It's often easy to get into a comfortable routine with our clients and our businesses that may even become complacency, taking for granted that our clients will continue to pay us month after month. In a growing market of competition among fitness trainers and programs being offered at gyms, studios, online, on TV, and even on Smartphone apps, it is imperative that we keep our businesses fresh and our clients engaged.
When is the last time you reevaluated the programs you offered and really considered if you can add more value and offer even better results and more fulfilling experiences for your clients? If you haven't in a while, I encourage you to take some time to take an objective eye to your programs and start thinking outside of the box. When your clients become intrigued to look elsewhere for new programs or other options, it may be too late.
The best way to start your evaluation of your programs is to simply ask your clients directly. Depending on your relationship with your clients, you can either have direct conversations with them (I suggest doing this outside of your training sessions, maybe take them for coffee or lunch), you can create a focus group of clients (a great option if you run boot camps or group classes), or you can create a simple survey online with free sites likewww.surveymonkey.com. An online survey may be the way to go if you feel your clients may want to keep their answers anonymous; but be cautious, you may get the most honest answers this way!
Here are three questions you should ask your clients when you’re looking to evaluate your programs:
1. Describe 2-3 aspects of my programs/services that you feel are of most value to you and make my programs unique.
2. Describe 2-3 aspects of my programs/services that you feel could use improvement or areas I am not offering you outstanding value.
3. Are there programs or services that I am not currently offering that you believe would add value to your results and your overall experience with me as your fitness professional?
With just these three questions, you should be able to take your clients' responses and not only nail down your strengths so you can continue to promote and capitalize on what makes you unique, but also discover where you may be able to add new programs, services or other components to your business that will add value to your clients' experiences and keep them as loyal clients for life.
