In this world of competition, where the Customer is the King, and all activities are channeled by the enterprises and individuals alike to satisfy the customer, the need for a personal trainer to help boost the sales by converting more prospective customers to actual customers is the real challenge.

The perception of personal training sales is witnessing a drastic change. The salesmanship or the skills of effectively closing a sale are not the only things that results in higher sales. Also, the salient features of a product and/or the utility value of the products being sold are not the only criteria nowadays for a prospective customer to decide on. The quality of the product, effective after-sales service and the congruence of ideas between the seller and the buyer, all play vital roles, in the promotion of a product or higher sales for an existing product.

It is in this context that the role of the personal trainer and his efforts through personal training sales that the customers are satisfied to the best possible extent and retained for the product. The fact that the competition in the market place is fierce and the dissemination of data across the global markets, thanks to the advancement in communications technology, is instant further validates this idea of the need for a personal trainer.

The personal training sales transaction initiates with the buyer, as always. It is the demand from the customer that leads to the conclusion of the sale. The necessity for a change from the buyer’s perspective triggers the purchase of a product. It has been discovered that most of the people resort to buying a product for psychological reasons. The urge to lift their quality of life to the next higher plane and / or sheer unhappiness with the present state of the things is what that drives the purchasers to buy a product. This aspect is referred to as the carrot and stick philosophy. The need for change to a higher plane being the carrot while the disappointment with the present state of affairs being the stick, necessitating the change.

The role of the personal trainer is primarily to identify the correct reason that actually motivates for a change. While the sales person will not be much interested in knowing the reasons behind the purchase by a consumer and is more concerned with the completion of the personal training sale, the personal trainer is more interested in knowing the reasons for the change. In other words, the pain suffered by the consumer is of more concern to the personal trainer than just the need for change, as the former gives a clear cut idea of the motivation behind the change.

For example, if a female in her middle age walks into a gym and enquires about the possibility of reducing the extra weight she had put on of late, the personal trainer will be more interested in knowing the reason why she needs to reduce the extra fat or how that she had got that extra fat, before suggesting ways and means to get rid of the excess fat. An informal discussion with the lady will then lead to a conclusion about the seriousness of her intention to get the excess fat reduced. The personal trainer will be more interested in assessing the real reason as he can suggest the best possible remedy for the lady. While an average salesperson will be satisfied with the reasons given by the customer to reduce fat, the personal trainer will try to dig a bit deeper and understand the actual reason.

Understanding the problem is half solution for the problem, goes the saying. The better the personal trainer gets to know of the reason or the motivation for change, the solutions for the customer will be clear. The interaction with the lady will help the personal trainer in assessing the need for change, and ascertaining the motivation levels and commitment on the part of the female, which will help in giving the best possible guidance with confidence that the customer can be roped in to the personal training sale.

By digging a little deeper on the change and analyzing the problem, the personal trainer will be in a better way to provide solutions, which will, apart from generating a sale, will enhance the satisfaction levels of the customer and the probability of retaining the customer for a longer period of time can be achieved. The satisfaction of the customer also helps in generating more sales for the same, through the world-of-mouth advertising by the customer regarding the salient features of the program, and in turn, might result in more leads being created.

Get good at personal training sales and your business will thrive.

By: Chris McCombs