H1N1 swine flu will be widespread in all fifty states by the end of
October. And flu hospitalizations and deaths are higher than expected.
(Here's a CDC map
showing prevalence by state.)
That's bad news for your wellness business - unless you take the initiative
in reassuring your clients.
Why? Nervous people shy away from crowded places - like health clubs, yoga
studios, and wellness centers.
1) Double-down on sanitation
We assume you already comply with mandatory sanitation standards for your
facility as required by state and local laws.
However, you need to double-down. For example, if you're running a health
club, make sure all equipment is wiped down several times throughout the day
with an antiviral disinfectant. If you offer mats for yoga and group fitness
classes, sanitize them daily or switch to a BYOM (bring-your-own-mat) policy.
Which disinfectants work? Microsan and Purell both offer a variety of
sanitation products effective against viruses.
Alcohol gels and soap and water are both effective against viruses. Alcohol
kills the virus; soap and water scrub the virus off and wash it down the drain.
There's no advantage to anti-bacterial soaps and disinfectants, because H1N1
swine flu is caused by a virus, not a bacteria. So antibacterials work - but
it's because of the soapiness, the running water, and the scrubbing, not the
antibacterial agent itself.
Most overlooked: trainers, health coaches, yoga instructors, and anyone else
who comes into frequent physical contact with customers and equipment needs to
wash their hands with alcohol gel or soap and water throughout the day - without
fail after every client, or once an hour for front-desk staff.
2) Coach your customers
First, discourage customers from visiting if they're not feeling 100% well.
Post signs on your entrance door that tactfully but firmly discourage customers who are coughing and sneezing from
visiting your business today.
Download four different posters for your entrance here. Each one has a different "feel" - choose the one that fits the personality of
your business.
Second, be proactive and coach customers to wash their hands.
You can have your front desk encourage folks to clean their hands as they
arrive and/or leave. Adapt the script to the personality of your business. For
example:
"Good morning! Flu season's upon us, so if you'd like to get rid of any
germs that may have hopped on, there's some hand sanitizer right by the door
there."
"Hi there! I bet you'd like to get rid of any germs you picked up at the
office. We've got hand-sanitizer right by the door there."
You can also put these messages on a poster that you put on the inside and
outside of your front door.
And trainers and instructors should take a minute at the beginning of
sessions, classes and seminars to clean their hands and have clients or
participants clean their hands with gel. (Remember that you have to let the gel
dry for it to be effective!). At the end of the session, do it again.
2) Tell customers what you're doing
We've talked to some businesses who think that talking to their customers
about swine flu and sanitation measures will scare off business.
Our take:
1) you're a health and wellness business. You have an obligation to act in
your customers' and employees' best interest.
2) listen, whether you like it or not, customers are getting more and more
worried as the swine flu count rises.
So you're not giving them new ideas - you're just telling them why they don't
need to worry about visiting your business.
How is that not a good thing?!
So:
Create a one-page flyer with bullets that outline your normal sanitation
procedures plus the additional steps you're taking now. Post it around your
facility and in your restrooms, lockers, and changing areas.
Include a short article in your email or print newsletter that outlines what
you're doing.
In both cases, take a matter-of-fact tone. Don't treat it as a crisis - place
it in the context of flu season, which comes every year.
Be prepared for the worst. It's possible, although unlikely, that one of your
members or regular customers will become seriously ill and be hospitalized or
even die.
If that happens, silence is not your friend. You don't want people saying
things like "Oh, I'm sure she got it at the gym/yoga studio/etc."
Be ready to quickly communicate your sympathy for the family and promptly
post signs and send emails to your customers reiterating your business
sanitation procedures and guidelines for people in general to avoid getting sick
and spreading flu themselves.
If you need help crafting that communication, give us a call at 972-851-0098
and we'll help you do it.
3) Do you serve high-risk clients?
It appears that kids, teenagers, young adults, pregnant women, and people of
all ages with
preexisting health conditions are most susceptible to H1N1. Through late
October, half of the H1N1 hospitalizations are of people under age 25 and only
12% of deaths are elderly. This hospitalization and fatality pattern is
completely different from that of seasonal flu.
That means that you need to take special care if you provide:
childcare
kids' or family programs
prenatal yoga or post-partum classes
"mommy and me" programs
health coaching or other wellness services to people
with immune-system diseases like Type 1 insulin-dependent diabetes or asthma
programs and services for young adults
4) Keep tabs on your staff
Most of us worry about customers who may bring germs into our businesses.
However, the truth is that your staff may interact with far more people
during a typical day than your customers do.
That means that your business is likelier to infect your customers than they
are to infect your business!
Enforce a zero-tolerance policy for staff who are sick, particularly if
they're coughing or sneezing. Tell them not to come in, and send them home if
they do. If they tell you it's "just allergies", tell them to go home until they
bring a doctor's note.
(Here's a tool to help
people figure out whether they have swine flu symptoms or not.)
For staff who work with individual clients, enforce a zero-tolerance policy
on thorough handwashing between clients. (This should've been happening anyway -
but we all know it doesn't.)
And require staff who work with groups of clients to wash their hands between
sessions. Again - zero-tolerance, which means you need to apply progressive
discipline if they don't comply.
5) What are you forgetting?
Exterior door handles, clipboards, phones, computer keyboards, pens, electric
hand-dryers, hairdryers, yoga props, locker handles, behind-the scenes equipment
like laundry machines.
Consider assigning one person per shift who's specifically responsible for
working a "sanitation checklist." Reward employees who think of things to add to
the list.
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