Don't Buy Ads: Grow Your CrossFit Box

Why Write A Book?

In 2008, I combined my philosophy that I learn BEST when I paraphrase and teach with the new knowledge that I was gaining in business. When I started posting on DontBuyAds, I was telling myself stories. I was writing because I love writing, and because I didn't want to forget any of this stuff.

When we started studying psychology, behavioural anthropology, and neurology for Ignite, the applications to the business world were immediately apparent. Our brains are not those of our ancestors; our thoughts are not those of our parents. Our business is not the gym business of the 1970s, the 1980s, the 1990s...or even the modern-day "low-price lifetime membership" model of today.

Nearly 400 posts later, I started worrying about forgetting stuff. Affiliate owners and coaches were emailing questions about problems I'd encountered years before, and I wanted to send them the best answer I could provide. I also wanted to arrange the content from this blog, and many other things I've learned, into a more cohesive process. 

This book is the sum of 7 years of experience owning a gym, 9 years' experience coaching before owning a gym, hundreds of calls with other gym owners, big mistakes, and big victories. There's a lot of research, and many stories. 

I'm a member of the CrossFit Media Team, a position that's been incredibly rewarding. However, this book does NOT reflect the opinions of HQ, and though some on the Media Team will read it, they weren't asked to edit the book because the act would constitute a blessing they won't want to give, in the name of objectivity. 

Cover design by the magnificent Clay Weldon of 321GoProject.com, with whom I'm lucky to share the joy of helping new and existing Affiliates make their businesses better every day.

Enjoy. I sure do.

(click the book to buy it.)

How To Write A Pop Hit

Fill in the blanks from these popular CrossFit T-shirt slogans:

• "Your workout is our _______________."
• "Train to not suck at ____________."
• "Like my clean? You should see my _________." 

Your brain recognizes patterns. It tries to predict what will happen next based on the information it has. In other words, it will try to close the information Gap using clues.

This is a useful trait, because inference helps us to survive:

I see bear tracks; I smell something menacing; I'll go thataway.

Whenever our brain receives data, forms inferences, and is proved correct, you get a tiny little 'reward' sensation; a chemical high-five. 

Wonder why that Nickelback song gets stuck in your head? It's full of familiar patterns that are easy to recall and predict. Since most of their songs sound similar, it's easy for your brain to predict the flow of a new song even as you're hearing it for the first time. Subconsciously, your brain recognizes a familiar pattern, predicts what will come next, and gets a piece of mango when it's right. Since your brain LOVES mangoes, it repeats the song again and again to relive the positive experience. 

Don't bore us. Get to the chorus! How does this apply to your CrossFit Box?

1. Be predictable. If your members can regurgitate gym rules, policies, and prices on demand, they'll feel happy doing so. When they can answer the questions of their friends using the same language YOU would use, they feel good doing so.

2. Don't be UNpredictable. The flipside of predictability is that a brain becomes stressed when it CAN'T predict what will happen. "If I have a problem, and I tell Chris....well, he might react badly. He might even get annoyed with me." That feeling costs clients, because it creates fear of unpredictability.

3. Stick to common themes in your business operations. A client should know, for instance, that the business always runs the same way; that a 30-minute personal training session always lasts 30 minutes, instead of 20 or 40. That a CrossFit class starts with a warmup at 12:03, progresses through skills, and finishes the WOD with stretching around 12:45. When one coach starts class late, and another starts right on time, the unpredictability will keep clients away ("I can't afford to be late back from lunch. What if Sam's coaching? Can't risk it today.")

4. Stick to repeatable messages. How many Affiliates use the slogan, "Your workout is our warmup!" on their shirts? We did, years ago, and then I realized that I wasn't even sure what it meant. Our workouts are longer? Harder? We do biceps curls for warmups? It was just stuck in my head.

5. Keep things simple. Break your message up into small, shareable chunks. Deliver information in single points that are easier to digest.

6. Deliver your philosophy in bumper-sticker format. On the walls of your gym, post short messages that are easy to recall and regurgitate. "Routine Is The Enemy" is a message that a member can share with their friends; a 30-minute lecture on novelty and variance is not.

We thrive on being different. We love being creative. That's good. Building business practices on predictability, though, satisfies the need for structure in the brains of your members.

Why You Don't Remember Ads

But wait, you say! I DO remember ads! I know the jingle for that shampoo! I have a dozen shirts that say, "Just Do It". I even know the slogan for that fitness place!

What you remember is actually context: the story around the promotion. Anything that's stored in your brain for quick recall, by necessity, has to be linked to one or more senses. But let's back up a bit:

Your brain is extremely good at prioritizing information. Before data is stored, even in your short-term memory, it's filtered for relevance. What type of toothpaste did you use on the seventeenth occurrance of tooth-brushing as a child? You won't remember, because it isn't relevant. If you DO remember, it's because your mother bought the same brand of toothpaste for 30 years...and you recall that fact, because it's attached to an emotional trigger (your sparkly-toothed mom.)

The best way to store information is to give it an emotional cue. When our ancestors peered through the bushes to find the fleeing rabbit, and uncovered a tiger....well, we tended to remember that spot, if we survived. In that instance, the amygdala  triggered a hard-wiring response: "Hey, big boy! Yeah, lookin' at you here, Cortex! Don't forget this spot, man, or we'll get eaten next time!" Chemicals are secreted, the memory is cemented, and is instantly recalled when needed.

The next-best way to ensure long-term memory storage is to add as many sensory inputs as possible. For instance, I can't remember any slogans for Juicy Fruit gum, but I remember the way my grandfather's car smelled like rubber bands. He was a rural mailman, and he'd pick me up from school, put me in the stifling trunk of his station wagon, give me a piece of Juicy Fruit, and let me snooze for an hour while he stopped at every mailbox, with my grandmother sorting the mail in the passenger seat. He'd tell me to take a deep breath and hold it just before we reached the dairy farm. He'd tell us to roll up the windows when we reached the dustier roads. He'd whistle hymns and Johnny Cash songs (maybe, to him, the same thing) and my grandmother's kerchief would flutter around, and they'd have about a thousand rubber bands draped over his 3-speed console gearshift. It was always hot; there was nothing to read; and the Juicy Fruit frequently wound up in my hair. 

That's a memory strong enough to recall instantly. 

A business card, by comparison, carries no context unless shared in a jail cell. Even if, in yesterday's scenario, a golfer noticed our Catalyst ad at the bottom of the page; even if he tore it out of the magazine; even if he put it in his wallet....it would stay there. There's no emotional connection to Catalyst, unless he folded the page into a sun shade, wore it on his head, and had a hole-in-one on the next stroke.  A business card is NOT a Christmas card, or a get-well card. It's a reference, yes; but something else would still have to trigger the "call Catalyst!" cue before it's thumbed again.

Emotion is memory-glue. It's very hard (in my personal experience) to experience a positive powerful emotion on a golf course, or while reading a newspaper. It IS possible to trigger a strong negative emotion, however, and THAT will also subconsciously stick to your logo - use this tool wisely. 

People write books about 'Guerrilla Marketing,' and 'Making Ads Viral' all the time. If we can understand why information is stored, remembered, and reflected upon, though....we'll be ahead of the game.

The Formula

In my fourteenth year as a Personal Trainer, I know there's no formula for guaranteed success.  There are Trainers all over the social skills / education graph.  Sometimes, a terrific personality like Richard Simmons can get by on exuberance and a great haircut.  Sometimes, though, a genius like Mel Siff isn't heard - or can't capitalize on his life's work - because he's not out there enough. 

There should be a third dimension, of course: coaching skills.  Knowledge and charisma are both important, but if you can't translate your knowledge into action on the part of your client, it's useless.  If all that charm - practiced or natural - can't motivate a bar off the floor, it's not enough.

When I started, I'd argue on discussion forums and in chat rooms that education trumped experience, because I had a lot of one and very little of the other.  "But you could be teaching the wrong stuff for years!" I'd argue.  That was 1996.  Now I recognize the necessity of both. 

The curve above represents my path, I believe, toward my current position: owner of two facilities, with an expanding client base and a valuable brand asset.  Three other Trainers make at least a big part of their living here, and a physiotherapist and RMT are both on staff, too, as well as gym staff and interns.  As far as I've figured it, here's my mental checklist for every client appointment:

1. A great greeting.
2. Banter during the warmup to include a personal detail mentioned at the last meeting (hey, how was your daughter's play?)  Let the client know that you care about what happens in their life.
3. Ask how the homework assigned at the last meeting played out.
4. Brief outline of the goals of the workout.
5. Skills and reinforcement.  Keep it positive and corrective. This is where you want 100% perfection on technique.  I also try to keep the client smiling during this portion - this is the frustrating part, where people can get down on themselves.
6. Break out at least one scientific explanation, but keep it short.  This isn't just good salesmanship ("look what I know!") it's also building a more knowledgeable clientele. 
7. Outline the 'challenge' portion of the workout (or the WOD)
8. Outline the goals of the WOD - ie anaerobic capacity - and your rationale for the weight chosen ("I know you can do more, but I'm concerned that grip strength will limit your performance, instead of work capacity.  I want you to keep moving, so I've chosen a lighter weight."
9. 3-2-1 go!  Voice and inflection change, posture changes. Shorter sentences, exclamation points, no more technical instructions.  Commanding tone.
10. Collapse.  Sharing of water.  Now's the time to tell a story.  "Last year, we had this tournament called 'FranFest.'  One lady lost a tooth.  She kept going anyway. Hahaha...." 
11. Stretch and review homework challenges for the week.  Encourage contact by phone or logging workout results.
12. Any questions?
13. Book the next appointment, if not already scheduled. 
14. Mention something coming up in the client's life ("Enjoy painting that fence this weekend!")

The very fact that it's a checklist makes it imperfect.  You have to be able to touch on all of these without seeming to refer to a spreadsheet-in-the-sky.  If you can't do anything else:

1) make them laugh

2) remember things that are important to the client

3) impress upon them your technical knowledge in a non-academic way.  One more example: after I explain rotational torque, in 30 seconds or less, with a chalk stick-man on the gym floor, I usually say something self-demeaning, like, "...or maybe I'm just making this all up."  They usually laugh.  They won't remember any of the content, but they will remember that I know, and that's enough.

Got a formula? Please add it below.