I recently asked a bunch of gym owners “In one word, what do you sell at your gym?”
The answers were not surprising. Resoundingly, the reply I got was “Fitness”, or “Coaching”.
Which in reality is correct.
Every gym sells some form of fitness or training just like every Amazon sells... well everything and Disneyland sells roller coaster rides.
Successful Businesses Sell Emotions & Experiences
However, Amazon and Disneyland realize they aren’t selling “things” or rides. If they were, they’d likely be about one-billionth the size they are today.
I can buy “things” at the local swap meet. I can ride “rides” at the traveling sketchy circus thing that appears every year in the park by my house.
What Amazon is selling along with every other massively successful business on the planet isn’t anything more than an experience.
The excitement of having a “present” waiting for you when you get home. The ease of shopping online and buying things in a very streamlined process. Amazon Prime Day, Cyber Monday, new gadgets and toys, all at your fingertips - even from your phone.
Disneyland doesn't sell a walk down Main Street and a ride on the Matterhorn. They sell the memories of a family trip, filled with laughter, new experiences, and excitement. They sell the sights, sounds, and smells of the theme park. They sell an autograph with your favorite princess or a hug from Goofy.
Similarly, Starbucks sells that familiar wake up warmth of your favorite early morning beverage. Some people go to bed looking forward to that experience the next day.
You see, none of these businesses are selling a product. They’re selling a feeling. An emotion. A human connection. Something much deeper than just coffee, hamburgers, or a ride on a roller coaster.
Build Systems to Sell Experiences
If you’re in the business of slangin’ fitness - stop. Fitness is the byproduct of what you’re selling, but let’s get deeper.
... and trust me, I know it’s easy for every one of you to go “ok, as of now, I’m selling experiences”. But what does that really mean?
It means you need to stop everything, and inspect every process and system and figure out where the human element is.
Manufactured Experience
Do you think it’s happenstance every single one of the 1 million emotions, experiences, sights, and sounds that you encounter at Disneyland occur?
Nope. It’s all been thought through, manufactured if you will.
And you love them for doing that. Every time.
You need to approach your business with the same level of meticulousness Disneyland,
When do people experience an emotion? How can you manufacture that experience to the fullest?
What human connections can people have at your gym? How do you maximize that?
What moments of triumph happen? Can you make that happen for everyone once a month?
Does your onboarding process make them feel special or like another client?
Does every class make them leave feeling happy, accomplished, special, or valued? How can you make sure that happens?
So Simple It Never Gets Done
I know this concept is nothing new. However, almost zero gym owners I know have worked this into the mission statement of their gym.
It should be a focal aspect of every process your facility does. From sales to onboarding. From their first month to their cancellation interview.
PushPress and The Human Experience
From day one of our business we’ve professed -
“Gym Management Software is 50% of our business; Helping gym owners is 50% of our business”
This is a mission statement we believe in and stand for.
We hate working with software systems that give us all the time in the day when they’re trying to sell us but can’t answer a question for hours or DAYS when we have them as a customer.
We believe gym owners deserve more. Today, this report was themsurfaced to me in a monthly meeting. Last month, across our company, we responded to every question that came thru to us in a median time of 2 minutes and 10 seconds.
And yes, that includes questions asked at 3 in the morning.
Build a human relationship with your clients. Help them realize monumental experiences in. your business. Support them with every question they have and bend over backward to make their experience amazing.
It’s not just something we preach. It’s something we do.
