It’s hard to overstate the importance of club tours in fitness sales. Tours are a rare chance when you have a prospect one-on-one, in your facility, asking to hear your pitch. It’s your best opportunity to make a clear and persuasive argument for the value of your fitness center.

But if you’re finding your tour close rate has grown stagnant or worse, is declining month by month, it’s time to shake up the routine. Rather than walking every prospect through the same canned routine, train your sales team to start tours by asking questions. Here are five questions that help you gain vital background information on every prospects’ goals, needs, motivations, and objections, so you can maximize the effectiveness of your club tours.

1.) How did you hear about our club?

While an obvious question to begin with, it can lead to a number of important insights. You may learn they discovered your fitness center through one of your advertising efforts like a Facebook ad, which could lead you to invest more money into that particular campaign. They may have been referred by a current member, who you can reward and return to for future referrals. Even if they found your club by a simple Google search, there is likely an underlying reason they moved forward with a club tour, like your fitness center’s proximity to their work or home. You can use this information to shape the tour.

2.) What’s your previous fitness experience?

This question gives you insight into their experience level, be that fitness enthusiast or a total beginner with no clue how to start. If the prospect is an avid exerciser, they likely have their own workout routine they’re looking to replicate in your fitness center. In this case, they will have a long list of their own questions which can guide your tour. For newbies, you’re going to have to do a little hand holding to ease their anxiety and help guide them along. Further, this question can uncover prospects who have tried and failed to get into fitness. You’ll want to know what fitness trends, exercises, or equipment they’ve previously tried and use this information to help them avoid past pitfalls.

3.) What are your fitness goals?

Identifying the prospects goals gives purpose and focus to your club tours. Rather than dragging them to every amenity, piece of equipment, and forgotten corner of your fitness center, you can show the prospect the aspects of your gym that relate directly to their goals. By keeping tours focused, you respect the prospect’s time and prevent them from getting bored and darting their eyes longingly toward the exit.

4.) Why is your fitness goal important to you?

Learning a prospect’s fitness goal gives you insight into how your fitness center can help them achieve it, i.e. matching them with the services or equipment they need. But this follow-up question digs deeper so you understand the underlying motivation for the goal. For example, a prospect whose goal is weight loss may be motivated by a family beach vacation in five months. This gives you insight into an impending deadline the prospect is hoping to hit. Or, a prospect whose goal is to incorporate more cardio in their lifestyle, may be motivated by a family history of heart disease. Using this, you can pair the prospect with additional services they need to achieve their goal like nutritional plans.

5.) What is currently keeping you from achieving that goal?

This question digs even deeper to uncover potential objections the prospect may introduce during the sales process. They may feel they are unable to focus on their health due to financial barriers. In this case, you can get ahead of the objection by reviewing your most affordable membership plans. Likewise, the prospect may feel a lack of time is keeping them from working out. Here, you can include your time-efficient workout circuits into your club tour, so they understand they can get a quality workout in 20 minutes. By understanding each prospect’s obstacles, you can proactively reassure them that your fitness center can overcome it.

Need more tips on starting off on the right foot? Download our First Impressions Matter e-book for tips on winning over prospects online, in-person, and over the phone.