When To Get Software In Your Clinic Or Studio?

You’re listening to treat your business with Katie Bell, the podcast for health and wellness business owners that want and need to give their business the treatment plan it deserves and needs so that you can create more time back in your lives to give you the income you deserve and work hard for and to create more freedom and flexibility in your lives to enjoy the things you love to do. Whether you are a physiotherapist and osteopath, a sports therapist or maybe a Pilates studio owner, I’m determined to share with you bite sized episodes full of tried and tested tips from my own real experience of growing a successful physiotherapy and wellness clinic and from working with many businesses to do the same. So if you’re tuning in and feel like you’re on a hamster wheel of patients admin, life constantly juggling working and being with the family, and feel like you’re doing a rubbish job at both not making the income you thought you would by running a business and generally feeling overwhelmed with everything that you have to do, then keep listening. Hello, and welcome to this week’s episode of the treat your business podcast. I am really excited to welcome Jessica Armstrong from team up who is with me today. And I’m really excited to record this episode just because we we’ve talked a lot before, haven’t we and you have been a massive supporter of this podcast from from its inception, many, many weeks ago now to where we are now. So thank you, first of all, Justin for being one of my my big supporters. And it’s somebody that’s kind of helped push this out there to help other business owners in the fitness industry in terms of their business development, their confidence around winning, they’re running their own business. So Jess, welcome to the podcast.

Jessica Armstrong: 1:47

Thank you so much. I’m so excited to be here. And I just absolutely love your podcast, I absolutely love that you’ve finally started a podcast that we can all listen to and enjoy. And you provide so many great resources to your clients and are such a great example for other owners in the industry. So I love seeing our clients and just other members of the industry start podcasts and give more accessibility to listening to your great advice and inspire those to come.

Katie Bell: 2:15

Thank you, Jess, thank you. Well, Jess, I asked you what because we in my in my other world, my other hat. I’m a physiotherapist as you know, an A plus instructor. And we run a big Pilates setup within our clinic and we moved over to team up. I can’t even remember how many years ago now, but many, many moons ago. And it was it was the biggest thing in my business at the time. That fell all consuming, I was really nervous about it. It felt like a big investment. It felt like it was going to be really hard work because I’d got we I think we’ve got 500 people that were doing classes with us at the time that needed to integrate and move over to your software. And we were we were moving over not from any other software from a paper pen notebook, old school style and

Jessica Armstrong: 3:06

you are not alone.

Katie Bell: 3:09

It makes me feel better when I hear people tell me that you know, we still people still use old school diaries and ways of doing it now. But just we’ve been I’ve worked with you and in many different ways with team up and your your team’s ability to help business owners integrate software, integrate your software into their business, which means that things become automated, it’s streamlined, it saves loads of time it saves as of energy, it saves a lot of money. And our clients absolutely love it. So I’m an I’m a massive fan of TiVo and the software that you’ve gotten it’s forever developing and improving and new features are always are always kind of being added to it which I think reflects a lot that you listen to your your business owners you listen to your customers and their needs. So Jess, my question to you and to so our listeners can hear is Why do you think software is so important in in gym, gym based owners and fitness based owners? You know what why do you think software is important?

Jessica Armstrong: 4:15

Well, first of all, thank you for that glowing testimonial. I I remember when we were doing a recording, forgive you for the testimonials for our pager on, on team up. And it was so wonderful because I really loved your approach on how you looked at the different aspects of your business. And so to kind of break down your, your experience, but also the experience that we see from so many other people who come and switch to team up whether that be from a spreadsheet and pen and paper and cards that are laminated that you pass out and you hope at some point you get back or you’re coming from a different software where you’re kind of inundated with all of these gizmos and gadgets that you don’t know how to use that actually end up complicating things coming from both sides grip both of those different sides, it’s really too easy to see how it can be intimidating to start using software. So at the crux of everything, what we try to do at teamup, is offer a very flexible and simplistic approach to booking software to fitness management software. And the ways that we do that is one, just like you mentioned, we tried to listen to our clients and actually listen to the customer. There’s so many tools and resources out there that put out features and education and tools and integrations based on what they think is needed based on the direction they think the industry and a gym owner would want to take their business. But something that’s really important to think about as an owner or as an instructor, or even as a client is, how do you want to be treated? And then how do you want to treat everyone around you? And so we really take that approach that team up and think, Okay, our customers want to be listened to by their clients, they want to be listened to by us, and we want to be listened to by them. So it’s really about that two way communication with us and saying, Okay, do you need better reporting? What kind of reporting do you need, okay, maybe we can’t put that into the system right at this moment. But here’s our plan of action in order to get you the things that you need. And we try to be really, really transparent about that. And then whether that means in a week’s time, we’ll actually have that report, or in a month’s time, we’ll have that rapport, you know what, you know what’s coming. And I think that, that is so important, and being able to build trust, and get people to in the door to team up. So the other thing that you mentioned was saving time, money, and most importantly, I think, is energy. As an owner, you have wear so many different hats, whether that’s cleaning the gym or studio floor, to managing 500 different customers. And trying to do that via a spreadsheet. And pen and paper is just not sustainable. Especially if you want to empower future instructors to become a future admin and future managers. You can’t hand them a spreadsheet and say, Please learn from this and try and build something from this. So that’s where software comes into play. And it’s so handy, because you can actually use your dashboard and reporting tools to track growth, to track the progression of your clients, how long they were clients, how which memberships, they purchase, which classes, they’re booking into, whether they’re booking into things online, whether they’re booking into things in person, are they a one on one type of person, you can even offer services that are one on one, you can customise the different things that are for groups, there’s so many different options. But we try and make it like I said, it’s so simplistic so that you can put down, okay, here’s my entire plan. And here are the services I want to do. Okay, I can actually now copy that and create that in team up, and boom, business automated. And now you get to go back to doing what you actually love as an owner, or as a coach or as an instructor, as a teacher, and that’s be with your clients, build the customer experience, that’s going to boost your retention and keep them coming back. And so when you kind of pair up your software, and look at it and think, Okay, I’m saving time, I’m saving money, I’m saving energy, I’m a happier person, my clients are happier people, and I can see the growth. And in my business, I have a sustainable business that is able that has legs and there I can see the future. And so that in and of itself is why you should be using software. And at least if you don’t use it currently do a trial, explore it, see what types of tools and things that you can, that you can use that you didn’t even think you you, you know, had the capability of doing or managing in your business because you didn’t have it before.

Katie Bell: 9:00

I love what you said that Justin, so many so many parts of what you said we we use team up. And the other week we had a situation where we were looking into where our administrators are spending their time or what they’re doing because we have a we have a you know, a big clinic we have lots of people we want our customer experience is so important to us. And one of our administrators said well, you know, what’s really frustrating is that our instructors sometimes don’t take off who’s who’s been on who’s been to class. And that felt simple thing. Like I’m sure the shore team must have a way that we can solve this because actually, from our perspective, our insurance states that we need to know who’s attended class, right? You know, it’s more than just Oh, who’s attending and who’s not who gets the credit who back who doesn’t get the credit who’s been there, he’s not been there. It’s more about we want to know if people are not attending because we want to reach out to them and see if there’s ways we can support them in coming back to class. So we run your fantastic report that tells is when people are slipping away. And so all we did is we went into your system, we looked at your notifications, and we figured out that you could just very easily by a press of a button, send an email to all of our instructors within a certain timeframe after class that reminds them to fill in their their class registers. And even though it’s a very simple example, just what you’re what that’s done is created a new process that is automated, we don’t ever have to think about it, it now means our registers have been filled in it now means we’re meeting our insurance criteria, it now means that our receptionist is not having to chase up instructors to mark off attendance. So everything is so much more streamlined. And I think that at its basic level, can help business owners who might be a solopreneur, they might be the plusses instructor that’s teaching 1215 classes in a week. And you’ve got to work cancelling and bringing the last minute to change classes and needing to, you know, can I have this credit back because my kids just got ill, or, you know, all of these things, and it’s so much bandwidth. And headspace, isn’t it, that it takes up remembering all of this stuff,

Jessica Armstrong: 11:09

totally. And I mean, you just identified something that we also identified earlier last year going into this year, which is, it’s not just about the clients anymore. It’s also about your staff. It’s also about your teachers and your future potential partners and people that you’re kind of nurturing, to have more responsibility in your business as well. So we always like to position team up as it’s part of your team, you everybody has a different responsibility, whether that’s your coaches, to add your teachers to teach a certain class, or you know, your physiotherapist to help with all of like massage and for different services afterwards, if any types of rehabilitation, you have your front desk person who is making sure that everybody is coming in the door, that their memberships are up to date that their forms are up to date, well, your software is a part of your team to there, your software is there to make sure that your members are coming to class, that if they’re slipping away, they get an email from you. And all you have to do is just set up these parameters and these automations the second you get T Bob, to be able to say, okay, clients, staff members, everyone, we’ve got your back, and we have these systems in place to be able to help you be a little bit more accountable. And that as these things kind of get routine both for the client and for your staff member, you’re able to relax a little bit because you know, they’re actually taking accountability for themselves and then team upstairs to support them or you know, any type of software that you’re using, whether that be for your marketing, you know, you can use integrations like MailChimp and Constant Contact or Zapier to make sure that those extra layers of communication are tied to your team up account and then be sent you know, to your to your class to your staff to those people that you haven’t seen it a little while to those people who are in class every single day, never miss it, your top your leaderboard people, these are all things that you could easily identify just just by looking at your at your system. And

Katie Bell: 13:13

I think software then allows you to go what I call from good to great. So we last year in our business we had the our theme for the year was good to great. And in all aspects of what we do, how can we go from being good to great and one of the things that software allows you to do is just that because you mentioned the leaderboard, yes. And only last week, and if you if people want to go head to our socials and have a look, you’ll see them but just last week, we use the leaderboard. And we worked out our top three attendees for 2022. And we announced them in class and we presented them with a beautiful basket of spring bulbs and a bottle of fears. A card and we made it really personal and we recognised people who have committed to attending their you know, their Pilates and, and improving their health and wellness over 2022 And I can’t tell you what that did for that community feel within within our within our clinic and within our classes and how how kind of looked after our clients felt. So it’s so sweet. Yeah, it’s awesome to do that stuff,

Jessica Armstrong: 14:26

it just makes such a difference because while those those three attendees, your leaderboard attendees, might be feeling over the moon because they’ve been surprised with this incredible and thoughtful gift. Everyone around them is thinking to one I didn’t even know that that was an option that I couldn’t be the most attended or you know, it might motivate somebody who was in class to think wow, you know, they not just for the gift but for the recognition but also for the the loyalty that someone else had to you and it’s thinking wow, this This person was so committed to coming to class every single day or, you know, whatever the frequency is, for this amount of time, can I put myself in those shoes too? Can I commit to doing this. And so what helps, it’s helping you build that retention, just because someone else is able to say, okay, my peer has been able to achieve this, I am that I’m that person’s peer, I can achieve this too. And so you’re helping people set these goals for themselves that they might not have even discovered within themselves. And they want to keep coming. And they want to be a part of this. And they want to be celebrated too. And they want to have this environment around them that they feel supported in, that’s what’s gonna keep them coming back. You know, there’s so many establishments and somebody facilities out there where you can walk in, and you’re just a small fish, and a big sea, and no one knows your name, and you go in, you’ve got your workout, and you leave. And if that you’re that type of person, that is totally fine. Good for you, I do have that same strike, I like to go into my gym, and I like to be called out by name and, and push to go, you know, reach a new record or reach a new goal of mine. And I want to be able to do that for the other people around me. And I know that the other people around me want to do that for me, too. And so building that type of community and that men type of environment, that’s what we really strive for, as well as like, what are the things that can help communities thrive? What are the things that owners are asking for, that’s going to push their staff into excelling. And being able to reflect that same type of message and customer experience that a client leaves your studio or leaves your gym and thinks I cannot get that somewhere else, I must return the next day.

Katie Bell: 16:43

And software allows you to give that message allows you to have that running in the background. So that your clients feel that and that is a one of our really, really important things for us is professionalism and is about people coming through the door, and not being able to go and get that experience anywhere else. Because we go above and beyond, we are great, we know if it’s your birthday, and you attend class on your birthday, we already know about it, and you have a gift when you arrive and a card from us. And we have birthday hats that everybody has to wear in class, which you know, liked by some people, but it makes people feel that they’re they are a part of a community. And that’s why you know, business’s retention rates, as you’ve mentioned, just can be so much better. By implementing these small things that software allows you to do.

Jessica Armstrong: 17:35

Well think about it too, from the side of a service. So there’s different you can set up and team up different packages in different memberships plans, right. And a customer at any given time can purchase one type of membership, or let’s say there’s a few different services that require different memberships, they can, you know, create a different membership, or purchase a different membership. Or you as the owner could say, Okay, let’s build a custom membership for you. You want personal trading, you want group Pilates classes, and you want the ability to meet for a one on one consultation every month to make sure that you are on the right path to your goals. You don’t have to fit someone into something that does that that only exists right now, you have the ability to create something specific to that one person. And that person now feels valued because you listen to their needs, you understood what they needed to in order to achieve their goals. And you’ve created something that’s customised specifically to them, that person is going to go run to their peers, the members of their own personal community and say, Look how much time and effort my teacher or my trainer or the owner of this gym or studio is putting into me. And I know that in this month’s time, I can achieve this result these results. Because of the because of the the services they’re now providing me in my everyday life. Now, creating that type of package is a premium service, you’re not going to do that for every single one of your customers, because you’re not going to have every single one of your customers coming to you asking for that. Some prefer, okay, I know my lane, I want to stick with the group some prefer, okay, I need a very, very personalised you know, one on one sort of plan. So I know I like what to expect there. But the more that you’re able to kind of identify what each of your clients needs, or what the general trend of what your client’s needs is, you can create different packages and different services, I’d sell them for a premium, and then you’re helping, you’re helping generate more revenue, you’re increasing your profit, but you’re actually adding more value into what the client is getting and what the customer is asking for. And they’re going to be willing to pay for that service because of the results that they’re gonna get and because of the value that they’re getting, and I think that’s another thing that really scares a lot of people away from using software is because they think, Oh, well if I’m gonna be paying for software I need to increase my price. says, but really, if you just kind of took the time to understand the the, what you’re actually pricing the value of your services, and then you’re able to essentially demonstrate it in a way that it says, Okay? Well, this is actually you’re going to be able to get more value out of this, you’re going to be able to achieve better results because of this. And I’m going to price this this way. And here’s how I’m going to nurture you into this new plan. If I know what I’m gonna get from something, and I know that in a few months time, I’m going to be feeling healthier, I’m going to be happier, I’m going to feel overall better, my confidence is gonna skyrocket. Take my money. Take it out.

Katie Bell: 20:42

Yeah, let’s stay with that. Just because I think that’s really important. Actually, our previous episode, we talked about understanding your hourly worth. And as business owners who are time poor, when do you think is the right time for people to bring software into their business?

Jessica Armstrong: 20:58

Before you even open your business is the correct answer. Because think about it. When you’re starting a business, you’re, you’re creating a business plan, right? You’re working with either yourself and you’re laying this out, and you’re saying, okay, these are my goals, I know that I want to do my services to be this, I’m thinking I want to price them here, I know that my location is here. Next one of those tasks is to figure out your management. You figure out your team, do you have people helping you? Do you have an accountant? Do you have to pay for a financial advisor? Do you have to pay for somebody, you know, do you have to pay a landlord? are you renting a space, the next item on that list, even with you know not in that order necessarily is do I need to purchase the software in order to help me create a customer experience and a booking experience that is going to make it easy for my clients to sign up, make their payments and assure me that I am going to receive those payments for the services I am delivering every month, every week, every year, every six months, whatever the cadence is, of how you want to be paid. And if you can set those things up before, then the client knows what to expect from the moment they start, it’s a lot harder sometimes, for someone to then convince clients to say, Okay, we’re gonna switch on to this, and it’s a lot harder to sell. And even though nine times out of 10, I almost want to say 10 times out of time. But let’s be a little realistic here. It is harder to sell, you’ll get there, you’ll convince all of your clients, you’ll convince all of your customers to say, Okay, I’m going to do this, but you’re going to put so much more time and energy into trying to convince them to do something, even though you already have seen the value and how much your software is helping you on one side, if you start with it, you’re going to be in a much, much better shape. Because down the line, you’re not going to run into those issues of needing to do that extra effort. Now, that’s not to say that you if you don’t have software, currently, you’re out of luck. That is simply not true. But let’s, you know, choose a software that’s going to help you make that easier. You know, at team up, one of the ways that we do that is we email all of your customers, when you sign up, and you switch over and you import your spreadsheet or you switch from another software and use our import service to get everyone in, which is free. By the way, we will take that step for you to email all of your clients and say this is the new booking software. This is how you sign up. Here’s how you add your account. Here’s how you add your payment details. Here’s how you book your classes done. And it is so simple. And you don’t have a tonne of questions coming back from you. And you can mention in class, I’m going to be sending out an email later that is going to explain in three steps how to get started using with the new booking software do have any questions. It doesn’t need to be complicated. It doesn’t need to be this process that is taking you a tonne of time. It’s a really, really simple and we’re dedicated to making that process really simple for you and for your clients. Because we don’t want to disrupt your customer experience at all. And we wanted to, we want to, you know, kind of break down the stigma that switching switching is difficult. Is it easier to start with software? The answer is yes. Is it easier to build and grow and become more sustainable at the start if you have a system in place that’s helping you be sustainable and helping you grow and helping you build your attention, of course, but you can get started at any time and start putting those systems in place to be able to be growth to grow and be more sustainable and it’s going to make your life just so much easier. And as someone who you know, I don’t own a studio or a gym right now, but I can tell you that I would definitely make the investment in software, especially when your software is you know, affordable and it’s not something that’s going to break the bank because you’re going to save on so many external costs. You’re going to save your time and you’re going to save on the energy you’re expelling every hour of the day trying to remember all of those Millions of things you have to do because you were 1010 have.

Katie Bell: 25:04

Absolutely. And I can, I can definitely resonate with that because I was there just I was that business. So I can’t even remember why now, I didn’t have any software, it was probably because I didn’t even think it was something that I needed or my the size of my business. So it was just me and what you know, am I big enough? Am I good enough? Can I afford all this? I can’t even remember the the thought process now because I was on a whirlwind of just like you say, wearing every hat. But just you have got an exciting new partnership, which is with the women and fitness Association. Yeah. And when people are going to be listening to this, this is you will have, you will have announced this to your community. Because you are really passionate about empowering and supporting not just women, but people in business. So you have got this wonderful new partnership, can you just tell us a little bit more about how, because a lot of listeners are female business owners who listen to this podcast, I think they’re going to be excited and interested to hear about how they can get more support in business.

Jessica Armstrong: 26:14

Absolutely. So you know, to just go up and to kind of wrap up those those last points. If it wasn’t clear, well, let’s have another conversation. But we are very committed to supporting business owners and and your coaches and your staff and your clients and really helping you build that ecosystem that is going to make you a successful business owner. So in part of my role, and one of the many hats that I wear at team up that I absolutely love doing, like you said is helping business owners and identifying those opportunities to bring more education and more resources, and discover different ways that we can help our customers in our community and your own communities. And so, like you said, during this month, March, we have announced, by the time this podcast comes out, we have announced our partnership with the women in fitness Association. And so what the women in fitness Association does is provide incredible resources, networking opportunities, educational opportunities, guides, podcasts, webinars, and access to leaders in the fitness industry that you otherwise don’t get maybe outside of their community, and they bring it to you. And they make it possible for you as a female in fitness as a woman in fitness, whether no matter what stage you are, whether you’re an ally, whether you’re an owner, whether you’re a business consultant, no matter what hat you wear in the industry, give you all of the access to all of the resources you need to be successful, to feel empowered and to feel supported. And so we are very excited to be sponsoring several team member team of customers to join the women and fitness Association. And we have just concluded will have just concluded our giveaway by the time that this comes but we have a discount discount code for all team up customers and your friends and anyone who wants to join the women and fitness Association. And just join this incredible organisation and, and feel empowered. So whether you are a female in the industry, or whether you’re a male who knows a woman in your community that could benefit from this membership, I urge you to get in touch with their team. And we can help facilitate that I can help facilitate that. And we can help facilitate that. And really just start those conversations because there’s there’s so many doors for us to kick down right, Katie? Let’s let’s do it together.

Katie Bell: 28:40

Absolutely. And that’s one of my biggest passions as well with with this podcast and why I feel like we align so well, is that I feel like it’s a collaborative approach to people doing better in business. You know, there’s too much kind of I don’t want to share this. And I don’t want to share that because they’re in competition with me. And they might take that, for me. It’s about how can we all work together? How can we support each other? And how can we empower each other to be better to be more successful in in whatever success looks like for you? And that’s why I think this partnership that you’ve got it is is so exciting.

Jessica Armstrong: 29:17

It’s so exciting. And I mean, exactly, exactly what you said from a competitive landscape. I really dislike that term. Because do you know how many people are out there? And do you know how many people don’t currently subscribe to any sort of fitness subscription by the handfuls, just a you know, in a few metre space from you, you could point to someone and and probably say, you know, oh, I use a meditation service or I go to the gym or I have a personal trainer or I have a nutritional coach. And somebody might be feeling you know, somebody might be around you in your circle that doesn’t even know that they have these options available to them. So to say that you compete with the gym or For the studio down the street, there’s so many opportunities for partnering with that specific studio or with that specific gym, to be able to support your wider community, and to be able to bring in more people who are walking down the street thinking, Oh, I wish I wish I, you know, felt more comfortable going to the gym, or I wish I felt more vulnerable to allow somebody to help me with my fitness journey, you know, you can help so many people around you. So there’s, it’s more of a collaborative landscape, if anything than a competitive one. And I think that’s what’s so great about organisations like the women’s fitness association is they’re trying to pave the way and make their presence wider, to be able to spread that type of that type of message and create that type of environment on a larger scale.

Katie Bell: 30:44

Yeah, it’s amazing. I’m excited to see how that grows for you and how that develops. Yes,

Jessica Armstrong: 30:49

yes, so many exciting things coming soon.

Katie Bell: 30:52

I know, just so if people are listening to this podcast, they want to learn more about how teamwork can help them in their business. What can they do? What where do they need to go next.

Jessica Armstrong: 31:03

So, come to our website, go team app.com, you can find all of our information there and get in touch directly with our team. I know Katie has a specific referral code as well. So I urge you to use that all of your wonderful, wonderful listeners. So if you want to share that, Katie, please, please feel free to but yes, we can absolutely get in touch. So you can just go to our website, or you can reach out to marketing at Go Team up.com. And we can help you get in, get in touch with our team and learn more about your business so we can make sure that all of your requirements are met, and that you have everything you need to be successful with team up.

Katie Bell: 31:38

Jess, it has been a delight I could I could talk to you forever about you

Jessica Armstrong: 31:48

will definitely and it’s just it’s because it’s the foundation part, right? It’s the part that it’s the thing that touches all different parts of your business, whether that’s your marketing, or your finances, or your team or your clients or, you know, so many other different capabilities and functionalities. So it’s it’s easy to talk about because you get to talk about everything else that you love about your business on top of it.

Katie Bell: 32:09

Yeah, Jess, thank you so much. The listeners will have loved listening to you. And hopefully some of them who are perhaps thinking about is it now the right time for them to take software into their business or perhaps people are not happy with the current software that they’ve got and a feeling kind of worried or anxious about having to make that move. I’m sure they feel reassured by by listening to you and gaining your knowledge and your sort of inside information about how software can really revolutionise and transform their business. Just it has been a delight. Thank you ever so much for your time.

Jessica Armstrong: 32:40

Thank you so much for having me, Katie, it’s been such a pleasure and I get to chat with you soon. Anyways.

Katie Bell: 32:48

Thank you for listening to treat your business with Katie Bell, the podcast that tells you what you really need to hear. And now when it comes to running a successful business in the health and wellness industry that gives you the time, money and freedom you are wanting for access to our free workshops on how to get more clients in your business, how to make more income in the next 30 days. And to get more time back in your business and life. Head to our free Facebook group today. Treat your business or head over to thrive dash business coaching.com All of the links are available in the show notes

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