Four golden rules for successful customer communications

Effective communication can be the difference between a full group fitness class and an empty one, or a happy customer and one who feels neglected. Getting it right can lead to more engagement and growth in facility users, while getting it wrong can turn people off and negatively impact how a leisure centre or gym is perceived by its community.

In this month’s article we look at four fundamentals that will help you master the essential “who”, “how” and “why” of good customer communications.

First things first – permission

It’s important to stop and pause before you engage with your customers. First consider whether your audience has given permission for their contact details to be used so you know when it is appropriate to communicate with them.

This is particularly important for group communications, such as a marketing or promo email.

At sign-up stage, when you record customer’s personal data, it’s an ideal time to ask your customers whether they consent to be contacted and, if so, what method of communication suits them best. Doing this groundwork will avoid upsetting your customers, ensure you don’t fall afoul of any anti-spam laws, and make your life easier in the process.

Most of the time customers are happy to be contacted, however some may prefer not to be, and their choice must be respected. If customers wish to update their preferences at any point you should be able to update them effectively. After all, people may change their mind.

Who should you communicate with?

When considering sharing information with customers, it’s useful to start by considering who needs to know about it. Who is your target audience for the message you’re putting together – a group of yoga enthusiasts, people who attend high intensity interval training (HITT) sessions, or perhaps the entire membership at your leisure centre or gym? If you want your message to have impact and customers to keep reading other messages you send them in future, match the right message to the right people.

The type of language that resonates with different segments of your clientele could be quite different and is another thing that a careful communicator should bear in mind.

What’s your why? Is there a good reason to communicate?

Before you get too deep into composing your communication, it’s worth doing a quick sanity check – what’s the purpose of this message and will it add value? If you can’t answer this question clearly then there’s no point pressing send or picking up the phone – you’ll just create confusion, with your customers asking themselves a similar question: “why am I receiving this message?”.

What you say must provide information of value, for example alerting customers to a new type of yoga class, highlighting the availability of extra swim coaching sessions or announcing an upgrade of facilities following customer feedback. A vague or uninformative update may lessen the likelihood of your messages being read in future.

How should you communicate?

So you’ve identified who your message matters to and why they should care, and you’re confident you’ve got relevant permissions and the green light to communicate – how should you do it?

The communication method you choose, whether email, SMS text message, social media, phone call, or face to face when they are at your facility can have a big effect on how your communication is received and understood.

Text messages are best suited to shorter communications, whilst emails can lay out more detailed information in a way that is easier to digest for the receiver. Phone calls and in-person discussions are more time intensive but are unique compared to texts or emails because they allow open-ended conversations – increasing the likelihood of an issue being resolved over the course of an interaction.

The secret is choosing the right method for the right purpose. If you are alerting all members to a price change, then a well-composed group email to your member database explaining the changes and the reasons behind them makes sense. A message about the late postponement of a large group fitness class might be best delivered via a group text message to those who registered. If you’re wanting to talk to parents about moving their children up to a more challenging swim school lesson, a phone call or in-person discussion is likely to be best.

When it comes to email communications, Envibe has some handy tools built in that can save you time. The Trigger Messaging feature allows you to use message templates which you can arrange to be sent automatically at a time of your choice – making sure the right people always receive the right message at the right time. Think welcoming new members after signing up to a class, confirming or reminding customers about appointments or highlighting promotions or discounts. Such messages are simple, useful and likely to be received well.

Last, but not least, remember that some methods of communicating are more appropriate than others in different contexts. The nature of texts and emails often means the tone in which they are received can be different to the tone you intended. If there’s a sensitive issue to discuss, like the bad behaviour of a child at a swimming lesson, a phone call or in-person chat with the parents would let you handle the conversation with the sensitivity it deserves.

In summary

American author and motivational speaker Tony Robbins said: “to effectively communicate, we must realise that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.”

To get a gold star for the effectiveness of your customer communications make sure you have obtained permissions, your communications are targeted and delivered via the appropriate medium, and your messages offer useful, relevant information. Get that those vital ingredients right and you can be sure your communications will make a positive difference in your customers’ lives.