How to Sell Out Your Small Group Sessions at $394/hr

So some of you may have already heard about this website and maybe even been a part of a group on there, but what I’m about to share with you should help you add at least another client per month to your business (we filled our first 6-person small group within just a few weeks). Many of you have been asking me about this, so let’s first talk about how I run my Small Group Sessions: Okay, so what I did was create the idea of charging $197 a month for a small group coaching program. It included: • 1 small group session per week (Saturdays) • 1 week of printed workouts (print out that day’s workout for them to take home) • Our studio start-up new client folder that includes stretches, fat burning intervals, nutrition, and nutritional support recommendations • Sample meal plans & a recipe printed up • Email support during the week • Progress reports every 4 weeks (weigh-ins, body comps, measurements, etc.) • Plenty of motivation and accountability with weekly weigh-ins and supportive group session environment Now, you may think this seems like a lot of work, but all you have to do is create it once and then it’s done forever. Literally, the only thing we had to do for this group session was show up and teach it . All the printouts were already copied and we just hand them out at the end of the session. It’s awesome! Plus, our sessions are always only 45-minutes so that means you’re making almost $300 for 45-minutes ($295.50). And when you do back-to-back sessions that means you’re raking in $591 in just 90 minutes! ( That’s about $400/hr … $394/r exactly if you’re into doing the math properly) The MATH: * Each 6 person class = $1,182/month and $3,546 for the 12 week program * 2 back-to-back classes = $2,364/month and $7,092 for (2) 12 week programs Now even if you only charged $97/month and followed this plan it would still equal about $150 a session. Another tip I would give you is to leave 5-15 minute between sessions when you’re first starting out (this will allow you a little wiggle room in transitioning to the new small group session if you have a smaller studio). Before I get into how I marketed this program I’m sure you probably want some details on how I run my small group coaching programs … so let’s have at it: First off, my studio space is small… really small. Meaning I can max it out with 4 CPTs working with 1 client at a time. But, to be able to do this we all have to be willing to play by the rules and stay in certain spaces while working in on occasion with other CPTs and their clients. It works, but you do need to have your systems down if you’re going to have 8 people on a 497 ft fitness floor lifting heavy objects… However, with our small group coaching sessions we had to find times to clear out the studio, since there’s no way we could have 6 clients in for a session while others were working out. What I did was reserve early Saturday mornings (the first 2 hours of training in the studio) for these SGS (small group sessions). I did NOT teach the classes myself since I do not work in the studio on the weekends, but I did design the SGS structure. I had 1 CPT teaching it while each client stood at a station. We have 6 cable towers (3 Keiser and 3 Life Fitness) and so each client was assigned a cable tower . They also had an abs mat, dumbbell set, and kettlebell. This allowed us to use my tri-set system of burning body fat in a self-contained area. ( 3 exercises done in a row followed by a rest period ) The result was fantastic body transformation results and the clients loved it! During the last 5 minutes of the session while clients were foam rolling or stretching the instructor would review the workouts clients should do on their own during the week (this was a weight loss based program so they did body weight based exercises if they did not have access to equipment, gym workouts that mimicked what they just did in their session, and also cardio based intervals like sprints). NOTE : Have you noticed yet that NEVER once did I call this small group session a “class.” Classes are the free things that health clubs give members for FREE. Since you’re charging money, how you phrase things becomes of the utmost importance. NEVER call them classes… (Also, in order to charge top dollar you must really niche out your small group session. It can’t be just general training.) Back on topic… I paid my CPT teaching the class $15 per person in the group. That means they could make $90 per 45-minute session ( not bad for them either ). It’s also a good idea to give them a “re-signing bonus” for clients who continue on after the 12-week package is up. I would offer 10% of that package sale (10% of $197 = about $20 per re-sign). Now you have the nuts and bolts of how I run my small group coaching sessions, so let’s get into how I first marketed them. About 2 years ago I found out about a website called, MeetUp.com . I didn’t think too much of it other than it was a cool idea for moms to get together and go for a run in the park (I’m not being sexist since the only groups I had ever heard of were called “Mommy & Me” and that’s all I knew of this website). Later I found out that there were weight loss, triathlete, sport’s specific, and all sorts of other health related groups. It’s actually pretty cool and I know belong to a few others that I don’t personally run. Some groups charge money, while others are free. There is a small charge to create your own group, but I’m going to tell you a way to get others to pay for your MeetUp.com bi-annual membership fee, which is $75 . First off, I wouldn’t have ever created a MeetUp group if it wasn’t for this ONE feature: You actually get to choose which email lists from MeetUp.com you want to send your initial email blast to. This is sick! Can you believe this? You only have to pay $75 to send a SUPER-TARGETED email to THOUSANDS of subscribers interested in your topic all living within your city… It’s actually a ridiculous deal, but most people do this all wrong. Given that I’m a little bit of a marketing nerd I always look for the hidden areas that most people don’t recognize. So here’s what I did: My secret wasn’t to target just people wanting weight loss since that’s what my group was focused on, but rather the Meet-Up Groups with the LARGEST LISTS. You see, you actually get to pick 2-3 lists for whom you want to mail to. So I first looked at everyone who wanted weight loss and then choose the lists of people who had the largest followings within that category. It didn’t have to be strictly weight loss, but of course they had to be into losing weight, dieting, or exercising. Even if you aren’t going to do a weight loss group, this WOULD work well (maybe even better) for specific sports camps, dance classes, martial arts specific classes, seminars, etc. The other big point here is that you MUST have your MeetUp website finished before the emails get sent out… you wouldn’t want to waste your one opportunity of people landing on your website and not joining as a member… Also, make it FREE . You’ll be charging plenty of money later… the first thing you need to do is build the trust. That’s why we offered a FREE 30-minute seminar with a 30-minute Q&A (60-minutes total) to all new members (we ran it about 1 month after launching, but kept building the momentum throughout the month). The seminar was just on the fundamentals of weight loss, but with a catchy name… something like, “ The 10 Proven Steps to Losing Weight & Keeping it Off Forever. ” And, at the end of the seminar we offered all attendees a complimentary fitness consultation coupon and tried to set up times for everyone to come in later that week. (Again, we’re still offering free… so that we can build their trust and then sign them up at the end of the consultation). Now, here’s a few of my techniques that often fly under the radar: 1. I used my own studio as the “sponsor” of the group so that it was front and center in front of all people coming to that website. That means it was a free advertisement for my studio…2. I had links to my online newsletter to get people reading my work and allowing me to stay in front of them more often. Plus, this allowed me to try to follow up and promote my online fitness products.3. I offered a complimentary fitness consultation right on the website so that anyone could get started right away and not have to wait for a seminar, etc.4. I created question boards to start some interaction amongst the group5. I let people know why they should keep checking in : future events planned, etc.6. I always had links to all my in-home, studio, corporate, and small group websites to allow them to choose what worked best for them.7. I put my photo, studio phone #, and email on the website to build trust. Another great thing is that MeetUp.com has a high SEO ranking so my websites started getting more “Google Juice.” And, who doesn’t like a little more Google Juice? (I’m on the 1st page of Google for my specific keyword) Now, if I were looking to make money through this website I could have other companies (not direct competitors) sponsor my MeetUp.com webpage. For example, maybe I would have a chiropractor, massage therapist, spa, meal delivery service, etc. pay $50-$500/month for that spot where it says “Sponsor”. Those #’s are accurate since I’ve gotten offers like that to sponsor my website. So what is the name of the website I set up? Well, I like to do things big and sometimes a little BOLD (it’s hard to get noticed in a big market full of competitors!), so I went with what I thought was the most fitting… I called my MeetUp.com group: “Boston’s Best Weight Loss” http://www.meetup.com/Bostons-Best-Weight-Loss/ (Click the link above to see the webpage)