The perfect time to get married, the perfect time to start a business, the perfect time to save etc..

It’s like a prospect coming to you telling you he or she is waiting for the perfect time to workout.

You and I know there is no “perfect” time.

Let me explain…

Have you ever heard a new word, or seen a new car that you have never seen before, and all of a sudden after the first time you see it, you keep hearing the same word or you see the same car everywhere.

Coincidence? NOPE..

You have heard that word and seen the car ALL ALONG.

Hundreds maybe thousands of times.

You have just “consciously” been aware of it for the very first time.

Having said that, you need to start consciously look for opportunities.

You need to start training your brain to look for opportunities.

They are EVERYWHERE around you; you are just not conscious of it.

Every time you talk to someone or meet someone ask yourself “how can I work with this person and create a win-win situation”?

Always make a mental note of what the person does and what you like about him/her.

How can you create opportunity for both of you?

Can you do business?

Create a joint venture?

Refer to each other?

If not immediately maybe later in time.

Always look for opportunities for other business ventures, locations, etc.

Most people, especially fitness trainers, are so caught up in the rat race that they have become COMPLETELY blind to opportunities.

I have trained myself to constantly look for new locations, ventures and opportunities.

As of this writing we have 11 locations and 2 offers on the table (so by next time I write to you I am hoping we have our 13th location)

One new business venture is called Sexy Camp (pole fitness) opening mid May. (No I am not teaching it ;)

Not too distant in the past….

I wasn’t open to opportunities.

I was too busy in my own “little” rat race trying to make a million dollars from one location.

I was waiting to get one location perfect before I even thought about opening a new location or do anything else.

You and I know nothing is or ever will be perfect.

So I urge you to:

1) look for a new location (even if you’re not ready to pull the trigger).
2) look for talent, trainers, staff members, or volunteers even if you don’t have an immediate need for help or staff.

Start putting your “Dream Team” together.

So when opportunity knocks, you can implement quickly and efficiently.

I have assembled my “Dream Team” that I can put up a new location full with all bells and whistles in less than a week.

I’m not talking about a generic boot camp with some blue mats, two Trx’s and two dumbbells…

I’m talking about a fully differentiated facility with a “WOW” factor.

Of course “THE RESULTS” speak for themselves.

I hope I don’t offend anyone with this statement, God knows I don’t mean any harm.

But I don’t want to be a 60 year old trainer that has to train clients because I missed an opportunity.

Even if this email helps change one persons life, and helps them see the “bigger” picture, then I have done my job.

Keep changing lives,

Sam

Hope you had a relaxing, fun and productive weekend with your family.

I am writing you this email from Sacramento airport all while wolfing down on my $15 airport chicken salad and smart water.

I was here visiting with my consulting clients and now business partners Matt Weaver and Pete Cepeda.

Matt and Pete have been a coaching client for three solid years now and now we are in business together.

We just opened a KILLER “Results Transformation Center” here in “Sac Town”

You have to see the pics of this gym. If I may say so myself it’s SIIIIICK.

Friend me on Facebook to see some pics of this KILLER facility. (The graffiti alone on this gym wants me to never want to go home)

Anyway the reason I am writing to you today was because I wanted to get a point across.

I am not saying this to impress you BUT I want to impress upon you that as I am writing this email

I have or I am….

3 brand new locations under construction
5 offers on brand new locations
1 entirely new business venture (pole dancing studio)
On a hardcore workout and diet regimen to get in the best shape of my life for my 21+20 birthday ;)
A beautiful wife and 2 beautiful baby girls that need daddy’s love and attention

As well as lead our 9 existing locations that we already have. (constantly recruiting and looking for new talent and win-win opportunities)

Notice I said lead NOT manage.

What’s your excuse for not being where you want to be?

Is it…..

Lack of business knowledge? Well that’s easy…. get some help, get some coaching from someone who is doing what you want to do.

Lack of funds? That’s easy too. Live below your means and save up. If you want to live like no other then you need to live like no other.
One of my business partners Erick Salgado sold his car and lived in his gym for over a year until he saved enough capital.
He now has 4 locations and is KILLING IT.

Nothing feels better than security. You need to learn not to be a consumer in this day and age. Consumers are BROKE.

Put a business plan together, talk to people, try to raise capital. Money is not going to fall down from the sky go through the roof and land on your lap when you’re on the couch watching TV.

You need to go out there, meet people and talk to them about your vision and talk to them with Jack Lalanne conviction.

Lack of motivation? S*** I don’t know what to tell you here. If you lack that and you’re broke or average then you need a get b*** slapped upside the head. It’s like a fat client who doesn’t want to put in the work. Honestly I can’t help you here.

You LIVE IN THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD GET UP AND GO MAKE THAT S*** HAPPEN.

What is it???

Are you the type that average is good enough for you?

I once overheard a trainer say “there were 22 people in the show and I placed 21st. I am happy at least I wasn’t last place”

Is that how you play life? not to lose or do you play life to win?

Are you the type that ONLY want to provide average life for your family?

Are you the type that one day in the nursing home think back and say “could of, would of, should of”

If you’re on my list, I highly doubt it. We all want to better ourselves. At least I hope.

Then my question to you is…….

WHAT IS PREVENTING YOU FROM GOING TO THE NEXT LEVEL?

WHAT IS THE NEXT LEVEL FOR YOU?

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO GET THERE?

I want to help you…. If you want to get help.

I get the same satisfaction these days from when a training client says “Sam, I lost 40lb and now I am off all my meds”

As I do when a consulting client says…

“Sam, I will never be able to thank you enough or repay you for what you have done for me and my family’s life”

Success is great BUT significance to me is MUCH BETTER.

Keep changing lives my friends and colleagues.

Sam,

Yes…

That means calling out client AND prospects when they give me some lame BS excuse as to why they can’t start or why they are not getting results.

Not only it has it helped my business’s culture by helping me differentiate and attract the kind if clients that I want and repel the clients that I don’t want…..

But more importantly it has helped my “well being” which to me it’s the mother of all success.

Let me explain.

Above and beyond all the monetary reasons, YOU must feel good about your business.

After all your business is YOUR baby. You got to make sure that your baby is growing according to YOUR core values and your belief system.

And sometimes that’s NOT necessarily the same thing as maximizing profits short term.

But when you stand for something in your business, you will automatically align yourself with more people that see the world as you do.

At the same time when you take a stand, be ready for criticism and backlash.

And that’s quite OK.

“YOU HAVE ENEMIES GOOD, THAT MEANS YOU STOOD UP FOR SOMETHING, SOMETIME IN YOUR LIFE”

EXAMPLE: Truett Cathy the founder of Chick Fila is a devoted Christian. He insists that all his locations must be closed on Sundays. And they are.

Is he MAXIMIZING profits? NO

Has he build a HUGE christian LOYAL following. ABSOLUTELY.

FACT: PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO DO BUSINESS WITH PEOPLE OR COMPANIES THAT SHARE THE SAME VALUES.

FACT: PEOPLE LIKE DOING BUSINESS WITH PEOPLE NOT COMPANIES.

(That’s why we have Jared from Subway, Jack from Jack in the box and the good o’l Ronald McDonald)

“IF YOU DON’T PISS SOMEONE OFF BY 12PM NOON, YOU AIN’T DOING ENOUGH”

I have said this before and will say it again….

YOU CAN’T WORRY ABOUT PLEASING EVERYBODY IN LIFE.

YOU DO WHAT YOU DO AND YOU DON’T WHAT YOU DON’T.

Will you alienate some potential prospects and customers.

ABSOLUTELY….

But at the same time, you’re building a stronger bond with your current clients and prospects that “see things like you do”

AGAIN LIKE TRUETT CATHY

And to be honest….

You probably wouldn’t want that person in your business.

(unless you’re willing to throw your values down the drain for the all mighty dollar)

FACT: BUSINESS VIABILITY IS NOT MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS A BUSINESS SERVES. IT’S MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF LOYAL CUSTOMERS IT SERVES.

Loyal customers are customers that are price independent, location independent and love your business because of what it represents. PERIOD

Let me give you a few recent episodes of what I am talking about. (Case studies)

CASE STUDY #1:

While I was giving a presentation for our 6 week challenge that starts on 2/24 a lady raised her hand and said “when is the next challenge after this start? I SAID MA’AM IT STARTS APRIL 14TH. She then said “Can I come sometime between February 24th and April 14th to pay for it” I REPLIED “MA’AM WITH ALL DUE RESPECT GIBE THAT BS EXCUSE TO SOMEONE ELSE. WE ALL KNOW THAT ONCE YOU LEAVE HERE THE CHANCES OF YOU RETURNING IS SLIM TO NONE. SO IF YOU’RE REALLY SERIOUS OUT A DEPOSIT AND MAKE A COMMITMENT. HOW MANY TIMES IN THE PAST HAVE YOU SAID THATAND NEVER FOLLOWED THROUGH. I BET MANY.

RESULTS: She signed up for the earlier 2/24 challenge and paid in full.

Note: My partners all hide of embarrassment when I confront someone publicly on their BS.

CASE STUDY #2:

In our Fontana location after giving a presentation and people rushing to sign up, I noticed a lady in the front sitting and just looking at the 6 week agreement.She wasn’t reading it. She was just starring at it for what it seemed like eternity. I walked up to her and said “MA’AM BY STARRING AT IT YOU’RE NOT GOING TO GET IN SHAPE. IF YOU DON’T KNOW HOW TO WRITE YOUR NAME I WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO HELP YOU WRITE IT DOWN” She smiled and said you know you’re right I have been procrastinating long enough I need to do this.

Results: She signed up

Case study #3:

In our Murrieta/Temecula location a lady raised her hand and asked “do you have an a location in Murrieta” I RESPONDED MA’AM WE ARE IN MURRIETA” She then said “something closer to my house” I RESPONDED SO LIKE OPENING A LOCATION IN YOUR LIVING ROOM? I PROCEEDED AND SAID I BET YOU HAVE PURCHASED EXERCISE EQUIPMENT THAT ARE SITTING IN YOUR LIVING ROOM HOW DID THAT TURN OUT? I AM GUESSING NOT TOO GOOD BECAUSE YOU’RE HERE.

Results: She also signed up

So don’t be afraid to stand for something in your business.

Most businesses FAIL because they are “aight”.

The try to attract everybodody and don’t really have a CUSTOMER AVATAR.

Sam,

That’s when I spend an entire day with a fitness pro, answering their questions, dissecting their business and showing them various different methods and systems I use in my 7-figure businesses.

This fitness pro asked me an EXCELLENT question that I have never been asked before.

She asked me “Sam name 10 big mistakes you have made in your business thus far”

Man what an excellent question…

Most people attribute my success to all the right things I have done.

But as we all know, success comes from years of trial and error.

Years of blood, sweat and tears.

Success has many, MANY rainy days.

Like Rocky said “It’s not always sunshine and rainbows”

“IF YOU LEARN FROM DEFEAT, YOU HAVEN’T REALLY LOST”

SO without further ado, Here is the top 10 biggest mistakes I have made in my business.

Mistake #1 Spend too much money on equipment and not enough money on the culture.

I used to think “the more equipment the better” these days I emphasize less equipment and really concentrate on our overall atmosphere and energy. We emphasize results, fun, music and client events and parties. Relationships are the cornerstone of ANY business.

Mistake #2 Too high of an overhead

Back in the day, I was paying LA fitness 17K per month for the rights to personal training in their Chino location. Guess what? I still made money. But I got smart and started my own studio for a quarter of what I was paying them.

The older that I get the less risk tolerance that I have. It’s just not me anymore.

I have 3 girls to feed and they are HUNGRY ;)

Mistake #3 Listening to way too many people and not trusting my own intuition

I think when we are all starting out, we want a short cut. We are limited in our budget and want to hit a home run. So we look for others who WE THINK are doing well in our industry and seek for advice.

I definitely believe in having a coach BUT I believe in having ONE coach at a time.

I also think that sometimes you just have to trust your intuition and run with what you truly believe will work for you.

Nobody can tell you yes it will work or no it won’t work until the rubber meets the road.

“TOO MANY COOKS SPOIL THE BROTH”

Mistake #4 Thinking Success = Money

Look I am all about making money. That’s what we all came to this great country for.
However, I will tell you this. As soon as I started concentrating on being a Go-Giver my bank account started to EXPLODE.

Coincidence….I think not.

Concentrate on being SIGNIFICANT and financial success with follow.

“IF YOU HELP ENOUGH PEOPLE GET WHAT THEY WANT YOU”LL GET WHAT YOU WANT”

Mistake #5 Not Inspecting What I Was Expecting

Employees need leadership and constant encouragement and feedback.
Employees are not mind readers. You need to constantly train them, incentivize them and give them constructive feedback.

It’s your job and duty to be a leader. Lead don’t manage.

“YOU CAN’T THROW MONEY AT A PROBLEM AND EXPECT IT TO GO AWAY”

Mistake #6 Ignoring little things.

We all see little things that we ignore in our business. We just tell ourselves things like:

“I just don’t have time to deal with that”

“I have more important stuff to deal with’

“That’s really not going to matter”

Until one day that little problem becomes a big problem and bites YOU in the A$$.

As the leader of your team, it’s your responsibility to blow the whistle on anything that’s not congruent with your company’s mission.

As a leader if you don’t care enough to fix these “little things” then who will?

Little things will lead to big things and then you really have a BIG problem on your hands.

“NOTHING IS A BIG DEAL IN YOUR BUSINESS UNTIL YOU MAKE IT A BIG DEAL”

Mistake #7 Spending too much time behind the computer and not enough time building relationships.

Somehow somebody has sold fitness pros a bill of goods saying that they need to be miserable business men, sitting behind the computer, getting fat to be successful.

Like I have said before they are too busy trying to learn infusionsoft and other crap that doesn’t matter to their bottom line.

This happened to me as well. in 2007-2008 I bought into the hype and got away from what I truly enjoyed and was miserable.

Today, I am less and less behind the computer and more and more out there building relationships and making connections.

“THE PRESIDENT WASN’T ELECTED BY SENDING AN EMAIL. HE WAS ELECTED BECAUSE HE TRAVELED ACROSS THE COUNTRY, MET PEOPLE, SHOOK HANDS AND KISSED BABIES”

Mistake #8 Focusing on pleasing everybody.

This goes hand in hand with trying to make maximum revenue at all cost.

When you become a slave to money, you will do and say anything to make a buck (kinda like a prostitute)

By doing this not only will you REPELL money but more importantly you will not be able to build a business culture.

A business without a culture is A DEAD BUSINESS EXISTING.

You have to realize that you can’t serve everyone and not everyone should be your customer.

“SOME OF THE BEST DEALS ARE THE ONES NEVER MADE”

Mistake #9 Not having a great attorney

Look in the perfect world nobody should need an attorney. But unless you’re living in Disneyland you need a VERY good attorney.

(Imagine how many lawsuits the happiest place in the world has on their hands at any one time)

Don’t be cheap, have an attorney look over your lease, agreements, etc…..

Spend a few dollars now to avoid HUGE disasters in the future.

“BEING IN BUSINESS IS LIKE BEING IN THE BOXING RING PROTECT YOURSELF AT ALL TIMES”

Mistake #10 Having one successful business and thinking you have the magic touch

Let me be straight up with you. Even the sun shines on a dogs a** every once in awhile.

Just because you have ONE successful studio don’t get all happy thinking you can go do it all over again.

Having a multiple businesses will TEST you.

It will test your:

Time management skills
Organizational skills
Leadership skills
Marketing skills
Money management skills
etc…. etc….

The first time I tried to expand, I literally almost LOST it all. It was one of the worst times of my life.

Now don’t let me scare you from expanding. I learned from my mistake, the first time, recovered financially and now own 7 locations with another 8 locations planned to open this year.

I really hope you learned from some of my mistakes. I can literally write a whole book on all the mistakes I have made in business and life.

“I HAVE LEARNED MORE FROM MY MISTAKES THAN FROM MY VICTORIES”

Sam,

PS- I am having a one day mastermind Thursday March 6th at one of my facilities in Chino.
Isn’t time for you to take your business to the next level?

I have been super busy with my 7 locations. Kicking a** and taking names.

(I have 2 offers on new locations, that should take me to 9 on track for having 15 locations by the end of 2014)

Anyways I really want to talk to you about something.

This is been bothering me for the past couple of weeks and I just haven’t had the time to write and talk about it.

As I’ve been doing more and more consulting and coaching it is very apparent to me why so many fitness pros are confused and broke.

It’s mind boggling how many trainers that I have talked to that after 3-4 years in business have 30-60 clients.

No joke….

Not to brag but that’s how many people we sign in some weeks in ONE of our locations.

(In the next 4 weeks we are projecting a conservative 200 new clients in our locations)

That means if you were in business for 3 years and have 60 clients you managed to have a surplus of 20 people PER YEAR?

Or they been in business for 10 years and have 8 before and after pictures. SMH

THAT SUCKS, SUCKS BAD…

If you are one of them, I hope I didn’t offend you but at some time YOU need to wake up, smell the coffee and think about what you want to do when you grow up.

Seriously, I don’t know how someone can live off of that.

What’s worse, is the fact that they are totally CONFUSED as to what to do.

Running around like a chicken with their heads cut off and not getting anything done.

They are consuming so much information (mostly from gurus who don’t own or operate one single PT business) that their brain have short circuited and don’t know what to do next.

They do things like
* Trying to learn Infusionsoft
* All day behind the computer and not building any meaningful relationships
* Sell some Multi Level crap
* Spend most of the day doing some complicated screening test (nobody comes to you because they want to increase the rotation of their cervical spine, they come to you because they want to lose fat and tone up)
* Complicated workout programming
* 26 different pricing options
* Keep doing promos after promos cutting their prices

And million of other things that makes no difference or worse hurts their business, their brains and make no difference to their bottom line.

It’s kinda like the client who has read all the different diet books but is still walking around fat.

I would love to see some of these so called gurus own and operate a single facility.

They wouldn’t last 3 months.

Life is complicated enough, this is not a complicated business. TRUST ME.

You owe it to yourself, your family, your future wife/husband and kids to stop messing around and start doing this for real.

Sam,

PS – On March 6th, I am holding a one day mastermind at my Chino facility. It’s limited to 8 people (that’s all my office can handle) and the cost is 1K. Let me show you how easy this business is.

Hope you, your business and your family are all doing well.

Last Friday and Saturday, I had a dozen of my mentoring students in town for a visit.

It wasn’t a typical industry “mastermind” where a bunch of trainers get together and talk about “how to set up squeeze pages” or “what to put in their auto responders”

I am a firm believer that we humans learn much more by seeing and experiencing that by sitting in a boring class room listening.

Our little mastermind was more like a field trip.

They got see, feel and experience first hand my gym’s culture, energy and clients.

We even drove down to our newest location in Fontana.

The expressions on their faces was priceless.

I could see all the ideas flowing in their head looking and experiencing everything.

Best of all, this was an unexpected surprise for being a part of my coaching program.

They all had no expectation that someday, I will be inviting them, treating them and taking them on a little field trip.

Why am I telling you this….

Believe me, I am not trying to impress you and say “I do this and I do that for my students”

NOPE….

I am telling you this because so many business owners NEGLECT their clients once they signed up.

They always are looking for more and more clients. (I rather “party” with my clients and have prospects chase me)

Here is what I mean by neglect…

The prospects signs up and after that NOTHING is done (above the call of duty) to strengthen and build a relationship any further.

They pay for exercise and that’s it.

If that’s all you are selling is your “proprietary workout” well good luck in this age staying in business.

Above and beyond everything, you’re selling YOU, YOUR personality and YOUR relationship to the clients.

Transactional business doesn’t breed loyalty.

Relational business DOES.

And the business with the most LOYAL customer wins. PERIOD.

Remember most clients leave not because of lack of service or results they leave because they felt that the business was indifferent to their business.

Your clients are like your wife, the smallest little things can take you very far with them.

Sam,

PS – On Thursday March 6th. I am having a small 8 person mastermind in my office in Chino Ca. You get to come hang out with me and 7 other like minded fitness pros. We will take a tour of my new locations and I will help you devise a winning plan for 2014. Space is limited due to my office only having 8 chairs

PPS – On a funny note, I bought my wife a luxury expensive SUV, I proudly brought it home and showed it to her. She was like thanks it’s nice. SMH….
But whenever I buy her a little perfume or something small just because she lights up like a kid. Go figure

I think these days some are missing the boat BIG TIME.

These are the 4 hour work week guys who just want to push a button and make money.

These people seem to have lost “The Art of Hustle”

And that’s building a business one relationship at a time.

I don’t know about you but we been SLAMMED for January.

The last 3 days, I personally met with over 150 new clients who are starting our 6 week challenge on January 6th.

Unlike some other gurus, I LOVE what I do and I love meeting new people.

Sure, I could have delegated that to someone else…

But I believe in making personal connections and building a business one client and one relationship at a time.

These new clients were thrilled that the “boss” actually took the time to meet with them individually and getting to know them.

I also made sure that we were friends on Facebook and added them to my our “private” Facebook Group.

My goal this year is to open up 8 more locations and have a total of 15 locations to serve more people.

I will do that by hustling and making more relationships.

Speaking of Facebook… are we friends yet on Facebook?

If not please friend me and let’s follow and learn from each other.

FRIEND ME ON FACEBOOK HERE https://www.facebook.com/sam.bakhtiar

Have a wonderful week.

Sam,

But after literally spending hours on SKYPE for the past month and speaking to over 100 fitness pros…

(To be honest, it was a little depressing to see how bad it is out there for most of fitness pros)

I now have a clear understanding of why so many fitness pros are flat out BROKE and UNHAPPY.

And my prediction. The saga will continue and more and more fitness pros will either quit or have to supplement their income elsewhere.

(Most fall into the trap of MLM (Multilevel Marketing,Which is yet another get rich quick scheme)

Unless of course they wake up and smell the coffee.

Here are some things that I discovered…

Most Fitness Pros Are BROKE and UNHAPPY because:

1. They are awesome “technicians” but horrible marketers.
2. They are awesome “marketers” but they couldn’t point to their gastrocnemius.
3. They are constantly worrying about what others are doing instead of worrying about What they are good at. It’s OK to see what others are doing in the industry but at some point your business has to be unique to you.
4. They are looking for a “push button” sit on the beach automated lifestyle. Having a business is like having a baby. You have to attend to it and attend to it regularly.
   DON’T BELIEVE THAT 4 HOUR WORK WEEK CRAP.
5. They are listening to some GURU who doesn’t own or operate a real business and there isn’t any history of him doing so. (unless his own stories of course)
   Sorry, I got to call it like I see it. If you can make so much money why don’t you taste your own cool aid?
   They sell boot camp franchises but don’t own one for themselves.
   You make Chevy’s but you don’t drive one?
6. They are behind the computer learning things like Infusion-soft, Optimize-press and various other “internet marketing software” and forget all about building SOLID relationships and sound business fundamentals.
7. They claim they are busy all the time but when I ask them what their day consist of they can’t give me a solid answer. Time management is a MUST for business owners.
8. They don’t manage their money correctly and don’t have cash reserves for future growth and expansion.<
   Put money away so when opportunity knocks you’re there to capitalize.
9. They buy into “Cross fit” and “Fit Body Boot Camp” thinking it’s a guaranteed success.
   All they are doing is giving up their most important competitive advantage which is “differentiation” In business NEVER blend in.
   I was talking to a guy who owns a cross fit, he said that there are literally 10 cross fit boxes within a 5 mile radius of his facility.
   I asked him, how do you differentiate? He said we have better coaches….. SMH
   I was like “so do the other facilities agree with the statement that you have better coaches“?
   Of course not. Everyone claims they are the best. By the way he was making 5K GROSS revenue… OUCH
10. They try anything to get new clients in the door. Even if it meant selling their mama. I have seen so many desperate attempts and tricks lately that it makes me sick.

A business can ONLY survive on LOYAL, repeat, price independent customers.

Cutting “deals”, trickery and let me throw some S*** in the wall and let me see if it sticks will always backfire in the long run.

Bonus: I was watching an episode of showtime’s All Access with the highest paid athlete of all time Floyd “money” Mayweather.

Hate him or love him, he has the recipe for success.

He made close to 80 million in his last fight.

He said something that really resonated with me and now I understand why he gets paid 60+ million per fight while others are making literally a fraction of that.

He said “these boxers are still selling boxing, I am selling the lifestyle”

Same thing with fitness pros, I see most of them are still selling their “training method” and “nutrition program”
I learned a long time ago that I am in business of “emotional connections” which I do through various forms of entertainment. Of course the results that our clients get speak for itself. But for customers to be LOYAL they must feel “emotionally” connected to the business NOT “transactionally“.

Let’s face it, only so many different variation of Burpees, sit ups, squats, etc….

It’s not the workout, it’s HOW YOU CONNECT AND MAKE THEM FEEL.

THEY MUST RESONATE WITH YOU AND WHAT YOU STAND FOR.

Get out there, have fun with your clients and be the ROCK STAR of your business. And watch your pockets explode.

Or you could just sit behind the computer, learn Infusion-soft, the latest whiz bang internet gadget or even worse “I am too dumb to think for myself” franchises and continue to be broke.

The choice is always yours in 2014….

Happy New Year

Sam,

PS – If you want to see a super fun/profitable business, I want to invite you to join me on Thursday, March 6th for a one day mastermind at me showcase facility in Chino, Ca.

Simply reply and let me know if you want to join us

Are you ready for 2014 new year resolution rush?

I hate to be the bearer of bad news…

But you’re most likely too late.

“But what do you mean Sam, isn’t January the best month for personal trainers?”

Yes and NOPE.

Yes if you market to them WAY BEFORE Christmas (actually before even Thanksgiving) to get their commitment and money before they go out there and spend it all.

NOPE if you didn’t.

You see MOST people are flat out broke for a few months after the Holidays.

How many times have you heard this before…

“I overspend on Christmas, so I have to take a couple of months off from training to pay off these cards”

Sure the sales are up at the local big box gyms…

But remember they are selling a $13-$29 per month membership.

MOST people cannot afford to hire a $200-$600 a month personal trainer/boot camp right after the Holidays. (They have already spend their money on gifts, Christmas, etc…)

In our businesses (and my coaching client’s) we market to the new year resolution “population” in November so that we get to their “money” BEFORE Nordstrom, JC Penney, Toys-R-US, etc….

In each of my 7 locations, we have anywhere between 30-50 NEW people signed up and PAID. These new sign ups all start their program on January 6th.

Always remember that a consumer only has so much “disposable” income.

And it’s best that you get to that “disposable” income before anyone else gets their hands on it. (especially during the Holidays)

Here is what my coaching client Charlotte said…

Holy #### We just had our orientation. Almost 200 people showed up. When I asked who wanted to join in on our program, EVERYONE raised their hands. We got 140 people signed up for the challenge, and the rest are coming in for a free week of training because they’re too “small/skinny”!!!!!!

That’s what we do all day. You can do the same…

Let’s Crush 2014

Sam,

PS – On Thursday March 6th, I am having a one day mastermind at my showcase facility in Chino, Ca. My office holds 7 people excluding me. I currently have 5 spots available. Trust me, you don’t want to miss this.

Hope you had an awesome Christmas and I hope that you’re ready to bring in 2014 with a BANG.

No my wife is not leaving me BUT (at least I hope not, where else can she find all of this 5’5″ short, white and handsome ;) let me tell you how this relates to your fitness business.

A topic that keeps coming up lately when I talk to many fitness pros is “sales agreements/contracts”

It seems like it’s the “industry standard” to lock people up into long term contracts.

As you all know by now, I like to do my own thing and don’t care about the so called “industry standards” made by people who don’t or operate a real fitness business.

Some fitness pros that I have spoken to lately seem to make “buying” plain old difficult for their prospect by offering a million different programs/price variations and contracts.

This one particular fitness pro that I was talking to literally had 14 different options and variations to his programs.

When I asked him how many clients he has he said “39”.

NO WONDER….

Don’t forget the cardinal rule that “A CONFUSED MIND ALWAYS SAYS NO”

Again, what I am teaching you is TOTALLY opposite of what others GURUS teach you.

In my businesses we have 2 options ONLY.

A month to month options and a one year PIF (paid in full option)

That’s it. BOOM

Many argue that the way I am operating “doesn’t guarantee a reliable, predictable income”

So let me prove to you why my method is way better than the industry standard of so called lock them up into “contracts”

Reason #1: Month to month agreements decreases the barrier of entry for prospects therefore increasing your closing ratio.

People in general are jaded about commitments and contracts. Make it easy for prospects to do business with you.

Make them fall in love you first then hit them up with a paid in full option.

Reason #2: Generally people don’t like the word “contract” or “agreement” NOTE YOU CAN PLAY WITH THE WORDS ALL YOU WANT BUT IT JUST BOILS DOWN TO COMMITMENT TO PAY.

Reason #3: So let me ask you a question? Say I am your client and I don’t want to come anymore. DO YOU REALLY WANT ME IN YOUR GYM? I DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU LAST THING I WANT IS TO KEEP SOMEONE HERE THAT DOESN’T WANT TO BE HERE.

If somebody is not feeling you or your gym there might be a deeper issue within your organization that you might want to look into, before trying to lock them up in a “contract”

(By the way you should survey you current clients every month)

Reason #4: Let me ask you another question? Say I am a dissatisfied client and I no longer want to come to your facility (even though I am on contract) so I cancel my credit card.

What are you going to do? Send me to collections? Really? Let’s face it, if they don’t want to come and they don’t want to pay there isn’t a D*** thing you can really do about it.

SO THE ONLY RELIABLE PREDICTABLE INCOME YOU REALLY HAVE IS TO KEEP THEM HAPPY AND SATISFIED. NO CONTRACT OR AGREEMENT IS GOING TO GIVE YOU A “RELIABLE, PREDICTABLE INCOME”

Oh by the way, I don’t know about you BUT I didn’t get in this business to be a collection agency. In our businesses, we don’t do contracts, no collection calls, NOTHING…

Guess what…. Our numbers are SKYROCKETING every month through the roof (because of differentiation, client satisfaction and community NOT contracts)

Reason #5: And this is a big one. I want to be able to get rid of a client if I don’t want them in my facility. Let’s face it…
We all have or have had clients that are energy vampires, clients that just don’t fit into our culture. Last thing I want is to be contractually obligated to service them. Cancer spreads fast and I want to be able to get rid of it before it spreads.

CONCLUSION: The only predictable, reliable monthly income in your fitness business comes from you “core product” NOT your “agreement” or “contracts”

If you want to increase your income focus on your clients experience, company culture and creating a community that’s based on relationships and NOT transactions or contracts.

Look at it this way, you want your wife/husband to stay with you because he/she loves you and wants to stay with you NOT because she is “contractually obligated” to do so.

Wait…

Isn’t divorce rate 51% in America? Hope you have a better “retention” strategy than a “contract” ;)

Sam,

PS – Thursday March 6th, I am hosting a small (7 people ONLY) mastermind at my show case facility in Chino. You DO NOT want to miss this opportunity to see and learn from what I feel like it’s most FUN and profitable model in the entire WORLD. If you’re interested simply reply back to reserve one of the spots.