Our Varsity program at Catalyst used to have 11 teen girls and only one boy. One time, I pulled him aside and said, “Hey man, it’s totally fine to invite some of your male friends to this group if you want.” He replied: “Why in hell would I want to do that?” I laughed. He was trying to exclude competition, and I didn’t realize it. Most gym owners are excluding clients and don’t realize it. Even worse, they’re probably blocking out the BEST POSSIBLE CLIENTS they could have. I’m going to tell you exactly what the problem is. But first, here’s the path a client takes to find their way to you. Please note that at ANY point, they could take any action, or even NO action. “I’m too fat.” “I am going to lose weight.” “Should I go on a diet, or start exercising?” “If I exercise, should I just start jogging, or join a gym?” “Should I just join the cheapest gym in case I don’t like it?” “Should I get a personal trainer? Or a class?” “Will I lose weight faster with Pilates, Barre, CrossFit, or a bootcamp?” “Which one is the easiest?” “If I pick CrossFit, which gym should I attend?” —-and I’ll interrupt there. Because THIS is where a lot of gym owners blow it. I’ve written extensively on your intake process, the first impression on your website has to make, and avoiding the appearance of selling a commodity. I won’t cover those again. Instead, I’m going to mention the signals you’re sending to your target audience. When I opened, I thought I was my target audience: the 25-year-old “grinder” who wanted intensity in their life, who didn’t care about clean bathrooms or diet, who wanted to wear old t-shirts with obscure slogans and black skulls. I was flying a black flag. I was counterculture on ...
Read More →
