“I Want to Be Your Trainer”

CrossFit coaches talk about building relationships that result in new clients.

Like all high-level CrossFit athletes, Jamie Hagiya has an impressive physique. The epitome of health and fitness, she’s the perfect poster girl to attract new clients to the gym, right?

Not so fast, said 31-year-old Hagiya, who finished 18th at the 2016 Reebok CrossFit Games. The owner of Torrance CrossFit in California said she goes out of her way to avoid using her fitness resume as a sales pitch.

“That’s not what will get new people into the gym,” she said.

According to Dan Uyemura, Hagiya’s business partner, her humble approach works and she has a gift for bringing in new clients.

“People approach her in the world all the time,” Uyemura said. And when they do, Hagiya is the coach who can walk into a coffee shop and leave with five clients, he added.

“That actually just happened the other day,” Hagiya said. “I went to the dermatologist and the woman at the front desk asked me where I work out. She said she had been wanting to try CrossFit for a while.”

After the receptionist expressed interest, Hagiya turned the tables and immediately started asking the woman questions.

“When I meet someone who’s interested in coming into the gym, I actually don’t talk about myself at all,” Hagiya said. “Sales is more about listening than anything. Asking questions and genuinely listening to their answers, that’s how you build trust.”

After Hagiya built rapport with the receptionist at her doctor’s office, the two exchanged phone numbers, and the following week the woman showed up at Torrance CrossFit for an introductory session with six of her friends. Hagiya earned herself 7 new clients that day.

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Click here for CrossFit Founder and CEO Greg Glassman’s thoughts on explaining CrossFit to clients.