The Art of Retention - Keep Clients for Years, Not Months.

“A client pays for a result but stays for the service.” - Oliver Tennant

When it comes to the success and longevity of your personal training business, RETENTION is key.

Your business either LIVES or DIES because of it.

When building a personal training business, long term clients are ESSENTIAL.

Not only do they provide you with social proof (through testimonials), but they also provide stability to your business and are one of the best sources of new business (through referrals).

Keeping clients in the long term (years, not months) allows you to focus on what is truly important - delivering a high quality service and results that change lives.

You will constantly improve and adapt your service to keep these clients happy, interested and returning to what you offer.

YOU MUST DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN TO MAXIMISE YOUR RETENTION RATES.

The 10 tips I'm about to share with you below are the tips that I personally used to keep clients in my PT business for over 5 years.

You actually have to implement them, and implement them well.

You can't afford to just do it once in a while or every now and then.

You've got to be consistent and apply them all EVERY SINGLE WEEK.

1. Find out what truly matters to your client

As a personal trainer it is so important to find out the true motives behind a client’s goal. The emotional driver. If you really want to have a lasting impact and really change lives, understanding a client’s ‘why’ is paramount. If you fail to do this all your other coaching strategies may fall short.

2. Find common ground with clients to help you build your client-trainer relationship

People love to interact with like-minded people and those they can relate to. Establishing common ground with your clients allows you to build rapport by using the same body language, voice tones, and facial expressions with those you’re engaging. If your client can’t relate to you in some way then you will struggle to develop a trusting relationship.

3. Build a community with all your clients

Whilst you can support, guide, help and educate your client as much as possible, you aren’t in their shoes. You probably don’t know exactly how they’re feeling - however, all your other clients do. They’ve been there. For long term retention it is vital you build a community of people within your business. This community will provide sympathy, support and care to your clients when they need it the most, AND nobody ever wants to leave a community!

4. Keep it exciting

It is your role to create an environment where your client always looks forward to going. They should never have to dread a session, but rather be excited for what they’re about to do. Whilst you want clients to love coming to every session, you want them to absolutely hate not turning up to a session in fear of missing out. Always be positive and create excitement with your body language, voice, and actions. Clients will absorb the positive nature you exhibit and this will ultimately improve their mood.

“People may not remember exactly what you did, or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou.

5. Dig deeper than just fitness

Do they like sports? What teams? Do they enjoy reading? Fantastic, what type of book? See where I’m going? Find out more than just your client’s fitness goals; find their interests and relate to them on a personal level.

6. Meet goals and establish new goals

Set goals immediately when meeting with a client. This eliminates any uncertainty of the level of service you’ll be providing clients, and illustrates a clear, concise picture on how valuable you are. After all, that’s exactly why they signed up to you in the first place - to reach a goal. Establishing new goals is paramount too, as it keeps the client hungry for more. It is your job to empower a client to want more than what they originally set out to achieve.

7. Always ask for feedback

Asking clients for feedback goes a long way in showing how much you care about your service and about helping them. Being open, receptive, and actually listening to your clients separates you from the other 90% in the industry. This undoubtedly reinstates your huge value to your client.

8. Go above and beyond in and out of sessions

Do the little things, and do them better than anyone else. Focus on the details. In any relationship, people love those that remember the finer details. It shows that you’ve been listening, paying attention and taking a genuine interest in your client. Write down important events like birthdays, anniversaries, holidays etc. Surprise your client with a gift. Drop them a message wishing them good luck for an upcoming interview. Give them a call out of the blue to see if they had a good time on holiday. There’s no excuse for not going above and beyond, but once you do it, notice how it immediately grows your client trainer relationship and ultimately your business. A small investment with a huge return.

9. Be more than just a PT

I hate the title ‘Personal Trainer’ as it puts a huge emphasis on the training. It makes clients believe that in order to receive value from you they have to have a killer workout. With me, that is simply not the case. Put an emphasis on the ‘Personal’. My aim with every client I work with is to make their lives better and to ensure they feel much better after a session with me than when they first walked through the doors on that given day. I’ve been there to support people through interview preparation, family issues, financial situations, life choices and many more important matters. This is why I wouldn’t call myself a ‘Personal Trainer’ and instead I’d call myself a ‘Coach’.

10. Keep the future in mind

Talk about future plans and progressions. For example, in four weeks we’ll focus on achieving this, and working towards that. Constant reaffirming and getting “yes” further validates you to your clients.

It is now your job to implement all of the above, in your own way, with the sole aim of truly benefiting your client.

Of course, you can go a lot DEEPER with this and add hundreds and hundreds of points.

However, focus on adding just a few at a time and do them better than anyone else. Build gradually to really cement these techniques into your business.

RETENTION IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STRUGGLING AND PROSPERING.

Clients need our help, and maintaining a close, long-term relationship is the best way to create results. Oliver.