Sales and Selling: Renewals, Re-signs, and Upgrades

Tommy Lee consults, trains and motivates martial arts staff in the United States and throughout the international martial arts community. His Success Team offers workshops, seminars and on-sight training to evaluate and execute the most effective enrollment and retention programs for your academy. Here, Tommy discusses the benefits of contract payments.

When it comes time to re-sign, renew, and upgrade contracts the true value of your school can be seen. If your program is not yielding return customers, then there is a specific problem with some aspect of your school. The money that a customer is willing to contribute to a program is a direct reflection of their perceived value of the school. This perception is formed after every class and special event. Your level of professionalism, the time you invest in building and maintaining a rapport with your students, and the integrity of your customer service all go a long way in forming the perceived worth and value of your students place in the school. If a client feels that they are nothing more than a dollar sign to you and the staff of your school, they will be reluctant to become physically, emotionally, and financially entangled in the program.

In order to maintain good numbers, in terms of re-signs, renewals, and upgrades you and your staff must recognize and utilize the value of a professional attitude, the impressions made upon customers in relation to customer service, and the overall traits of retention.

The most important trait of retention is the fact that students=customers=lifelong relationships. It is vital to keep this in mind when dealing with members of your school. If people are treated like they have a lasting stake in a school or program, they will want to be more involved, and have no issue contributing to the organization.

Strong retention paves the path to an easily maintained renewal and upgrade system. The facts are simple. If you have taken the time to learn each student, relate to them personally and professionally, provide them with excellent customer service, and been an integral part of their quest to reach their goals, you will yield a black belt academy full of black belts with the promise of secure memberships and a yearly income.

It is of the utmost importance to impress these values upon your staff. Each staff member effects the customer’s perception of the program. Their focus and commitment is a direct reflection of the inner workings of the school. An instructor is a role model for the rest of the people in the school, including assistant trainers and lower belts. If the individual in this position is not representative of the mindset of a black belt the remaining members of the school will not be motivated to pursue the road to black belt. Therefore their goals and money will turn to other outlets rather than to their training.

Even if all of the previously mentioned methods are utilized, there is no guarantee that a student will continue to train through the black belt and beyond. This is why the core value becomes important. That is to try to tie the customer to your school physically, emotionally, and financially. This can be achieved by signing the customer on for a three-year commitment.

There are people that disagree in terms of the length of the contract. However, these concerns can be addressed through one example.

Jimmy is a student that loves training in Martial Arts. His parents support his training, and eventually join the school. Then Jimmy’s parents split up, or Jimmy starts getting in trouble. The problem could arise from a range of different issues. It could be a bad test grade, or as serious as a loved one passing away.

If the membership is up, the family may look at renewal as a hassle. However, if a long-term commitment is made Martial Arts training will be viewed as a stable part of the family life no matter what changes it is undergoing. That is why it is best to get the customer in that mindset early in the relationship. It can and does have positive implications for both the customer and you as the owner of the school.

By Ben Johnson