Marketing tip #001: Get out of the office

One of the best marketing tools doesn't cost a thing.

Well, maybe it costs a little. But it's worth the investment in a tank of gas.

So, what is it?

Leave the office.

Go visit your stores. Walk your clubs. Spend time where your customers actually experience your brand.

Watch what they do.

What do they notice first?

Where do they hesitate?

Which team members create great interactions without anyone asking them to?

What questions are customers asking?

What are they taking photos of? Ignoring? Talking about?

Dashboards tell you what happened.

Your customers will show you why.

Some of the best ideas I've implemented over the years didn't come from a conference room. They came from walking a club floor, talking with members, listening to team members, or simply noticing something that didn't feel quite right.

Those visits have influenced everything from marketing campaigns and sales tools to club layouts, member communications, and training.

It's easy to get buried in meetings and spreadsheets.

But if you're responsible for the customer experience, nothing replaces experiencing it yourself.

The office is where we make decisions.

The field is where we discover what decisions need to be made.

And if you want to make it the best field trip ever, take your boss or a few teammates with you.

The time you spend together driving from one location to another can be just as valuable as the visits themselves. I cannot tell you how many great ideas have surfaced in the car while we were comparing notes, talking through what we saw, and deciding what we wanted to do about it.

One piece of advice: designate a scribe.

Bring someone who can capture the ideas as they come—or record your conversation so the best thoughts don't disappear somewhere between one location and the next.

Now, off you go!