hope everyone is well and having a good sales period. Clubs are reporting good numbers and this seems to be a very positive period.
I want to discuss 'The member experience' with you. It is something I have been reading a lot about during my vacation a few weeks ago and is more relevant in todays competitive market than ever.
Please take some time out of your busy schedule and think about your own customer experience. Could you describe it?, is your description the same as your customers?
Try to finish this statement.
When you join my club, you will experience the following ...................
If you struggle with this you need to spend some time thinking about how you want to be described by your members. How many members walk out of your club and have anything positive to share with friends or family.
I had a discussion with a group of trainers the other day and asked them if they wanted satisfied members. As you can imagine, the answer was an overwhelming YES!
I was flying back from Stavanger on Thursday evening and had a cheese sandwich. It was satisfying. I would not, however, go home and tell my wife about it. It was not memorable and I probably wouldn't buy one again. At the time though, I was satisfied.
Is this what we want? Really?
We must raise the bar and provide services and experiences that delight you members and create a devoted following.
Ask anyone who has a new IPhone if they are happy with it. The response will go way beyond satisfied. People are devoted to apple products because they provide a superior end user experience. Their focus is on the customer experience, not the device itself.
Anyone who has flown with one of the superior airlines Emirates, or Singapore Airlines will describe the experience with a smile and enthusiasm. I don't think the same could be said for the low cost airlines. I am not sure I would recommend anyone to choose KLM for example. They are not bad and they offer a satisfactory service, but thats all it is.
Lets look at what makes a great experience for a second. Your members have joined your club for a reason. This can vary from member to member but lets say that most members join because they want to lead a more active and healthy lifestyle. They will use their club maybe once or twice a week. This means you have between 4-8 opportunities a month to provide an experience that the customer could tell someone about.
Dont misunderstand me, I do not think you should aim to wow customers every time they come to your club. This is crazy, unrealistic and would be annoying.
So lets look at some ideas that might work and could be cheap and easy to do in your clubs.
1. I use to teach spinning many years ago and every week on a Monday night I would prepare a box of cut up oranges that I would pass round half way through the class. Members loved it.
2. When I was a fitness manager, during peak times I would walk around the gym with two large jugs, one full of ice water and one full of a powder energy drink we sold downstairs and offered to fill members bottles. We would see a huge increase in sales of energy drinks and it was a talking point.
3. Create a signature smoothie that members can try before a workout to give them an energy boost.
4. Your trainers should be encouraged to train with members for short periods e.g. grab a member off the abdominal machine and tell them you will go through a 5 minute abdominal routine that will take their training up a level. Same with inner and outer thighs, same with back strengthening.
These are all problem areas and all members want strong abs, back and butt! Look for the opportunity and members will tell everyone about the experience.
5. Speak to other local businesses and see what they can do to help. Can you get some discount vouchers, gift certificates, samples etc. My wife has a Pilates studio and has a relationship with the local baby/children's clothes shop. Anyone spending over 100euros gets a free gift certificate for an introductory PT session. In return, my wife's customers get 25% discount vouchers off children's clothes. Everyone wins!
The critical thing is that you physically had out the reward, do not leave them on reception or send them in the mail. You will miss the opportunity to get the reaction and interact.
6. Member appreciation month could be a great idea to show members that you love them. Do lots of activities and create a real buzz with special classes, small group training, new programs and presentations on training, back care, nutrition etc. Get the press involved and make sure the story shows your love of your customers.
Of course there are many things that you can do to create an experience, I read a blog the other day that had a really good idea. When you replace or buy any new equipment, dont just put it in the gym, present it as a gift to members and have an evening launch to say thanks for their loyalty. Keep them covered up and then pull the sheet off creates a real sense of excitement. Speak to your Technogym Sales Manager about supporting this.
Clearly there is a number of ways of using the system to support the whole experience. Use contact manager to send different messages to different users to get them involved. Create programs that you can promote and offer customers.
I hope this is useful and of course if you want any specific advice drop me a line
George
No comments:
Post a Comment