how get people to join in private group sessions
Hi Patricia – is your training offered through a gym or studio where you work? There’s a lot of business and marketing knowledge that goes into spreading awareness about your programs and it happens way before people even get their feet through the door.
Often times you have to (1) offer free education and support, (2) offer smaller commitment programs to help the overcome what’s stopping them from getting into a group training environment and (3) be very specialized in what you are doing for them – example – group training for low back pain.
Hope this helps!
Two ways:
1) Tell your sales team what your ideal client is like, and the times you have your sessions. I don’t spend a lot of time in the club when I’m not teaching because I do mostly group-ex and then 4 small group training sessions a week + a few one-on-ones, so I rely on the sales team to let people know I exist if an ideal client comes into the gym and I’m not training at that time.
2) I let clients try a session for free, to see if they fit in well with my group. The friendships they build seal not only the original sale but also the retention.
Also, as part of my on-boarding, I suggest that new attendees (unless they’re already pretty fit) do a 3-session starter pack of one-on-one sessions with me so I can do an assessment, give them some basic recommendations on how to be safe, and teach them the typical moves that we do in small group, including the modifications they would make for their imbalances, how to select an appropriate weight, etc.
Hello Patricia Chiasson,
Tricks to get people in may not work when they know they are only a number to you. Try to be personable and let word of mouth do the advertising for you. Even personal invites can be hard to bring in people. You will need to find out what the need in your area is at this moment.
Thank you,
Natalie aka NAPS 2 B Fit.
How to build a successful small group training program is a great topic to explore!
What if you offer sessions at times when no classes are available? I’m working on starting a group in my facility on Friday afternoon because we have no classes at that time. In fact, members requested it for that reason.
I’ve slowly learned in this business that you can put out fitness schedules, you can announce programs in classes and newsletters, and you can specifically ask individuals to join. I’m so surprised at how many people need an individual invitation to join but once given they will accept.
I would love to hear from people who have successful small group training in facilities that offer classes and personal training.