I am not claiming to be a Professional Business Analyst but I do have PLENTY of experience running a book of business.
When I was younger and part of Corporate America I had an amazing Mentor who, through his extreme patience guided me, educated me and molded me into the Business Woman I am today. Tannis taught me something new almost on a daily basis when it came to Financials and how to analyze a P & L from every angle.
In fact, the P & L that he built for our industry revolutionized how we conducted surveys and bids for new business. To this day, I still use a version of what he created to analyze my own business revenue, expenses and bottom line. I'm probably one of FEW Fitness Pros who actually analyze their financials through a customized P & L.
My tax preparer loves when I come in to do taxes. I have the spread sheet printed with my numbers broken down by month and categorized so that every dollar is accounted for. A quick look at my P & L and you will see trends in revenue & expenses and year over year growth. It's really a beautiful spreadsheet! Tannis would be proud.
Knowing your numbers and stats is a critical piece to running any business HOWEVER if you don't have actual clients . . . . well you get the point. Clients are the backbone to what you do. If they are happy, you can be happy. If they are happy they will tell others and just like that organic growth. These days we have social media to either make or break us which is why sites like Yelp (and others) are kind of a necessary evil these days. One bad review can really hurt your business on the other hand good reviews will get you more clients. Which is why FIRST IMPRESSIONS are SOOO Critical.
If a prospective customer walks into your business and has a bad first impression of you or your staff, most likely they will not be back. It used to be they just would not return BUT now if they have a bad experience they take to social media almost immediately.
My focus has ALWAYS been on my clients. I just recently heard about a negative experience at a local "gym" where the new client paid a lot of money and had an absolutely horrible first impression. She won't ever go back and she IS ALREADY telling people about it. Who knows how much that one experience will equate to in lost revenue.
I can name the 4 people who have had issues with me or my business over the past 8 years. One I would never allow back in to any of my classes ever again. Two were not happy with my No Refund policy but like I told them, I run a legitimate business and I have policies and procedures just like every other corporation. The fourth just decided she didn't like me and that is her right.
Everyone else I make every effort to create an amazing experience for them when they walk into their first class and continue that through their time with us. If you go back and review my numbers you can wholeheartedly agree that as fact because my revenue increases prove it. If I didn't have a good reputation in the industry and in my community the numbers would reflect it.
With all of that being said, I hope you will read the recent article published about me in Voyager LA. Thank you to all my Family and Friends (especially Emilio and my kids Adam, Danielle and Victoria) for always believing in me. I love you very much. Check out the article here . . . .
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