Chris Cooper, TwoBrainBusiness.com
For the next two weeks, your cash flow is your top priority.
If you can survive through April 1, you’re probably going to come out of this crisis okay–and some gyms will actually come out ahead.
Here’s your plan to manage your cash flow in the short term.
REVENUES:
- Keep clients paying their membership. Not at gunpoint, but by pivoting to deliver the same value online.
- Run 2-3 online classes per day (use Zoom or another web stream provider. Facebook Live is also okay.)
- Talk to every single one of your clients every single day. Tell them how the workout is relevant to them, or how to tweak it for their goals.
Here’s a step by step guide on how to do it:
- Publish what you’re doing both within your gym community and to your larger social reach. Not as an advertisement: as a solution. Many gyms have reported new client signups.
- Don’t stop taking new clients. Simply pivot your intake process to be an online interview.
The bottom line: you’re running a coaching business. Your physical gym is a tool, but it’s not really your business. There’s no need to stop doing business.
EXPENSES:
- Perform an expense audit. Print out a list of expenses from highest (monthly) to lowest. Start by eliminating expenses that don’t give you a positive ROI. Look at each expense and ask, “Do I make money from that investment each month?” If you don’t, look first for a way to make money from it. Ask your bookkeeper, “How can I leverage your service better right now?” I’m sure they’ll have an answer; I’m also sure that few people ask.
Here is a video walk through of how to do this
- Ask your mentor, “What’s the best thing I can do to get the best value from your service this month?” They’ll tell you (I wish everyone asked me this question.)
- I listed mentor-ship and financial advisors first, because when the crisis hit, the first people I called were my CFO and my mentor. I need them now more than ever.
Continuing down the list:
- Ask your landlord, “Since my gym is closed, can I spread out my lease payments over the next six months?” We find this is working around 30% of the time, so it’s worth a shot.
- Ask your coaches, “Do you WANT to coach right now, or do you want to be home with your family?” For those who need the money, keep them on board doing individual coaching (just don’t exceed the 44% salary cap.)
- Finally, cut off short-term services like cleaners while your gym is closed (if your gym is open, DOUBLE your cleaning budget!)
Watch John Briggs’ live talk about Cash Flow Management here.
REMEMBER YOUR PRIORITIES:
Your gym exists to serve your family. They come first.
Your clients come second: they support the gym.
Your staff comes third: they support the clients.
You can’t cut your way to success. But right now, you might have to take a few small steps backward to stay in the game long-term. Gym owners who are making a fast pivot to online coaching don’t have to cut staff. But unfortunately, gym owners who don’t protect their cash flow WILL have to take some very hard actions or risk personal bankruptcy. Things just got very real.
If you want a more thorough approach on cutting expenses check out our Cutting expenses module in our online cash flow courses.