How to Set High Standards for Member Retention and Success

In the competitive world of business, providing an exceptional experience for members is crucial for success. However, as leaders we can often fall short of this by juggling too many balls or by purely focusing on numbers. More often than not, this comes as a result of neglecting the true functions of leadership — delegating and empowering others to create the kind of business we want.

One way to achieve an exceptional experience is to set high standards for member retention and success. When your business prioritises these areas, it creates a sense of community and value, which encourages your members to stay with you for the long haul.

In this article, we’ll explore the strategies and best practices that can help you create an exceptional business experience for members and staff alike, by setting the standards needed for a winning performance culture.

1. Introducing the boutique business standard

Before imagining what an exceptional member experience could look like, let’s start by looking at the differences between standard and boutique businesses. The main difference between the two is the level of specialisation and personalised service that is offered.

A standard business typically offers a range of products or services to a broader customer base, with a focus on efficiency and scalability. In contrast, a boutique business specialises in a particular niche and often provides a high-end, customised experience to a smaller, more exclusive clientele.

While there is space for both business models, the boutique model has emerged as a rapidly growing sector, driven by a growing consumer demand for more specialised offerings and a sense of community to keep them interested and motivated.

Many of the incumbent businesses we see today, like Fitness First and Anytime Fitness, didn’t start out this way. In the early 2000s, the market was largely driven by a need for convenience. Stripped-back, no-frills facilities and 24-hour access captured a lot of business, reflecting the economy and market sentiment of the time.

Fast-forward only a decade later to a new era of social media and digital prosperity, customers soon began to demand more discerning options than ever before and were willing to pay a premium for a better experience.  Something that looked better, felt better and elevated their status on social media platforms.

Introducing the boutique model

New concept, or “boutique” clubs like F45 came onto the scene with a completely opposite offering to that of Fitness First and others; higher prices, fixed times, less capacity, higher service, personalisation, community, and culture to meet the new demands for a unique experience. This in turn created a shift in the market, giving an opportunity for businesses like F45 to differentiate themselves and thrive in a competitive market, as well as benefit from the profits of a premium offering.

The current market trajectory shows that boutique businesses are still very much in demand and will likely stay that way for a long time. With even luxury brands branching out into niche “instagrammable” cafes like Prada, the boutique model isn’t exclusive to the fitness industry, and everyone is scrambling to get a piece of the pie. So if you want in with the demands of today’s clientele, you need to determine what your business is doing to meet the standards of an exceptional, boutique member experience.

Delivering more than just offers

Needless to say, the cornerstone of an exclusive member experience is more than the bare offering of your club — it’s how you make people feel. It’s about offering an experience that cannot be replicated by competitors because simply, authenticity cannot be copied. The very personal touch that comes with each interaction and stage, from lead to loyal customer. Thereby, it’s essential to get clear on the unique experience or service standard that the club provides and to communicate this to members and prospects.

For example, you might have a small social area with magazines, books and refreshments for members to relax pre or post workout, non-toxic toiletries in the bathrooms, an hourly cleanliness check throughout the premises…anything that could provide a more pleasant and comfortable experience for members.

By delivering more than just your offer, you can set a standard that differentiates your business from competitors by providing an experience that will keep members coming back each time. Remember, people may forget what you told them, but they will always remember how you made them feel.

2. Setting Non-Negotiable Standards

Setting non-negotiable standards in a boutique-based business is a key part of delivering an exceptional member experience. When members are paying more and expecting more from your service, standards must be raised and become a non-negotiable component of your day-to-day business operations, e.g; how prospects and clients are spoken to, follow up procedures, the type of music played on your premises, specific scents, cleanliness, equipment brand, and so on and so forth.

All the variables that you as a leader may not be in touch with on a daily basis, need to be implemented by the rest of your team.  It is not enough to think everyone is on the same page with standards because more often than not, that’s not the case. It is crucial standards are set out and staff are trained on the non-negotiables of your business.

Personal standards play a big part in your business performance and are heavily influenced by the environment you’re in. If you want to level up your business, you also need to raise your personal standards to keep things improving. This means turning “shoulds” into “musts” and creating non-negotiable standards that cannot be compromised by anyone, from reception to management. The environment everyone works in is crucial for determining what is considered acceptable, and non-negotiable standards help everyone understand what is expected of them.

Your environment determines your performance

One example that best describes the importance of environmental standards is the “The Biggest Loser” TV show. In its original format, trainers were called to contestants’ homes to address their unhealthy lifestyle and relationships. After carefully analysing their unhealthy environments, the show placed contestants in a house together, where they achieved remarkable results by supporting and motivating each other.

However, following the show, many of them happened to regain their weight. After returning to their previous environment, they could no longer keep up with the same high standards of the communal space of the contestants. The importance of environment could no longer be ignored, which led to an improved format of the show — involving members of the same household to participate as contestants to ensure longer-lasting success.

As a business owner, you also need to consider your environment. To be successful, you need to cultivate a mindset of constant growth and improvement. Surround yourself with people and situations that will encourage you to maintain high standards, rather than dragging you down or undermining your efforts. You must strive to seek out opportunities to improve your environment, and to take the initiative to correct things that are not up to par.

To maintain high standards, it’s essential to surround yourself with like-minded people and scenarios that encourage success. It’s also important to seek inspiration from others and to give others inspiration in return.

Now we’ll dive a little bit further into some of the factors and strategies that can help contribute towards improving your business environment and standards, while providing an exceptional experience for members.

3. Honing the Sales Process

One of the first areas to tackle is your business’ sales process. A carefully designed induction programme that provides a personalised and engaging experience, is key to establishing long-term relationships with members, as well as capturing them in the short run.

The member experience is paramount in any fitness club, and one way to create a lasting impression is through an exceptional tour of your premises, or services. Offering a tour showcases your club’s culture, community, and service standards, which will help your business stand out from the competition and cement its position in the marketplace. Empowering staff to engage in these conversations with clients is a key part in creating the environment needed to execute your business vision (and it also frees up your own time to do other things, like number crunching and actual leading!).

For instance, offering a one-week free trial is a great way to tour a client through your business and induct them softly, so that they know what can be expected if they sign up to your service. Even so, simply offering a free trial is no guarantee that they will commit to a membership. They may try a class or two, but if left to their own devices, won’t notice anything special or different to what they may be able to get down the road at another gym.

This means there is a great opportunity to personalise the free trial into an exceptional experience the client will remember. To increase the chances of conversion, you may want to try and combine the free trial with, for example, two one-on-one sessions with a personal trainer. What this does is ensure there is someone with the client at every step of the way to answer questions, inspire them, build trust and help establish their true needs. Much better than being left to figure out things on their own.

In this way, the sales process becomes a vital part of the onboarding process, guaranteeing a positive experience for clients and increasing the likelihood of long-term membership.

The second chance strategy; extended free trial

Your sales process can also include a “second chance” strategy for those who need a little more time to come to a decision about joining your club. You could choose to offer them additional personal training sessions booked in quick succession, e.g. before the end of the closing week, or more chances to try out different classes. The second chance strategy helps to keep prospects engaged and interested, providing them with a little extra time to be convinced about the great experience your facility and staff offers.

Second chance lead conversion

Setting up a second chance session can be highly effective in converting leads to paying customers. The turnout rate for these second sessions is usually between 55 to 60%. To increase the chances of conversion, it’s essential to position the second session as a personal training session, rather than a direct ask about joining the club. By doing so, you’re more likely to create a positive and engaging experience for the lead and increase the chances of them committing to your gym.

Selling with passion

A personalised tour, or free trial, is a great way for your staff to talk up the unique features of your business and pass on what they love about it to potential clients. Encouraging your staff and training them to describe your club’s offerings in a personalised and passionate way creates a genuine and lasting emotional impression that will set your business apart from other similar programs in your area.

To further hone in on the personalisation of the tour, you could choose to include fitness tests to get a better understanding of the customer’s health and fitness goals. Using this scientific-based approach, customers feel cared for and assures them that their individual needs will be met throughout their journey.

The trial process should be as interesting and engaging as possible, and include other offerings besides personal training sessions, such as group classes or vouchers for services like saunas to entice them to sign up.

Make all the sales steps non-negotiable

As mentioned earlier, however you choose to design your sales process, it is important that all the steps become a part of your non-negotiable standards and that they are adhered to during the trial and follow-up stages. Any elements of the sales process that are missed or overlooked must be reviewed, retrained, and reinstated to maintain the established performance-driven standards you have set for your business.

This can be monitored during weekly team meetings. Creating a performance-based culture requires teamwork, which involves gathering staff together for weekly meetings where everyone has the opportunity to speak and an agenda to follow. This is also a great time to refresh the team on the non-negotiable standards and look for ideas to raise those standards for improvement.

As well as refining the sales process, weekly team meetings are an important bonding tool and can be used to gather feedback from all team members. One more non-negotiable you can set is to ensure every team member contributes something to the meeting, whether it’s complimenting a colleague or addressing issues such as bathroom cleanliness. You can also use it as an opportunity to set targets for the week and ensure everyone is on the same page with what is expected of them.

Individual meetings with management also help to ensure that staff are on track with their performance, goals, leads, and customer base, and to provide motivation. Additionally, scheduling team training throughout the year on various topics, such as physio, goal setting, handling difficult clients, and creating better sales experiences, can help upskill staff. Consistency is key, and these meetings and training should occur every week without exception.

4. Training Staff On the Sales Process

As a business leader, it goes without saying that one of your primary responsibilities is to recruit the right people, then train and upskill them correctly!

When it comes to the sales process, all staff should be thoroughly trained at the start of their employment with an induction that lasts approximately four weeks before they can begin to interact with clients. This may look like shadowing trainers, participating in group classes and having 1 on 1 meetings with supervisors to learn the company processes and standards.

Roleplay scenarios are great for ensuring staff are ready to interact with new leads. It usually takes around seven or eight times of going through the sales process to have it ingrained as a habit. New staff should shadow experienced trainers and refine their sales process until it meets the non-negotiable standards you have set. As explained earlier, to maintain these standards, ensure that weekly team meetings and refresher training are mandatory.

Incentivising staff to convert

To further cement your non-negotiable standards and sales process, you could choose to include them as part of your staffs’ payment model. If client retention is tied to an incentive, it is much easier to maintain a higher standard of performance.

A KPI model that incentivises conversion rates is a great motivator for increased income for both staff and business. What you could do is set a non-negotiable expectation that all new staff must be trained in sales and take on trials, with incentivised conversion rates for 4, 8, 12 & 26 week milestones.  This reflects the income they generate for the business and increases their pay according to the number of clients converted.

Starting on a reduced salary, a PT’s pay increases as their income from booked sessions rises. This is different from a contractor model, as your staff would have normal security benefits such as holiday pay and sick leave. An ideal payroll for incentivised conversions lies somewhere between 35% to 40%, e.g. where a PT brings in $2,000 a week of income, and gets paid approximately $700-800.

This becomes a vital part of the PT’s income, and adherence to company values such as innovation, customer obsession, team effort and high performance become second nature. Naturally, if a PT loses clients, their hours and salaries decrease, in which case you would need to address on an individual basis, or refocus and retrain the non-negotiable standards.

5. The Six Human Needs

There is a great framework as penned by Tony Robbins, on the six human needs that drive human behaviour. All of these can be certainly utilised in your quest for creating the ultimate member experience, and addressing them can greatly impact customer satisfaction and loyalty.

The six human needs are certainty, variety, significance, connection/love, growth, and contribution, and here are some ways you could incorporate these into your business:

Certainty

Ensure there is certainty in your services, eg. your non-negotiables. This could be anything as simple as the trainers always being on time or the cleanliness standard of your facility. Consistency in service is vital in providing certainty. People would rather have a consistently bad service than a constantly changing or indifferent one.

Variety

As goes the saying, variety is the spice of life! It’s really important to consider having as many options as possible to accommodate the differing needs of your members. Being a good listener is essential in getting the necessary feedback to implement changes that could bring about a better experience. This could be anything from moving class times on certain days to providing more options with memberships, or something a little more exciting, like introducing new exercise concepts and products.

Significance

Feeling significant is one of the ways humans feel the most valued and important. One way to help members feel significant is to reward them. Once a week at your team meeting, you could ask staff to pick a random client, write them a thank you card and put in a gift voucher. It could be a small gift like a $20 café voucher, or a more significant reward, like a massage. Rewards can be covered by the retention budget, which should be part of your marketing budget. Sending out random rewards each week to clients makes them feel significantly valued and excited.

Connection/love

Acknowledgement is a universal love language. Ensure that every member has key relationships in the club and isn’t being ignored or overlooked. Never underestimate the power of a simple, “hello, how are you doing?” to connect to each and every one of your members. It doesn’t have to be overbearing. Even a nod and smile can go a long way. Connection can go beyond the physical presence of your gym. Taking a more personalised approach to your marketing messaging can also help members get closer to your mission and feel more like friends than customers.

Growth

Oftentimes, feeling like things are “never enough” is spoken about in a negative context, i.e. not acknowledging how far we have already come. While that is true, there is also a more positive way to utilise this feeling. In the pursuit of achieving growth, some level of discomfort or sacrifice needs to take place. The feeling of wanting to contribute to a cause larger than ourselves or become better is a natural component of the human need for growth. A way to implement this for your members is to do what you’re already doing – help them learn and progress to higher health and fitness standards through your offerings.

Contribution

People have a high need to contribute and want to feel part of a tribe or community. This need is closely related to connection, however it’s more about giving than receiving. Creating ways in which members can share their expertise on a particular subject can help them feel more connected and valued among others. You could choose to let members hold workshops or collaborate with member businesses for mutual benefit. Alternatively, you could acknowledge members on social media, host charity fundraising events and survey groups. Anything that helps members feel involved and like they’re contributing is great for fostering community and retention.

During a business performance audit, it is important to assess whether you are addressing any of the elements related to the six human needs. Incorporating these needs into your business strategy is a crucial foundation for delivering an exceptional member experience. While there is always room for improvement, ensuring that you have effectively addressed these fundamental aspects will provide confidence that you are moving in the right direction.

6. Creating a Winning Culture

Everyone wants to work in a fun, comfortable place. While this is a great starting point, a fun culture sometimes isn’t what gets the work done. As a leader, creating a winning culture should be your priority over a fun culture, even though fun is still important. A performance-driven culture generally leads to success and everyone enjoys winning, so having fun can still be a part of it!

To achieve a winning culture, it is imperative that you find the best people you can. Find great people, empower them, and trust them. If you’re not the kind of person that can trust your employees, you can almost guarantee they won’t reach their full potential if they’re constantly micromanaged or on the other extreme, left to their own devices.

Encouraging mistakes as a business investment

Providing a secure environment for your team is crucial. They need to know that if they fail, they will be given an opportunity to try again. Encouraging and celebrating your staff’s failures may seem counterintuitive, but it’s a key part of gaining knowledge that can ultimately progress your business.

A powerful story that demonstrates this, is about a marketing employee who presented a new idea to a $10 million a year client, which ended up blowing up in his face. The client was furious and cut ties with the marketing company. The employee, feeling guilty, went to his boss and offered to resign. To his surprise, the boss refused, saying that the $10 million loss was an investment in his development.

This story illustrates that mistakes can be valuable learning experiences, and when employees are given the freedom to make mistakes, they can grow and develop a performance culture. As a leader, it’s important to create an environment where employees feel comfortable taking risks and stepping outside their comfort zones, even if it means making mistakes.

Great ideas often come from the people in your business. Ideas related to retention, marketing, and growth have all come from staff members in many cases. Creating a comfortable and confident environment is vital for them to feel free to voice their ideas. Vulnerability is essential for teamwork.

Sometimes, leaders’ egos can hinder progress. Being willing to acknowledge when you’re wrong is a lifelong skill that needs to be worked on. If you’re always the only one who is “right,” others will not take any chances, and they won’t be creative or innovative. Leaders need to put their egos aside to listen to their team members. It’s possible that a staff member may have the solution to a question that you’ve been struggling with for a long time. So, create an environment where everyone feels comfortable contributing their ideas.

Leadership is essential

Leadership plays a vital role in any organisation and it is up to the leader to find people that match their state and blueprint. State and blueprint are two things that drive individuals in an environment. State refers to the moment-to-moment feeling of a person, while blueprint is deeper and is based on an individual’s values and beliefs. It is crucial to have people in the organisation who share the same values as the company. This ensures a genuine desire to provide a great experience, drive to learn and grow, and commit to the same values as others.

Whatever you focus on determines your state, and this influences the decisions you make. It is important to focus on what the customer wants as this can revolutionise the business. Therefore, emphasis on customer satisfaction from both leadership and staff can help to improve business performance.

7. Hiring the Best People for Performance

An excellent example of a winning culture that prioritises performance is Zappos, an American online retailer. As a billion-dollar company, they have a unique and well-established recruitment system. As part of their recruitment process, all candidates are invited to Las Vegas for a two-week boot camp induction where they learn everything about the company’s values, mission, strategy, plans, and daily operations.

At the end of the first week, Zappos offers everyone $3,000 to not take the job, equalling to around 4 weeks pay. According to CEO Tony Hsieh, only 2% to 3% of people take the offer because by that stage, candidates have a clear expectation about what they can achieve at the company and are generally on board with the company values.

This unconventional approach has significantly increased staff retention by weeding out those who are just looking for any job. Those who choose to stay without the money are fully committed to the job, resulting in significant cost savings for the company in terms of retraining staff due to high turnover.

Finding the right people who want to work for your company, not just any job, is vital. During the interview process, it is essential to convey the staff experience that makes candidates want to be part of your organisation. This level of commitment results in a better performance culture outcome than hiring someone who is just looking for a job.

The top 20, 70 and 10% of your workforce

To ensure that your organisation runs smoothly, you need to invest in your top-performing employees, who make up the top 20% of your workforce. These individuals are true unicorns who need little guidance and can work efficiently and effectively. The top 20% of employees are responsible for driving the company culture through their strong work ethic and sales skills, which result in generating high income.

Being high performers, they have the capability to convert a large number of leads into clients and maintain them by creating a positive impact on their surroundings with their personalities. They are well-liked by their clients and co-workers and exhibit a sense of care towards the company and its people.

The middle 70% of your workforce, on the other hand, will require the most training and development to improve their skills and maintain consistency. It’s important to note that this ratio of top-performing, middle, and underperforming employees is normal for any organisation. When one of the top 20% leaves, it creates a vacancy that is often filled by someone from the middle 70% who has the potential to excel. Similarly, when an underperforming employee leaves, it can create an opportunity for someone else to improve.

As for the bottom 10%, it’s best to move them out of the organisation, as they can be detrimental to your company culture. While the bottom 10% may not be completely useless, if they can do the minimum required for their job, it may be sufficient for the current needs of the business. However, the bulk of your investment should be focused on the middle 70%, which can be compared to a bicep muscle that needs to be trained, fueled, and exercised regularly.

A Fortune 500 performance strategy

An interesting, well-known performance improvement strategy can be observed by Jack Welch, the former CEO of the Fortune 500 company, General Electric (GE). Welch’s ruthless strategy involved sacking the bottom 10% of his employees every year. This approach encouraged staff to work their way out of the bottom 10% and resulted in a progressive improvement in the team’s competence and overall performance.

Welch’s leadership and high standards at GE made the company the most valuable in the world, worth approximately $400 billion. He insisted on a rule that any industry entered by GE must be either number one or number two in its category, even if the company was making large profits at say, number four or five. Due to the highest non-negotiables implemented, Welch managed to achieve this goal during his tenure. Welch’s book, “Winning,” is highly noted for its insights into his successful business strategies.

While you may not need to employ such a cut-throat approach, investing in your top-performing employees, improving the skills of the middle 70%, and phasing out underperforming employees will help you maintain a healthy and productive workforce.

Are you ready to get down to creating an exceptional business experience?

Creating an exceptional business experience is undoubtedly a challenging endeavour. It involves numerous elements that contribute to fostering a culture of success, and discovering and implementing them requires time and effort. It’s essential to recognise that the work is never truly complete. Elevating standards, establishing non-negotiable goals, refining the sales process, cultivating a positive environment, and adequately caring for your staff require intentional and consistent attention.

Above all, as a leader, managing your state is crucial as everything stems from the top. It is your responsibility to uphold and prioritise the implemented standards. Additionally, it’s important to remember that creating an exceptional business experience is a gradual process that demands perseverance and a willingness to sift through challenges to uncover valuable opportunities.