Let’s get it out in the open right away; making sales calls can really suck sometimes. There’s nothing worse that calling up a lead and dealing with a)someone who doesn’t remember requesting a call or b)someone that treats you like crap and shows no respect. Surviving in the sales world takes some thick skin, so if you’ve been able to find that you enjoy this world, here’s to you!

If you’re reading this, you’re either a FitnessTexter client that needs a way to close their leads, or you’re a sale professional at another fitness business that needs to figure out how to go from sales lead to new member. No worries, we’re here to help. Below you’ll find a great gym membership follow-up phone script, as well as tips for making sales calling gym leads a little bit easier.

If you’re a FitnessTexter client, the best case scenario is that the new fitness lead shows up at the gym, with phone in hand, and says:
“Hey, I have this text message coupon for your gym on my phone. How do I redeem it?” However, we don’t live in a perfect world and not all your FitnessTexter leads will just stroll into your building with arms wide open. Maybe they’re a bit nervous of working out, scared of being out of shape around other people, have questions about your facility, or maybe they’re just waiting to be contacted by the gym. Whatever their reason, here are some best practices (and a sales script) for making gym sales follow-up calls to your fitness leads.

Start a Conversation. Don’t Make a Hard Sales Pitch at the Start

Do you like when telemarketers call your house during the middle of dinner and try to pitch you a product that you’re not in the mood to talk about? No? Well, that’s how EVERYONE feels. People hate being sold something, but they LOVE to buy. With that said, don’t try a hard sales pitch when you make your first call to your gym leads.

Since they don’t know that you’ll be calling, make sure to introduce yourself immediately. They’ll remember signing up for your gym’s deal, but they might not be expecting the phone call. Here’s what we suggest saying:

Hey, this is ____{your-name}____ from ____{your-gym}____. I see you signed up for our text message deal a few days ago. Just wanted to touch base and see when you were planning on coming in.

Nothing abrasive, just a friendly greeting to start the conversation. If you immediately open with with a super scripted sales message, they’re going to be turned off. The last thing you want them to do is hang up on you, because then you’ve lost your lead. The best thing you can do is start to warm up your lead.

Invite Them to Come in for a Tour of Your Gym

There’s a very good chance that most of the people that sign up for your FitnessTexter deal have never been inside your facility before. Why not offer them a tour of your facility so they can see it firsthand? Show them the equipment, the locker rooms(you have a locker room, right?), the free-weights area. If they have never seen your facility, the chances of them showing up by themselves are quite slim. Give them a tour and make it easier for them to get started. When you’re telling them about the tour, make sure to highlight the fact that they don’t have to sign any paperwork or bring any workout clothes. It’s purely a quick walk around the facility that doesn’t have any paperwork included. Whenever someone gets a sales call from a gym, they’re expecting some kind of strings to be attached to the offer. Let them know that there are no strings here.

Offer a Group Workout Pass or Invite a Friend to Ease Nerves

Remember the first time you went to the gym? You were probably pretty nervous and maybe a bit intimidated by the whole situation. Did you have a friend come with you? Perhaps. Well, that’s probably how your FitnessTexter lead feels. Maybe they’ve been out of shape for the last few years and they’re looking to get back in the action. Either way, invite them to do a group workout. I personally think that working out by yourself kind of sucks. It’s a lot more fun to do some type of fitness class. You can simply follow the instructor through the motions and you leave with the sense of wellbeing. Leaving after doing a solo workout doesn’t always feel that way. Another option to get them to come in is to offer them a Bring-a-Friend pass. You already have one lead on the phone, why not get them to bring a friend with them and increase the amount of leads you’re bringing in the door. Give their friend the same FitnessTexter deal as your original lead and now you’ll have 2 leads for the price of one.

Ask Them More Questions and Talk Less

Let’s face a fact, we all talk too much. We all love to talk about ourselves, our business, our gym, our whatever. Well, here’s a perfect time to bite your tongue and quit talking. When you make your follow-up gym membership calls to your leads, let them talk about themselves. Way to many sales professional fall in love with their voice and sales pitch and wind up talking too much when it should be the person on the other end of the phone doing the majority of the talking.

Ask them open-ended questions and then sit back and let them talk. Create a banter with them. Refrain from trying to insert yourself into their stories. Have you had a similar experience? Great, but don’t interrupt them to talk about yourself. Let them explain why they want to join the gym, their strengths, weaknesses, etc.

Ask them their origin story. Why are they interested in fitness. Have they had any struggles with fitness throughout their life? Whatever you do, don’t talk. Enjoy a few moments of quiet time and let them talk.

Gym Membership Sales Follow-Up Phone Call Script

Me: Hey, is this Kelly Smith?
Them: Yes it is, maybe I ask who is calling?
Me: Yeah. It’s Patrick from Jones Gym. I see you signed up for our text message promotion the other day. Does that ring any bells?
Them: Oh yeah. I was on your website and saw the free week pass deal and sent the text message. So what’s the next step?
Me: Well, that’s really up to you. You can come in anytime this week and start your free week. If you’d rather take a peek at the gym first, you can also come in for a little tour after you’re done with work. I’m here until 6pm and can show you the cardio classes, equipment, and all that fun stuff.
Them: Well, you know, I’m kind of busy this week. I’ll think about it. (here she is ready to hang up)
Me: You know, we’re also offering a bring-a-friend deal to all the people that signed up for our texting deal.
Them: Really? How’s it work.
Me: We know it’s not that fun to work out by yourself, so if you want to bring a friend along for the free week, they’ll get a free week too.
Them: Wow, that’s super cool. You know what, I think I’ll take you up on that tour. I’ll swing by tomorrow after work and then I’ll bring my friend Jill along for the free week. We’ve been meaning to get in shape this year, so it’ll be nice to have a partner in crime.
Me: Great, see you tomorrow!