Your personal trainer website visitors, especially those on the Services pages, are potential leads. Using a layout that encourages them to get in touch is a fantastic way to convert people who are already interested in your services to paying clients.
Once they have made contact with you, perhaps left a comment, downloaded a lead magnet, or filled out a form, you must act quickly to build a meaningful relationship with that prospect. In this article, we'll discuss 4 easy tips to help you understand what it takes to convert leads into clients.
1. Make Contact Quickly
If someone has visited your fitness website and initiated contact with you, they are interested in learning more about your service and can be considered a warm lead. The reason why these leads got in touch will become clear once you answer that initial contact request.
They could be interested in finding out more about how to solve a problem that they have; already know that you provide solutions and want more details about your services and available packages, or they may be curious about your methods.
According to an InsideSales.com study, when it comes to phone contact, the odds of being able to contact a lead drop significantly after the first 30 minutes.
They could be interested in finding out more about how to solve a problem that they have; already know that you provide solutions and want more details about your services and available packages, or they may be curious about your methods.
According to an InsideSales.com study, when it comes to phone contact, the odds of being able to contact a lead drop significantly after the first 30 minutes.
While we don't have exact numbers when it comes to email leads, one thing's for sure. The longer you leave someone to think about other options, the higher the chances they will be replied by someone more on the ball.
Whatever process they've used to make contact with you, it's advisable to get in touch with them as soon as possible. You might want to consider dedicating time each day to reaching out to potential clients from your website (or from your social media accounts if you don't yet have a website).
If you miss the opportunity to chat with this person while they're in the mindset of trying to solve their problem, they might seek out some other personal trainer to help them solve their problem.
2. Reply In-Kind
Keep your contact "in-kind" at first. Meaning, when people leave you a written comment, react with an answer to that message. If they email or text you, email or text back. Not everyone is comfortable with being on the phone, but once you've had some communication back and forth, it might be that they're happy to be called - or even to video chat.
This is ideal as it allows you to build a meaningful relationship quickly because you get access to all the subtleties of their verbal and non-verbal communication that can sometimes be missed through written messaging. Plus, most people just prefer an email back.
This is ideal as it allows you to build a meaningful relationship quickly because you get access to all the subtleties of their verbal and non-verbal communication that can sometimes be missed through written messaging. Plus, most people just prefer an email back.
The purpose of that initial communication isn't to sell them into your personal training programme, but just to start to build a relationship with that person so that they want to become a paying client. Allowing them to open up about the problem they are trying to solve, what they have tried in the past and the impact the problem is having on their lives are all brilliant ways to try to understand the full extent of your prospect's desire for change.
If the prospect is on your website to solve a particular issue, it might be that you're able to offer them some resources for free to help them with their problem right upfront. That isn't something to shy away from just because you have an online training programme to sell.
Ask permission to send them something to help them, and ask if they want to be added to your email list for more information about this problem they have. Supporting someone for free will do more for your authority as The Go-To Expert that they want to help them stay accountable to their goals than any hard sell you could do on the phone. It also allows you to follow up with them later to ask how they're getting on.
3. Ask Open Questions
Open-ended questions are those that invite a longer answer, rather than having a simple one-word response. You might consider asking them questions like:
These are all compelling questions which encourage them to explain why they need your help now. They can be instrumental if it becomes time to invite that person to become a paying client because they've spent all that time just telling you why they need help, why it has to be you, and why now. There's not much left for you to do to make a sale, other than to ask how they'd like to pay.
- Why is now the right time for them to make a change? What's happened recently that's been a catalyst for action?
- What have they tried in the past that's worked for them? Why wouldn't that work again now?
- What sort of support do they feel like they need from a personal trainer to be successful?
- What does success look like to them?
- If they were successful, what would change in their lives?
These are all compelling questions which encourage them to explain why they need your help now. They can be instrumental if it becomes time to invite that person to become a paying client because they've spent all that time just telling you why they need help, why it has to be you, and why now. There's not much left for you to do to make a sale, other than to ask how they'd like to pay.
4. Follow Up Regularly
According to Yesware, if you don't receive a reply to your first email, there's a 21% chance of receiving one to the second email.
Meanwhile, 70% of businesses who send out sales email stop emailing prospects after the first email. It's worth following up multiple times so long your intention is genuine and doesn't come across as pushy.
Meanwhile, 70% of businesses who send out sales email stop emailing prospects after the first email. It's worth following up multiple times so long your intention is genuine and doesn't come across as pushy.
Even if that person doesn't end up becoming a client straight away, by engaging with them - chatting online and emailing them useful things which are relevant to their specific issues, you're staying on their radar as a friendly and supportive expert.
So even if they weren't quite ready to buy personal training services from you right away, when they are available for more support and more accountability, you're the trainer that's helped them in the past. Therefore, you'll be the first person they think about when the time is right for them to invest in their health. They may even refer other people to you in the meantime.
Whatever free resources you provided them, or whatever problem they were trying to solve while on your website, you can follow up about it. Asking how their knee injury has recovered, or if they have been keeping up with their mobility work can all be the spark of another conversation weeks and months down the road.
As the goal is to build a relationship, you don't want to leave it too long in between these messages. Make these follow up contacts personal also - you could even send a voice note or a personalised video explaining some of the things that might help them. It's worth remembering that although you won't make a sale first time with every person that's on your website, it does give you a way to be a considerate personal trainer that's ready to help people.
So even if they weren't quite ready to buy personal training services from you right away, when they are available for more support and more accountability, you're the trainer that's helped them in the past. Therefore, you'll be the first person they think about when the time is right for them to invest in their health. They may even refer other people to you in the meantime.
Whatever free resources you provided them, or whatever problem they were trying to solve while on your website, you can follow up about it. Asking how their knee injury has recovered, or if they have been keeping up with their mobility work can all be the spark of another conversation weeks and months down the road.
As the goal is to build a relationship, you don't want to leave it too long in between these messages. Make these follow up contacts personal also - you could even send a voice note or a personalised video explaining some of the things that might help them. It's worth remembering that although you won't make a sale first time with every person that's on your website, it does give you a way to be a considerate personal trainer that's ready to help people.
