80/20 Rule for SOPs

Who LOVES documenting their systems in SOPs? 

My guess is no one. 😂😂😂

SOPs or Standard Operating Procedures are documents that outline how to do something step-by-step in your business. It’s a checklist that your team can follow to execute.

But most businesses have ZERO SOPs and that hurts them in many ways…

• There’s no quality control over the product
• There’s no clear outline of how things should be done
• There’s no document to train people and hold them accountable

The biggest downside is that your business is LESS VALUABLE without SOPs. Who would want to buy a business with no clear systems?

The biggest downside is that your business is LESS VALUABLE without SOPs. Who would want to buy a business with no clear systems?

But here’s the good news. You don’t need to lock yourself into a hotel room and write SOPs for 3 weeks straight. That’s overkill.

The best starting place is to document 20% of the systems that get 80% of the results in your business. That’s where you will get the highest result of the least effort.

I know you’re busy and writing SOPs seems like a waste of time but it’s extremely valuable if you want to be able to train staff and have standards all must follow.

And if (God forbid), something were to happen to you, you are leaving behind a “business will” with clear steps that allow the business to continue on.

The 20% of systems I recommend you document…

• LeadGen: How To Market To Get Leads
• Sales Process: How to Convert Leads to Members
• Retention: How To Retain Members For 12+ Months
• Hiring Guide: How to Recruit, Interview and Onboard New Hires

Those are 4 SOPs that can explain 4 core areas of your business and someone could probably figure out the small details. But this is a starting point that most Gym Owners do not have.

Here’s the funny thing….you might end up liking it and diving into making more of them.

Last thing I will mention on SOPs….keep them SIMPLE and easy-to-design. Include 3 basic topics..name of system, who owns it and checklist of process steps. 

If you found this helpful, let me know in the comments!!