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The Truth About Free Trials in Gyms Pt 1 · Gym Business Coach Podcast

• 0:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: All right, welcome to another episode of the gym business coach podcast.
• 0:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm your host today Randy Inkson joined with Zach Columbia.
• 0:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: There's still a little hesitation.
• 0:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: I know there's going to be a day to say that's not a day for 40 episodes in and we're so still getting the new tried how many episodes have we done of gym business coach podcast.
• 0:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: So long as Brian's what industry, whatever, it was 700 episodes.
• 0:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: So now, yeah, so get news to the new one.
• 0:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: But we've got a fun one today.
• 0:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: We're going to dive into free.
• 0:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's used wildly in this industry.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's been around forever.
• 0:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: Jim's for some reason, feel like they have to give away their services.
• 0:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: But we're going to get into how that it not only does it affect.
• 0:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I guess it's affecting your business, whether you realize it or not.
• 0:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: But today, I think we're going to take it from the lens of like, what does it do into your team and the culture and staff structure so forth?
• 0:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: So why don't you kind of lay the foundation for us?
• 1:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yes, something I don't think I've ever heard.
• 1:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: Anybody really talk about when we're debating whether or not free is
• 1:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: the way that we should attract people into our business and get them through the front door and hopes that they'll then convert to a paying number, right?
• 1:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so there's this
• 1:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: psychological kind of subconscious trickle down effect that I think impacts the whole team when you are essentially giving away your services and when you think about it devaluing what it is that you do.
• 1:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so just if we kind of look at this
• 1:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: You know, objectively we step back and we look at it, big picture kind of, you know, from from outside the four walls of your facility.
• 2:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: If you're saying, hey, we're, you know, given away a free week or free trial, um, even a free workout.
• 2:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: That is communicating to your team that, hey, what we do doesn't have as much value.
• 2:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's not as impactful, it's not as, it doesn't set your gym or your coaches' education, their expertise, everything that their experience, all of that, on a pedestal.
• 2:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: it immediately removes a lot of the perceived authority that you as the business owner and the team has.
• 2:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, like, we talk all the time, right?
• 2:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're the experts in the area.
• 3:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: And if you're in, you know, in the the scope of fitness, right for for our clientele,
• 3:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I would agree, right?
• 3:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: If we're giving away that service, what is it?
• 3:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: Who, what experts will into do so in any other industry at anywhere, you know what I mean?
• 3:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, you're never going to go to a doctor.
• 3:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you know, you're like, you're never going to go to a doctor and be like, well, you know, this, this has to be a free appointment.
• 3:21
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I have this big problem that I need to solve them to come in here.
• 3:25
  [SPEAKER_01]: And now, when I get my first treatment for free, you know, my first
• 3:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: And if I like it, like I'll go ahead and, you know, pay for it after the fact, like a doctor would never that would never fly.
• 3:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 3:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I would argue that what we do is
• 3:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: probably more impactful or equally as impactful as a doctor.
• 3:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: Right.
• 3:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like our coaches in our facility, they are delivering health to our clients.
• 4:02
  [SPEAKER_01]: In my opinion, maybe I might be biased because, you know, we're in the sea.
• 4:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: I said, you know, growing up in this industry, like, you know, and being in that coach's shoes, like,
• 4:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: Your coach is a brilliant person, usually.
• 4:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 4:18
  [SPEAKER_01]: They have a lot of knowledge and they're helping people and potentially saving people's lives.
• 4:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, think about like, you know, it's easy to look at the reports of how many people visit a doctor and get help.
• 4:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: right we can say you know how many people got relief I don't even want to say cure because how rare is that but you know but from the preventative side right like that's an unknown variable like it is an unknown statistic is to how many people did we keep away from you know prediabetes or heart disease or things like that because
• 4:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: They had a gym and they were consistently working with a trainer or things like that.
• 4:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I mean, we never know.
• 4:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: We have had a handful of members here who have had heart attacks like widow maker heart attacks and, you know, they went to the hospital and and survived in the doctor, you know, basically told him, hey, the only reason you are alive is because you've been working out and taking care of yourself.
• 5:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: And they come back and tell us that, and I'm like, man, that's the greatest win ever for us, our team.
• 5:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: But I just, you know, when we're talking about when I'm doing sales training with directors, Jim owners,
• 5:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: I always try to position it as like, hey, think about yourself as a doctor and the person coming in as a patient like that's the frame yeah we're solving this massive health problem for our customers.
• 5:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: that carries a lot of weight and when you say like, hey, we'll just give this away for free and hopes that you like it and want to stay right there that commoditizes it devalues what it is that you do.
• 6:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: And you are essentially passing that message on to your staff of like, hey, what we do is just a commodity and it's really not that important and not that impactful and I know you're super smart and went to school and learned all these things to help people, but like the only way for us to attract clients is give them a give stuff away for free.
• 6:36
  [SPEAKER_01]: I would assume that for all of our listeners, they want to have the Ritz Carlton of fitness.
• 6:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: Right, they want their experience and everything in their business to feel as though it's like a premium service like this is superior from our competitors.
• 7:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: This is nicer, this is the best in class best in industry,
• 7:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: Well, your staff is not going to perform and live up to that standard if the message is that like, hey, we're just giving away our services for free.
• 7:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 7:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: If somebody's coming, if you're attracting somebody into your business, you're saying, hey,
• 7:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: This is a premium experience.
• 7:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: We have the, how many gyms claim they have the best coaches in the work.
• 7:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: We have the best training staff there.
• 7:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: So educated, well, if you, if you truly believed that, then you wouldn't feel like you had to give away your services for free to get somebody to buy and come in and work with you.
• 7:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: I would go it away.
• 7:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I think it's even once a further, it's not even just a half to it's that you could.
• 7:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like I don't think you, if you believed all that to the point to where it was true, I don't think you would ever find yourself in a position where you even thought about giving away services for free.
• 8:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 8:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know what I mean?
• 8:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's not even like a half to it.
• 8:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: There's absolutely no way I would possibly consider that.
• 8:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: Because of the value that we bring to the table.
• 8:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I think there is a misalignment between the value that Jim owners are bringing to the table and really what they, they see that and what they share that.
• 8:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: How they share that with the marketplace for sure.
• 8:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 8:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I think that for for our, I think this is a, like you don't think about the ramifications.
• 8:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: and all the different ways that free negatively impacts your business.
• 8:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so we could talk about maybe we'll do another episode where we talk about the client psychology of this and all of those things may be attracting the wrong client and all that, but I don't think anybody thinks about the messaging that it communicates to the team.
• 9:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: Um, and I think that you, if you look at it through this lens, you can really go, oh, man.
• 9:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like it is the standard that I am setting for my team, this, this standard of we are the best.
• 9:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: We deserve to be compensated for that.
• 9:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: And when we go out there on the training floor, and we're taking care of our clients, we're delivering that five-star, you know, rich Carlton type of like service, and it is best in class.
• 9:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Or is it, hey, we're free, you know, we're free, what we do is just kind of we give it away.
• 9:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: Just to see if we can get people to stay.
• 9:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then that lowers the standard and the staff is going like, oh, well, you know, what we do kind of matters, but not all that much.
• 10:02
  [SPEAKER_00]: I can, you can even see it on a training floor if they have multiple clients, you know what I mean?
• 10:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like, who gets their time and attention?
• 10:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know, like, oh, Mrs. Johnson has been over here paying us good money for years.
• 10:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then this person's over here in their first week, not paying us a dime.
• 10:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like, well, when that person's need, Mrs. Johnson and this person need some support.
• 10:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like, I'm going to spend my time with Mrs. Johnson and leave this person, you know, like, I assume that there has to be some of that psychology running through there.
• 10:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: Even if it's not conscious, that's a great, you know, because consciously, they're, they don't value the client that's standing in front of them is yet.
• 10:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: The reality is, Randy, that's a great point because the reality is, if you were going to do a consultation, let's say you're doing consultation with new members, one member pulls up and like, you know, a Honda Civic and then another member pulls or another prospect pulls up and a Bentley.
• 10:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm guessing that you're probably going to be a little bit more dialed in for that Bentley client than you are that are prospecting that Honda Civic because in your mind, you're going man like this person is going to buy all of the services they can afford them.
• 11:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so I got to be on.
• 11:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: with this person, it's like, oh, okay, like I'm going to go through this process, but I don't really know how big of an investment that this is, like, they're like, they're like, they're like, they're like, you're judging, like, for whatever it's worth, that's how the world works, right?
• 11:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: So, yeah.
• 11:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: So, right wrong and different.
• 11:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 11:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: So, so if every single person that is coming into your
• 11:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: is paying a premium, not getting it for free, and your staff knows that, and that's the standard.
• 11:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: And that's part of your core values and how you hold your team in the culture you have, then that is what's going to get delivered consistently.
• 11:58
  [SPEAKER_01]: And here's a little experiment.
• 12:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: I would say, get with your team,
• 12:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: and talk them up.
• 12:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: Get everybody together and just say like, hey guys, I just want you to know how important your job is and how smart you guys are and how great of a service that you deliver and experience you deliver for our clients and instill those that into them and then do it
• 12:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: I guarantee you that every single person from that meeting is gonna just, they're gonna deliver a little bit better.
• 12:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Their energy's just gonna be a little bit higher.
• 12:51
  [SPEAKER_01]: They're going to, they're interaction with the clients.
• 12:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: And it's just gonna be a little bit more intentional.
• 12:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: Like, their performance is going to increase because you just told them how important their role is and their job is, okay?
• 13:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: So,
• 13:07
  [SPEAKER_01]: I guess the point of the message is there's a psychological impact, not just on the client, but on the team when you devalue your service and say, hey, we'll give it away for free.
• 13:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I think that's kind of the, I mean, obviously that's the premise of this episode that's it's one of those things like you said it's kind of an area that's gray, you know, you don't think about that when you're creating an offer when you put in something out there.
• 13:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: We constantly talk about, you know, how has it been fit to team has been fit to client and the business as well and the owner as well.
• 13:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: And almost every area of business has some you have to look through it throughout three lenses and this is that this is a really good point because I don't think that the majority of jim owners have ever thought about the impact the offer has on the teams, you know, morale, yeah, well and and you mentioned the owner so whether you think it's just a way that.
• 14:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: of doing business or not.
• 14:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: That's having a psychological impact on you as the owner as well.
• 14:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 14:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Right.
• 14:17
  [SPEAKER_01]: Whether you want to admit it or not, there's a lot of gym owners that are just completely burnt out and they start to get jaded and almost
• 14:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: despise the industry as a job and present it right.
• 14:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I would say like when you when you feel as though you have to give your services away for free in order to sell, then that's going to have a negative impact on you.
• 14:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
• 14:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: Psychological impact on you as an owner, not just your team.
• 14:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: Wow, yeah, I mean, that's a lot to unpack.
• 14:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: Obviously, you know, Zach's giving you a challenge.
• 14:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'd say, you know, take that to your team, go see how it impacts them.
• 14:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: That's almost the opposite of giving it away for free, right?
• 15:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're instilling that value in the team, building that morale.
• 15:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: It reminds me of one of those great sales coaches, is a zig-ziggler or Jim Rown.
• 15:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: They used to say, he used to say, one of them, used to say, people will work for a paycheck, but they'll die for recognition.
• 15:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that's a great way of doing it, right?
• 15:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: Just giving, build up that team, see the positive impact that that has on your business for the day, and then you can associate that with kind of the inverse of that, right?
• 15:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: If you're giving away your services, what is it, impact it is leaving on your team?
• 15:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then, you know, yourself as well.
• 15:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: Um, yeah, let's maybe we'll do a follow-up episode in the next episode.
• 15:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: We'll talk about like the client impact how how it impacts the business from the client seat and their psychology when you're giving away your your services, but um, anything you'll say for today.
• 15:50
  [SPEAKER_00]: No, I think I think they get the message.
• 15:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, there we go.
• 15:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: All right.
• 15:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: Hey, guys.
• 15:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, that's all we have for this episode until next episode.
• 15:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: Keep changing lives.
• 15:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: We'll see you in the next show.