Four Things I (Re)Learnt About Communicating With Customers + Thank You

Firstly, thank you to all who purchased a copy the Little Bootcamp Book of Tyres and Ropes last week.

I still think it’s really cool that people out there actually want to buy the stuff that I make.

I was more nervous about releasing this product then any other because a) it was for a really specific niche of bootcamp trainers and b) this is the first product I’ve released since I took on Bootcamp Ideas full time. But I will talk more about that below.

Thank you all again for your support. You guys are awesome!

What this week retaught me

The best way to learn about how to run your business better, is by actually running your business.

Just like the best way to become a better trainer is by training more people.

Of course, you have to stop once and a while and reflect on what you did. What worked and what didn’t work? Which brings us back to the topic of this article.

After I launch a new manual or run a workshop I always like to sit down and spend some time afterwards reflecting on what worked and what didn’t work (read some previous relections here and here).

So, here are four things I learnt this time and how they also apply to your bootcamp business.

1. Make it easy for people to understand exactly what it is they are buying.

One thing that I completely forgot to do last week, was spend time telling you all about what exactly was inside The Little Bootcamp Book of Tyres and Ropes.

Sure you had some idea that there was going to be tyre exercises in there and something about finding tyres was also available but I didn’t actually tell you what until the day I put it out.

This was a mistake because of one important reason, the first time you were digesting what was actually inside my book was when I was also asking you to buy it.

You guys weren’t in the mood to buy yet, you were still in research mode. You needed time to mull over if this was the right book for you.

Sure if I had written a hard sales letter some of you might have bought anyway, but I don’t like the idea that I have to resort to manipulation and fear just to get someone to buy something I’ve made.

It’s why I hate fitness ads of beautiful people with a slogan like ‘Summer is nearly here, get your bikini body’.

I mean, who has the right to state that any person can not wear a bikini any time no matter how they look. Why does their body have to look a particular way to wear a bikini? And why is summer the only time of the year that one should be concerned with keeping fit?

These are fear tactics, telling you that you won’t be accepted into society unless you look, act and feel a particular way…

Hold up.

Deep breath.

I better stop there and get back on track before I get on a real rant.

Where was I? Oh yes, I was writing about the fact that I didn’t allow you guys to get a chance to research my book before getting a chance to buy my new ebook.

The exact same thing happens with your bootcamp prospect. If you are cold selling them and they haven’t had a chance to digest what exactly it is your bootcamp does, then they are going to be much more difficult to sell to.

Instead of doing that, another option is to give your future clients time to absorb what exactly it is you are offering before asking for a sale.

Here are some easy ways you might achieve that:

• Have a website with an entire page dedicated to your bootcamp. Include select pictures, testimonials and FAQs on this page along with details like times, days and locations.

• Set up a business Facebook Page. Regularly post pictures of your bootcamp and events you do. Share articles and posts from local business’ you enjoy so people can get a feel of your values. Make sure you fill out the About section with your website, contact info, bootcamp info and some FAQs.

• Set up a Twitter account. Do the same as above for Facebook.

• Start a regular monthly email newsletter that people can sign up for. Send it to your existing clients too.

By using these online mediums potential clients can go and learn a bit more about your bootcamp and what you do. Then when they contact you, you won’t have to give them a hard sell because they have already decided that they want to buy.

You can read more about these types of conversations I’ve had with clients here.

2. WHY is important. Perhaps the most important.

I really don’t know what I was thinking while launching this manual, everything I had done in previous launches I just threw out the window.

I forgot one key part of my sales page. A compelling why.

I had just spent months working on this manual; filming, writing, editing and I had completely forgotten to tell you WHY you should bother buying it.

Of course I knew why you should buy it, but I did a really rubbish job of telling you why it might be useful to you.

Again, this can be applied back to bootcamps.

Your website (and other online presences) and flyers etc. should all state why a client should want to work with you, not just what you do.

For example, it might be to get into bikini ready shape.

Just kidding!

At my bootcamp I used to focus my ‘why’ on the fitness side of things rather then weight loss or appearance..

‘Keep up with your kids.’
‘Get in the best shape of your life at 40.’
‘Sick of the gym? Try bootcamp.’

To help you get a grasp of what I mean, I’ve pulled out a few examples for you of bootcamp websites that do an excellent job of the why and the what (from lesson one) part.

Fitness With Karen Bell

Two things pop out at me straight away with Karen’s website. ‘Life changing challenges with Karen Bell’ and ‘Hi welcome to my site. My name is Karen bell. I have spent the last 5 years in the fitness industry and I love it.’

Now straight away I get a feel for who Karen is and I can see pictures of her bootcamp scrolling on the main page. There is also a testimonial on the right telling me about someone elses experience. All awesome stuff to make a visitor want to join.

Krunchies Health & Fitness

Krunchies Health and Fitness is a Melbourne based bootcamp that trains in Melbourne’s most competitive park, the Royal Melbourne Botanical Gardens.

On the Krunchies site, it’s easy to find the bootcamp page. From there they give me half a dozen reasons to work with them along with the location and times. As a potential customer, now I can work out if it seems like a good fit.

Mint Movement

Mint Movement is an Adelaide based business that is doing things a little differently.

By reading I can quickly see Bridie Hogan’s philosophy on fitness and what would be expected of me at a typical bootcamp session. I can also see the location to see if it’s convenient.

NJ Fit Mom

Last but not least is the NJ Fit Mom website. On their services page I can see 5 reasons why this bootcamp would be a good fit for me. I can also see all of the prices and locations.

The description opens with, ‘This is NOT your ordinary class’ which immediately makes me want to read more. Why isn’t it an ordinary class?

3. Choosing a niche rather then targetting everyone works

The Little Bootcamp Book of Workouts and Beyond Burpees were both targeted at the niche of ‘all bootcamp trainers’. Which of course isn’t really a small niche considering how many of us there are now.

For my next product I wanted to create something that I could dive in on just one topic and create THE guide to that area of bootcamps.

My niche for this product became ‘trainers who want to use tyres and/or ropes at their bootcamp’ and also ‘trainers who already use tyres and ropes at their bootcamp’.

This helped me to be able to easily choose what exercises, drills and workouts to include in the manual.

Let’s side step to a quick story:

The other day I was answering an email from a trainer and I asked them, ‘What is your ideal client?’ to which they replied,

‘Everyone.’

While that sounds good, here’s the problem with trying to appeal to everyone: People are all different. They like and dislike different things.

I studied engineering and then health and fitness. My brother is an accountant.

I go do an OCR for fun and he does his friends tax returns.

People are different. Even those that grew up together.

By targeting everyone you actually target no one because there is no way possible to appeal to everyone. So pick your ideal client and cater your marketing, sessions and everything towards them.

By being more specific you will actually be able to charge more too. Which leads me to the fourth lesson:

4. Charge more for what you do

This is a really tough topic for me. Talking about how much to charge for what you do is often the case.

There is this feeling around money that it is the cause of a lot of evil, but really money is just a tool and that is how we should look at it. Without emotional attachment. Of course that’s easier said then done for many of us.

We like to look after one another and we like to help people. That’s why many of us became trainers in the first place.

Should that mean that we should do it for free though?

Some of you may have noticed a little increase in price on this latest book. Previously I have charged $57 for products, but The Little Bootcamp Book of Tyres and Ropes costs $97.

Coming up with a price for what you offer is always tough. On the one hand you want to make money so you can pay your mortgage and buy groceries.

On the other hand you want to help people so you don’t want to price too many people out of the market.

To come up with my price I consulted Book Yourself Solid (a fantastic book all trainers should read). BYS recommends that for every dollar a client spends with you, they should be able to recoup 20 dollars in financial, emotional, spiritual and physical benefits.

Ok, that sounds good, I can live with charging that. If a $50 product helps someone make or save $1000 I can sleep at night knowing I gave them good value.

I put this theory to work.

To price Tyres and Ropes I added up what I believed the manual would give trainers in saved time, new clients and piece of mind then divided that number by 20. To my surprise the price was much higher then $97 but not wanting to price too many people out of being able to access this information, I brought it down.

The result: While I sold less copies of Tyres and Ropes in the first week compared to previous launches I’ve done, it made more total revenue.

What you can learn from this

Think about what you are charging your clients and apply the Book Yourself Sold pricing method. They probably aren’t going to get any financial benefits from working with you but what about spiritual, physical and emotional?

Can they now play for longer with their kids?
Can they do their job better?
Does training with you in the morning set a great mood for their whole day?
Are they making new friends at your bootcamp?

What is that worth?

A lot more then you are charging I’ll bet. You provide more benefit to your clients lives then you realise.

Here’s another short story about that:

When I finished up at my bootcamp, several of my quiet 40 and 50 something Dads came over to me and said sincerely, ‘Thank you so much for getting me in the fittest shape of my life. I cannot tell you how much it means to me.’

To which I responded with a ‘No worries.’ and a hug. My eyes were glistening too but that was because of all the dust in the air.

What you do and who you are means more to your clients then you realise.

Why earn more money?

You don’t have to go out and buy a new BMW X5 with your increased income. Here are some more useful things you could do if you did earn another 20% then you do right now:

• You could give a percentage of your earnings to charity.

• You could attend more training workshops and learn new training mehtods, adding value back to your clients with better workouts and more variety.

• You could work less, meaning you have more time to spend with each client individually and with your family (this was always my preference).

• You could run ‘Coffee Friday’ where you pay for a mobile coffee truck to come to your bootcamp once a month and give free coffees after your session.

• You could pay a designer to create that business website you have been needing.

• You could run subsidised events for your bootcampers like high ropes courses, stand up paddleboarding and rock climbing.

A few take away points from all of this

• Make sure your prospective clients know what your bootcamp involves.

• Make sure it’s clear why they would want to do your botocamp.

• Picking a niche (ideal client) will help you target your marketing and business.

• It will also help you charge more by being more specific.

• You should charge more so that you can do more for your clients, family, charity and yourself.

It still works out fine in the end

All of this stuff is great, but in the end if what you do is really good, you will probably find a way to succeed even if you mess up.

Even with all of the blunders I made on launching this manual, the manual itself was still good which resulted in some happy trainers.

Here’s what they had to say about Tyres and Ropes:

The Little Bootcamp Book of Tyres and Ropes will continue to be available on Little Bootcamp Books. Head over to read more about it if you haven’t already or grab your copy.

###

Images: Michael Davis-Burchat, Jesus Solana (CC)

Kyle Wood

Kyle Wood created Bootcamp Ideas in 2010 when he was hunting around on the internet for workout ideas. He ran a successful bootcamp in Victoria, Australia and spends his spare time managing this site, adventuring (or lazying) with his wife and find new ways to make bootcamps even better.