Starting Your Personal Training Business

Ok, so if you are out there and about to start own personal training business firstly “well done” for having the balls to stop working for someone else and putting your life in your own hands. But before you jump into the world of the personal training business owner, there a few basic rules of engagement that you should know to steer you away from any disappointments as you and your business grow.

I give you these pieces of advice freely because I know that starting a new and unfamiliar business can be a daunting task.

Start small and grow big

Lots of trainers have grand plans and grand dream and that’s OK. What is not OK is when your grand plan (for example: opening a PT studio) puts you $200k debt before you even have a client. I know because seven years ago I made this mistake; over time it has proven to be a great business but was the one business of mine with the highest expenses and lowest profit margin.

Your biggest asset is a loyal client base not a flash studio or a large collection of new vibrating equipment. Get good at building your client asset base and then you can do whatever the hell you like.

Pick your targets carefully

Many of my coaching clients come to me ready to start their business but not knowing who they are aiming there business at. “People trying to get fit and lose weight…” is the common response. Well that pretty much sums up the entire population….

You MUST identify specifically who you are aiming your business towards before you start your service. For example, training mums for weight loss or young guys for advanced fitness is definitely going to impact on what type of service you offer and the type and avenues of marketing that you use.

Get really good at one thing, don’t try to be a jack of all trades

The other thing that happens to new business owners when they start out (yes, I’m again speaking from experience here) is that they try to really good at all aspects of the personal training industry straight away. I am talking big picture here, not the little day-to-day running of your business but the development of multiple streams of income.

In my experience, it pays to get REALLY good at one thing (in my case it was mobile training) and then make sure that you have the ability to teach others to be REALLY good at your thing (creating leverage through your systems). When you have achieved that, then you can expand your horizons and start developing your multiple streams of income (groups, corporate training programs, online training, info products, boot camps, trainer education etc). Just taking on one thing at a time makes life much more approachable when you are starting out. Ahhh, we can all relax again.

Get really good at marketing

No matter how much you hate marketing and sales you cannot avoid the cold hard fact that you need to convince people that your business is the solution to their problem. Now many trainers have it in their heads that they are not good sales people or marketers but these skills are simply that, just skills like any other that can be learnt. Just like riding a bike or learning a language.

So accept the fact that you will need to understand the psychology of marketing and sales. Read books, go to workshops, get online and follow blogs (you are already on your way if you are ready this), just do what you have to do to become educated in the ways of the PT marketer.

Give away free training

So as you develop your ninja skills in personal training sales and marketing, the best thing to do in the mean time is to offer free training to your potential clients. If you are not yet completely confident that your words can convince people that you have what they need, simply let your actions speak for themselves.

Get them sweating, get them laughing, get them boxing, jumping, running, pushing, pulling. Let them feel what it is like to have someone push them past what they are used to. Once most people experience that, the sale becomes a walk in the park so the free session should become your best friend as you start your business (and their free).

So again, well done on following your passion and going out there and making sure you get what you want. There are always going to be people that tell you that you’re not going to make it but you only need one person to tell you that you can and that is you. Forget the rest and keep listening to that one person and you will have no possible way of failing.

Good Luck

Rick :-)

P.S: To help you get things moving in the right direction, I have put together a No B.S Business Plan for Personal Trainers. This free report will act as your guide when you are staring your business.

About the author: Rick Watson is the surfing, smiling personal training business guy who tells it like it is. He blogs, coaches and writes books for personal trainers but most of all he is a father and husband (with a healthy respect for road trips). If you like what you read, subscribe to the blog or for more daily banter you can follow him on Twitter or Facebook.