Lift The Bar

Using Offers

The first question to answer is why you are thinking of having an offer.  I’m guessing the short answer is that you want more clients but if that is the end of your answer then I’d encourage you to think a bit more on the role the offer will have.

An offer can create scarcity and give people a reason to take action now rather than waiting and risk missing out, it can make your service seem more appealing and it can reduce barriers making it easier for potential clients to “give it a go”.

An offer does not replace the need to have a marketing process of some kind in order to communicate information about what your service (or product) is, how it works and who it’s for.   If you are using an offer you still need to have a way to tell people about it.

 

How long or how often you use your offer will impact how it is perceived.  There’s nothing wrong with having a permanent offer.  

Something like a trial month can be a great way of letting people experience your service for themselves and changes the decision making process as it’s got an inbuilt dignified exit included in it. Often there is a reluctance to commit to an ongoing service, even if it’s something you can cancel at any time, whereas committing to a month feels different.  Of course by the end of the month you are no longer a stranger, they trust you, have a better understanding of what they are purchasing and are happy to move onto an ongoing monthly payment.

Alternatively, occasional offers can help mix things up and capture interest in a different way. The novelty can register with people who have been on the fence for a while and help move them into action.  

The key things about offers are that you don’t impact your pricing in the long term. Unless there’s a really good reason to do so* you don’t want to discount ongoing prices.  We all know companies that have so many sale periods that you would never consider paying full price for anything.  You don’t want your business to become known for its discounts!  

*sometimes you may choose to do an offer that impacts ongoing pricing to a limited number of people.   Maybe a “founders” rate for the first people to sign up to a new gym or programme, because you are looking to create a buzz, get some commitment up front or are gaining something other than money like testimonials, feedback, social proof and proof of concept.

Offers don’t have to be financial either, you can bundle up additional items to increase perceived value instead. Just make sure the additional items are things that appeal to your audience.

One of the important things to remember with offers is that your price will influence expectations about the pricing of your other services so if you are offering a discount you need to let people know that.  Is it 50% off?   10% off? £20? If you are charging £99 for a trial month but your ongoing cost is £250 a month then you need to make sure you aren’t setting people’s expectations with your trial price.  This is easily done with the way you display the price and as long as you are aware of that you can set your offer or trial price at whatever level you feel is appropriate.

Of course your trial price doesn’t have to be discounted at all, it can be a chance to try for a month at normal cost with no ongoing commitment.

 

 

Fixed Term Packages / Challenges

Building a business purely on fixed term packages can be tough. Whilst it’s normal for people to leave any service, if there is an end date to all your services there will be a higher number leaving at that stage.  Even people who repeat a package only tend to do so once or twice.

Having said that, they can be used within a business if you want a block of cash, want to try something new, as a way of bringing people into the business or as a way to showcase your skills.  The best approach to take will depend on the outcome you are looking for.  

If you are looking for a way to bring people into a longer term service then you need to consider the impact of things like the name and the length of the programme. Converting people after a 12 week transformation based programme is harder than converting people after a 30 day trial (we’ll cover converting people from a trial or fixed term package in the next blog).  

If you are after an influx of cash then a longer programme will allow you to charge more, just don’t forget to factor in how long you need to work after the payments are made.

A fixed term package needs to have a specific outcome attached to it and a structure to it that supports achieving it.  This means the length of time of the package needs to match the time needed to achieve the goal.  Whilst the first things that come to mind are probably some kind of transformation programme, the outcome does not need to be a particular amount of weight lost, gained or lifted or a skill completely mastered.  It can be a kickstart, introduction, “master the basics” type programme where the aim is to understand the principles and start on making something a habit.

The next challenge, when you know what the package is going to help people do and over what time period, is to decide what you are going to include.  Some things will be obvious and driven by the actions required to reach the desired goal, e.g. if your outcome involves a change in weight then the programme has to include information on nutrition.  Some things will depend on the expectations of your audience – what might they expect this kind of programme to include? And some things will be stuff you’ve seen other trainers do or have heard about on podcasts etc.

The chances are you will end up with a lot more things you could include than are realistic to integrate into a few weeks or even months.

One of the hardest things in designing a fixed term package can be removing stuff but it is this stage that makes the biggest difference to successful packages.  The aim to increase perceived value tempts us to add more features and include more information but it has to be balanced by the realities of what our clients want.

Some good questions to ask yourself about the things you are including are:

1. Will the people I am aiming this at expect this?
2. Will the people I am aiming this at use this?
3. Will the people I am aiming this at value this?

If the answer is yes to all of these questions then all is good. If the answer is yes to some of the questions, then you’ll need to weigh up the work involved against the potential benefits in order to decide whether to include the item.  If the answers are no then ditch the idea.

When it comes to information and education, unless your demographic is particularly interested in scientific details, then work on the basis that less is more.  This typically means we have to simplify everything. Focus on practical information relating to what to do and keep information on why we take that approach limited to reasons that are important to the client.

It's worth noting that including too many extras can sometimes dilute the percieved value of your core elements or put people off if there are things they believe they are paying for but don't want / aren't using. Reminding yourself of this can help you streamline your offering so you end up with a great offer / programme that people love.

In the next blog we'll delve more into how to convert people from fixed term programmes into ongoing services.

In the meantime LTB Members can drop me an email with any questions they have or access more resources related to marketing in the resource dashboard. (If you are new to LTB check out the 2 week free trial to get support or find out what's available)