Guest Blog by Carey Sadler, Owner Rivercity Pilates
Did you know the most important factor that determines what consumers buy is trust? It kind of makes sense right? Let’s use the example of a stranger stopping at your house to sell you essential oils. You may already think essential oils are great and maybe even know about all the great benefits of them. But when a complete stranger stops at your house to sell you a 5 pack of their favorite essential oils….you might think twice before you hand them some money to buy them. It’s a little weird that they are coming to your house and who knows if the product is really what they say it is. But what if your sister texts you and says she is having a party selling essential oils and she would really love for you to come. She tells you about the oils and how her favorite oil has helped her to sleep better at night and she thinks you would really like it too (because she knows you too have a problem falling asleep..). Would you even think twice about buying some oils from your sister? Probably not. So how does that relate to a Pilates studio business?
How can you build trust with perspective clients who do not know you or your business at all? I often hear studio owners say things like,” I am not giving away anything free!” and I think that mindset can be a real roadblock in them sharing their passion and in them getting new clients to trust them. I’m not saying you need to give away free memberships at your studio or bribe people to come in. What I’m saying is that you need to create as many ways as possible for perspective clients to get to know, love and trust you so that when it comes time to purchase your services…they do it easily. I suggest doing this in a variety of ways so that you build trust on many levels. Here’s the way we build trust in our business:
- Monthly instructional videos for clients to use at home
- Almost Daily Instagram posts of exercises and things going on at our studio
- A monthly newsletter full of upcoming events, classes, client spotlights and more
- Daily Facebook posts with a variety of content related to Pilates and healthy living
- 2-3 Blogs per Week
- Twitter posts
- Linked In Posts
- Volunteering time to teach in the community for special events
- Complimentary private Pilates session to introduce clients to the studio, teach them about what we offer and how it might help them
- A Monthly Free Community Class that highlights one of our current offerings and gives clients new and current time to chat with staff and socialize afterwards
Running a business is a game of figuring out how to balance the numbers. Spend XX amount of $$ to get clients in to purchase your product (which is a movement experience) so that you can earn XX amount of money in profit. If you’d like help developing a multi-faceted marketing strategy to get new clients in your door, check out the Tools for Pilates Studio Owners that Farm Girl Marketing has developed!
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