The Value Stack: High-Speed Solutions for Gym Clients

I love giving people bonuses and gifts.

I especially love giving them gifts with real value.

When it comes to my clients, I create value by creating speed.

Getting clients to their goals is valuable. Getting them there faster is more valuable.

A “value stack” is when you add services and products that will get clients to their goals faster.

For example, if I asked myself “what would this client need to lose 20 lb.?” the answer is “three workouts per week, protein at each meal and not overeating.”

If I asked myself “what would this client need to lose 20 lb. in six months?” that warrants a different answer. In this case, the client would need:

1. A specific meal plan.
2. Four workouts per week plus some non-exercise activity (NEAT).
3. Daily accountability texts: “eat breakfast,” “go to bed on time tonight,” etc.
4. Some recipes to keep them on track.
5. Stretches to do at home so they aren’t too sore to exercise.
6. A sleep tracker.
7. Some support from their spouse.
8. A grocery shopping list.
9. An app to track activity and intake.
10. Possibly a supplement or two.

To accomplish the goals faster, the client requires more from me—but not all of these things require my time or attention. Some are automations, many are products, and some are resources I can build once and use forever. But all of them have value.

Your Value Stack

How do you determine what to put in your value stack?

Start by thinking about the obstacles a client will have in reaching stated goals. How can you remove those obstacles in advance?

For example: The client doesn’t eat enough protein because he doesn’t know what protein is.

Solution: Add a “protein sources” PDF.

Another example: The client is just too tired by Friday, so she sleeps in, skips her workout, misses breakfast and grabs a garbage burrito on the way to work. Then she’s mad at herself and begins to spiral.

Solution: Teach her how to shut down and get to bed on time.

Removing obstacles in advance will add tremendous value to the client.

And that’s what you charge for: value, not time spent. You can add value without selling your time by the hour.

List all these value-adding assets together to create your highest-value offer. In the next post in this series, I’ll tell you how to price it; read the previous post to learn how to put this stack in your pricing binder.

My goal here is to show you how to scale your value without selling more of your time.

Value-Stack Rules for Gyms

Here are a few rules:

1. Don’t discount anything. You’re not helping anyone when you do that.

2. Don’t cut your rate on something you charge for. For example, never give a client 50 percent off nutrition coaching when they pay for personal training—that just undervalues your nutrition coaching.

3. Remember, your goal is to avoid trading more time for more money. Add value through products, guides, apps or automations where possible—just be sure they actually add value instead of just piling on overwhelm. Many people don’t want another app to use.

Technology creates leverage that increases value. But so does care: Simply knowing what can derail a client’s progress and then solving those problems in advance makes you a valuable coach.