Most personal trainers aren’t experienced marketers or salespeople. In fact, many personal trainers are intimidated by the very idea of asking people for money. This is a shame because it keeps them from actually making a living at what they love.
The truth is that the biggest factor to successful personal trainer marketing is very simple and straightforward. It’s not a complicated system or a series of hoops you need to jump through. Not only that, but if you’re serious about your work and passionate about truly helping your clients change their lives, then this one thing will actually come very easily to you. It’s about selling the right thing.
Too many personal trainer marketing efforts are focused on selling a commodity – a workout, a system, a particular trainer or a specific type of class. The last thing you want to do is focus on selling a commodity. Commodities are cheap and prices fluctuate wildly, dependent on the economy, the time of year and so on. Commodities are also easily compared to other commodities like them, and the lowest priced commodity often wins.
Instead, you need to focus on selling outcomes and end results.
Let’s look at the difference between the two. Let’s say you’re selling six weeks of personal training sessions for $XX. The value of that six weeks for that price is going to vary between potential clients, because all they’re looking at is the commodity and then comparing it to five other personal trainers’ deals plus maybe the cost of six weeks of do-it-yourself training at the gym. You’ve got a lot of competition and the final decision will probably come down to price.
On the other hand, if you’re selling end results and outcomes, you’re selling something of high value to EVERY potential client, even though the exact nature of the end result may be different to each one. For one person, the end result may be a reversal of a new Type 2 diabetes diagnosis. For another, it may be going to their 20th high school reunion feeling sexy and confidant. For others, it may be fitting into the wedding dress of their dreams, being strong and healthy enough to get back into rock climbing or having the confidence to wear a bikini for the very first time. (more…)
If you’re a personal trainer thinking of starting a fitness business, then let me let you… this is going to be your year. The results of my annual State of the Industry survey are in and 2014 is looking to be as promising as ever, especially with the economy bouncing back and spending on the rise.
Check out my fitness industry report and predictions for this year. There’s some interesting stuff you wouldn’t want to miss.
I response I got this year was amazing. It’s awesome that there are so many of you out there that are dying know which way the business is heading. The survey I took reached more fitness professionals than ever before, over 100,000, through different means like social media and my email subscriber list, which gives us a pretty accurate sample of the fitness industry and the professionals in it.
Here’s what was asked:
1. Primary source of business?
Group Training and Fitness Boot Camps - 57%
One on One Personal Training - 43%
2. Gross total income for 2013?
Group Training and Fitness Boot Camp - $238,376.84
One on One Personal Training - $66,768.29
3. What would you like to learn more of in 2014?
- Online Fitness Marketing and Client Attraction
- Fitness Information Product Creation and Marketing
- Offline Fitness Marketing and Client Attraction
- Personal Training Sales and Closing Skills
In the past couple of years I’ve done this survey, the top two answers to the question “What would you like to learn more of” have always, hands down, been online fitness marketing and offline. But this year is a complete turn around for fitness info product creation, as it was chosen as the second most popular thing that fitness professionals want to learn more of. #1, of course, was online fitness marketing and client attraction, but it’s awesome to see that so many of you are interested in creating and selling online fitness info products.
So for 2014, expect more posts on online marketing tactics, fitness info products and how to create them as well as how to market them to the masses.
Top Trends and Predictions for the Fitness Industry in 2014
1.) Nutrition and the rise of clean and healthier eating. Finally, people are starting to see that diet and nutrition a huge part of weight loss and fitness success. And not only are people catching on to proper diet and nutrition, we’re starting to see a big increase in diets that were typically only followed by athletes or really fit celebrities. Diets like gluten free, vegan, sugar free, Paleo, unprocessed food free, have been gaining popularity throughout 2013 and is sure to stay for 2014.
Just by taking a look at the top selling recipe and cookbooks for 2013 tells you that more and more people are taking their nutrition seriously. This is awesome news for personal trainers because what we’ve been saying and preaching all along is becoming more of the norm and accepted among more people. There’s less of a stigma for people to hire a personal trainer to help them with their weight loss.
2.) Challenging workouts are here for the long haul. Whether you love or hate them, intense workouts like those from CrossFit and P90X proved that challenging and dynamic workouts are exactly want the public wants. I see it all the time in our Fit Body Boot Camp locations where we use unconventional gym equipment like battling ropes, straps and sliders, kettlebells and sandbags, plyo boxes and resistance bands to train the “average” people who want to get fit, lose fat, and look like an athlete without being one.
Clients don’t want to see the same boring equipment, so it’s important to start incorporating some new and exciting exercise tools… if you haven’t already. They’ll get more out of it than they would passively jogging on a treadmill anyway, train them hard (but safe) and your clients will love you for it. (Though it may be a love/hate relationship!)
3.) Keep your workouts fresh. Do your best to make sure that each and every one of your workouts are unique. Clients are not okay with doing the same workout over and over again, even if you are using unconventional equipment or it produces awesome results. Our clients want change, and they want it as often as you can give it to them. It’s our duty to make sure that they’re paying attention so that they keep coming back to work hard for those results.
Unfortunately, a lot of personal trainers who own their own business tend to get burned out, and start to fall into a pattern of complacency and repetitiveness. And if you’re not careful, your clients will start referring you less and less and eventually find a new place to workout.
4.) Fitness info products are certainly going to be huge in 2014. The web is amazing at giving you the power to share your knowledge or special skill with people all over the world, not just in your area. Home workout videos, diet products, recipe and cookbooks, dynamic training programs continue to gain popularity and demand.
Who knows, maybe you’ll come up with the next big thing and reap massive profits this year. (more…)
A Fitness Marketing Guest Blog Post By Bedros Keuilian
Want to know a way to make your fitness marketing strategies more effective?
You need a marketing funnel to help you do just that.
What’s a marketing funnel?
A marketing funnel is a system that collects prospects and potential clients in one spot and then determines if those leads are ready to be turned from lookers into buyers. It is vitally important to your fitness business, but is often overlooked due most people not knowing how to go about developing one that actually works.
Your marketing funnel needs to be able to effectively bring in new leads and prospects on a consistent basis, teach your prospects about the products and services that you offer, and demonstrate how they’ll make your client’s life better so that those individuals will turn into customers who are more than happy to pay for your services.
A lot of the time, fitness trainers don’t really have a complete marketing funnel… they tend to have some parts there, but it’s not thought out well enough to pull in big enough profits. There’s just too many potential clients that fall into the cracks because their funnel isn't set up like it should be.
So, why do you need a marketing funnel? Because if you have any interest in growing your personal training business, then you're going to need a solid system that generates leads over the long term, which will help you to increase your profits.
Here's how your fitness marketing funnel should look:
1) Referrals should be your "go to" source of new clients when you're building your fitness marketing machine. However, unless you have enough clients to start with, it's kinda hard to build your business on referrals only.
2) Online traffic matters. Marketing on Facebook and sending traffic to a site that converts (opt in or low barrier offer) is one of the most reliable funnels right now.
Next is Google local, Yelp, and YouTube All three of these sites rank super high for local search results and can drive you a ton of FREE traffic in the form of very qualified leads and prospects.
3) Deal of the Day promotions are still one of the top fitness marketing tactics you can use to get new clients - IF and ONLY if you make the right offer and have a systematized processes for converting deal buyers into long term paying clients.
4) Offline advertising still performs. Networking with local "feeder" businesses is easy and reliable. Folks still get and read their mail. Direct mail letters and postcards to targeted homes, making the right offer is still performing really well.
In fact, just three weeks ago one of my coaching clients sent out a four page direct mail marketing piece for her fitness business. She out the letters to 500 homes within three miles of her studio.
The entire campaign cost her $1800 which included the addresses, postage, printing, and having each envelope hand addressed. So far shes' gotten $23,600 in new training clients.
Good' ol direct mail still works.
5) List building and email marketing keep clients on tap. Create an email promotion, mail it out to your list, and get clients.
It's easy, low cost, and if you have a good relationship with your list then your results will be awesome each time you mail out.
You can get all of my best client getting and business building resources for up to 50% off, but only for this weekend.
Talk soon,
Bedros
My VIP coaching client Jamie Broughton runs multiple boot camps in the U.K. and has come up with a clever strategy for getting tons of new fans for your facebook fan page.
Check out Jamie's super Ninja facebook fan getting system.
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Hey Steve here, and I've been getting a lot of questions about how to close people that come in on promos.
So I put up REALLY SHORT but POWERFUL post for ya'll on how to use one of my favorite secret closing weapons - The "Non-Close" Close.
It's simple really for two main reasons.
The first reason is you are giving them an irresistible offer.
And the second reason is because you are NOT requiring them to pay you NOW, which overcomes the dreaded "I'll have to talk to my spouse" objection.
So here's how it works.
When someone is on a promo, first get them emotional by finding their "pain" or their "hot buttons."
Next, offer them a "bribe" by telling them that if they sign up now, after the promo is over they can get half off their first month of boot camp.
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You'd be hard pressed to find a serious trainer who hasn't heard of or used a version of my famous Human Billboard boot camp marketing system.
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Some would say that my platinum coaching client Tim Kaderli has it all - 14 boot camps in Austin Texas, nearly 400 boot camp clients, a beautiful wife and now a brand new state-of-the art facility.
On top of all that, Tim is one of the sweetest, and biggest dudes I've ever met.
Check out this email that he just sent me (He gave me permission to share it with you)
Well Homie,
When I saw your sexy face in January, I told ya that this is what I wanted, and YOU helped me make it happen.
Today is the Grand Opening of our first indoor location. Now we have 14 locations total in Austin. Over 350 campers annnnnd…
All of this has been possible because of YOUR awesome coaching, mentorship, energy, and friendship.
I couldn’t ask for a better coach, mentor and friend, man.
Just wanted to say thanks bro. I’ll let ya know how it goes today…!
LoveYaMeanIt!
-Tim
So after I got Tim's email I gave him a call to congratulate him.
And while we were chatting I asked him if it was ok if I share his top 5 secrets to success:
Here's what he had to say...
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I'd love to to hear some of your ultimate client experience tips and strategies...
