Make Your Appointment Book Look Like That of The Quack Doc To The Stars

Have you ever been to an in-demand doctor, psychologist, dentist, or lawyer? 

Have you noticed that they are only taking appointments for certain hours of the week?

I bet you made sure that you'll put yourself in to one of the hours they had available, didn't you? 

You never complain about how you wished they were open more hours; you just took what they had left because you know that they're in demand and they're good at what they do.

If doctors, dentists, and lawyers can be rigid about their schedule, then why can't a personal trainer too?

It amazes me how many personal trainers I know will  take appointments just about any time during the week, and their schedule ends up being all over the place.   This strategy doesn't allow a lot of time for focusing on the big lever like marketing your personal training business.

If you're like this, clients will definitely take advantage of that and they will make their appointments with you when it is most convenient for them, which could be any time of the week. This is a horrible time management strategy. 

Not only does it have the trainer running around like maniac trying meet all of their clients scheduling demands, it also reeks of desperation. Just like attractive women can spot a guy who hasn't had sex since the 90's, clients and prospects can tell if you really need the business… and that's never something you want to project. People who are the best at what they do never NEED business, they attract it.

Clients will respect you more and value your time and service more if you lay down the ground rules right from the beginning.

Instead of asking a client "When can you come in?", why not say something like this: "These are the hours that I train; which one works for you? " 

As long as you're in the gym at least three to four days a week, 99% of your clientele will be able to fit themselves into your available hours. 

The 1% that can't you can simply outsource, give to another trainer, or just let them be on your way.  Losing that 1% of your clientele will definitely be worth it because you will save yourself a lot of time and headache from being in the gym all the time. 

If you're extremely rigid and radical about the hours that you will work right at the beginning and you lay down those rules right from the start, your life will be so much easier and you'll have so much more free time, instead of what a lot of trainers do is they just have a schedule that's all over the place and then their day looks like appointment, appointment, sit around and wait, appointment, appointment, sit around and wait. 

Why not just do blocks of appointments and then have blocks of free time? 

This strategy saved me hundreds of hours back in the day when I was training myself, and I know many trainers who stick to a rigid schedule and really enjoy it and the free time that it allows them.

If you don't respect your time and schedule, how can you expect your clients to?

 

Make More and Work Less,

Chris McCombs

Personal Trainer Marketing and Health Club Marketing Specialist