4 easy ways to get your personal training clients to refer you clients

Referrals How can you build your business without having to sell? The answer is referrals. If you have a great product to share with your clients they will refer you friends, family and co workers. However there is a way that you can maximize these referrals to make sure they are coming in consistently. In my career I was able to stop selling and doing cold calls because my clients were referring me all of my business. You should have a goal that every client you have you try to get between 3 and 5 referrals. This way your chance to sell  your services increases.  You should be able to sell 1 of every 3 referrals that you get.  Here are the systems I use. Invite a friend: This technique is a great way to keep things fun and fresh for your clients. They are spending thousands of dollars on your services so they deserve some perks. Also I have noticed that they like to show off to their friends their new found athleticism. So it's easy choose a day each month and let all your clients know that they can invite a friend to join their exercise session that day. After the session ask them how they liked the session, then offer them two more for free.  This is where the sales process starts again and you can try to close a new client.  Charity bootcamp: With this technique you set up a charity bootcamp where everyone can come for free as long as they bring a non perishable food item. Put up signs around your city, and contact businesses and have sign up sheets for their employees. Once the bootcamp is full you won't need to market it anymore because people will invite their friends for the free bootcamp. Then once again offer every new person two free personal training sessions, and start the sales process again. Ask for referrals: This is the simplest and most effective in my experience. Each month you simply ask your clients if any of their friends would benefit from a free session. Most of the time they know someone, and if they value your service they will have no problem helping you out.  Trade services: You can find a professional to trade services with. For example you can find a hair stylist and give them free sessions in return for them referring you clients. If you find the right person this can be a great source of referrals. Make sure that they have a lot of clients, and are very social, and encourage them to talk about their exercise program with their clients. Set a referral goal each month, once again that goal should be 3-5 referrals. Referrals if done right can be 100% of new business coming In, and it's so easy to do. The problem is that people are afraid to ask for referrals. I always found it funny that trainers didn't like to ask for referrals, it's like it's a secret that we need clients and that we need to sell. Most of your clients work in a sales driven business they understand that you need to sell and that you need referrals. This is NO SECRET. We are all in a sales based society and are used to this phenomenon, how often do you go to a salon and see a sign refer a friend for a free cut? Don't hide behind insecurity it will only make it harder to sell.  Check back for my next post on lead generation where I demonstrate my techniques for acquiring leads. Also stay tuned for my book "The step by step guide to selling personal training" in it I will have all of the charts you will need to keep track of referrals to maximize your success. Train hard Jared Roy