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The Lifeline to Your Business: The Incoming Call

BY JUSTIN TAMSETT

If you’re not skillfully handling telephone inquiries, you’re wasting your marketing dollars

I

have spent tens of thousands of dollars on sales training in my club and, until recently, I thought my staff members were handling telephone inquiries

well. But when I tested them, none of my expectations were met – many of my front desk people didn’t even re- cord that a call had come in! I quickly realized that my sales

training company had provided proper training, but my staff members were not carrying out their learning. I also realized that I had not been giving them quality feedback on their job per- formances. I was simply assuming too much. To see if this problem was unique to

my situation or an industry-wide issue, I conducted a mystery-shopper cam- paign in several Australian clubs (we telephoned each club pretending to be a prospect) and discovered the follow- ing information:

• 100% of callers were not asked if

they were a member of the club they were calling • 100% of callers were not asked

how they heard about the club • 97% of callers were not asked their

names

The power of the telephone

We market our businesses to make the telephone ring and, in turn, to book tours and appointments. In my 16 years of club ownership, my club stats say it all:

• 76% of enquiries at my club are from telephone calls

• 68% of my club’s new sales start with a telephone call

52 Fitness Business Canada July/August 2009

• 86% of callers were not asked

what their goals were regarding club membership • 78% of callers felt they had to ask

the questions to gather the informa- tion they required • 64% of callers were not invited to

the club for a visit • 58% of callers were told to call

back later or that a salesperson would return their call

Our conclusion? Poor-quality ser-

vice is pervasive in the Australian club industry. Having successfully rectified the

problem in my own club, here are what I consider the key steps to a successful telephone inquiry:

1. Ask for the person’s name, and

then use it. This will help build rap- port and trust, and encourage the call- er to visit the club.

2. Ask if the caller is a member.

People call and ask “What time do you close?” or “Do you have a step class on at 5:30?” and “How much is child minding?” These may be “soft enqui- ries.” You need to know who is calling to answer appropriately.

3. Control the conversation. Ask

open-ended questions to encourage people to talk about themselves. This is a rapport- and trust-building strate- gy. When you control the conversation you can take where you want to – to an invitation to look around the club, for example.

4. Determine why the person

wants to join. Show them that you care. You don’t have to tell them what they will use or how you will help them, but you might say, “We have lots

of people who get started here for that very same reason!”

5. Book an appointment. But don’t

ask too early or you will be rejected. When you’ve built rapport and trust, ask by offering a choice: “Would today or tomorrow be better for you?”

6. Answer all questions. You can’t

give them answers until you know what they want. So tell them that up- front: “Yes, I can certainly tell you how much a membership is. I just need to know exactly what you’re looking for. May I ask you a few questions?”

The goal of every incoming call

should be to book callers for a tour. You can do this in less than three minutes if you follow the simple steps above. Skip a step, and you won’t have trust or the rapport to get the job done. We need to provide staff mem-

bers with the tools to be successful. A script, paperwork, training, practice and feedback on performance are all excellent tools. For many people, their first contact

with your club and maybe with the in- dustry, is via the telephone. You only get one opportunity to impress, so make sure you do! FBC

Justin Tamsett has been in the industry since 1988 as a personal trainer, salesperson, club manager and club owner. He won Fitness Australia’s Presidential Award for Industry Contribution in 2006 and was Australian Fitness Network Presenter of the Year in 2008. As managing director of Active Management, he consults with clubs in sales, customer service, retention and marketing. Contact him at jt@ac- tivemgmt.com.au or www.activemgmt.com.au. Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56
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