training session stretching out a client and/or utilizing tools such as stretching sticks or balls to provide a muscle rub-down. There is a reason why we make this a mandatory component of all of our training sessions - we know the clients love it and that is good for business!

After you've just given your clients a really tough workout and you let them know it's time to stretch, nine times out of ten, they'll say something like "Ahhh, this is the best part" or "This is what I pay you for!"

So just do it - trust us, it works!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

How to get FREE Exposure

Hey Fitness Pros.

I've written previously about the importance of developing relationships with your local media to increase the amount of FREE exposure you get. One way to let the media know about what you're doing is a Press Release. But many get tens to hundreds of press releases a day so the question is, how are you going to ensure that your Press Release is read versus just deleted within a second. It's got to sound interesting, news worthy, different...So for example, I just sent out a Press Release about an upcoming seminar I am speaking on. One way to ensure I don't get any media hits is to have a leader that is very boring. For example, Sherri McMillan presents seminar on July 14th, is going to get me no where. Who cares?

But what if I take a different spin on it...Here is the actual Press Release I sent out. Notice that the spin I take may be very interesting to some - why would they have ME speak to CEOs, Presidents & Business Owners? I hope it gives you some ideas for your next release.

Yours in Health, Fitness & Business,

Sherri McMillan

Press Release
July 2nd, 2009

Contact:
Sherri McMillan
sherri@nwpersonaltraining.com
360.574.7292


Why would a Fitness Trainer be asked by the Vancouver Chamber of Commerce to speak to Top Business Executives at Networking Lunch?

What: Sherri McMillan, co-owner of Northwest Personal Training & Northwest Women’s Fitness Club, will present the keynote presentation at the upcoming Chamber of Commerce Business Networking Event.

It may seem odd to some that a fitness instructor will present the keynote presentation to a number of high-profile local business executives. After all what do pushups, lunges and crunches have to do with business success? Most keynote presenters are highly credible and successful business leaders so what can a spandex laden fitness trainer share that will be of interest to these white collar execs?

When asked this very question, Sherri McMillan doesn’t hesitate “There is a reason why most of the top movers and shakers in Vancouver and Portland workout with us. Highly successful business professionals such as Tamara Fuller, Top Commercial Realtor, Lisa Dow – Vice President at West Coast Bank, Rod Cook – owner of Alpine AutoBody, Doug Palin – owner of Infinity Internet, Elie Kassab – Prestige Development and many others come to us to help them look and feel their best. They understand that in order to achieve great things, you’ve got to feel great!

Times are tough and in order to survive and thrive in today’s economy and to help manage the daily obstacles and stressors, you need strength and energy. Working out will help you overcome challenges and reduce any anxiety and stress you are experiencing. It will help you to keep a more positive outlook on your current situation because exercise secretes various endorphins that will make you feel better about everything! Plus, by taking care of yourself, you’ll experience less short and long term health care costs. You’ll end up eating out less which will also save you money. You’ll spend less money on new clothes because you’ll be able to fit in some of those clothes hanging in the back of your closets. You’ll have the energy to participate in family activities that are fun but don’t cost anything like biking, hiking, walking etc.

So my message is exactly what business professionals need to hear. I’m going to teach them how to balance their life so they can be successful in all realms. I will provide them with tools for fitting exercise in when life is already too busy for them. I know I can help a lot of people out there – because we already have for hundreds of others.

Everyone wants to excel in their professional, personal and social lives. Everyone wants to look and feel their best. But few people can attest that they are living their dream life. We will review the principles everyone needs to grasp and the actions steps we all need to commit to in order to achieve our Personal Bests.”

When: Tuesday July 14th, 11:30am-1:00pm

Where: Royal Oaks Country Club, 8917 NE Fourth Plain Blvd, Vancouver WA 98661

Cost: $30 members; $50 non-members. Guests who are signed up by a chamber member, receive member pricing. Golf course dress, please.

How: To register: www.vancouverusa.com, click Events/Registration and July 14, or call (360) 694-2588.

************************************************************************

Use YouTube to highlight and grow your business.

Hey Fitness Pros.

We hosted our Summer Solstice event this past Saturday. I had a few of our volunteers take video clips with our $150 flip camera. Then I uploaded them onto YouTube. Mind you, it's not professional editing but hey, it still gives people a great idea of what we're all about. I can post these clips on our website, include them in my blog, add them on our FaceBook page, email them to clients...

It doesn't cost me anything but a little time and just increases our outreach. Plus our clients love it so that's good for Client Retention.

Create those moments of magic (even if it's just some footage of some really cool workouts with your clients) and then share them with the world! Your business image will spread like wild-fire and that IS good for business!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

ps. Be sure to get your clients' permission first. Or at least, have a clause in all your intake forms letting your clients know that you will post photos and video clips of events/workouts etc. If they have a problem with it, they'll let you know.

Host your own event and watch your business prosper

Hey Fitness Pros.

I'm currently in the final preparation stages for our annual 6 mile Run/Walk and Live Concert fundraiser event at our studio this weekend. We've got the street in front of our business blocked off where we'll start and finish the event, we'll have a stage set up for the Live Band, vendors will be on site and it's just going to be a blast.

It's a lot of work - applying for city permits, finding sponsors, recruiting volunteers, event planning and more. But it's all worth it.

The big question is Why? What do we as a business get out of hosting events like this?

1. We've got 200 people already signed up - that will be closer to 300 by the weekend. In addition, we've got about 75 volunteers helping out. Plus there will be spectators to cheer on their loved ones. So we'll have about 500 people right in front of our studio, knowing exactly where we are, what we do and seeing what a fabulous, community-minded company we are. That's got to be good for business!

2. We will also now have all the runners/walkers email addresses so we can continue to market to them and promote any upcoming programs and events.

3. Creating moments of magic. When the participants cross the finish line, they're going to feel amazing. They'll associate this memorable moment with us. If they are a client, this enhances client retention. If they are not a client, if they are thinking about taking their program to a new level, they are going to come to us.

4. Fun & Friendships: These types of events foster a fun environment that develops friendships. When people have a lot of friends where they workout, they are more likely to come which enhances results and they are less likely to leave and go elsewhere!

5. Supporting your community. People do business with people they know and like and respect. These events give our community a chance to get to know us. Plus if they appreciate a business that really takes care of their community, they will be more likely to want to train with us compared to another fitness club.

6. Offer a feeder into your Private Training services and programs. For example, we host a Triathlon. We also host the Triathlon Training clinic to help people get prepared for the Triathlon. We currently have 20 people signed up for our clinic and each paid $199 to participate. So it's a nice additional revenue stream.

Next month, we're hosting our Triathlon. After that, a hiking and cycling trip to Crater Lake. And can you believe, we get paid for this?!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

ps. If you're thinking about hosting your own events, but don't know where to start, you can purchase our systems for how we organize our events. Email kari@nwpersonaltraining.com and she'll get you all set-up.

Father's Day focus for Fitness Pros

Hey Fitness Pros.

It's Father's Day this coming weekend and that should be a big focus all week. I've cut and posted some instructions I gave to our team this week. Hopefully it will help you too!

High Priority: Father's Day is this weekend so remember to suggest gift certificates and announce our Guys Bootcamp on Saturday June 20th. Encourage our clients to do something special with their hubbies, dads, sons, brothers...As people are coming and going, try "Did you need to pick up a Gift Certificate for Father's Day" or "Do you think you can join us for our Dads Bootcamp on Saturday" or at the very least, "Would you like one of our complimentary Gift Certificates to give to those special guys in your life" That's an easy one because it doesn't cost them anything and they can give to their dad, brother, son, husband. We should be able to give out a ton of these and them we'll have all kinds of new people coming into the facility to visit with our amazing trainers...And once they see a trainer for their comp visit, I'm 100% confident they will continue and that will completely change their lives forever! Trainers - this is a great way to build your clientele base so be sure to be on top of this all week. In fact, carry a bunch of certs with you all week so you can give them to people at the grocery store, your hair stylist, your neighbor etc. So let's make this a team effort this week. Justin - be sure to have a ton in stock and give everyone at least 2 each to get them started.

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

What's more important - offense or defense?

If you watch sports like most people, you are probably impressed by the extreme athleticism, determination and focus of athletes from around the world. One of our favorite sports to watch and play is Beach Volleyball. We find that this sport can be used as an analogy for business excellence.

In the sport of Beach Volleyball, you only have 2 people. You rely and depend on each other closely. Each player must be a master of both Offense and Defense. Great offense would be the ability to serve ACEs, spike hard for the kills and play smart (ie. look for the open spots or weak links). Great Defense would be the ability to return serves, bump with precision, block aggressively and play with your heart and soul (going for those impossible digs). Since you only have 2 players, a team can’t afford to have one player specialize only in Offense and/or Defense and be extremely weak in the other area – they must be masters of both! The team who reaches 21 points first, wins. But let’s say you’re really good at offense and great at scoring points. Well, all it takes is for you to mess up once, the ball to turnover to the other team, and if you’re not good at defense, your opponent will quickly take over the momentum and win the match. And in contrast, if you’re really great at defense but not so hot at offense, you’ll have a difficult time scoring the points you need to win.

Similarly, winning clubs and training studios must be good at offense and defense. In the fitness industry, offense refers to the ability to sell and defense refers to the ability to maintain members and clients. Great offense refers to Sales (scoring points) - the ability to effectively take incoming phone calls, perform inspiring tours and complimentary sessions, to ask for referrals, to suggestive sell event participation/energy bars/shakes/HR monitors etc, to network in our community, and to effectively advertise/market… Great defense refers to Client Retention (keeping the points you scored) – the ability to keep members/clients happy and returning/renewing customers (Results/Energy/Passion/Relationships/Small Details - (Cleanliness, Efficiency, Accuracy, Amenities), calling back clients who have discontinued/canceled – showing we care.

Larger clubs may be able to afford to have specific individuals specialize in either sales or customer service but still each player on your team needs to embrace the skills of both areas. And for smaller clubs and training studios, because your team will traditionally be smaller, it is imperative that each member on your team understands that they need to develop retention and customer service skills.

In a club or training studio, if you have great sales skills but poor customer service retention, you’ll lose clients as quickly as you sell them. It’s called the revolving door syndrome – 100 new members in each month, 100 members cancel each month – and you never actually get anywhere. And if you’re great at customer retention but poor at sales, you’ll have a difficult time growing your business or hitting sales goals as you lose clients for reasons outside of your control (ie moving, financial etc).

“68% of customers decide to no longer do business with a particular organization because they perceive an attitude of indifference by the employees!”

• Greet all clients warmly and by name. Do clients/members know that you are happy to see them? Ask yourself how many people you know by name and likewise, how many members know you by name.
• Get to know all clients/members – develop a strong relationship so they know you care about them. Make a point of conversing with each member/client by offering a compliment on their consistency or their appearance, inquiring about their workout plans, asking a question, inviting them to a new class, informing and inviting them to an upcoming event…”I’d love for you to join us…It’ll be so much fun!)
• Call members/clients when they don’t show up for workouts – let them know you missed them
• Call clients/members just to talk to them and see how they are doing
• Introduce clients/members to each other and foster an environment where friendships are developed. People will be less likely to leave if they have a lot of friends at the gym.
• Say goodbye to all clients as they leave. Ask them how their workout was. Tell them we can’t wait to see them again.

Manage your Moments of Magic
• Every moment is a potential moment of magic
• Go the extra mile – ask yourself what you can do for a client/member to make it easier, more convenient, require less of their time etc.
• Do your due diligence – Make the extra effort with clients by contacting physicians, coaches, researching information, providing educational materials…
• Call clients/members on their birthday
• Send birthday, holiday, congrats and thinking of you cards
• Inspire clients to participate in Outdoor adventures and events that will create long-lasting lifetime memories
• Do more than clients expect

Managers and Directors can help their team embrace this thought process by going through the following drill at an upcoming staff meeting. First start by discussing the concept and the importance of each team player developing offense and defensive skills. Then split off into various departments (ie Personal Trainers, Sales, Customer Service Reps, Day Care, Group Fitness Instructors) and have each department come up with ways that they can be masters of Offense and Defense in their department. And then regroup and have each department share their thoughts. If you are alone in your own company, do this drill yourself. It will help you stay focused on the two most important aspects of running a successful fitness business – getting new clients/members inspired and keeping them happy and loyal customers.

Summary - It's not enough to be good at just sales or customer service, you have to be world-class at both to succeed!

Testimonials, Testimonials, Testimonials!

Hey Fitness Pros,

Whether you're trying to create a flier for a new program, update your website, or pull together your brochure, testimonials sell far better than a bunch of company text.

So figure out what you want to say, and then have someone else say it for you. It's much more genuine, authentic, trust-worthy and believable when someone else is bragging about you and your services!

So start asking clients for written, audio and video feedback and use it as often as you can. Be a collector of testimonials and success stories.

Testimonials prove that you can and will do what you say you're going to do.

Here are some examples from our websites to give you some ideas. Just cut and paste into your browser so you can check them all out.

This is a page from our Northwest Women's Fitness Club website. Notice how we use video and written testimonials. We'll continue to use more video - it really brings a testimonial to life!

http://www.nwwomensfitness.com/subs/success_stories/success_stories.php

Here is a page from our Northwest Personal Training website.

http://www.nwpersonaltraining.com/subs/success_stories/success_stories.php

Here is a page from our Northwest Fitness Education site.

http://www.nwfitnesseducation.com/subs/testimonials/testimonials.php

Infomercials sell a ton of product and if you've ever watched one, you'll realize all it is, is testimonial after testimonial. People think "Hey, if they can do it so can I!"

So before you finalize your next flier, brochure, website or ad, ask yourself, where is the testimonial?

Yours in health, fitness & business,

Sherri McMillan

The #1 way to get & keep clients!

The biggest problem working in the fitness industry is that we are offering a product that most people hate. Unfortunately, the majority of people do not like to exercise! So as fitness professionals, each and every one of us has to do whatever we can to make the exercise experience as enjoyable as we possibly can.

We have to be in the business of getting our members and clients to really like each and every single one us, enjoy being around us, enjoy our environment and how they feel every time they come and see us.

The statistics show that 80% of people who stop coming are NEW members or clients. They join with great intentions of coming regularly and for whatever reason, we weren’t able to help integrate them into our ‘family’. They stopped coming because they didn’t feel comfortable, didn’t feel welcomed, didn’t enjoy their time with us…Ultimately, we did not deliver what they expected or needed. No one will ever leave us for any of the following reasons:

"I stopped coming because I had way too many friends there. Every time I go, people want to talk and laugh and go to lunch after.”

“I quit because the staff is entirely too friendly and fun. They’re always introducing me to other people…Always trying to help me... Always making me laugh.”

So we’ve got to do whatever we can to make the exercise experience fun! Here’s some ideas:

• Laugh – Kids laugh 300x/day and adults only laugh 15x/day. Change this! If you laugh, others will laugh too!
• Joke around with your co-workers, members & clients (in an appropriate manner of course). The fun energy will rub off!
• Incorporate fun drills that get clients/members laughing, having fun and getting to know each other.

Check out the 2 minute clip of my Outdoor Bootcamp program above to give you some ideas. I’m giving them a great workout but notice how they are also laughing and joking around while I’m kicking their butts!

• Participate events so you develop strong relationships with clients and staff which will ultimately create an awesome work and working out environment

Check out this photo of me and my clients participating in a 5km Fun Run and finishing second in the costume division this past weekend. We enjoyed a fabulous workout and had a TON of fun! Can you believe we ran 3 miles in this thing!



Keep it fun people and your clients will keep coming back!

Yours in health, fitness & business,

Sherri McMillan

We've got to start with the kids!

If our goal as Fitness Professionals is to inspire the world to fitness, then we should definitely involve the kids!

I had the opportunity to work with some Vancouver kids today to teach them that working out and eating healthy can be a ton of fun. Check out the video above. It's so cute!

Here's the reality...

These days kids hardly get any activity. Most schoolwork involves sedentary activity and with television and video games as after-school pastimes, the temptation to sink into couch potato-land becomes pretty overwhelming for our kids. Check out these startling stats:

* Children today are approximately 40% less active than they were 30 years ago
* 20% of children and teens are overweight enough to threaten their future health
* One report states that the number of overweight children ages 6-11 has increased by 50% in the last 15 years and by 40% in those ages 12-17. Lack of exercise is considered a major contributing factor
* 40% of children already have at least one risk factor for heart disease and reduced fitness due to an inactive lifestyle
* Children spend an average of 26 hours a week watching television and also spend 25-30 hours a week sitting behind a desk

Kids who exercise can experience the following benefits:

* Daily physical activity builds a healthy heart and stimulates muscle and bone growth
* Healthy, fit kids have more energy, sleep better and often have better eating habits than their sedentary peers
* One six year study found that the academic performance of students who exercised regularly had significantly improved compared to students who did not participate in regular physical activity
* It appears that children benefit from better concentration, memory, creativity, problem-solving ability and overall mood for up to two hours following exercise
* One report states that exercise can boost a child’s self-confidence and self-image. It also reduces aggression and decreases anxiety and depression.

So consider volunteering to lead a kids fitness program or launch a Kids Bootcamp class. Do what you can to start them young!

Yours in health, fitness & business,

Sherri

ps. As a side benefit, their parents may also start working with you!

People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care!

What is the easiest way to enhance team morale, increase job satisfaction, boost someone's confidence, make a client feel great, increase a loved one's inner joy and cure the world's problems?

Okay so maybe I'm going overboard there but telling and showing someone how much you love, respect and appreciate them goes a really long way! The best part is if you're struggling with this economy and on a tight budget, it doesn't cost much if anything!

So whether you are a personal trainer, fitness instructor, manager or owner, here's few ideas:

*Give a thank you card or letter to a client or team member who has been with you for a long time to tell them how much you appreciate that they are in your life.

*Pick up a few $10-$20 gift cards from Itunes, Starbucks, Movies etc to give to staff to thank them for going above and beyond.

*Order some water bottles, t-shirts etc with your logo on it to give to loyal clients and staff - a great marketing initiative too!

*Send a short, impromptu email to a client or team member to let them know you recognize how hard they've been working.

*Post client testimonials and success stories on your website, on a bulletin board at your studio and in a scrap book to be displayed at your studio.

*Plan a staff thank you party and/or a membership/client appreciation get-together or BBQ to let your people know how much you care about them.

*Wildly celebrate all client and staff successes & special moments like birthdays, anniversaries etc.

If you're like most leaders (and yes, you're a leader), it's easy to forget to do these things. So put it in your calendar so it is ritualized. For example, you might decide that every Thursday, you are going to email 3 people to thank them or the first of every month, you are going to purchase a few small gifts to give to those people who you really appreciate or every quarter, you're going to host a party. Write it down and then make it happen!

Yours in fitness, health and business,

Sherri McMillan

Hey Fitness Pros.

Sorry about that monster huge head shot that arrived in your inbox yesterday. It must have frightened you! No one needs to see that! And I definitely did not like to see my face that big on the screen! Yikes! Anyways, I had the settings incorrect on our new enewsletter system and I believe I've corrected that. You must have thought I was so vain when you received that! My goodness...

Right now, I'm getting ready for our Girls Night Out that we're hosting at our Portland studio tonight and it made me think that I should mention how important it is to your business to host social events like this.

I had a client email me recently who was diagnosed with breast cancer and was going through chemo and radiation treatment. One day she noticed that all of the friends who were visiting her in the hospital during her treatments were gals that she never knew before starting to workout with us at NWPT. And now they are inseparable and the best of friends. She was just emailing to thank us for creating such a great opportunity for friendships to be developed. Isn't that cool! So we have the opportunity to create so much more than just an exercise program or class. We are LITERALLY changing peoples lives!

Plus when you create situations where friendships can be fostered, it truly enhances client and member retention. People are less likely to leave your studio, club, class, or program because they would be leaving so much more than just an exercise program, trainer or building. They would be leaving a lot of friendships and no one ever wants to do that! Can you imagine someone say "I've got to stop coming here. I just have way too many friends and it's just too much fun!"? I don't think so!

So do whatever you can to ensure your clients/members get to know each other, laugh together, have fun together and become friends. Here's some tips:

1. Host a Night Out like we're doing tonight
2. Organize a group hike or bike ride
3. Host a grass-roots fun run, triathlon or obstacle challenge
4. Organize an exercise-a-thon fundraiser
5. Heavily promote partner and small group training
6. Offer an Outdoor Bootcamp program
7. Encourage all members to participate in group fitness classes

Last, as often as you can, introduce your clients to each other. Make that a daily part of how you run your business.

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

You've got to sell to succeed!

On Tuesday, I spent a few hours role playing with one of our interns, Remy, who will be starting with us in a week. She's been shadowing trainers, taking mock clients through workouts and learning all of our systems. She is passionate, smart, kind and caring and is going to make an incredible trainer. Out of her entire internship, the time we spent on Tuesday was probably the most important. She took me through an initial training session with me pretending to be the prospective client with the goal of trying to encourage me to invest in her services. Then we practiced various ways to show me the value of her services and to help me overcome any obstacles I presented. We role played for about 3 hours and I am 100% confident that the time we spent together is going to help her help so many more people!

I was fortunate enough to work for GoodLife Fitness Clubs in Canada for the first 5 years of my career. They are the largest and most successful fitness club chain in Canada. They achieved their level of success because the owner, David Patchell Evans, understands the critical importance of developing the sales skills of his entire team. In fact, when I worked there, every week I would meet with my manager and we would role play various scenarios. I did this for 5 years!! We also met as a team monthly to do more role playing.

Now I know you didn't become a fitness pro because you're passionate about selling but rather your drive is all about helping people. Well, you can't help anyone if you can't convince them to invest in your services, program or club. And if you're having a discussion with someone who is on the fence with getting started with a fitness program, if you don't try to help them through whatever stumbling blocks they are experiencing, you've done them a disservice. You've got to ask questions, you've got to probe deeper to find out what's holding them back from making the commitment to their health and fitness. Most fitness pros freeze when confronted with a potential client's obstacle (ie I need to think about it, I'll talk it over with my hubby, I don't think I can afford it, I don't have the time etc). They don't know what to say and they don't want to appear too aggressive so they use the "I totally understand. Here is my business card. Give me a call once you've decided" approach. And the person goes back into thinking, contemplation mode vs doing and taking action. It's our job to help them take action!

So how do you get good at influencing and motivating someone to take action? You practice and practice and practice - just like I did with Remy. So if you work with a team of fitness professionals, make the commitment to regular role playing. If you're a solo fitness pro, rally a friend or family member to role play with you. It can actually be fun! Trust me - it totally works!

Yours in health, fitness and business,

Sherri McMillan

ps. We have some great resources (books, webinars etc) on how to specifically improve your sales skills in the fitness industry including sample scripts for role playing, what to say, what not to say guidance etc. If you're interested, email our Fitness Education director at kari@nwpersonaltraining.com

Get FREE Press!

I just sent out a Press Release to our local media reps. It made me think that I should send out a Blog to you about how to do this to get Free Press in your community. Here's the premise and approach...

Who has the money to take out ads in magazines or newspapers or create a commercial for the radio or television? If you're like most fitness businesses, you don't! But there is a way to get free advertising but you have to work for it.

• Develop a list of key local media contacts in your area including print, radio and TV

• Complete regular mail-outs, emails and fax-outs to develop relationships. Tease them with some health and fitness information. For example, state "I was just at IDEA, The International Health and Fitness Conference in Las Vegas and I learned some of the most incredible exercises for the abdominals. It's stuff you've never seen before. Call me if you'd like to hear more about it" or "I was just at the IHRSA show in San Francisco and I've got to tell you about some of the hottest and craziest equipment new on the market" or offer a human interest story about one of your clients and their success- with their approval of course. Just wet their taste buds and you can expect at least one or two call backs from each of your efforts. Of course each time they run your idea, you are mentioned as the Health and Fitness expert and you can also ask for your business and your number to be listed so people can contact you if they have further questions.

• Offer to write a free weekly/monthly fitness column. The time spent writing the article will be well worth the advertising value.

• Offer key media contacts a couple complimentary sessions so they can try out your services and see what it's all about. Perhaps propose a “Media Fitness Challenge” or “Getting into shape” challenge and rival reporters and producers of various networks against each other. The press you get will be huge.

I can use myself as an example of just how much free advertising you can get. When I first moved to Vancouver, BC, and developed my new business, I started doing regular fax-outs and mail-outs. In the beginning the response was poor. But after a few months, I started to get at least one or two call backs from every effort. Soon I was being quoted in various sources and being asked to appear on local radio and television shows for 3-5 minute guest fitness appearances. In the beginning, I wrote so many free articles and did so many free appearances but the exposure I got was priceless. Then I had my first big break. The Province Newspaper, our daily Provincial newspaper in British Columbia, with a very large circulation, asked me to write a weekly fitness column for them. And get this, they were actually offering to pay me! Can you imagine how much it would have cost me to actually purchase the type of exposure I have received. Then as a result of the newspaper exposure, I was asked by a local publisher to write a book. One-year later "Go For Fit - The Winning Way to Fat Loss" was printed and launched. I started being asked to write by national magazines like Chatelaine. Then I gained interest on the international scene and was asked to do some work with the prestigious Shape magazine. I co-founded and edited a local health and fitness magazine, Go!

Then I got married and moved to the states and had to start all over from scratch. So I repeated the same process. Took about a year of these weekly press releases and teasers and then we got our big break. We were asked to write the weekly fitness column for the Columbian, our city newspaper. Did that for about 3 years. Then got our next big break when the Oregonian, our state newspaper, asked us to start a weekly fitness column. Been doing that for years now and the exposure is incredible!

And all of this exposure by just committing to do some work for free in the beginning. Sometimes new trainers expect things to just happen. If you want to succeed, you will have to work at it. Remember this, what goes around, comes around. And your efforts will not go unnoticed! Short team pain for long term gain!

Stay Busy so you can get Busy!

Think about the last time you were looking for a good restaurant. Let’s say you came across a restaurant that was empty. What are your first thoughts? Probably something like – “This restaurant can’t be that good. There’s no one there!” Typically, you’re more drawn to a restaurant that’s got a lot of people in it and the place looks like it’s buzzing. That’s always a good sign!

Well, it’s very similar for a Personal Trainer. One of the worst things is to see a trainer sitting around all day behind a desk or just hanging out talking to other staff. The perception to a potential client is “That trainer must not be that good since they don’t have any clients!”

So in order to get busy, you’ve got to LOOK BUSY! Here are some important tips:

1. If you’re just getting started, give away some FREE training. Did I actually say FREE! Yep, I did. But be selective about how you go about doing this and who you give this free training to because you don’t want to devalue your service. There’s got to be a method to your madness! You want to choose people who you know are movers and shakers in your community or high profile staff in your club. So in a club setting, maybe you give a few sessions to the top sales staff who will then be talking you up to all the new members. Or maybe give a few free sessions to the most popular group fitness instructors who also will rave about you to all their class participants. Or maybe you train a few of the customer service reps who also will share their experience with members. Maybe even offer some free training to the veteran trainers on your team who are popular but too full to take on any new clients so that when someone wants to train with them they can easily and comfortably refer that client to you. Or maybe you choose someone in your community – a radio talk show host, the mayor, an elite level athlete, a business owner with strong relationships with lots of people in your community, the mom who is the PTA president who everyone knows, loves and respects – and give them a number of sessions. The only rule with this is ask the person to not mention to anyone else that they are getting free personal training and also ask them in return for the free personal training to tell everyone they know and meet how great you are. Create an arrangement so that for each new client they bring you, you will continue to thank them with an additional personal training session. Now, you’ll look like you’ve got a lot of clients plus you’ll have a whole sales team selling your services!
2. Do Mini-sessions. There is absolutely nothing like face-to-face marketing! So if you don’t have any clients or long breaks in between clients and you want to fill your schedule, think of mini-sessions as the way to look busy and to develop relationships with potential clients. All you have to do is approach a member doing their own thing and say something like “Hey, Sally, I’ve got 20 minutes before my next client. I’d love to take you through a mini-workout.” Then find out what they’re working on and then take them through a little mini-session. Strut your stuff and show them the value that you can add to their exercise experience. I have found that 9 times out of 10, this type of connection opens up a dialogue about your services. For example, they might bring up “You know I’ve been thinking about seeing a trainer once a month to create a program for me” or “Tell me more about your Team Training. I’ve been meaning to ask someone how that works” or “Do you think seeing you just once a week would be beneficial because I think that’s all I can afford?!”.
3. Spot in a Group Fitness Class. Find out who are the most popular group fitness instructors in your club. Then suggest to them that you’d like to come to their class and provide some spotting and technique monitoring during the strength and/or abdominals sections. Any group fitness instructor would love to have this type of assistance. In return, ask the instructor to mention how great of a trainer you are and how you could offer them some solid accountability and help them reach their goals. Spotting in a group fitness class is a great way to connect with multiple people for the same amount of time – you might get to meet 20-50 people in 10-15 minutes.

This approach absolutely works! Trust me! Here’s a real life example. I was consulting with a club in Oregon. They had just hired a new trainer who in his first month generated $7000 in revenues. So I asked him what he was doing to fill his schedule so quickly. First, he told me he had given away 2 Personal Training sessions to every employee at the club and was even doing some partner and small group training with various staff members. He had created a buzz and everyone was talking about him!

Secondly, he was doing the mini-sessions I talked about above and let me tell you how valuable this is. One day I was in his club to do some training with the trainers. I saw him training one of the members. So once the session was over, I started talking with the member and asked her how it was going. Her response was “Oh, he’s an amazing trainer. You know I’ve been a member here 15 years and he’s the first trainer that has ever talked to me!” I thought this was very valuable information that I could share with the trainers to emphasize the importance of connecting and developing relationships with members. So I told the trainers what she said and they couldn’t believe it. There response was “That’s not true. We talk to her all the time. I say hi to her everyday!” So of course, I just had to get to the bottom of this. So I went back to the member and mentioned to her “I really want to help the other trainers here at the club so I want to clarify something. I told them what you had said and they didn’t understand because they felt that they all did have a relationship with you and said Hi to you everyday.” Her response was “Oh yeah. Of course, they all say hi to me and are very nice. But my trainer was the first one to ever approach me and take me through a little workout. He really showed me that I could take things to a whole other level by working with him so that’s why I started training with him.” So I went back to the trainers and told them what she said. Their response was “Well, she’s been a member with us for 15 years. She looks great and it looks like she really knows what she’s doing so we just assumed that she really wasn’t interested in training with a trainer!” My response was “Well, obviously, you were wrong because she’s now training three times per week and will probably be one of the best PT clients ever!” So never assume someone can’t benefit or isn’t interested in Personal Training. Even high level, highly motivated athletes like Lance Armstrong have a whole entourage of coaches and trainers. So if they can benefit from the services of a trainer, we all can! If you get the brush off from a few members, don’t let it detour you. Sometimes you have to experience a few rejections to find those awesome, life-long clients!

If you train in a club or you're a fitness director and manage a number of trainers in a club, have a discussion about some of these ideas. If you implement these initiatives and get the buy-in from your trainers, I guarantee your PT revenue will dramatically increase!

The 'How To' of Group Training

Yesterday, I taught a 2 hour Webinar on how to Make Money at Group Training and how to practically manage a group training session.

Group Training is definitely the wave of the future in Personal Training because it's a win:win:win. It's good for the client because they can access more frequent training at a lower rate plus they enjoy the group energy and group accountability. It's great for the trainer because it mixes up the energy (less personal drama), they can earn a higher wage for the same hour and it's just a ton of fun. And it's a win for the business because you can generate higher revenues for the same period of time and achieve a higher level of profitability.

But if you don't understand how to effectively program, package, bundle, market and promote your group programs, your potential will be greatly limited. And if you haven't figured out how to effectively manage a large group and create the type of energy that people don't want to live without, again, your success will be limited.

I'm teaching a group session today at noon. And although I have a plan for the workout, most of my thoughts are centered around what can I do to create an awesome experience for my clients today. Whether it's a fun joke I'll tell them. Or offer some cool fitness trivia. Or create the perfect music playlist. Today, I"m teaching a Brick Workout - 20 minutes on the bike, 20 minutes run and 20 minutes Core Conditioning. For the run segment, I've made up some fun chants to help them take their mind off the challenging effort that running always offers. So it works like this, I yell out the first line, they repeat. Then I yell the second line, they repeat. Think military chants. Here's a couple sample chants that I'll be leading today.

Exercising Everyday
Getting fit in every way
Working out night and day
Getting strong in every way
NWPT

Bootcamp, Bootcamp is so fun!
Look at me and see me run.
Working out from noon to one
In the rain, cold or sun

Feeling good & Getting Strong
Being healthy all day long
I am fit and I am strong
Muscles getting lean and long
My heart is pumping hard and strong
Exercise ain’t never wrong

Hope this gives you some ideas.

Yours in Health, Fitness and Business,
Sherri

ps. I wanted to let you know that the 2 hour Webinar I did yesterday is for sale for $99. It will be a great resource that you can refer to forever. Plus the $99 you spend will create so much more than that. Last year we did $100,000 in Group Training and an additional $150,000 in events. Just email Kari, our education director at kari@nwpersonaltraining.com and she'll hook you up.

Grass Roots Promotions Really Work!

Let's say you've got a new Outdoor Bootcamp program you want to promote. Or you're hosting a fundraising event. Or maybe you're organizing a Girls Night Out at the club.

How do you get the word out?

Take a multi-focused approach.

1. Personal Invitations - If you are in a facility setting, have your receptionists personally invite each person as they are coming and leaving. Have all group fitness instructors announce in their classes. Have all your trainers challenge their clients to participate. Make an announcement on your P.A. system on the hour.
2. Fliers - Create a flier that lists the benefits that someone will experience by participating in the event and be sure to use quality photos and lots of testimonials. Post these fliers everywhere...bathroom stalls, attached to the cardio machines, anywhere someone may be looking.
3. Get out into the community - Consider where your potential client may shop or regularly frequent. For example, we have an Outdoor Bootcamp program starting soon so my team is going to be handing out fliers at Trader Joes, Starbucks, WholeFoods and placing the fliers on people's cars at public places close to our facility. This way we know the people either live or work in our community and are more likely to attend.
4. Post the program event on your website and highlight in your enewsletters.