Director of Sales

Sales Director

Reports To: Chief Revenue Officer
Facility: The Fort Athletic Club
Membership Base: 2,300 Members
Primary Objective: Drive new membership growth and build a high-performing sales culture.

Position Summary

The Sales Director is responsible for leading The Fort Athletic Club’s membership sales efforts, with the primary responsibility of driving consistent, measurable new membership growth. This leader will own the sales process from lead generation through enrollment, develop and coach the sales team, and create strategies that increase qualified leads, appointments, tours, conversions, and overall membership revenue.

This is a highly visible, hands-on leadership role for an energetic sales professional who understands that sustainable growth comes from disciplined sales execution, exceptional prospect experiences, strong follow-up, and an accountable team culture.

The ideal candidate is a proven sales leader who is comfortable setting aggressive goals, measuring performance, coaching individuals, and personally engaging in the sales process when needed.

Key Responsibilities

Membership Sales & Growth

• Own the club’s new membership growth strategy and monthly/annual membership sales goals.
• Develop and execute strategies to consistently generate new membership leads and convert prospects into members.
• Establish clear sales targets for leads, appointments, club visits/tours, conversions, and new memberships.
• Monitor the sales pipeline daily and ensure every qualified lead receives timely and consistent follow-up.
• Analyze sales performance and identify opportunities to improve conversion rates and overall revenue.
• Develop creative campaigns, promotions, referral programs, community partnerships, and other initiatives designed to attract new members.
• Work closely with marketing to ensure lead-generation efforts produce qualified prospects and measurable results.
• Maintain a strong presence on the sales floor and lead by example.

Sales Team Leadership

• Recruit, train, motivate, and retain an effective membership sales team.
• Establish clear expectations, sales processes, activity standards, and accountability measures.
• Conduct regular sales meetings, one-on-one coaching sessions, pipeline reviews, and performance evaluations.
• Coach team members on prospecting, relationship building, needs discovery, facility tours, overcoming objections, closing, and follow-up.
• Identify performance gaps and implement individualized development plans.
• Create a competitive but positive sales culture focused on achieving goals and delivering an exceptional prospect experience.
• Recognize and reward strong performance while addressing underperformance quickly and constructively.

Sales Process & Systems

• Develop and maintain a consistent, repeatable membership sales process.
• Ensure accurate and timely use of the club’s sales tracking systems.
• Establish standards for lead response time, follow-up frequency, appointment setting, tours, and closing.
• Track and report key performance indicators, including:
  • New memberships sold
  • Lead volume and lead sources
  • Lead-to-appointment conversion
  • Appointment-to-tour conversion
  • Tour-to-membership conversion
  • Cost per acquisition
  • Membership revenue
  • Referral activity
  • Sales team productivity
• Use data and reporting to make informed decisions and continually improve sales performance.

Member & Prospect Experience

• Ensure prospective members receive a welcoming, professional, personalized experience from their first interaction with the club.
• Develop sales practices that communicate the value of the facility, programs, services, community, and overall member experience.
• Partner with fitness, personal training, aquatics, programming, and operations teams to create compelling membership solutions.
• Encourage referrals and develop strategies that turn existing members into advocates for the club.
• Help ensure new members transition smoothly from the sales process into an engaged membership experience.

Community & Business Development

• Build relationships with local businesses, organizations, schools, community groups, and other potential referral partners.
• Develop off-site and community-based lead-generation opportunities.
• Represent the fitness center professionally at local events and community activities.
• Identify opportunities to increase the club’s visibility and position it as a leading fitness and wellness destination in the community.

Qualifications

• Proven success in sales leadership, preferably in fitness, health club, hospitality, membership-based, or other relationship-driven businesses.
• Demonstrated track record of achieving or exceeding sales and revenue goals.
• Experience managing, coaching, and motivating a sales team.
• Strong understanding of lead generation, prospecting, CRM management, sales pipelines, conversion metrics, and closing techniques.
• Highly competitive, goal-oriented, and motivated by measurable results.
• Excellent communication, presentation, negotiation, and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational and time-management abilities.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, customer-facing environment.
• Proficient with CRM systems, sales reporting, and standard business software.
• Willingness to be hands-on and actively involved in the sales process.

Leadership Expectations

The successful candidate will be expected to:

• Own the number. Take full accountability for new membership growth.
• Lead from the front. Demonstrate the sales behaviors expected from the team.
• Create accountability. Establish clear expectations and consistently follow through.
• Coach constantly. Develop people rather than simply manage activity.
• Think creatively. Find new ways to generate leads and differentiate the club.
• Use data. Make decisions based on measurable performance rather than assumptions.
• Protect the member experience. Drive sales without compromising the reputation, culture, or values of the club.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this position will be measured primarily by sustained growth in new memberships and membership revenue, supported by improvements in the club’s sales funnel and team performance.

Within the first year, the Sales Director should establish a predictable sales process, create a highly accountable sales culture, increase lead and referral generation, improve conversion rates, and deliver measurable growth in the club’s overall membership base.

This is an opportunity for an accomplished sales leader to have significant ownership and impact at an established, privately owned fitness center with a strong existing membership community and substantial opportunity for continued growth.