How to Design Your Most Successful Weight-Management Program
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
-Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken”
It Starts with “Balance”
Yes, I know there all kinds of various weight-management program formats. And, depending on who you talk to, there are lots of different priorities — from client results to financial results.
For example, if you spend too much one-on-one time with the client… for 12 sessions… and you’re NOT making any money… then why do it?
On the other hand, if your clients are NOT achieving results or seeing any benefits… they’ll quit.
Like so many things in business and in life, it’s about “balance.”
Finding the Right Mix
When we first started our Weight-Management business 25 years ago, it took a long time to determine the right “balance” with clients. Plus, every client is different… with
- different obstacles and challenges
- different goals and expectations
- different personalities and communications skills
But, eventually we were able to boil it all down to the IMPORTANT stuff. We identified subjects that really needed to be covered in a session — and, those that were a waste of time. And, interestingly enough, we found the important things could be accomplished in a remarkably short amount of time.
A “Baseline” Structure
Ultimately, we came up with a baseline structure. If you are running a weight-mgmt. program and/or ONBOARD 101, this baseline will work perfectly for you.
Then, if you decide to enhance your programming.. or you want to develop multiple price points, you simply EXPAND this exact same structure to include more session time and/or personal training sessions (group or one-on-one). (Click on image to enlarge)
(Click on image to enlarge)
Our basic structure consists of the Green Box and top row of black boxes.
GREEN BOX: The initial weight-management session is a one-hour consult where:
- The client is interviewed for lifestyle behaviors
- Pre-filled intake forms are processed
- Client is set-up and instructed on ONBOARD 101.
- Homework assignments (Chapters 1 and 2) and Daily Journal handed out
BLACK BOXES: Each black box represents a weekly 15-minute session. You may think this is too short of a time period to accomplish things. But, we found that if you stay focused, you not only get everything accomplished, but, you’ll also have enough time to provide validation and motivation for the upcoming week.
TOTAL TIME: If you add it all up, your total time commitment for each one-on-one client is 3.75 hours. We typically charged $399 for this baseline program which included plenty of handouts as well as the ONBOARD 101 websites.
This is the baseline structure from which to build out all other programs.
RED BOXES: From here, you can build out your programs to include either one-on-one training sessions or group sessions. In either case, you know what you charge per session. The idea is to bundle it all into a “complete package” with a price.
The Road Less Traveled
Obviously, this provides all kinds of opportunities to create multiple price points for various programs. Download and take a look at this Weight-Management & Lifestyle Program brochure. It uses this same exact baseline structure to create multiple programs.
Remember, most clubs, studios and other fitness facilities do NOT provide comprehensive weight-management services. It’s an after-thought. Nor do they offer the online tools like the ONBOARD 101.
Nope. Serious, comprehensive weight-management and lifestyle programming is the road less traveled. And, that is exactly why you should choose it.
Here’s another reason why…. CLICK HERE…