This month’s PT Business Builder interview is with a trainer / business owner / entreprenuer that I have known of (read: looked up to) for over 14 years. Just imagine this: It is 1996, I am a fresh-faced first year Human Movement student at Victorian University Footscray Campus and there is this guy called Travis Bell. He is doing the same course, only he is in third year and HE ALREADY OWNS AND RUNS HIS OWN PT STUDIO. Can you imagine that? This guy is still at Uni and he is already running his own profitable business. That was FOURTEEN years ago and that says alot about Travis Bell – personal training in Australia was a bloody enigma back then.
So this month I am happy to announce that Travis Bell is our PT Business Builder interview. Let him tell you himself how he has moved through those fourteen years in the PT industry, what has worked for him and where he see’s the fututre of the industry. Oh, and I nearly forget to tell you. Travis has agreed to join Scott Williams and Jason Grossman as the final member of our guest post team. He will be writing specifically on marketing and building personal training studios; helping to establish PT Business In A Box as the premuim Australian site for offering free advice and insight to personal trainers. Enough of the back-slapping, lets get stuck into the interview….
1) So Trav, tell me how you first got into personal training?
Firstly, I’ve surfed, been a competitive swimmer and a surf life saver my whole life. Basically, I grew up as a ‘jock’. As you mentioned, I did a Human Movement degree at Victoria University and as an elective, I did my Level 1 Strength & Conditioning qualification. For part of that we had to do our 20 hours ‘work experience’ in the gym. So I did mine where I was a kids swimming teacher… at Footscray Swim Centre! I loved it. I had some great mentors during uni.
One mentor of mine was what you would call a ‘celebrity trainer’ back then. He trained a lot of clients in and around Toorak in Melbourne and charged a fortune. Back in 1995 he was selling his PT sessions for $150 per hour! So I was like a dog with a bone, I went around to his house and asked how he did it. Looking back, I probably annoyed him quit a bit. But, I bought the books he recommended and subscribed to the magazines he read. Mind you, these were all from the US at the time because there was no PT industry back then. As a result I got my 1st client by walking the gym floor where I did my work experience. I charged a massive $25 per hour!
2) Then from there, why did you want to go into business for yourself and how did you do it?
I blame Michael Gerber for this (that dude has alot to answer for)! His book, the E-Myth simply pushed the right buttons for me. The E-Myth is all about the ‘Entrepreneurial Seizure’ which is essentially what I had early in my business career. Working for myself was never an option as I set up what is now known as New Level Personal Training studios in my 3rd year of uni.
I’ve never worked for anyone in my life. That being said, I don’t think I’d make a very good employee as I’d rock the boat too much. When I started I had deal with 4 gyms across Melbourne where I could literally pay $5 (member or non-member!). Then I became a mobile PT and also expanded to include corporate health assessments and programs for companies, conference team-building, rehab, sport team development and Bootcamp’s before there were Bootcamp’s.
3) Who were your target market, what service did you provide and how did you market your business when you first started?
New Level’s service has always focused on delivering customized programs for time-poor people. Typically, they are de-motivated, white collar clients who are a member of a gym but just don’t go. They need personal motivation. Our first studio in Richmond, Victoria was built around doing everything that a gym is not. It was personal, the culture was fun, it wasn’t intimidating and the trainers weren’t full of themselves. This is still prevalent today.
4) That is an awesome angle – so simple. So what was your biggest business challenge back then?
I opened my 1st studio in an attempt to centralize the business. In doing so, I rushed the process and found out very quickly that my cash flow projections were way off. As a result, I ran out of money and nearly went bankrupt. I worked out very quickly that I was a great personal trainer, but a crap business person. I always felt that I’ve had no best-practice model to follow when it comes to franchising PT studios so I’ve had to make up my own rules. As a result, my patience has always been tested because of all the trial and error I’ve endured to find the ‘best’ way to systemize the New Level business model.
5) What does your business look like today?
We have learned from the past and our team has ironed out the business model to ensure more profits, owner leverage and smoother operational systems. It’s extremely satisfying to see our owners taking extended holidays, earning great money and being pillars in their communities. Currently, we have 15 studios with 3 more due to open shortly. New Level HQ (our franchise head office) has a dedicated team of marketing, operations, finance and HR coaches. After a relatively slow start into franchising we now have a great base to work from to expand.
6) What are your most successful marketing strategies for your business now?
Referrals, referrals, referrals….with a little bit of web and signage. A well positioned studio in a good demographic can really help as can a great web presence. But if you can’t get results and get people in the community raving about your service then you are wasting your money on these two. Ultimately, if you produce results and have a great culture people naturally want to get their circle of influence involved. If you get that right all you have to do is ask for referrals and you’ll get them.
7) What is your biggest business challenge now?
My biggest challenge right now is finding quality franchisees to run our studios. I think it takes a special type of trainer to run a PT studio. They must be capable of leading a team of 5-8 trainers and be comfortable managing 300+ sessions per week at their studio.
8 ) Where do you and your business want to be in 5 years from now?
In 5 years I would’ve crossed off more of my ‘Life List’ items. At New Level Personal Training we do a lot of personal development. We do this at the trainer level, the franchisee level and at HQ. Each of us has a ‘Life List’. These are the things we want to experience, own and achieve.
One of the items on my list is to successfully franchise 100 New Level Personal Training studios across Australia. I’m also in the process of expanding the New Level brand into Personal Development. We’ll be running seminars across the country and I’ll continue to motivation and health speaking, which I love doing.
Overall, I see myself continuing to grow our businesses which in turn help even more people get motivated and stay healthy. I’ll continue to help professionalize the personal training industry and help fight against the obesity, diabetes and depression epidemic.
Thanks Trav for taking the time to explain a little bit about how things have panned out for you over your time and what you have coming up in the future. One thing about what you have just said is probably the most simple point but one that is so commonly overlooked in this information age. When I asked you about marketing, you mentioned referrals and said “If you cant get results and get people in the community raving about your service then the rest is a waste of money”. They are very wise words.
You can produce lead generating strategies til your eyes bleed, but if your service sucks – your service sucks. Simple. Getting great results is still the best marketing strategy that any new (or old) trainer can practise on a regular basis and I think that sometimes people lose site of this for all the bells and whistles.
In closing, I strongly recommend having a good look around Trav’s business site www.newlevelpersonaltraining.com and if you want to find out more information about how his franchise system operates you can find that here.
As always, if you have any questions for either Trav or myself simple post them up as a comment and we will get you an answer.
Cheers
Rick :-)
