Lift The Bar

You won’t be able to convert everyone from a fixed term programme into an ongoing service but there’s a few things to consider that can improve the odds of them doing so if that’s your goal.

1. The name of the programme and how you sell it will influence expectations.  If you sell a specific outcome in a specific timeframe then people will expect to be “done” at the end.  E.g. “drop a dress size / get a six pack in 30 days” vs “30 day kickstart” which implies a continuation of the activity.

This doesn’t mean you can’t use something along the lines of the first name, just that you need to be aware of the expectations you have set during the sales process and have a plan for how you change them.

2. The people who join your programme will come with their own expectations.  These will vary depending on your target audience but the more you know what these are for your demographic the easier it is to identify the elements that may need to be overcome or managed (this is true for all clients not just those on a fixed term programme).

3. Think about the journey the clients go through and how you can influence and “sell” your ongoing service from the very beginning.  Don’t wait until the end of the programme to ask them if they are interested in continuing. As you communicate what is happening, include references to what will happen if they choose to continue and use language that implies they will continue.  Obviously don’t take this too far, you don’t want them to feel railroaded into something they don’t want just bought into the process and excited about the idea of continuing.

4. Keep track of engagement and reach out to anyone who seems to be falling by the wayside. The longer your fixed term programme is, the longer people have to know what it’s like to work with you.  However, it’s also more likely they will expect to be finished at the end of it and it gives a higher chance that they will disengage.  To help with this, normalise interruptions and encourage a flexible approach over an all or nothing one that can't be sustained. 

5. Use stories of other clients who have continued after the fixed term programme or have been with you a bit longer than the programme and showcase their results (the things they are celebrating / proof of concept), reasons for continuing and why they love working with you (social proof).

6. Design your programme with your ongoing service in mind.  If your programme has a lot more bells and whistles than your ongoing service you could be setting people up for disappointment when they move into the normal service and discover the feature they found particularly useful isn’t part of it. Knowing your customers will help you avoid this and ensure they love the ongoing service as much as the initial programme.

7. Provide the information before the end of the programme.  Generally the initial period is full of information that the clients are taking onboard but as soon as you are past that initial onboarding period let them know their options for continuing.  As a rough guide aim to do this by the half way mark then remind them in different ways between that point and the end of the programme.

8. Get participants to consider how they are going to continue the behaviours they have put in place during the programme.  Have them focus on the role your advice and support has played and how things might be at the end of the programme.  

9. Two weeks before the end (if possible) tell participants you want to make sure they are all set at the end of the programme so you want them to think about any questions they have about how they continue (with or without you). Let them know there’s no pressure but you’ll also be asking them if they want to continue with you and remind them of their options.

10. The week before the programme ends ask what they need, provide the answers, ask if they want to continue now and if so get them set up.  Let them know you’ll be checking in if they are going it alone.

11. Incentivising the transfer if they do it now / within a set time span can be a good idea. Give people a reason to make the decision now and commit rather than "think about it later".

12. Reinforce the process with social proof from other clients. What do others like them have to say about working with you?  

13. Follow up afterwards for anyone who decides to go it alone.  It’s common for people to be on a high of motivation after achieving things but that tends to dip so a friendly check in from time to time can help them and potentially bring them back into your service.

14. If the individuals don’t get the results they are expecting, don’t enjoy the process, or have a bad experience in any way they won’t continue.  Whilst this article is focused on ways to influence people to continue with you, it is important to remember they signed up to your programme for a reason and to ensure you deliver on that.  No amount of talking about the benefits to come in the future will counteract a lack of positives now.

 

If we were to look at each of these in isolation then asking if they want to continue is going to be one of the most important actions you can do. However you’d be surprised how many PTs leave it to the participants to ask about continuing or don’t mention anything until after the person has finished the programme.  By this time, the individual has often already checked out and may have mentally moved on to something else.  Use the time you have their attention to get your information to them and make it so that if they are continuing to work on their health and fitness goals that they do so with you.

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