Selling fitness is both an art and a science. It might feel like something people do naturally but it’s actually a skill you can learn. Persuasion is just one part of the puzzle so let’s start by looking at how you can be more persuasive with potential clients.
In this article – we share some practical tips on persuasion for health and fitness professionals. The art of persuasion can be a powerful skill that boosts sales revenue and generally makes life easier. Convincing people around to your point of view will help you to sign up more clients and sell bigger packages. But how do you go about learning it? Let’s start by looking at what NOT to do. There are a few common mistakes that PTs make over and over again. Here are a few of them so you know what to avoid…
They rely solely on the hard-sell approach and hope that a combination of persistence and charm will secure the client.
They aren’t willing to compromise or meet clients in the middle which leads to a stalemate where neither party can move forward.
They don’t listen to the concerns or viewpoints of their clients and therefore miss vital information that could help them tailor their approach.
They aren’t able to back up their arguments with personal credibility or evidence which makes them less trustworthy.
#1 – Establish Your Credibility In order to believe your pitch, clients will need to trust what you’re saying. If they don’t, then everything you say will fall on deaf ears. It won’t matter how good your sales script is if they don’t think you’re a credible trainer. So, it’s important to establish this from the outset, in both your marketing materials and sales approach. Here are a few ways that you can boost your credibility and authority…
Publish blog posts, ebooks, and articles in industry magazines or websites
Gather testimonials from previous clients that detail how you successfully helped them
Promote your experience, qualifications, and credentials
Stay up-to-date with the latest industry innovations so you can speak about them with confidence
Speak at local universities, sports clubs, or companies and then use their logos on materials By working these elements into your sales pitch and promotional materials, you’ll establish your credibility from the outset. This will make prospective clients more likely to absorb and trust what you’re saying.
#2 – Identify Common Ground
Credibility alone won’t get you the sale. If you’re trying to persuade someone to sign up for your sessions, then you’ll need to identify common ground too. It’s hard to change a client’s mind but it’s easy to come to a shared agreement.
Instead of trying to convince them of your point of view, work on developing a plan together. Involve them in designing their package so that it truly meets their needs.
This will help to secure their commitment to it and ensure they understand the benefits of your training. Taking this approach will lead to a win/win outcome for both you and your client.
#3 – Support Your Pitch with Evidence Once you’ve established credibility and found common ground, you need to back up your position. The best way to do this is to use evidence in the form of numerical data or scientific studies. Arm yourself with a couple of examples that you can drop into the sales conversation. It can be helpful to frame these as stories, metaphors, or analogies. Some people switch off when you start talking numbers but everyone loves a good story. Just use a simple framework to turn any research paper or testimonials into a story…
Starting point – what were things like before anything happened?
Trigger – what made them decide to change?
Action – what was done?
Result – what was the outcome? This approach will help you to persuade clients around to your viewpoint and also what’s in their best interest.
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