Why Your Coaches Need To Get The Whiteboard Brief Right
Written by - Sean Thompson
The whiteboard brief is more than just letting your clients know what they are in store for, it is the first opportunity to create class cohesion and camaraderie. A good whiteboard brief sets the tone, leading to an efficient and enjoyable environment in class. Most importantly, a brief done well solidifies the gym’s product.
A GOOD WHITEBOARD BRIEF IS “AN ART” AND SETS THE TONE FOR THE ENTIRE CLASS.
What Makes an Effective Whiteboard Brief
A welcoming coach is a bare minimum but an often overlooked aspect at the start of the class. To bring the best hour of their day, your members should be greeted with a smile, enthusiasm and genuine interest in their attendance. This is an easy win for the novice or shy coach, creating connections goes a long way in building your gyms community, and you should hold that standard to all your coaches.
It is not all soft skills though, the following points are what your coach needs to deliver a good brief:
- 3-4 minutes in length
- Delivery of the workout
- Engaging and informative
- Simple and concise
- Narrated and not read
- Intended stimulus of the workout
- Check for injuries
- Partnering of members if required for the workout
Going the extra mile takes a whiteboard brief from good, to great. Like a good piece of art, a great whiteboard brief demands attention without begging for it. The use of hand gestures, strategic pauses and members’ names create this. The whiteboard brief can be seen as a performance and when done well it keeps members coming back.
The No-Nos of The Whiteboard Brief
A poorly delivered brief is a class killer, from the beginning the members’ attention is lost and the tone for the class changes from efficient, to chaotic, or even worse, frustration and boredom.
Avoid the following:
- A long brief >4 minutes
- Your members’ attention is lost. They are bored and no information is taken in.
- Clients have paid to move, not to stand and listen to your coach talk.
- The coach’s job is to deliver the pertinent information in the brief and layer on the rest during the class.
- Reading the brief off the whiteboard with no attempt to connect
- Nothing gives away an unprepared coach more, it gives the impression that this is the first time they have looked at the workout.
- Having your back turned to clients means you cannot see if the information getting delivered is being understood. Not to mention, it’s rude.
- Reading out the brief leads to an overload of information and no retention.
- Demoing
- There is no need to show any movements at this time. This should be done during the specific warm-up.
- Oversharing pacing strategies for the workout
- Once the intended stimulus for the workout has been delivered a few tips can be provided to achieve this. Do not go through every possible strategy, this can be layered in during the warm-up and or a re-brief.
- Also look out for the coach who only provides strategies based on their own abilities. The coach’s job is to provide strategies that benefit all levels of the member base.
It may be the shortest part of a class, but if done right, it can make or break the tone for the next hour.
The whiteboard brief should be a point of emphasis for your coaches. Done well, it will elevate all the elements of your product offering, from programming, to community.
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