A big mistake gym owners make when marketing is trying to be too clever with their messaging, instead of being clear. You want to stand out from the crowd, so you want to be different from everyone else who’s offering fitness, weight loss, muscle gain etc.
The problem is, your prospects don’t care, and don’t have the time or the attention to learn about you if you don’t capture their attention straight away. Think about the mindset of your prospects (particularly while on social media) – they’re in browsing mode, very low concentration levels, and just looking to be entertained, distracted, or catch up on what their friends and celebrities are doing. On top of this, most people are under a lot of time pressure, have to juggle work, kids, relationships, and everything else. This all reduces their brand power.
So why do you get it wrong with your message? Donald Miller, author of Storybrand, explains it like this. Your knowledge is 10/10 on the subject. When you make it simpler, you dial it down to 8/10 or maybe even 6/10. But your prospects understanding is 2-4/10 at best.
Knowing this, how do you keep your message simple and still stand out.
- Be super clear on what the outcome is, and what language your clients use. If your clients say they like to “tone up”, no matter how much you may dislike that phrase, use it! Other examples include:
- “get strong”
- “feel healthy”
- “look great”
- “lose inches”…
- Be clear on who you help.
- At the minimum, say the area: “We help people in Whoville…”
- Better yet, “busy moms”
- Even better “moms over 40 who aren’t fans of the gym.”
- Finally, to stand out, list either the method, a timeline, or a common objection.
- “with simple 30-minute fat busting workouts”
- “within 6 weeks”
- “without spending hours in the gym.”
In marketing, we want to make it easy for our prospects to understand how we can help, and make it easy for them to take the next step. We want them burning the least amount of calories from their couch to ours. Afterwards, we can help them burn as many calories as possible.