Epic title right?
Now I don’t mean in the sense you take revenge and make them pay for leaving you!
I am talking about After Care, something many Personal Trainers do not do as they feel hurt or let down that their client has left.
It isn’t nice when a client leaves you, however it ISN’T personal. You have to remember you are a small fraction of their life.
Having a Personal Trainer is seen as a big luxury and when money is tight it will probably be the easiest thing to cancel.
Yes I agree, health is very important and should be valued but this is human nature and the way things go.
By providing top quality After Care you will ensure that when your client is in a better financial position or things have ‘let up’ at work they will come back to YOU and no one else.
How do I do that you might ask?
If you don't already have an exit meeting with your client when they leave, I strongly suggest you make this part of your procedure.
It doesn’t have to be anything too formal; it’s a great opportunity to get some feedback from your client and a chance for you to leave things on a good note.
I'm sure they will have worried and been stressed about finishing with you. It isn’t easy; they may feel embarrassed so now you can end things on a happy note.
FIRST STEP for making your clients feel gutted for leaving you
PHYSICAL EVIDENCE
Giving your clients a physical folder of their journey so far will wow the socks of them.
I have met very few Personal Trainers that do this.
It takes forward thinking, organisation, time and effort – some qualities us PTs can lack at times – lol!
A few ideas you could put in the folder:
Recipes
Progress Pictures
Positive Quotes
Training programs
You could collate this each week in a folder or just use PT Distinction.
I would also use your client’s stats to show improvements such as weight loss, inch loss, increased fitness and increased strength.
You could even put a graph together (Just put the results in to PTD and print out the one we instantly create!) so it is easy to see how far they have come with you.
It’s a great reminder for them and will really make them feel valued. Also when they come across it at a later date it might show them that working with you meant they made more progress. Also a bit of the guilt factor will kick in!
I would present them with this client journey folder at the exit session, tell them you have something for them. It will mean they actually turn up, or you could have it at the end of their last session.
I would add a ‘Next Steps’ at the end of the folder, they may have just finished a 6 week transformation with you, so now you could suggest the maintenance plan, or your online coaching and give them some details.
Don’t go for a hard sell here; just give them a few suggestions for what they can do without you.
SECOND STEP for making your clients feel gutted for leaving you
KEEP IN TOUCH
Put all your clients on a separate mailing list to your current and perspective clients
Don’t just sell to them, give them value
Send them a monthly Newsletter
Keep motivating them
Offer them ‘no strings attached’ short calls
Why?
It means that when they are ready to recommit the first person they will think of is YOU!
Keep an eye on all your ex-client’s social media so that if they receive a promotion, get married, have a child – something special you can send them a card!
This shows you care and have kept an eye on them, which many small business do not do.
If you are not friends with them on social media you can just send them the usual birthday/Christmas cards.
I would suggest having a folder that is divided by months, when a client joins you, write out their birthday card (from the stash you have bought in bulk) and write it out with all their details and put it in your folder in advance.
Then at the beginning of each month you can post the ones that are relevant a few days before their birthday.
Tip: Use a post it to put the actual birthday on the card
THIRD STEP for making your clients feel gutted for leaving you
THE EXTRA MILE
Sending your clients personal videos is another great way to wow them. These could be done every few months, just section of some time each month to do a few in bulk.
This could be an opportunity to provide information about a new programme that would suit your client, be sure to use their name so they know its just for them.
It doesn’t have to be long or super high quality; using your iPhone will be enough then you can upload it to You Tube, set it as private and send them their link via email or text.
You could use this technique to invite ex-clients to events too, as well as wish them a happy birthday!
Find what works for you and your business.
This might make you feel uncomfortable, the stuff you SHOULD be doing usually does!
As we said in our last Blog ‘How To Get More Online Training Clients’ it is much easier and cost effective to get your ex-clients to come back to you to get a new client.
These tactics do not guarantee your clients will come back, however it does give you a much better chance than if you just do nothing!
