What’s the #1 question fitness studios are NOT asking themselves enough about building a fitness community? It’s very important and key to member happiness and retention… a positive answer to this question can truly transform studios all over the world:
“How does your fitness studio make your members FEEL?”
How they FEEL is far more important than what you say, claim, whatever. Transformation stories are powerful because of the story, the journey. How someone feels now compared to how they felt in the past is actually more powerful than just seeing how they look.
As the Chief Operating Officer of Orangetheory Fitness, Griff Long says, “people don’t remember what you tell them, they remember how you made them feel.”
So, how can you get to the heart of how your members and build a strong fitness community? How can you improve how everyone feels for greater loyalty and results? By focusing on Griff’s 3 “P”s…
People | A Fitness Community Is Built When Studios Care On A Deeper, Human Level
When Griff Long first worked out at Orangetheory Fitness he was asked about his knee injury. It created an instant personal experience he’ll never forget. “My trainer was very hands-on and helpful, guiding me through every aspect of the workout to make sure my injured knee was taken care of,” Griff says.
“How does your fitness community make your members FEEL?”
From that moment on, he knew he had to be part of OTF. He knew that the way they treated people, combined with their undeniable results, was a powerful combination. Griff carries this experience with him and leads the entire HQ team this way.
When one team member lost her Apple Airpod headphones, Griff bought her new ones. When another team member brought her daughter into HQ, Griff went out of his way to make them feel special.
“People are the core of every business. It’s important to treat them well while helping them improve,” he says, “Creating influence is about helping people get what they want, not just giving it to them or worse, denying it for no reason.”
Process | Fitness Studios Need To Develop A Duplicatable Way To Improve Everything
Griff’s team is also incredibly efficient. That’s the power of creating processes around everything that’s working within your fitness community. We talk about this at Loud Rumor all the time. You want to make sure your team follows a scripted sales process, you want to make sure your front desk follows an intimate, personal greeting process that makes members feel special, you want to make sure your trainers follow a specific process to create emotional connections with members.
“Everything that moves the needle of your business, everything that matters to your people and to the overall success of your business must be dialed into a duplicatable process that anyone can follow,” Griff Long says.
Performance | Fitness Studios Need To Measure How Things Are Working
Finally, it’s important to measure your progress! How do you know if your trainers, sales team, or front desk staff are performing well if you don’t have specific performance metrics in place?
“It’s like working out,” Griff says, “When you have a specific goal, there are always daily tasks created to help you get there and discover what’s working and what’s not. You want to make sure you’re performing rather than guessing.”
If you want to know what performance metrics you can start tracking in your fitness community, check out some of the in-depth training at GSD 360 today.
Hope you enjoy this episode with Griff and call us or email us if you have any questions!
Podcast Timestamps: Build A Strong Fitness Community
0:20 – Orangetheory Fitness Chief Operating Officer Griff Long’s extensive background
1:46 – Griff explains how Orangetheory Fitness made him feel
2:50 – How Griff took athletic work ethic into business
4:32 – 3 things every operations leader should keep in mind: People, Process, and Performance
5:40 – How to help your employees get what they want to avoid turnover
7:02 – Help your employees hit their goals just like you help your fitness studio members hit theirs
9:41 – Stop giving people the answer… help them find it on their own
11:50 – What does an ideal fitness studio trainer or coach look like?
15:19 – Don’t let bad employees toxify your fitness community
18:01 – Make sure you ask the right questions when interviewing A-Player employees
18:53 – SURPRISE question for Orangetheory Fitness COO Griff Long
21:44 – Brilliant fitness studio technology updates that your members will love
24:26 – Griff’s top educational books that have helped shaped his leadership style
25:07 – Griff has one mission: Turning managers into leaders
What You’ll Learn
- How to utilize an accountability fee to benefit members and revenue
- Why 77% of women cancel their fitness memberships
- The power of paying attention to the details of your fitness community
- How Corbyn’s studios generate hundreds of presale members with just two employees
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