Reader Questions...
Well, due to an onslaught of question about my last post - I'll postpone the scheduled post on "Closing the Sale" until tomorrow. I'll respond to a couple of the questions that I received that seem to be representative of the entire group. Here we go...
Question: It sounded like you have something against Phil Kaplan. He's strived to raise our profession, helped thousands of trainers and you are discounting what he suggests about valuing your time as a professional. What's the deal?
Answer: I like Phil. I'm actually a member of Phil's PEAK Roundtable, a group that meets 3 times per year. I simply disagree with a couple of his positions. I think Phil has done plenty to help trainers and the fitness industry as a whole. That doesn't mean that what he says is the gospel. I agree wholeheartedly about valuing your time as a professional. I mentioned in the previous post that if you can get paid for everything, you'd be foolish not to. But let's put two examples on the table:
1. Phil charges $20 for his group orientation. He then sells clients a series, which means they essentially pay 1 session in advance for his trainers services. No real risk for the client, at most they're out the cost of one session. No real need to "try before you buy" if you have no real commitment at stake.
2. My trainers offer a free introductory session. We then sell personal training programs with terms of 4-12 months with over 80% being 12 months. 12 months of personal training is a significant commitment in time and money for most people. Wouldn't you agree that it might merit a more informed buying decision? Hence the "try before you buy" approach.
Now which of these approaches give your business more long term stability and a higher re-sale value? Obviously the one with a receivables base with contractual agreements. But to get that we offer what essentially amounts to the equivalent of a "loss leader." We're willing, based on the lifetime value of our clients and our closing percentage, to invest the cost of a session. This is very common in direct sales. Do you think that the "real estate gurus" on the late night infomercial make back the cost of the air time and production cost of the show by selling a $19.95 home study kit? Nope. The know their LCV and what they're willing to spend to get a client.
One last note about Phil's position...if you read his Profit Vault product (It's really good) he mentions partnering with a home exercise equipment dealer and offering a $10 session at customers homes to help them understand how to get the most from their newly purchased piece of equipment. Doesn't offering a session for $10 undermine your ability to ask for a normal rate?
Question: Doctors don't offer their services for free. I'm a professional, I should be treated the same?
Answer: O.K. - Let's see how many people I piss off here. To become a M.D. you're looking at eight years of school and probably between $150,000 and $500,000 in monetary investment. To get the most well known certification in our industry (ACE), you might have a cost of $289 (exam and study kit) and a time investment of eight weeks. So do me a favor and leave the comparison with the average Personal Trainer and M.D. for someone who's dumb enough to buy it. Frankly, our society probably equates trainers and doctors about as much as mechanics and rocket scientists. Go to your average health club. A bunch of kids in t-shirts that say trainer and typically stay for about 6 months at a time.
Now let me give you an analogy I might buy, even though the barrier to entry for each is drastically different still...Trainers and chiropractors. See, neither of these fields has been totally understood and embraced like that of the M.D. yet. There are plenty of people that have never been to a chiropractor, question their value and don't equate them with a "real doctor."
So, in turn, many chiropractors - when developing their businesses - offer free consultations, free x-rays etc. Then, they use the report of findings as their sales presentation. Once they've positioned themselves, they can shift to doing nothing for free as well.
I'll say it again...if you have positioned or can position yourself to do nothing for free - GREAT! I'm going to guess the Craig Ballantyne, Alwyn Cosgrove, Stephen Holt and Bill Hartman don't do anything for free - just like Brian Calkins. They've all created a position that allows for that. Do the same and you'll be able to name your price.
On a side note...I'll bet you if you go to their sites (and you should...you'll learn alot) - they will build value by offering you a free newsletter or free report. Then after they've established how much the have to offer, they will offer you an opportunity to make a purchase. Hmmmm....some similarities there, don't you think?
P.S. - Please don't take this as shot at trainers...I'm a trainer. What I'm getting at is merely this:
Doctor's have an inherent credibility (whether or not it's deserved is beyond the scope of this post) that comes with the barrier to entry associated with their profession. We must earn our credibility as our profession's barrier to entry is much lower.
Talk to you tomorrow - gotta go golf.
Question: It sounded like you have something against Phil Kaplan. He's strived to raise our profession, helped thousands of trainers and you are discounting what he suggests about valuing your time as a professional. What's the deal?
Answer: I like Phil. I'm actually a member of Phil's PEAK Roundtable, a group that meets 3 times per year. I simply disagree with a couple of his positions. I think Phil has done plenty to help trainers and the fitness industry as a whole. That doesn't mean that what he says is the gospel. I agree wholeheartedly about valuing your time as a professional. I mentioned in the previous post that if you can get paid for everything, you'd be foolish not to. But let's put two examples on the table:
1. Phil charges $20 for his group orientation. He then sells clients a series, which means they essentially pay 1 session in advance for his trainers services. No real risk for the client, at most they're out the cost of one session. No real need to "try before you buy" if you have no real commitment at stake.
2. My trainers offer a free introductory session. We then sell personal training programs with terms of 4-12 months with over 80% being 12 months. 12 months of personal training is a significant commitment in time and money for most people. Wouldn't you agree that it might merit a more informed buying decision? Hence the "try before you buy" approach.
Now which of these approaches give your business more long term stability and a higher re-sale value? Obviously the one with a receivables base with contractual agreements. But to get that we offer what essentially amounts to the equivalent of a "loss leader." We're willing, based on the lifetime value of our clients and our closing percentage, to invest the cost of a session. This is very common in direct sales. Do you think that the "real estate gurus" on the late night infomercial make back the cost of the air time and production cost of the show by selling a $19.95 home study kit? Nope. The know their LCV and what they're willing to spend to get a client.
One last note about Phil's position...if you read his Profit Vault product (It's really good) he mentions partnering with a home exercise equipment dealer and offering a $10 session at customers homes to help them understand how to get the most from their newly purchased piece of equipment. Doesn't offering a session for $10 undermine your ability to ask for a normal rate?
Question: Doctors don't offer their services for free. I'm a professional, I should be treated the same?
Answer: O.K. - Let's see how many people I piss off here. To become a M.D. you're looking at eight years of school and probably between $150,000 and $500,000 in monetary investment. To get the most well known certification in our industry (ACE), you might have a cost of $289 (exam and study kit) and a time investment of eight weeks. So do me a favor and leave the comparison with the average Personal Trainer and M.D. for someone who's dumb enough to buy it. Frankly, our society probably equates trainers and doctors about as much as mechanics and rocket scientists. Go to your average health club. A bunch of kids in t-shirts that say trainer and typically stay for about 6 months at a time.
Now let me give you an analogy I might buy, even though the barrier to entry for each is drastically different still...Trainers and chiropractors. See, neither of these fields has been totally understood and embraced like that of the M.D. yet. There are plenty of people that have never been to a chiropractor, question their value and don't equate them with a "real doctor."
So, in turn, many chiropractors - when developing their businesses - offer free consultations, free x-rays etc. Then, they use the report of findings as their sales presentation. Once they've positioned themselves, they can shift to doing nothing for free as well.
I'll say it again...if you have positioned or can position yourself to do nothing for free - GREAT! I'm going to guess the Craig Ballantyne, Alwyn Cosgrove, Stephen Holt and Bill Hartman don't do anything for free - just like Brian Calkins. They've all created a position that allows for that. Do the same and you'll be able to name your price.
On a side note...I'll bet you if you go to their sites (and you should...you'll learn alot) - they will build value by offering you a free newsletter or free report. Then after they've established how much the have to offer, they will offer you an opportunity to make a purchase. Hmmmm....some similarities there, don't you think?
P.S. - Please don't take this as shot at trainers...I'm a trainer. What I'm getting at is merely this:
Doctor's have an inherent credibility (whether or not it's deserved is beyond the scope of this post) that comes with the barrier to entry associated with their profession. We must earn our credibility as our profession's barrier to entry is much lower.
Talk to you tomorrow - gotta go golf.
posted by Pat Rigsby at 5:02 AM
<< Home