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Articles by Jason Stowell
Three Sales Strategies for the Best January Ever at Your Health Club
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437 Thinking Ahead: Managing Both Your Margin and Your Mission
Jason Stowell sits down with Don Doyle, SVP of Healthplex Associates (HPA). Don is a seasoned veteran of the health and wellness industry. Don has been in club operations for over 20 years. During that time he implemented many successful growth and development strategies. HPA works with hospitals, health systems, foundations, recreation centers and universities. They help these companies meet the challenges of making wellness a clinical and financial success.
420 Thinking Ahead: Integrating your Fit Biz into the Medical Wellness Continuum
Today I sit down with John Caliri from FirstHealth of the Carolinas. John has received numerous awards and recognition, including the Medical Fitness Association Director of the Year Award, the Don Schneider Award and most recently, the 2017 Hank Boerner Pioneer Award for significant contributions to the advancement of the industry.
403 Thinking Ahead: Leveraging Behavioural Design in your Fitness Business
Recently IHRSA has partnered with Clearview Insights in an effort to leverage better data to achieve better outcomes as an industry. ON todays show we hear from Dr. Daniel Krieglstein. Dr. Krieglstein is a Behaviour Designer and Scientist. He enjoys developing hypotheses from noisy, confusing datasets; and allowing consumer behaviours to drive design choice. Joining us on today’s show we welcome Dr. Daniel Krieglstein. Dr. Krieglstein is a Behaviour Designer and Scientist.
384 Thinking Ahead: Strategies to Empower your Staff and Achieve Greater Business Success
On today’s show we welcome Sunjay Nath. Sunjay is a world renown motivational speaker and author of the 10-80-10 principal. In this show we dive into varying strategies in which owners and operators can empower their staffs through the achievement of small victories. Sunjay also shares why our leaders should spend more time focusing on developing the top ten percent of their staffs as opposed to losing time trying to manage the bottom ten percent.
365 Thinking Ahead: Enhancing your Member Experience Approach
04 Jun 365 Thinking Ahead: Enhancing your Member Experience Approach Posted at 08:00h in Jason Stowell, Leadership, Marketing, Personal Development, Retention, Sales, Thinking Ahead by Jason Stowell
The Running Boom: Programming for New Pandemic Runners
A running boom? When 3,961 current runners were asked when they began running, 28.76% stated they started running during the pandemic. A recent survey conducted by RunRepeat asked 3,961 current runners how many of them began running during the pandemic. The survey aimed to learn more about running motivations, participating in races and how the runners differ from those who began before the pandemic. Here are the key findings: 28.76% of current runners started running during the pandemic.
A Reopening Strategy in the Face of Uncertainty
Let’s take a moment to recognize both the significant challenges we have faced as an industry, and the enormous opportunities we have in front of us before addressing a reopening strategy in the face of uncertainty. Despite our fears around disruption and innovation – COVID-19, fitness wearables, Peloton, other online fitness offerings, etc., will certainly not be the death of the “traditional” health and wellness industry.
Webinar: Using Personas to Drive Predictable Revenue
A lot has changed in the past year. The gym industry lost 58% of its revenue in 2020. It’s likely your members’ fitness and wellness goals have changed as well. While we work on getting members back in our clubs, driving non-dues revenue is more important than ever.
Works on Progress Vol. 1, by Community Records
ALBUM IS HERE: worksonprogress.bandcamp.com worksonprogress.bandcamp.com worksonprogress.bandcamp.com Works On Progress Vol. 1 is a compilation of BIPOC musicians. From day one, 100% of every dollar from every sale will be sent to the artists. We are aiming to highlight the talent of the folks involved, connect this incredible music to new listeners, and get as much money as possible into the musician’s pockets. We are aiming to help build community and equity for these artists.
Ask the Expert: Mary Olson
Taylor Brown September 1, 2020 This month we sat down with Mary Olson, the club manager of Little Rock Athletic Club, to discuss leadership. How would you describe your leadership style? MO: If I had to reduce it to one word, I would say humble. I did not plot this destination as club manager.
After 47 Years, The Claremont Club to Permanently Close due to COVID-19
The Claremont Club announced on July 30 through a Facebook post it will be closing its doors permanently as of August 1. The statement, written by Mike Alpert, the president and CEO of The Claremont Club, explained the club’s true desire has been to continue with what Stan Clark started in 1973. However, the financial cost incurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of almost 1,200 memberships during their closures left them with no alternative but to close their doors.
Inspired Prospects Do Not Need to be Closed
"Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives - the power to retell it, rethink it, deconstruct it, and change it are truly powerless because they cannot think new thoughts."
COVID-19 Closes all GoodLife Fitness Locations
Taylor Brown March 16, 2020 All GoodLife and Fit4Less locations across Canada will be closing until further notice to help protect members and associates from the threat of COVID-19, effective immediately. This decision was based on guidance from public health experts. GoodLife and Fit4Less clubs will reopen when it is safe to do so, based on direction from local authorities.
The Member Sales and Service Hourglass
Let me first frame this whole blog by stating: Being a great caretaker of our members' success while also generating strong revenues are not mutually exclusive concepts. I have had the privilege of working on both the for-profit side for 17 years, followed by seven years on the non-profit side.
The Differentiated Prospective Member Experience
Let me first lead with this: What you “know” will often put you out of business. As the fitness industry has evolved over the last two decades, we have witnessed enormous shifts in what would be considered best practices, both in professionalism and scope. This is a totally natural evolution in a maturing market as we all strive for betterment.
4 Steps to Increase Membership Sales
MYZONE November 7, 2019 The health club market continues to become more saturated every year. While more and more clubs are popping up, facilities haven’t seen the same uptick in club memberships. So the question remains: How can gym owners increase membership sales? Here are four steps to do just that: 1. Always advertise with an expiration date or a limited number of memberships. It’s important to create external urgency with any discount or promotion a gym provides.
Establishing Professional Rapport - Not Just Being Likable
image by shutterstock “When two people meet, as long as there is any form of rapport maintained, the person with the most certainly will eventually influence the other person.” – Tony Robbins Yes! You should be likable if you intend to be at least somewhat influential in life. This is especially true if you work in sales — and even truer if you work in fitness, where sales and continued service go together. However, in sales, we often confuse professional rapport with rapport.
Persuasion Versus Manipulation: Tactics to Utilize and Avoid
image by shutterstock “Advertising is fundamentally persuasion, and persuasion happens to not be a science, but an art.” – William Bernbach In pop culture, the salesman is usually some man with slicked-back hair and a take-no-prisoners attitude when it comes to closing the deal. They are typically arrogant, self-serving and manipulative, and the only outcome desired is to secure more wealth for themselves — even at the expense of their clients.
The Minefield that is Professional Development in Fitness
While reflecting back on my first full year of blogging, I was reminded again just the other day why I started writing in the first place. Many of you do not remember a time before the internet, but if you wanted to learn a thing you had to go to a library, take a class, find a mentor, etc. Today, if you Google, “How to blah blah blah,” you will find tens of thousands of sources. Here’s the problem; a lot of them are crap.
Pivot Now or Fail Later — What to Know About Gen Z | Club Solutions
image by shutterstock “Why will Gen Z and those immersed in youth culture wait in line for hours at Supreme for a new product to drop? Because they want to be in the line. The line is the new community and those who wait in line earn a seat at a very elite table. For brands to succeed with Gen Z, they need to create a sense of belonging or their competition will.” ― Gregg L. Witt Let’s start with me telling you how this blog ends.
Retention: The Consequence of Usage and Intentional Design
“Repeat business or behavior can be bribed. Loyalty has to be earned.” – Janet Robinson Let’s start with how I will end this blog: retention efforts must begin the very moment the new member joins the facility. If you believe retention is a program that happens at the end of the membership lifecycle, you have already lost, my friends. That’s service recovery, not retention. I try not to write about a thing unless I feel I can add something new to the conversation.
Sales: Why You Should Lead with Your Highest Valued Membership Option
Very few people enjoy being in any type of sales role. That’s because it has been hard-wired into our brains to fear rejection. A bazillion years ago, rejection meant being tossed out of the cave and left alone to die. Once you get to the “ask” in the sales process, most of us get a little squeamish inside. Kind of takes you back to high school when you slid that note across the table to your crush. The one that read, “Do you like me?
5 Tips for the Already Successful Personal Trainer
By Jason R. Stowell on June 19, 2019 IMAGE COURTESY OF SHUTTERSTOCK “Investing in yourself is the best investment you will ever make. It will not only improve your life, it will improve the lives of all those around you.” Robin Sharma Back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, I was pretty new in the fitness industry — I wasn’t even sure I was going to stay in the fitness field. I had enrolled at a local university with a plan to become a high school history teacher.
Do You Really Know Who You Are Selling To?
image by shutterstock A few years back I spent three weeks working with a small chain of personal training studios that specialized in developing athletes of all levels. The facilities were remarkable and dynamic, the trainers were top notch, and the owner had an incredible and inspiring story, as well as tons of social proof to support that they could deliver on their promise.
Sales: Prioritize Volume Over Closing Rates for Greater Success
image by shutterstock “It’s not about having the right opportunities. It’s about handling the opportunities right.” —Mark Hunter It’s shocking how often during a site evaluation I hear from a person in leadership: “Our close rates on tours/personal training orientations are around 80 to 90 percent. If we only had more prospects, all of our sales dreams would come true.” This is half right actually.
Conduct a Better Membership Tour Using the Peak-End Rule
image by shutterstock So, you have finally come to the realization that you need to improve your membership tour process, if you even have one to begin with. This likely occurred because you are not getting the results you want consistently. Your center probably has one or two “rainmaker” salespeople who seem to just be able to close more deals by what seems like magic, but the rest of the team is struggling. Likely your next step is to go online to find resources to build an improved tour.
The Colorado River
Water is the lifeblood of the arid West. Without water we don’t have farms or ranches—or towns and cities. There have been many battles over land and water, and especially water, because land without water is worthless. Western water law and water rights came into existence to try to prevent and resolve conflicts between water users. The Colorado River is one of the largest and longest rivers in the Southwest.
How to Address Uncomfortable Situations with Members
image by shutterstock If you have worked in fitness long enough, you know that issues between or among members arise from time to time — including having a member with a strong odor, that other members complain about. First, let me tell you a funny story on how NOT to address this particular issue, that hails from my early years in the fitness industry.
Sales: The Importance of Body Language and Tone
image by shutterstock “We are not won by arguments that we can analyze, but by the tone and temper, by the manner which is the man himself.” — Samuel Butler. Studies have shown time and time again that the vast majority of communication is not about what we say, but in how we say it. The hard fast rule, according to Psychology Today, is that communication is only 7 percent verbal, 55 percent body language, with tone making up the other 38 percent.
100 Sales Closing Tactics
Jason R. Stowell October 17, 2018 I have personally found that sales as a career can be tremendously rewarding both personally and financially — but educating one’s self can be extremely difficult. Maybe it’s due to the lack of educational paths, or because the lay person thinks it’s ultimately just “talking” and not a real skill of value. Thus it has been incredibly challenging to find great sources of education.
Winning at Membership Sales: Hoping for Success vs. Planning for Success
“Control your controllables.” This is the advice I often give to facilities when they ask me why they continue to miss their membership sales goals. It should go without saying that having the right staff, the right script, the right marketing, etc, all have enormous impacts on outcomes — but usually I find the plan itself is flawed. Or even worse there is no plan at all, just hope. I have reviewed quite a few membership sales plans over the last 20-plus years.
100 Sales Tips for Fitness Professionals
Sales professionals will often ask me, “What is your one killer technique?” The answer is not to seek only one, or even a few great tactics. It’s the culmination of implementing hundreds of small, positive outcome-influencing techniques that help close the deal. As a sales professional, I have made it a priority to invest at least a few hours a week into bettering my control and understanding over the entire spectrum of influence.
How to Win at Personal Training Sales
Success isn’t a happy accident and neither is conducting a successful personal training orientation. Although most trainers are great practitioners, few ever receive substantial sales training. We wouldn’t expect a mechanic to also be a fantastic car salesman. Nor would we think that our homebuilder is the same person as our real-estate agent. However, in personal training, often times we find that we have to both sell agreements and provide the results. Not an easy task.
Guest Opinion: Solutions for the Colorado River’s overallocation problem
The Colorado River may not be the largest river in the U.S., but it is a crucial resource supplying water to approximately 40 million people and irrigating close to 4 million acres of farm and ranch land each year.Because of its importance, in 1922, seven states within the Colorado River Basin and the federal government reached an agreement that currently governs the allocation of the water rights among the states connected to the Colorado River.Dubbed the Colorado River Compact, the...
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