Off-Beat Marketing Ideas Keep Leads Rolling In
This month, we’re in the 3rd of 6 Marketing Matters articles for the year that will focus on “off beat” marketing ideas for you to try. An “Off-beat” marketing idea refers to non-traditional approaches. An idea that you hear and might say, “That’s different, I’d like to give that a try.” Of course, “off-beat” marketing efforts never replace proven items on your annual marketing plan, but rather they are used as a supplement to drive more traffic through the clubs’ doors and in the process, perhaps find a new, successful strategy to add to your annual marketing plan.
As we are moving into the summer months where the traffic flow for sales is naturally slower, this article will feature off-beat ideas that are more guerrilla oriented; meaning the ideas are things that require a very minimal investment and can primarily be implemented by the sales staff alone, rather than relying on outside sources.
The first “off-beat” marketing idea is actually a twist on a very old idea—but a twist that has brought life back to a dying strategy. I’m talking about lead boxes and before you let out a groan, just give me a minute. For those who might not be familiar with lead boxes, they are small cardboard or acrylic containers that have a slot on the top of them for people to drop in either a business card or a small slip of paper (usually affixed to the box in small, glue-bound pads) that they have filled out with their name, address and contact details. Typically there is some sort of display board attached to the back of the box that allows for either a permanent advertisement or, in the case of acrylic boxes, a mechanism that holds an 8 ½ x 11 inch flyer that can be changed regularly. Traditionally, clubs place lead boxes out in high-traffic community businesses offering a free trial membership. Individuals who drop their card into the box or fill out a lead box slip are called and invited in for a trial.
Back in the 1980’s lead boxes were a big part of health spa and health club marketing. Unfortunately, over time lead boxes began to get a bad rap for a number of reasons. First, because of their success, many other businesses began using the concept and many business owners simply threw the boxes out or asked for them to be removed. Another common problem was one health club stealing the leads of another club right out of their box or, worst yet, stealing the entire box and putting theirs in its’ place. Finally, there was the issue of lead quality. As is the case with any “free” offer, the quality of lead box leads was low. Therefore, a salesperson might have to make twenty calls to book one appointment. All these factors, combined with the rapid increase in the fitness craze, which made other forms of lead generation easier, resulted in negative attitude towards lead boxes.
Interestingly enough, many of the larger club chains still use lead boxes today—and quite successfully. I know of one chain that requires new clubs to place 300 lead boxes out into the community during pre-sales. This accomplishes two key things, both of which are major reasons why I still am a big believer in lead boxes. One, it allows the salespeople to obtain names and numbers they can proactively follow up on. Two, the lead box itself acts as a mini advertisement. Therefore, I am of the belief that if a salesperson doesn’t have 5 pre-booked appointments each day, they should have 5-10 boxes out, providing them with much needed leads.
So, enough about the plain ole’ lead box, what about the new twist that makes this qualify for an “off-beat” marketing idea? Instead of simply giving away a free trial membership or enticing people to enter to win a longer-term membership, what our company is doing is advertising to receive a free weight loss booklet (which we developed and had printed for about .64 cents each). Now you may not initially think this is very offbeat, but it is for several reasons. First, we are giving away a tangible product that provides information on something 64% of Americans want—weight loss. Two, and perhaps more significantly, we are lowering the barrier to entry with the free offer.
As many of you k now from previous Marketing Matters columns, one of the keys to increasing the response to an advertisement is to make the offer easy for the customer to respond to—i.e. something that doesn’t involve risk on their part. Even with a free trial membership customers often feel at risk for being given a sales pitch. With an information booklet, however, the person is simply asking you to mail something to them. Yes, they may feel somewhat at risk for being put on a mailing list, but that is a much lower risk than an in-person sales presentation. What the customer is receiving, however, is a product that identifies them as a quality prospect, which in my Centers’ case is someone who wants to lose weight. Sure, we still get kids filling out bogus slips and other people who really have no interest except for the fact that something is being given away for free, but for the most part the strategy is highly successful. We build a database of people interested in our product AND are given the opportunity to send them something that covertly educates them on the value of the products and services we offer.
In applying this lead box strategy at your club you will have to organize a few things. First, determine what type of lead box you want to utilize. The cardboard style is inexpensive but they aren’t as attractive as the acrylic ones, you can’t change the offer without making the box look makeshift and they get dingy looking fairly quickly. You will have to weigh out the pros and cons in relation to the price and how many boxes you want to invest in. The company I use for lead boxes is www.getmembers.com. Once you have your boxes you next need to figure out what to do for a free informational booklet. You have several options. First, simply get a few of your staff members together and write it yourself. It is a lot easier than it sounds. Remember, this doesn’t have to be a 4-color job and professionally type set. We made ours in a Word document using margins that resulted in a 4 ¼ x 5” pocket size booklet with an attractive 2-color cover. Even small quantity runs of 500 booklets will probably only cost about $1 per item, which is a very inexpensive way to get a higher quality lead. (Of course, you never just send the booklet out; you always call and qualify before spending that money.J)
The next offbeat idea is perhaps one of my favorites. At Healthy Inspirations we call it the Goody Bag Program. One of our licensed Centers came up with this idea, which they brainstormed from a sales/marketing strategy used by pharmaceutical representatives. The basic concept is that the salespeople identify local doctor’s offices and businesses that cater to similar clientele. Once identified the staff puts together goody bags filled with a variety of supplement samples from our weight loss program, tri-fold brochures (that are coded) and coupons good for free services at our Center (relaxation treatment, mini-facial, cellulite treatment, 2-weeks of exercise, etc.). The actual bags are purchased at a local party, card or discount store. The average total cost of the bag (not including the cost of goods associated with someone actually redeeming a coupon) is anywhere from $2-3. The salespeople then hand deliver the bags to the local businesses with the intention of meeting the owner or manager, starting a conversation and beginning to build a long-term relationship.
All of the goody bag drop-offs are logged on a form back at the Center. Each time a referral comes in that can be traced to one of the goody bag locations, it is documented in the log. For at least three months in a row, a new goody bad is brought back to each listed location (typically 12-24 total). Typically, after bringing a goody bag to a business for three consecutive months, a pattern of referrals begins to emerge. These referrals could be directly from the employees working at that business (because you have established a relationship with them) or they might be from tri-fold brochures or flyers left behind. The sales team will then go through the logs and identify those businesses that have sent the most referrals. As is the case with club members, usually about 20% of all the businesses chosen become solid lead generators. The salespeople continue to bring these businesses one, new goody bag per month to build and maintain the relationship. Then, a new batch of businesses and/or offices is identified and the cycle begins again. Eventually a large group of referring businesses is established, opening up the possibility of other joint marketing ventures in the future.
The next offbeat marketing idea is quite simple but one that not many health clubs utilize. It is a mud sign. A mud sign is a small sign (typically 1’ x 2’) that has thin, wire rods attached to each side. The wire rods are what allow the user to stick the sign into a grassy area quite easily. Obviously, since the sign isn’t large, the message has to be short but effective. Recently I have seen these signs being used by small, at-home type businesses, like handy men and junk removal. In the past I have also seen them for insurance as well as real estate open houses. Depending upon how many signs you plan on using will help determine what you will print on the signs. For instance, if you simply plan on using them around the plaza your facility is located in, you can simply say something like, “Free Tour Today” followed by your club logo. If, however, you plan on placing them around the town, you will probably want to put your web address on the sign and drive people to your website. Of course, this assumes your site is attractive enough to gain their attention and effective enough to either drive the person to visit your club or give you their information for timely follow up.
Another reason these type of signs work is because they are easy to use and can be placed just about anywhere the ground allows. However, “can” be placed in terms of physical ability and “can” be placed in terms of legal ability are two different things. When Tony DeLeede owned the Australian Body Works club chain in Atlanta, he found these signs to be very effective at driving prospects through the doors. Unfortunately, the zoning ordinance rules for the Atlanta area didn’t allow such signs and Mr. DeLeede had to pay some fines when an inspector found them being used. The club managers, though, continued to use the signs on the weekends because they felt the number of leads that were generated outweighed the small fine. Quite a testament to their effectiveness!
With the summer months right around the corner, it is time to get your sales staff working on lead generation activities that will drive more prospects through the clubs’ doors. With this month’s three ideas—the new twist on lead boxes, the goody bag program and the mud signs—combined with other eight ideas given to you in the two previous “offbeat” marketing ideas articles, you now have an arsenal of tools at your disposal. Remember that not every idea is a perfect fit for every club; work with your sales team to identify those strategies that have the greatest chance of lead generation given the social, economic and geographic factors in your community. With a great attitude and the right amount of effort, your club will be well on its’ way to creating new marketing strategies that will result in more sales.