The UNTHINKABLE happened today…I went back to the gym! LOL
And there’s a great marketing lesson for YOU!
I never thought it would happen and I was doomed to submit to home workouts forever! LOL
After 6 months of home workouts, feeling sluggish, lack of fitness motivation, worried about my “gainz” going away and becoming that outta shape guy I once was… all disappeared today as New Jersey finally allowed our gyms to reopen. WAHOO!
We’ve all had a hard year living amidst Covid-19 and being an “On Stage Entrepreneur.”(TM)
But the good news is there is always a new opportunity around the corner. You & I will get back on stage in front of live (IN PERSON) audiences again and we will pack the houses!
BUT UNTIL THEN… we need to focus on how we show up for those audiences, clients and even potential new customers.
Let me explain… Some entertainers are choosing to stay silent.
They are not doing anything virtual, not staying visible on social media, not keeping in touch with past clients, leads and prospects and they’re just waiting this thing out. My bet is those “silent folks” are going to find it a lot harder to start up their business back up when live events DO resume.
Or worse, they won’t be able to start their business back up, ever again, PERIOD.
There have been plenty of gyms in the NYC/ NJ area that have taken that silent approach during these past 6 months too.
They didn’t offer anything virtual, didn’t do anything on social media and didn’t stay in contact with their members & clients.
And sadly those gyms did not open today, because they are closed permanently.
Ya see, when those gyms COULD have taken the right steps to stay visible & relevant they chose to stay silent and they didnt show up at all.
My gym on the other-hand (Lifetime Fitness) never stopped CONTACTING, COMMUNICATING and CARING.
Communication is everything.
It may sound cliché, but it’s not.
Before reopening – they prioritized member safety. They shared their behind the scenes, reopening strategy and kept us in the loop for when the time was right.
In the meantime, they maintained our trust as members and didn’t rush to open just to open.
Looking across their social media platforms they shared photos & videos to be the ones to keep us company while we were away from the gym these past months.
Like a trusted friend, they HELPED US stay in shape, get through those home workouts, provided healthy recipes, fun family activities and even a weekly dose of inspiration.
When they were ready to open they shared text, photos and videos of what our new normal would look like returning to the club.
After the first few clubs in the country reopened, they asked for testimonials from the first few members IN.
They shared those testimonial videos across their social media, websites and emails.
They kept staying ahead and continued to inform members, send updates and show they cared. Not just cared about our future business but cared about our well being and cared about keeping our trust.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, there is nothing listed here that YOU cannot do too. Even though one might argue a gym and a magician are two totally different businesses, I argue good business IS good business.
We’re still all in this “new normal” together and everyone knows this will not disappear any time soon.
So if you have been staying silent – it’s time to WAKE UP, SHAKE UP your routine and SHOW UP for your clients… SHOW UP FOR YOUR BUSINESS!
Don’t stay silent while your “old business model” is closed or your entire business runs the risk of STAYING CLOSED… permanently.
Tomorrow I’ll share some ways to BUILD MORE TRUST even when you’re not performing or doing a ton of gigs.
Till then…