Entering the health and fitness industry can be daunting, but ultimately rewarding. The fitness & personal training industry is always changing, especially post-pandemic. There has been a huge shift towards virtual training and health clubs are now looking for more qualified personal trainers than ever before. Here are some tips to start your fitness business to help you be successful and profitable.
Start Your Fitness Business Online
Having an online presence will have the greatest impact on your business. Customers will use the internet to find you, compare you to the competition, contact you, make a purchase and generally find out more about you. Optimising your online presence with this in mind will result in more leads and more sales. Make sure your social media talks about you and your products, and displays your client successes. Kindly ask your clients for reviews and testimonials. Make sure your website is clean, efficient and works the way you expect. You don’t have to spend a fortune putting it all together, but some investment will go a long way.
User experience is crucial. If you don’t know how to put it all together, hire someone to help you out. Put your online presence and an optimised user experience at the heart of your business and everything elsewill fall into place. Here are some tips on building a great fitness website.
Marketing ideas to power your PT Business
Follow the Right People
The internet and social media is full of “experts”. There is a myriad of information out there; some of it true, some of it less so. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be a good resource.
Many experts use social media to talk about the latest developments in health and fitness. No matter what you’re looking for, whether it be motivational tips or information on the latest trends, you’re sure to find the information you need. Following popular, qualified influencers gives you access to a vast array of informaiton which can help inform your business decisions.
Not only can you get free information, some social media influencers provide free templates for programmes and/or ideas to help shape your own social presence. Following successful social influencers can teach you how to engage followers and spread information that is useful and actionable.
Once you’ve mastered social influencing, you can subtly inform your followers about your products and services, all from a position of knowledge and authority.
Network and Connect with Other Business Leaders
The fitness industry is the same as any other. Being well connected and having a wide network can really help with business growth. Any business person will tell you, having good community links and good rapport with others in the industry will give you an edge over the competition.
Talk to your followers and other personal trainers, no matter if they are freelancers, self employed or employed, newly qualified or experienced fitness professionals. Everyone will have an experience which will find interesting. Ask them for advice on what works for them, what troubles they encountered and what their tips for success are. You may then use this information to direct your own business. You will find that people are often quite happy to give you tips to help out, especially if you also willing to share your ideas.
You can also consider networking events. These can be large scale fitness events or smaller panels and talks. Any information you can gather is going to go a long way to helping you create a successful fitness business. UK Active have a number of such events.
Know the Fitness Industry and Continue Learning
Understanding your potential customers is crucial to your success. How they behave, what makes them tick, what trends they like and how they are most likely to spend their money. Understand your customer and you can build an offering they want.
Industry trends and statistics are helpful too. How many gym members are there? What’s the size of the industry? What class is the most popular? Statistics like these can also help you make the right business desicions. Utilise data to help you shape your offering.
You can further use this information to guide you on futher education. For example, Olympic lifting & Strength & Conditioning is increasing in popularity thanks to Crossfit. If clients in your area are interested in this type of training, upskilling with an Olympic Lifting CPD course or doing the Level 4 Certificate in Strength & Conitioning may help you grow your client base. If you live near a sporting venue, maybe your can tap into clients interested in more sport specific training. Therefore a CPD course in Sports Conditioning would be useful.
Understand the industry, understand consumers and their habits and let the knowledge guide you and your business planning.
Have a Unique Selling Point for Your Fitness Business
It can be a competitive marketplace and therefore, you need to ask yourself why someone will train with you instead of someone else. Look for gaps in the market and offer services which will make you the preferred choice over the competition. List the services your competition offers and see if there is anything you could offer which they do not. Finding something truly unique to offer your clients will definietly set you apart from the rest.
Success in Your Fitness Business
People care more about their health and fitness now than ever before. We are becoming more conscience of what it means to be fit and healthy. It’s never been a better time to enter the world of health and fitness. Be brave, bold, tenacious, disciplined and hard working and the rewards will be yours.
Further Reading
Personal Training, the Perfect Side Hustle
Career Change, a Guide
How to – Study From Home
