IHRSA2017 Speaker Luke Carlson Shares His Takeaways
I’ve been home following IHRSA 2017 for two weeks (my 13th IHRSA!) now and I’ve spent some time reflecting on presentations, reviewing my notes, and assembling action items.
Before I go into my 3 takeaways, I think it’s important to understand, that I may have heard or been exposed to some of this information at previous IHRSA conventions (or in books, articles, and from other conferences). However, it never ceases to amaze me that what we learn is often dictated by the current situation that we find ourselves in. Stated otherwise, I think we absorb information differently based on where we are in the development of our businesses and roles.
1. The irrational consumer.
My first learning centers around understanding our customers. Specifically, our customers (and people in general), don’t make decisions logically or rationally. For some reason, as marketers and sales people, we make the assumption that the attraction to a brand or the buying decision is always a rational one. I was inspired by keynote speaker Martin Lindstrom to recognize that consumers rarely make decisions around logic. This has massive implications for how we communicate and story tell with our prospect and current customer. I’m committed to being less focused on “rationale solutions” when solving issues and discussing strategy or tactics with my staff. Instead, we need to understand the underlying emotional or irrational influences on a customer’s thought process. Th best decision for our business and customers might not always be the one that provides the logical benefit. More than anything, this provides a new filter or framework from me to work from.
2. Morning routine.
After hearing both featured presenter Todd Durkin and keynote speaker Seth Mattison, I am compelled to experiment with and redesign my morning routine to optimize my mindset, focus, gratitude, and overall productivity for the day.
3. Differentiation is misunderstood.
One of my biggest observations was that our industry continues to struggle with differentiation. A lot of people are talking about it, but very few people are doing it. In fact, our attempts at differentiation can probably be more aptly coined, imitation (which ironically, is the opposite of differentiation). In our efforts to compete, we are imitating what new players and successful models are doing and in doing so, we are become more alike or competition rather than more differentiated.
Summary
As always, and maybe more than ever, the reason I love going to IHRSA is that there is nothing more exciting than being surrounded by like-minded leaders; people committed to doing incredibly important work. The time spent with my staff, colleagues, and friends… all connected by a similar purpose, is about as enjoyable as it gets!
Active Management Note
Thanks Luke for your contribution. If you would like to hear more of Luke and his profound ideas on business you have two options:
- Listen to show 91 on The Fitness Business Podcast where Chantal interviews Luke. Click here to listen.
- You may like to attend Filex in Australia next month and hear from Luke directly. To find out more about Filex 2017 click here.
Justin is the Managing Director of Active Management, which he began January 2004. He offers coaching to businesses worldwide in everything from start up and design to marketing and sales systems. Justin also facilitates four Australian and New Zealand ‘fitness industry roundtables’ events, which allows him to see a huge cross section of business models.