Learn
How to Sell as a Fitness Professional
By Sherri
and Alex McMillan
As Fitness Professionals,
most of us spend a great deal of time and energy developing
our technical and practical skills. Yet, very few of us
have ever obtained any extensive sales training. The bottom
line is, no matter what you are doing, if you want to be
successful you have to learn how to sell yourself. Can you
imagine any successful corporation running its organization
without sales staff and sales training? Leading-edge companies
realize the importance of their sales staff and the need
for extensive sales training, no mater what they are selling.
In our industry, most fitness professionals are uncomfortable
with the any form of selling. You’re in the fitness
industry not because you love selling but because you love
helping people, but you need to sell to get people to experience
your services! Remember that selling is not a bad thing
when you are selling a very good thing: improved health
and fitness, more energy, enhanced confidence, self-esteem
and longevity. You must believe in yourself and your services
and remember that if a person has called you or inquired
about your services, they are interested. They are just
waiting for you to convince them that you can help, and
even if they haven’t contacted you initially and you’ve
approached them, everyone can benefit from what we have
to offer so don’t be shy.
We have to be very upfront with you. To succeed as a fitness
professional, you must become a top-notch salesperson. It
will not make a difference if you hold the highest credentials
and certifications if you can't influence people to invest
in your services or products. When you develop your selling
skills, not only will this enable you to generate a higher
income, it will also allow you to impact the lives of more
people. Here are some important concepts to consider when
trying selling yourself:
Selling is really not selling: Selling
any product or service is all about opening or devel
oping a relationship. A good salesperson does not focus
on selling, a person but rather on servicing the person.
Before any interaction with a potential client or business
opportunity, ask yourself "how can I help this individual?
What are their needs?" Enter any conversation or interaction
with the assumption that this individual or company has
some needs that you could service. Your job is to find out
what their needs are and then to demonstrate that you are
the person to help them obtain those goals. Making their
needs your focus, makes it very easy for you to communicate
with them.
First impressions count! You all realize
the importance of a first contact with a potential client
or business prospect whether it’s by phone or in person.
People and businesses are attracted to people who have high
energy and a positive perspective on life, demonstrate exceptional
communication skills and have a burning passion for what
they do and stand for. Remember that you sell yourself through
everything you do, including the way you dress, the way
you speak, the materials that you use to highlight your
services, the way you shake hands, the way you focus, listen
and look someone directly in the eyes. Everything about
you must shout professionalism and scream success.
Do your homework and demonstrate exceptional follow-up
skills: Collect as much information about a prospective
client as you can before you propose any type of business
relationship. Ask lots of questions, interview key people
and go to their website if they are a business, and have
clients fill out questionnaires. Be sure you are fully knowledgeable
about all aspects of the business or person and their goals
and needs. Arrive early and be prepared for your first meeting
or session – we believe that if an individual trying
to obtain our business or employment is not five or ten
minutes early, then they are actually late! Call to confirm
your first appointment, return all inquiries promptly or
call clients back when you say you will. During your first
meeting, make it clear that you have done your homework.
For example, make a comment such as “I noticed on
your website, that your primary market is….”
or “I noticed in your questionnaire that you’ve
struggled with late night eating. Let’s talk about
that…” Be sure to ask lots of questions and
take notes – it demonstrates that you are listening
and serious about hearing their needs and goals. Show them
an action plan and how you are going to help them achieve
their individual or company goals. After the initial meeting,
be sure to call or send a thank you card or letter after
the initial meeting to thank them for their time and to
let them know you look forward to working with them.
Use "assumptive" language: The
words you choose in your conversation make a big difference
to how easily you can sell yourself. Get rid of any wish-washy
words such as maybe, if, could or should. For example, instead
of saying “If you decide to allow me to write for
your magazine, I could write a column on fat loss or nutrition
or strength training”, use “My plan is to launch
the fitness column with a topic on fat loss, nutrition and
then strength training. These columns are always the most
popular and gain the most positive response and interest
from readers. After that, I’ll begin to branch into
numerous other categories such as exercises to stay young,
staying motivated, and stretching to improve posture.”
Instead of saying “Maybe you could give me a chance
to present at your conference. I’ve never done this
before but I’m sure I would do a really good job”,
suggest “I have presentations in three different areas
that you can choose from, Strength Training for Kids, Junior
Nutrition Training and Youth Pilates. My position as a Youth
Fitness Director has given me the practical experience to
effectively share the tools that have worked to help me
build our Junior Training Center and double our revenues
in the last year.” When dealing with a potential new
client, instead of saying "If you decide to train with
me, I'll do.....", rather, say "Once we decide
how we're going to work together, I'm going to....."
or "For the first few months, we'll focus on technique
so you do each exercise effectively and safely and then
we can start to include more advanced exercises and techniques."
Assumptive language assumes that the client will purchase
more sessions and develop a long-term relationship with
you or that the business will benefit from your services
and you will help them obtain their goals. This type of
approach displays an exceptional level of confidence in
your services.
Resist your fear of asking: Statistics
suggest that we fail to gain commitment to purchase on approximately
62% of prospects because we don't ask them to participate.
You've got to resist your fear of asking. Use phrases like
“I think you’ll agree that the readers of this
newspaper would really benefit from a regular fitness column.
Would you like to do something weekly or monthly?”,
or try “I know that you want to add in a Senior Training
Track and the demand is there from your conference attendees.
Would you like to start with me presenting just one seminar
or would you like to launch with a few more seminars? With
potential clients you could suggest "Some of my clients
see me three to four times per week, some just once per
week. Most of my clients see my twice per week. What do
you think would work best for you? Once you have asked the
client or the business for their commitment, stop talking
and wait for their response. Research suggests that people
need 3-4 seconds to process the information before they
can respond.
Selling is very easy once you learn what it is all about
and how to do it. The good news is that once you learn how
to sell one thing, you can sell anything. And on that note,
we have an igloo in Alaska to sell you…
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