Sales

[BUTTERYGOODNESS]

Prior to being let go from my pt job due to the gym owner dying I was responsible for selling all the gyms pt and majority of trainings. Well now my job I have now I'm the assistant pt director at a much larger corporate gym and my job is all about selling pt (so no more actual training). My question is are there any good reads or tapes that can help me develop good selling techniques? I'm already pretty good but I have room for improvement and that improvement means more money. Any ideas or help pointing me towards something would be nice. I already have a few things along with constant job trainings.

[jimmyinkedup]

If they want what you are selling cost wont matter - so build value.
Its good that you want to learn but you have something that cant be taught, a belief and enthusiasm in the product you are selling as it changed your life. That will sell you more pt than any sales tool or strategy. That being said it is good to learn some sales techniques.
Man I listened to tons of tapes cant remeber. Think there was a book "The art of the deal". Then there were hours of Tom Hopkins tapes. Ill post more as they come to me. Good luck man!

[kaptainkeezy04]

Get to know all of the personal trainers, and what their expertise is. If Joe comes in wanting to put on size and strength, know what trainer would be best for him. I find that I absolutely suck at my sales job when I'm trying to sell something I wouldn't purchase myself, but if it's a product I actually like, I can sell the shit out of it, and it doesn't even feel like I'm having to "sell."

[Capebuffalo]

Zig Ziglar. Anything he has listen to.

[jimmyinkedup]

Zig Ziglar. Anything he has listen to.

Money! Cannot believe i forgot. He is excellent.

Also not exactly sales but Napoleon Hill - Think and Grow Rich helped change my mindset dramatically and def improved me in the area of sales.

[BUTTERYGOODNESS]

If they want what you are selling cost wont matter - so build value.
Its good that you want to learn but you have something that cant be taught, a belief and enthusiasm in the product you are selling as it changed your life. That will sell you more pt than any sales tool or strategy. That being said it is good to learn some sales techniques.
Man I listened to tons of tapes cant remeber. Think there was a book "The art of the deal". Then there were hours of Tom Hopkins tapes. Ill post more as they come to me. Good luck man!

My best selling point is being enthusiastic. I always seem to develop really good report with 99 percent Of people and they are get pepped and hyped up like I am while selling.

Th biggest things I have difficult with are some of your most common objections like spouse and just cost. A lot of times I'm able to repeat their objection back to them and make them answer it or I've already pre-qualified the objection prior to it being brought it. Overall I have great confidence in my abilities and sell the majority. I'm just wanting to fine tune myself to get me those extra few ya know?

And I appreciate everyone's input so far I'll be sure to look into all aspects.

[BUTTERYGOODNESS]

Does zig have any particular reads/tapes/vids y'all suggest?

[twitz]

Zig Ziglar. Anything he has listen to.

Good idea Cape

Ask open-ended questions, get to know them a bit and LISTEN to them. As you feel them out, start asking or stating things that lead them to say 'yes'. The more times they say yes, and an enthusiastic attitude will get them excited for what you have to offer them, and in this case it is YOU!!

How do you qualify them before you try to sell a certain package? If spouse/cost are the two main objections, start asking things that will make this easier for you to get around. Maybe get an idea of some of their bad habbits (eating out, smoking, alcohol), and around how many times they do it per month. Then if they say $$$ is too much for what you're offering, agree with what they say 'yes, I understand a budget, I'm on one too..., then point out how much they will save on these bad habits once they hire you and start to care about their health. Just be easy going and let them know that you care and are listening to them.

Good luck Buttery!!

[jimmyinkedup]

Spousal is the one objection you think is dead and comes back to bite you in the ass. You cant just overcome and get commitment with it - you have to destroy it.

[twitz]

Spousal is the one objection you think is dead and comes back to bite you in the ass. You cant just overcome and get commitment with it - you have to destroy it.

I don't sell PT, so it is different for me, but I usually try to get them to bring the spouse in. In Buttery's case, I'm going to assume that it's a lady seeking the training and that her hubby will be the one with the issue. If you tried everything and still can't close, why not ask her to bring him in? If you can make that happen, address him, make him feel comfortable and make him realize that this is your job, and that you are good at what you too. Talk him up a little, mention your family, wife, gf, dog... whatever you can to make him realize that you're not a trainer just to meet ladies. Maybe he will loosen up to the idea that his wife/gf actually wants to hire you because you are a good trainer and not for your good looks & fit body. It's probably a hard one to overcome, but you lose all the shots you don't take

[Rwy]

Jefferey Gittomer Sales Bible

Sales is about rapport. Making people feel comofrtable with the service they are purchasing from you

[cherrydrpepper]

Dale Carnegie - How to win friends and influence people
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4dxy46Ju7Q

[jimmyinkedup]

Dale Carnegie - How to win friends and influence people
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4dxy46Ju7Q

Another classic.

[cherrydrpepper]

Another classic.

Yeah bro I have both read and listened to it. Maybe too much information but I used to just take these long baths and read the book and visualize what he was talking about its mostly how to have a conversation with another human being and get them to put you on their side trust you etc and a lot of it is about being true to yourself not trying to scam or fake it. I found that after I had read the book I would literally be in conversations that were exactly like the examples he gave and I would make the correct choice on how to get them to like me essentially.

[Zodiac82]

Good idea Cape

Ask open-ended questions, get to know them a bit and LISTEN to them. As you feel them out, start asking or stating things that lead them to say 'yes'. The more times they say yes, and an enthusiastic attitude will get them excited for what you have to offer them, and in this case it is YOU!!

How do you qualify them before you try to sell a certain package? If spouse/cost are the two main objections, start asking things that will make this easier for you to get around. Maybe get an idea of some of their bad habbits (eating out, smoking, alcohol), and around how many times they do it per month. Then if they say $$$ is too much for what you're offering, agree with what they say 'yes, I understand a budget, I'm on one too..., then point out how much they will save on these bad habits once they hire you and start to care about their health. Just be easy going and let them know that you care and are listening to them.

Good luck Buttery!!

I don't sell PT, so it is different for me, but I usually try to get them to bring the spouse in. In Buttery's case, I'm going to assume that it's a lady seeking the training and that her hubby will be the one with the issue. If you tried everything and still can't close, why not ask her to bring him in? If you can make that happen, address him, make him feel comfortable and make him realize that this is your job, and that you are good at what you too. Talk him up a little, mention your family, wife, gf, dog... whatever you can to make him realize that you're not a trainer just to meet ladies. Maybe he will loosen up to the idea that his wife/gf actually wants to hire you because you are a good trainer and not for your good looks & fit body. It's probably a hard one to overcome, but you lose all the shots you don't take

this....I used to compare the cost of their habits to to the coat of the package....it was easy when they brought cigarettes and stuff like that.....and like Twitz said get them in at the same time and when u do focus more on selling and speaking to the woman....you build rapport with her and its a cakewalk....I dont have any tape ideas but one movie I used to watch all the time was "Boiler Room" got me pumped all the time

[BUTTERYGOODNESS]

All this info is gold!!! Keep any and everything coming. Thank u all for the help. I have a lot of earning potential where I'm at now and quick advancement opportunities as well.

[twitz]

Besides sales technique, learn how to market yourself. Try to think of how gym members feel. Maybe there are a few overweight people who would not feel comfortable asking you about your services. Be friendly to everyone, and in your slower times maybe offer suggestions or tips. That will help people realize that you’re just a person too, that you are helpful and that you are interested in them. If they ever think about hiring a trainer, you will be the one they go to

[Knockout_Power]

Didn't read the other replies, but I know the most successful sales people at my gym are either the sales girls with huge fake racks or the guys all jacked up... Sad fact, but they are making themselves and the gym tons of money at 90/hr...

An even sadder fact is that the average person likes to be made to feel demeaned. The more you make them feel like crap for not being in shape, the more they accept your input... Pretty contrary to to typical sales approach of showing a person what they could achieve...

[kitstreasure]

I have a couple book suggestions for you and then a simple piece of advice.
Books:
The One Minute Closer
How to Work a Room

Advice:
If they have come to you seeking PT info they've already bought your product. That's why they're there. You just have to make them realize this. Don't leave room for a "no". When it comes to the cost objections, have some stats on hand about monthly medication costs for diabetes, hypertension, congestive heart failure, etc. Then ask them which they can afford easier. Also, I'd get with your boss and see if you can market the company's services to local businesses/corporations/apartment communities. More and more employers and such are going to offering their employees gym memberships as an employee benefit with training split with the employee for employees that are overweight/heart patients/diabetics in the interest of improving the bottom line. The fact is that if you're in sales, and you're not cold calling, then more than likely the person you're speaking to about your service has already mentally bought your service, they just haven't realized it yet.

[ElectraMaddox]

All this info is gold!!! Keep any and everything coming. Thank u all for the help. I have a lot of earning potential where I'm at now and quick advancement opportunities as well.

I pmed you the sales process start to finish

[Honkey_Kong]

Prior to being let go from my pt job due to the gym owner dying I was responsible for selling all the gyms pt and majority of trainings. Well now my job I have now I'm the assistant pt director at a much larger corporate gym and my job is all about selling pt (so no more actual training). My question is are there any good reads or tapes that can help me develop good selling techniques? I'm already pretty good but I have room for improvement and that improvement means more money. Any ideas or help pointing me towards something would be nice. I already have a few things along with constant job trainings.

Buttery, the thing with sales is you're not selling PT sessions, you're selling solutions to THEIR problem. It sounds obvious, but most sales people forget it.

So to sell the solution to the customer, you need to talk to the customer. You need a conversation starter like football, what's on TV last night, a current event, anything except something controversial. This will let you gauge in to what they're into as people and enable you to ask some personal questions to find out about them more.

Before you ask a single personal question, you have to ask them a permission question. This question asks them for permission to be questioned and it also tells them why you're questioning them and what the benefit will be if you question them.

While talking to them, it's probably best to start taking notes about them. Their family life, their diet, their level of activity, what they do. anything you can think of. When you're ready to provide to them a complete solution to their problem. In your case it'll be a specific trainer and what they'll be focusing on. Then you ask for the sale

You can then thank them and start talking to them about their friends see if you might be able to snag a lead out of this sale.

This is pretty generic, but it's a solid working model for any sort of sales position.

And when a customer brings you an obstacle like "it costs too much," Use The Three F's:

You say:

I know what you're feeling
Many clients have also felt that
But I've found that ......


And it helps if you can give the customer a copy of your notes. That way they have a road map of how they got to your PT solution when they leave. This will reduce the number of people who back out.

[jimmyinkedup]

Buttery, the thing with sales is you're not selling PT sessions, you're selling solutions to THEIR problem. It sounds obvious, but most sales people forget it.

So to sell the solution to the customer, you need to talk to the customer. You need a conversation starter like football, what's on TV last night, a current event, anything except something controversial. This will let you gauge in to what they're into as people and enable you to ask some personal questions to find out about them more.

Before you ask a single personal question, you have to ask them a permission question. This question asks them for permission to be questioned and it also tells them why you're questioning them and what the benefit will be if you question them.

While talking to them, it's probably best to start taking notes about them. Their family life, their diet, their level of activity, what they do. anything you can think of. When you're ready to provide to them a complete solution to their problem. In your case it'll be a specific trainer and what they'll be focusing on. Then you ask for the sale

You can then thank them and start talking to them about their friends see if you might be able to snag a lead out of this sale.

This is pretty generic, but it's a solid working model for any sort of sales position.

And when a customer brings you an obstacle like "it costs too much," Use The Three F's:

You say:

I know what you're feeling
Many clients have also felt that
But I've found that ......


And it helps if you can give the customer a copy of your notes. That way they have a road map of how they got to your PT solution when they leave. This will reduce the number of people who back out.

Oh my you went to the feel, felt, found .....
Brings back memories of when I first learned it. Solid technique.
Reduction to the ridiculous next?

[Honkey_Kong]

Oh my you went to the feel, felt, found .....
Brings back memories of when I first learned it. Solid technique.
Reduction to the ridiculous next?

Yeah, that's a great one too. "If you can't afford $2 a day, I'll back off now!!!"

It's actually kind of funny to know that people have been using these same techniques for as long as there have been merchants.

[jimmyinkedup]

A couple more:

Help me help you.
Benefit summary - step down - close.

[Honkey_Kong]

A couple more:

Help me help you.
Benefit summary - step down - close.

What kind of sales job did you have?

[BUTTERYGOODNESS]

A couple more:

Help me help you.
Benefit summary - step down - close.

Elaborate please?

[belva]

What about spin selling by Neil Rackham.

[Vettester]

Start at the beginning and read, "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. The book was written in the 30's, and it's a must for those looking to achieve success.

Another good one is, "Who Moved My Cheese". Pretty quick read, and it will give you understand the importance of staying proactive.

Neither of these are exactly what you call, "Teaching you to sell" books, but they really hit on the fundamentals and basics that you will want to incorporate into your thinking.

In a nutshell, as I've told my territory managers in the past, be a problem solver! When discovering a problem, look at what you're providing as a solution, then break it down into FAB. FAB = Features, Advantages & Benefits. Everything should start with the Feature. If one were selling a member on joining our forums, you could simply use FAB to do it ...

Feature: AR is the world's most visited anabolic Website, which has a multitude of specialized forums, ranging from AAS, diet & nutrition, HRT, PCT, blood work review, select sections for ladies only, and much, much more!

Advantage: Within the framework of ONE site, you can easily ascertain a great amount of knowledge, and participate with a large population of extremely knowledgeable members in a multitude of different categories, who have proven results and experiences to share with you.

Benefit(s): You will save time, gain continuity, and ultimately achieve all of your health related results much faster by participating the forum that has the most diverse and talented expertise on the Net.

... This was just a quick sound off on the main FAB's that came to my mind when thinking of AR. There could be a hundred different FAB's for AR, much better than what I presented, but I think you get my point. Keep those 3 letters in your mind whenever talking to someone about a product, service, or whatever, and it will make selling a little bit easier.

[jimmyinkedup]

What kind of sales job did you have?

Fitness Industry.