Excerpt from my new edition of The MAGIC Hundred
Whenever I read books about success, goal achievement and ‘getting ahead’ in life, I’m always interested to find out as much as I can about the people who wrote them. I’m always asking myself ‘what puts this person in a position to tell me how I should go about getting what I want from life?’.
It’s a good question when you think about it.
After all, it’s relatively easy to write a book about success theories isn’t it? There are enough goal setting books out there that one could get ideas from, write into a new format and sell as an original piece of work and make money from whilst never having actually experienced any of the success principles they claim to be masters of.
People do it all the time in all genres.
Obese people writing weight management books.
Serial bankrupts writing books about financial success.
Struggling business owners writing books on marketing success.
And much more besides.
I’m not knocking anyone for struggling with their weight, their finances or their businesses, everyone is on their own journey, but I find it both strange and sad that they set themselves up as gurus in the very areas that they themselves are lacking success in.
I think of it as a kind of fraud and one which, unfortunately, has a massive knock-on effect far beyond them and their own lives. After all, if people are trying to follow the advice of someone who has failed to achieve success themselves then they’re not exactly likely to achieve much of their own are they?
That’s why I’ve now included this ‘who is Dax Moy’ section to the book (I didn’t have it in the first edition) so that you could get a feel for who is sharing advice with you and why it might be worth listening to.
Be aware though… it may not be what you were expecting when you bought the book so don’t say I didn’t warn you!
My story…
Like most of the authors of ‘success systems’ and goal setting programs, I didn’t just happen upon the principles that I now call The MAGIC Hundred. I found them partly through extensive searching and researching and partly through trial and error and, truth be told, largely by what most people would call luck.
Let me set the scene for you….(This is where you can imagine those wavy ‘dream wiggles’ that you see in movies if you like)
I grew up on several of Central London’s housing estates that had been built and reserved for the poorest of London’s residents. Practically every family was either legitimately on welfare due to genuine financial hardship, or else conning the welfare system by making claims whilst working for cash and avoiding taxes.
The areas I lived in were high in poverty, high in crime, high in violence and high in alcohol abuse and low in just about anything that could even remotely come close to the kind of life that anyone would ever call satisfying, let alone successful.
And that was true of my home too.
My mother genuinely loved her three sons, of which I was the oldest, and tried her hardest to make sure that there was always food on the table and that we were always clean, well dressed and well cared for. Despite her best attempts to look after us she struggled against the fact money was scarce and that what little there was, was often taken for booze by my alcoholic stepfather who would disappear for days at a time on drink binges leaving us with cornflakes and little else to eat and return, more often than not, in violent rages where he would beat my mother, us kids or both.
Life at home was pretty grim so we spent a lot of our free time playing outside in the streets so that we could make believe and pretend that what was happening at home wasn’t and that life was better than it really was.
My brother Kaz and I would often resort to stealing milk and bread off of other people’s doorsteps on the way to school and call it breakfast. We’d line up for second helpings of our free school lunches to make sure we got enough to eat and we’d resort to the occasional bout shoplifting whenever the opportunity to grab a chocolate bar or packet of cookies presented itself.
Looking back, I guess my brother and I became pretty feral in many respects.
One minute we’d be dealing with bullies at school who would pick on us because of our many times repaired hand-me-down clothing then when we got home we’d have to start all over again with the bullies on the housing estates who would want to take from us what little we had for no other reason than the fact that they wanted it.
By necessity we learned to take care of ourselves pretty well and, though we always did our best to keep ourselves to ourselves, found that we had to fight almost every day whether at school, at home or on the journey in between.
This was our life.
It was normal to us.
We didn’t like it but we weren’t scared of it either. After all, compared to what happened IN our home, everything outside of it was play fighting. After you’ve been properly beaten up by an adult other kids don’t really scare you anymore.
As our childhood years passed us by nothing about our lives really changed. There were still drunken arguments and beatings at home, still fights with ‘outsiders’ whenever we went out and, of course, still no money.
Kaz and I became pretty good at thinking up ways to get our hands on some whenever we could and did everything from going through my stepfathers pockets when he was drunk to selling our old toys for cash, to babysitting, running errands and practically anything else we could think of.
In the UK around November 5th each year we’d have Guy Fawkes night in celebration of Fawkes’ failed plot to blow up parliament in 1605.
It was customary in the 1970’s and 80’s for children up and down the UK to make effigies of Guy Fawkes from old clothing and masks and stand on street corners shouting “Penny for the Guy” at the passers buy who would, if you were lucky, slip you a few pennies, ostensibly to buy fireworks which you’d set off on the evening of the 5th around a massive bonfire on which you’d burn the Guy you’d made.
Kaz and I would often have no spare clothes to make our Guy with so I’d end up sitting my brother in a baby buggy or a box, stuff his clothing with newspaper to make him look more like a ‘real’ Guy and put the finishing touches by making a mask from a paper plate and drawing on a face. Pull on a hood so you couldn’t see hair or skin and, Bob’s your uncle, we had a Guy.
On a good day we’d make several pounds from passers by, which was a lot in those days and, after buying ourselves a few bars of chocolate and the odd comic book, we’d hurry off home and give most of the rest to my mum so that she could either buy dinner or feed the electricity meter.
She never asked, we just did it. Come to think of it, I don’t think we ever bought fireworks with that money.
The fighting continued. Both at home and outside.
As kids, we couldn’t do much about what went on at home. We were too young, too small and too scared to stand up to my dad, but one evening in 1982 we found a way to deal with the bullies.
After watching Sylvester Stallone in Rocky 3 and still with ‘The Eye Of The Tiger’ ringing in our ears, Kaz and I joined our local boxing club and quickly found that we were not only good boxers, we were very good.
A combination of streetwise self confidence, natural aggression and, in reflection, a burning anger at what life had dealt us up to that point made us both extremely dangerous adversaries to face in the ring and we reveled in the attention and praise lavished upon us by the tough east-end coaches who trained us.
Within a very short period of time the discipline and toughness of the boxing training began to pay off. We were both asked to box in competition first representing the club locally, then the borough, then the region and then for all of London. We kept on winning and found our faces plastered over the sports section of the local newspapers almost every other week.
We were celebrities. We thought we’d made it.
We were wrong.
Seems that, whilst your average bully is far less likely to pick on a champion boxer, gangs of kids with nothing better to do but stand on street corners spraying graffiti and smashing streetlamps are less put off from doing so.
I found this out when I was 13 or so and was beaten up by a group 16 year olds who felt I was too big for my boots because I’d been in the papers again that week. They decided they’d teach the boxer how to fight for real. And their lesson was a thorough one which included detaching the cartilage from my nasal bone, among other things.
After that, my life became a blur of tit for tat battles with my new ‘teachers’, as I thought of them. They’d pick a fight and usually win, I’d wait until one of them was alone and get him back and he’d tell his friends and they’d get me all over again.
It wasn’t a great life but at least it was predictable.
You never had to worry about whether or not trouble would find you on any given day. It would.
Always.
You just never knew when or how many.
Some days 4 or 5 boys would jump you on the way home from school and other days you’d find three of them waiting for you outside a shop so at least there was a little variety in my life.
As time went by it became obvious that things would have to change. The fights were getting more violent and more and more often weapons were being used. I still wasn’t scared. I always ‘gave good account of myself’ but at 13 going on 40 I knew this wasn’t how I wanted to spend my life.
My grandfather had served in World War 2 with the paratroopers and the S.A.S, or so he’d told me when I was small.
I used to love his war stories and tales of secret missions behind enemy lines and was totally army barmy, promising myself that as soon as I was old enough I’d join up, travel the world and live a life totally different to the one I’d been shown up to that point.
I was only 13 so I still had a few years to go but I joined the army cadets to get a feel for what the army might be like. A youth club with combat clothing and rifles arranged around a military rank system, the army cadets became my home away from home for the next few years with almost every weekend given over to assault courses, shooting weekends, bivouacs, survival exercises and adventure training.
It was like I’d moved to another planet. I was actually enjoying life and could see a bigger picture.
I became supremely fit, running 20-30 miles a week with a 35lb pack and gaining my proficiency in numerous weapons as well as gaining the rank of sergeant that required me to learn how to lecture and train the younger cadets in everything from navigation to weapon handling to survival training. I was just 15 by this point and was pretty much a shining star in this closed little community of the cadets.
At home though, it was like we were caught in a time warp.
We still lived in a dump, my dad still drank and hit my mum (though he hit us kids less now as we were getting bigger and starting to stand up to him more) and kids in gangs still wanted a piece of me whenever they clapped eyes on me.
I couldn’t wait to get into the army.
At 15 I applied to join the ‘Junior Leaders’. These are kids who have leadership potential who are to be trained for rapid rank acceleration once they reach age 18. They couldn’t, at that time, go to war until they were 17 ½ but they were trained exactly like their adult counterparts… though paid much less.
I didn’t mind. I wasn’t joining for the money anyway. I wanted the travel, the adventure, the freedom and the chance to start my life over the way I wanted it to be.
I emotionally blackmailed my mum into letting me join and attended the selection weekend for the elite Parachute Regiment and passed with flying colours. I was still too young to join but they told me that a place would await me as soon as I graduated secondary school at 16 and a half.
Life was definitely looking rosy.
Or so I thought.
Then, one night not too long before my sixteenth birthday I woke up to the sounds of my mum screaming. My dad was drunk again and showing my mum how much of a man he was. I’d grown up with this all my life and I was kind of used to it and ignored it for a while until suddenly there was a different quality to my mum’s screams.
A different pitch.
One that told me she was in serious trouble.
I jumped out of bed, ran into the living room and, without pause or hesitation, headed straight for my dad and punched him as hard as I could in the ribs.
Only I didn’t punch him.
As I pulled my hand away I saw that, without understanding how it got there, there was a 7 inch hunting knife that I used on my cadet weekends. It was covered in blood, as was my hand and the side of my dad’s shirt from where blood was escaping from the puncture wound to his heart that I’d given him.
I’d stabbed my dad through the heart and didn’t even know I’d done it until after the fact. Still to this day I don’t know how that knife got there.
Ironically, it was only the first aid I’d been trained in as an army cadet that saved his life and, ultimately, saved me from going to jail for murder. That, and the fact that when he came around eventually he refused to press charges against me out of some strange kind of ‘code of honor’ that he lived by.
Soon after that I quit school. I couldn’t pretend to be a kid anymore and sit in a class learning math and English. I’d changed.
It was six months until my final exams and I’d done well enough to ensure that I’d pass with very good grades but I couldn’t face another day there and instead went off to live in Wales where I could train in the mountains and get fit for the army.
So there I was.
Sixteen years of age.
Homeless.
Broke.
Unemployed.
Unqualified.
Attempted murderer.
Sounds bad doesn't it?
But I didn’t tell you this in order for you feel sorry for me.
I certainly don’t!
There’s nothing to feel sorry for.
Nothing at all.
Fast-Forward 21 years…
Fast-forward Airborne forces, Royal Marines and back to civilian life again.
Fast-forward getting married and having 4 children.
Fast-forward numerous dead-end jobs from bodyguard to builder, sewer worker to street sweeper and everything in between.
Fast-forward setting up my own personal training business, becoming an industry leader and a published author.
Fast-forward to today where I now run 5 separate businesses, earn 6-figures a year, appear on TV, radio and magazines and spend several months of the year travelling to far flung parts of the world with my family.
How life changes, huh?
So, why did I share all of this?
Well, two reasons really.
First, I wanted to share with you the story behind how I came to be in the position to be writing a book about becoming more successful and, more importantly, becoming happier with your life.
As the story shows, I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth, I didn’t come from a nurturing, supportive environment and I didn’t have mentors or role models who were available to teach me how to get what I wanted.
Yet now, by most people’s standards, I’m very successful. I’m now in a position where I’m able to choose the kind of things that happen to me on most days rather than simply have life happen indiscriminately.
Things can and DO change.
Second, I wanted to share something far, far more important than my actual story. I wanted to share something that I hope will make you feel differently about your own story from this point forward.
It’s a simple yet surprisingly profound statement that has taken me until just recently to fully grasp and one that changes literally everything about everything.
Ready?
Here it is then…
Your story is not who you are. None of it matters.
That little statement either hit you right between the eyes or left you thinking ‘huh?? What is this guy going on about?’
Let me explain.
For years, especially when I was struggling and when things were bad (or I thought they were), I used to pin all of the blame on my story.
“Of course things are bad! Look at how I grew up!”
I’d justify and rationalise that my life was a struggle because of all the things I’d experienced up to that point; the violence, the poverty, the lack of support or role models.
I’d think to myself “If only we’d lived somewhere else”
“If only we’d had more money”
“If only my dad didn’t drink”
“If only my school were better”
If only, if only, if only…
I had a bunch of ‘em to fall back on whenever things weren’t going well for me.
You’ve probably got your own ‘if only’ list too, right? Most people have and we’re pretty quick to use them when things aren’t going our way in life.
Anyway, over the years things started to change for the better.
I had a lovely family, the beginnings of a great business and an income that I’d only ever dreamed about up til then. I vacationed all around the world, flew planes, helicopters and scuba dived and lived a life that most people would consider to be pretty glamorous.
People would ask me how I did it. How did all of these things become possible for me. You know what I’d answer?
“It’s because of my background.
I grew up so poor, so hungry and fighting so hard for everything I had that I learned to be tough and go after what I wanted”
I thought that was true.
I thought that my background have toughened me and ‘trained’ me for success and I revelled in my ‘street kid made good’ heritage. You could say that I’d learned to identify myself with my story. That I’d used the story as a means to describe who I was and why.
But clearly, that wasn’t the case at all.
How could it be?
How could the very same circumstances that I blamed for my failures be the very same ones that I now praised as the catalyst for my success?
They couldn’t. And that’s when I realised that my story was just that; a story.
It was neither good nor bad, right nor wrong.
It didn’t contribute to my previous failures and had no bearing on my subsequent successes. It was just a story about what happened to a boy at a particular period in his life, nothing more and nothing less.
My story wasn’t me. It didn’t define me in any way, shape or form. It didn’t matter at all what had or hadn’t happened in my past, what mattered and what still does is what I intended to do with my present to shape my future.
In other words, what did I want for my life and what action was I prepared to take in order to make that a reality?
When you think about it, this is the most important question any of us could ever ask ourselves. After all, we’ve all experienced bad stuff in our lives at some point haven’t we? We’ve all had things happen to us that we wish never had taken place but they did, and we can’t change them.
What we CAN do however, is choose whether or not to let those things, our stories, define us or to simply acknowledge that they happened, let them go and move on. The truth is, we live our stories by choice, not because we have to.
Realising this is the first real step to success and happiness.
Dax Moy
For Your Copy Of The Fastest Goal Achievement Program On The Planet visit
http://www.themagichundred.com
Thursday, 27 November 2008
Tuesday, 25 November 2008
What's YOUR Song?
One of my clients is a musician.
A very well known musician.
His face has adorned the cover of practically every popular magazine, his music is known worldwide and the band he's part of is one of the most successful in the world in terms of popularity, longevity and record sales.
He's definitely 'there' as far as realising his boyhood dreams of making it big in the music world, for sure.
Yesterday I was asking him about the success that he and his fellow band-mates had achieved and what, if anything, had been the turning point. That point at which they knew they were going to make it.
His answer was amazingly simple and straightforward.
He said, there hadn't been a 'turning point' as such, there was just a lot of putting one foot in front of the other and taking the steps necessary to reach their goal of stardom.
Sounds a bit vague right?
That's what I thought... at first.
But then I asked, "what were those steps?" and I got the following reply.
1. We knew we wanted to make a difference so we kept that uppermost in our minds at all times... especially when things got tough.
2. We knew we wanted to be more than just another band so we did things differently from the start rather than playing the copycat game. We practically created our own genre of music and that helped us stand out from the crowd.
3. We knew that we were entering perhaps the most competitive industry on the planet and so we'd have to commit to being the very best we could be every time we went onstage or into the recording studio.
4. We knew that the rewards would not be immediate but that if we committed to the other steps, they WOULD come.
5. We KNEW we would make it!
Amazing huh?
I mean, becoming a multi platinum selling band and known around the world has GOT to be tougher than many of the goals we've set for ourselves, right?
In fact, considering the attrition rates of rock-star wannabe's, making a measly hundred grand, writing a book, travelling the world or getting rid of 20lbs should be one of the simplest things in the world.
Especially if you were paying attention to the success lesson that my clients' answers provided!
You were paying attention weren't you?
If not, here it is again.
1. Make a difference to the lives of those you're 'performing' for.
Yes, your job, your relationships, your friendships and how you live your life are just as much a performance as playing an instrument or acting onstage. If you know your part well and you're truly committed to serving your 'audience' with the best possible service you're capable of, then you're halfway there!
2. Be unique right from the start.
Forget copycatting and trying to be like everyone else. People aren't interested in just another 'me-too' version of someone else, but they could be VERY interested in you... if you make yourself interesting.
Create a Unique Identity or 'brand' around yourself that differentiates you from everyone else and you're immediately in the spotlight.
3. Commit to being the best that you can be.
Gain the knowledge, skills and abilities to become a true professional in your field. Commit to excellence in all things that you do and ensure that your excellence shines through clear enough that you stand out from others. (Become outstanding!)
4. Be persistent in your actions.
Take consistent and persistent action toward achieving your goals. Even the tiniest step is still a step that will progress you in the direction of your dreams of success. Thinking about what you could do changes nothing.
Do!
5. Have faith and belief in yourself and your dreams of success.
It's been said that faith is the belief in something you cannot prove, yet it has a funny way of delivering proof if you believe for long enough.
Don't just wish, hope and dream of success. KNOW that it's on its way!
If this formula can work to create fame, fortune and world-wide recognition for a musician, just think what it'll do for YOUR life and your business.
The formula works... all you have to do is work the formula.
So work it! : )
Truth, Joy and Love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
P.S - Everyone has a song inside them. That 'thing' they were put here to do.
Finding the song and singing it with all your might is the true key to lasting success.
What's YOUR song?
***************************************************************
My FREE Community at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
is helping personal trainers from all around the world find their
unique voice.... join them. It cost's Nothing!
***************************************************************
A very well known musician.
His face has adorned the cover of practically every popular magazine, his music is known worldwide and the band he's part of is one of the most successful in the world in terms of popularity, longevity and record sales.
He's definitely 'there' as far as realising his boyhood dreams of making it big in the music world, for sure.
Yesterday I was asking him about the success that he and his fellow band-mates had achieved and what, if anything, had been the turning point. That point at which they knew they were going to make it.
His answer was amazingly simple and straightforward.
He said, there hadn't been a 'turning point' as such, there was just a lot of putting one foot in front of the other and taking the steps necessary to reach their goal of stardom.
Sounds a bit vague right?
That's what I thought... at first.
But then I asked, "what were those steps?" and I got the following reply.
1. We knew we wanted to make a difference so we kept that uppermost in our minds at all times... especially when things got tough.
2. We knew we wanted to be more than just another band so we did things differently from the start rather than playing the copycat game. We practically created our own genre of music and that helped us stand out from the crowd.
3. We knew that we were entering perhaps the most competitive industry on the planet and so we'd have to commit to being the very best we could be every time we went onstage or into the recording studio.
4. We knew that the rewards would not be immediate but that if we committed to the other steps, they WOULD come.
5. We KNEW we would make it!
Amazing huh?
I mean, becoming a multi platinum selling band and known around the world has GOT to be tougher than many of the goals we've set for ourselves, right?
In fact, considering the attrition rates of rock-star wannabe's, making a measly hundred grand, writing a book, travelling the world or getting rid of 20lbs should be one of the simplest things in the world.
Especially if you were paying attention to the success lesson that my clients' answers provided!
You were paying attention weren't you?
If not, here it is again.
1. Make a difference to the lives of those you're 'performing' for.
Yes, your job, your relationships, your friendships and how you live your life are just as much a performance as playing an instrument or acting onstage. If you know your part well and you're truly committed to serving your 'audience' with the best possible service you're capable of, then you're halfway there!
2. Be unique right from the start.
Forget copycatting and trying to be like everyone else. People aren't interested in just another 'me-too' version of someone else, but they could be VERY interested in you... if you make yourself interesting.
Create a Unique Identity or 'brand' around yourself that differentiates you from everyone else and you're immediately in the spotlight.
3. Commit to being the best that you can be.
Gain the knowledge, skills and abilities to become a true professional in your field. Commit to excellence in all things that you do and ensure that your excellence shines through clear enough that you stand out from others. (Become outstanding!)
4. Be persistent in your actions.
Take consistent and persistent action toward achieving your goals. Even the tiniest step is still a step that will progress you in the direction of your dreams of success. Thinking about what you could do changes nothing.
Do!
5. Have faith and belief in yourself and your dreams of success.
It's been said that faith is the belief in something you cannot prove, yet it has a funny way of delivering proof if you believe for long enough.
Don't just wish, hope and dream of success. KNOW that it's on its way!
If this formula can work to create fame, fortune and world-wide recognition for a musician, just think what it'll do for YOUR life and your business.
The formula works... all you have to do is work the formula.
So work it! : )
Truth, Joy and Love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
P.S - Everyone has a song inside them. That 'thing' they were put here to do.
Finding the song and singing it with all your might is the true key to lasting success.
What's YOUR song?
***************************************************************
My FREE Community at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
is helping personal trainers from all around the world find their
unique voice.... join them. It cost's Nothing!
***************************************************************
Sunday, 23 November 2008
What Do You Want???
**********************************
Read this WHOLE Post as the Best
10 responses will get a prize from
me worth $99 (I'm giving you REAL
Products that I actually charge
$99 for......)
**********************************
So.
After all this talk of how being transparent about our beliefs, I thought I'd take this 'game' a little further by having you ask yourself a few questions that may just make 2009 and beyond a TOTALLY different experience to the one you've been having up to this point.
It's just a collection of 7 little questions but I assure you, they have the power to literally change EVERYTHING in the days, weeks, months and years ahead.
You ready?
1. What Do You Want In 2009?
What is it that you actually want to happen in the coming year? Be as specific as possible about what you'd LOVE to have happen in the next 12 months of your life.
2. WHY Do You Want Those Things?
What is it about achieving those particular goals that makes them so appealing to you?
3. What are you willing to do differently to achieve them?
What you've been doing so far has gotten you here, to this point. Stands to reason that to move on to the next level you'll have to make changes. What canges do you feel you need to make?
4. What are you willing to give up?
Despite what you've been told, in order to get something you have to give up something. It's about balance. What do you think you might have to give up in order 'make space' for your goals?
5. Who have you shared your dreams with?
Have you announced your dreams to the world? Making goals real involves having the courage of your convictions and not being afraid or ashamed of what you are determined to accomplish. Do others know of your goals? Who?
6. What's the reward for achieving them?
When you finally achieve the goals you've set for yourself, what will be the reward? Sure, the goal is often the reward but in business you may want to double the turnover for example... then what? What will be your SPECIFIC reward for accomplishing what you set out to do?
7. What's the consequence for not achieving your goal?
Most people don't like to talk about consequences because they sound negative, yet there are ALWAYS consequences to every action we take (or don't take!) what will be yours? Will it be that things merely stay the same or will you take a specific action or series of actions as a consequence of not 'getting there'?
This is important stuff.
It's life changing stuff.
As in, it can literally change your life.
That's why I'm awarding the best 10 responses by giving them a very special program that's worth $99 (actually, I CHARGE $99, it's worth a LOT more!).
You've got til midnight Monday!
I can't wait to hear what you've all got to share!
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.ning.com
Read this WHOLE Post as the Best
10 responses will get a prize from
me worth $99 (I'm giving you REAL
Products that I actually charge
$99 for......)
**********************************
So.
After all this talk of how being transparent about our beliefs, I thought I'd take this 'game' a little further by having you ask yourself a few questions that may just make 2009 and beyond a TOTALLY different experience to the one you've been having up to this point.
It's just a collection of 7 little questions but I assure you, they have the power to literally change EVERYTHING in the days, weeks, months and years ahead.
You ready?
1. What Do You Want In 2009?
What is it that you actually want to happen in the coming year? Be as specific as possible about what you'd LOVE to have happen in the next 12 months of your life.
2. WHY Do You Want Those Things?
What is it about achieving those particular goals that makes them so appealing to you?
3. What are you willing to do differently to achieve them?
What you've been doing so far has gotten you here, to this point. Stands to reason that to move on to the next level you'll have to make changes. What canges do you feel you need to make?
4. What are you willing to give up?
Despite what you've been told, in order to get something you have to give up something. It's about balance. What do you think you might have to give up in order 'make space' for your goals?
5. Who have you shared your dreams with?
Have you announced your dreams to the world? Making goals real involves having the courage of your convictions and not being afraid or ashamed of what you are determined to accomplish. Do others know of your goals? Who?
6. What's the reward for achieving them?
When you finally achieve the goals you've set for yourself, what will be the reward? Sure, the goal is often the reward but in business you may want to double the turnover for example... then what? What will be your SPECIFIC reward for accomplishing what you set out to do?
7. What's the consequence for not achieving your goal?
Most people don't like to talk about consequences because they sound negative, yet there are ALWAYS consequences to every action we take (or don't take!) what will be yours? Will it be that things merely stay the same or will you take a specific action or series of actions as a consequence of not 'getting there'?
This is important stuff.
It's life changing stuff.
As in, it can literally change your life.
That's why I'm awarding the best 10 responses by giving them a very special program that's worth $99 (actually, I CHARGE $99, it's worth a LOT more!).
You've got til midnight Monday!
I can't wait to hear what you've all got to share!
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.ning.com
Saturday, 22 November 2008
I believe part 3
The last few days have been really amazing for me.
It seems that the 'I believe' post phenomenon has really caught on with many, many trainers posting their own beliefs to their own blogs as a demonstration of transparency and honesty.
I've been receiving email after email about this as well as the Creed video I posted yesterday. Seems like trainers are looking for something a little more than listbuilding and client attraction strategies at the moment...
All these 'I believe' posts reminded me of the report I wrote last year and so I thought I'd revive it for you all.
Check out The Losers Doctrine which is a little tongue in cheek though definitely in keeping with these recent conversations.
I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts on if or how this applies to you, your business and your success.
Get on over to http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com/losersdoctrine.pdf and check it out.
Truth, joy and love
Dax
P.S - There's a ton more great stuff over at my free community site at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com so go check it out!
It seems that the 'I believe' post phenomenon has really caught on with many, many trainers posting their own beliefs to their own blogs as a demonstration of transparency and honesty.
I've been receiving email after email about this as well as the Creed video I posted yesterday. Seems like trainers are looking for something a little more than listbuilding and client attraction strategies at the moment...
All these 'I believe' posts reminded me of the report I wrote last year and so I thought I'd revive it for you all.
Check out The Losers Doctrine which is a little tongue in cheek though definitely in keeping with these recent conversations.
I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts on if or how this applies to you, your business and your success.
Get on over to http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com/losersdoctrine.pdf and check it out.
Truth, joy and love
Dax
P.S - There's a ton more great stuff over at my free community site at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com so go check it out!
Friday, 21 November 2008
What I believe... Part 2
Man!
Yesterday's post really hit home for a lot of people... much more than I thought it would.
I'm pleasantly surprised : )
I had a bunch of comments on the blog but also about 60 emails from personal trainers around the world (including many of the profession's elite) who told me that the post was 'spot on' and that it really woke up something in each of them.
Many guys have already gone on to take me up on their challenge and post their 'I believe' blog posts and many more are in the process of doing so right now (I hope YOU are!) but I thought today I'd let you in a bit deeper by showing you a video I originally made for myself to put 'voice' to what I believe about defining and achieving my own excellence.
I watch this at least 2-3 times a week even though I know every second of it. It keeps me true to ME.
I hope you'll take the time to watch it and, even more, take the time to create a creed statement of your own.
I'm not kidding you, it may just be the most important 'marketing' action you'll ever take!
Enjoy!!
Don't forget to comment, dig, tweet or all three : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
The Place Where Personal Trainers Go To Grow!
Yesterday's post really hit home for a lot of people... much more than I thought it would.
I'm pleasantly surprised : )
I had a bunch of comments on the blog but also about 60 emails from personal trainers around the world (including many of the profession's elite) who told me that the post was 'spot on' and that it really woke up something in each of them.
Many guys have already gone on to take me up on their challenge and post their 'I believe' blog posts and many more are in the process of doing so right now (I hope YOU are!) but I thought today I'd let you in a bit deeper by showing you a video I originally made for myself to put 'voice' to what I believe about defining and achieving my own excellence.
I watch this at least 2-3 times a week even though I know every second of it. It keeps me true to ME.
I hope you'll take the time to watch it and, even more, take the time to create a creed statement of your own.
I'm not kidding you, it may just be the most important 'marketing' action you'll ever take!
Enjoy!!
Don't forget to comment, dig, tweet or all three : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
The Place Where Personal Trainers Go To Grow!
Thursday, 20 November 2008
What I Believe...
I was thinking about beliefs yesterday for an article I'm writing.
As I was thinking, I came to the sudden realisation that for REAL success to happen for any us it is important not only to be 100% crystal clear on our own beliefs (and to live them) but to share those beliefs with others whenever and wherever we can.
After all, our success always lies in our interactions with others.
If we want more money, better health, better relationships, greater education etc we rely on others to get it and, needless to say, those who share our beliefs are those who are most likely to help up achieve our goals.
Funny though, few of us ever share our TRUE beliefs about... anything!
Sure, we write, we youtube, we blog, we Twitter, we facebook, we Myspace and do all the other 'real time sharing' stuff but, well, what are we really sharing?
We (myself included) are normally sharing 'stuff'. Links to stuff mostly.
Yet we never let people 'in' and allow them to know what we really believe.
I think this is a BIG mistake and one that, instead of creating true connection with others, keeps us separate. And separateness keeps us struggling... no if's, no but's.
Yet, how easy would it be to create a connection if you we just took the simple step of outright telling people upfront, in advance, as often as possible and in as many ways as we can what we are 'about'. What we believe.
Don't you think that would change things?
Just a little?
I think it would. In fact, I think that the transparency I'm talking about would take practically ANYONE and make them immediately more attractive, more compelling and more successful.
To put it simply, I believe that it's easier to develop what marketers call 'raving fans' if we move away from a marketing message approach and move toward a transparent 'what I believe' statement.
In fact, I'm going to prove it.
First, I'm going to tell you EXACTLY what I believe and then I'm going to challenge YOU with an idea (read the end of this post for the challenge).
So here goes.
Here's what I believe:
==> I believe that the role of a health and fitness professional is one of the most important roles on Earth and that those of us that are called toward this role are in a position to literally change the World.
==> I believe that health and fitness professionals have played the role of poor cousin to the medical community too long and that this must stop. Doctors are, in my opinion, at their most valuable during trauma, but that they have no place in the promotion of health to the general population as long as they remain dependent upon pharmaceutical interventions. To this end, health and fitness professionals need to stop taking orders from medics who, despite having HUGE budgets and a global empire to support them are failing badly. They are more educated but less qualified for this role.
==> I believe that optimal health can only be achieved with a combined approach that takes into account mind, mechanics, physiology, individual nutrition, hydration, energy management, rest, recovery, regeneration and respiration. I believe that approaches that do not take into account ALL of these areas are incomplete and, at best, will only serve to improve fitness qualities and not health.
==> I believe that there are 3 separate strands in fitness; instructors, personal trainers and coaches. The coaches are those who are already and will continue to make the biggest difference to the world. I define a coach as 'someone who helps you win'. Therefore, a coach should not be concerned with following the herd or dogmatically sticking to one approach but instead, do whatever needs to be done to help the client win. (Winning includes protecting all aspects of client health whilst accomplishing the goals they've set)
==> I believe that there is a fitness profession and a fitness industry and that they are not the same. Those in the industry are those that struggle. Those in the profession have a life of success ahead of them.
==> I believe that there is a HUGE difference between a client and a customer. A customer is one who enters into a transaction whereas a client is one who is under the care of another. This means that a coach should be caring about their clients and their goals OUTSIDE of the sessions, not just when they are paid to do so.
==> I believe it is our responsibility to be the most qualified, most experienced and most excellent coaches we can possibly be and that this means developing our incomes to levels that are as high as the market will allow. I think we serve no-one by selling our lives by the hour for minimal rates and further, that those who follow the instructions of the higher paid experts ALWAYS get better results as they tend to adhere to directions.
==> I believe that charging high fees does not involve 'selling out' and abandoning 'the public'. One can still impact upon the lives of others through clinics, articles and the sharing of information. The question to ask is "How many people around the world will listen to me whilst I'm a struggling trainer compared to when I'm a super-successful, high paid trainer?" Get more successful and you have a greater impact.
==> I believe that true success comes from living a life of passion and, more important, purpose and that those who feel a purpose to their work will always achieve more than those who simply want to earn more money.
==> I believe that money is good. Get as much as you can and spend it on things that make you feel better about yourself and your life.
==> I believe that there are 2 ways to go through life. The hard way and the smart way. The hard way involves focusing on money and crying because you don't have enough. The smart way involves focusing on service and sharing your message with those who are ready to hear it. When you do, those who like your message will pay you to hear more : )
==> I believe that what you have is a direct result of what you have given up to that point. If you don't feel you have enough then, no matter how you feel about things, you haven't given enough. Give more!
==> I believe that you cannot give what you don't have and that to try is a kind of fraud. Don't talk to others about success if you don't feel successful. Don't talk to clients about lifestyle if yours is all over the place. Don't tell people about establishing new habits if you can't establish them yourself. Don't tell people about the importance of good nutrition if yours is poor.
I could go on but I think you get my drift.
This isn't some kind of marketing message. I have no ulterior motive in sharing but to lay it out there so that others don't have to guess about me or what I believe. now you know and you can take it or leave it : )
Now, my challenge to you!
What do you think would happen if you did this on YOUR blog or in YOUR newsletter?
Do you think it would make any difference?
Do you think it would tell a better 'story' of who you are?
Do you think it would bring you closer to those who you're trying to share your message with?
If you think so, I challenge you to do exactly as I've done here. Post your beliefs and watch the ripple effect take place in your business... and your life!
Go on, I dare ya!
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersucces.ning.com
P.S - Don't forget to comment here... and tell me if you'll be posting to your blog. I'd love to read it : )
As I was thinking, I came to the sudden realisation that for REAL success to happen for any us it is important not only to be 100% crystal clear on our own beliefs (and to live them) but to share those beliefs with others whenever and wherever we can.
After all, our success always lies in our interactions with others.
If we want more money, better health, better relationships, greater education etc we rely on others to get it and, needless to say, those who share our beliefs are those who are most likely to help up achieve our goals.
Funny though, few of us ever share our TRUE beliefs about... anything!
Sure, we write, we youtube, we blog, we Twitter, we facebook, we Myspace and do all the other 'real time sharing' stuff but, well, what are we really sharing?
We (myself included) are normally sharing 'stuff'. Links to stuff mostly.
Yet we never let people 'in' and allow them to know what we really believe.
I think this is a BIG mistake and one that, instead of creating true connection with others, keeps us separate. And separateness keeps us struggling... no if's, no but's.
Yet, how easy would it be to create a connection if you we just took the simple step of outright telling people upfront, in advance, as often as possible and in as many ways as we can what we are 'about'. What we believe.
Don't you think that would change things?
Just a little?
I think it would. In fact, I think that the transparency I'm talking about would take practically ANYONE and make them immediately more attractive, more compelling and more successful.
To put it simply, I believe that it's easier to develop what marketers call 'raving fans' if we move away from a marketing message approach and move toward a transparent 'what I believe' statement.
In fact, I'm going to prove it.
First, I'm going to tell you EXACTLY what I believe and then I'm going to challenge YOU with an idea (read the end of this post for the challenge).
So here goes.
Here's what I believe:
==> I believe that the role of a health and fitness professional is one of the most important roles on Earth and that those of us that are called toward this role are in a position to literally change the World.
==> I believe that health and fitness professionals have played the role of poor cousin to the medical community too long and that this must stop. Doctors are, in my opinion, at their most valuable during trauma, but that they have no place in the promotion of health to the general population as long as they remain dependent upon pharmaceutical interventions. To this end, health and fitness professionals need to stop taking orders from medics who, despite having HUGE budgets and a global empire to support them are failing badly. They are more educated but less qualified for this role.
==> I believe that optimal health can only be achieved with a combined approach that takes into account mind, mechanics, physiology, individual nutrition, hydration, energy management, rest, recovery, regeneration and respiration. I believe that approaches that do not take into account ALL of these areas are incomplete and, at best, will only serve to improve fitness qualities and not health.
==> I believe that there are 3 separate strands in fitness; instructors, personal trainers and coaches. The coaches are those who are already and will continue to make the biggest difference to the world. I define a coach as 'someone who helps you win'. Therefore, a coach should not be concerned with following the herd or dogmatically sticking to one approach but instead, do whatever needs to be done to help the client win. (Winning includes protecting all aspects of client health whilst accomplishing the goals they've set)
==> I believe that there is a fitness profession and a fitness industry and that they are not the same. Those in the industry are those that struggle. Those in the profession have a life of success ahead of them.
==> I believe that there is a HUGE difference between a client and a customer. A customer is one who enters into a transaction whereas a client is one who is under the care of another. This means that a coach should be caring about their clients and their goals OUTSIDE of the sessions, not just when they are paid to do so.
==> I believe it is our responsibility to be the most qualified, most experienced and most excellent coaches we can possibly be and that this means developing our incomes to levels that are as high as the market will allow. I think we serve no-one by selling our lives by the hour for minimal rates and further, that those who follow the instructions of the higher paid experts ALWAYS get better results as they tend to adhere to directions.
==> I believe that charging high fees does not involve 'selling out' and abandoning 'the public'. One can still impact upon the lives of others through clinics, articles and the sharing of information. The question to ask is "How many people around the world will listen to me whilst I'm a struggling trainer compared to when I'm a super-successful, high paid trainer?" Get more successful and you have a greater impact.
==> I believe that true success comes from living a life of passion and, more important, purpose and that those who feel a purpose to their work will always achieve more than those who simply want to earn more money.
==> I believe that money is good. Get as much as you can and spend it on things that make you feel better about yourself and your life.
==> I believe that there are 2 ways to go through life. The hard way and the smart way. The hard way involves focusing on money and crying because you don't have enough. The smart way involves focusing on service and sharing your message with those who are ready to hear it. When you do, those who like your message will pay you to hear more : )
==> I believe that what you have is a direct result of what you have given up to that point. If you don't feel you have enough then, no matter how you feel about things, you haven't given enough. Give more!
==> I believe that you cannot give what you don't have and that to try is a kind of fraud. Don't talk to others about success if you don't feel successful. Don't talk to clients about lifestyle if yours is all over the place. Don't tell people about establishing new habits if you can't establish them yourself. Don't tell people about the importance of good nutrition if yours is poor.
I could go on but I think you get my drift.
This isn't some kind of marketing message. I have no ulterior motive in sharing but to lay it out there so that others don't have to guess about me or what I believe. now you know and you can take it or leave it : )
Now, my challenge to you!
What do you think would happen if you did this on YOUR blog or in YOUR newsletter?
Do you think it would make any difference?
Do you think it would tell a better 'story' of who you are?
Do you think it would bring you closer to those who you're trying to share your message with?
If you think so, I challenge you to do exactly as I've done here. Post your beliefs and watch the ripple effect take place in your business... and your life!
Go on, I dare ya!
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersucces.ning.com
P.S - Don't forget to comment here... and tell me if you'll be posting to your blog. I'd love to read it : )
Tuesday, 18 November 2008
12 days of fitness is live!
I haven't written in about a week as I've been
busy setting up www.12daysoffitness.com
and all of the promotional material that the
various contributors will need.
It's been a pretty hefty undertaking (as usual)
but I'm certain that the work will be well worth
it for all concerned as the list this year is gonna
be a big'n!
We started phase on of our 'soft' release yesterday
and already we have almost 6000 signups waiting
in the wings for December 10th when the gift-giving
starts.
The great thing is, on that date (and the 12 days after)
each and every contributor is going to see their lists
grow by hundreds, thousands or even tens of thousands
of new subscribers.
And all for FREE!
Not bad huh?
Makes me wonder why so many of my readers chose
NOT to contribute. For example, the list you're reading
this mail from has over 8000 subscribers who are all
working hard to grow their fitness businesses.
...But only 250 who are working SMART to do
the same.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that if you're
involved in the World's biggest FREE gift giveaway
with all the products, video's, audios and reports focusing
on fitness that maybe as a fitness professional you should
think about contributing too, does it?
After all, growing a bigger list is the first step to growing
a bigger bank account isn't it?
Well, there's some good news!
If, for whatever reason, you were a little slow off the mark
but you've changed your mind and you really do want to
contribute to the 12 days of fitness then you still have time...
Not much, but a little.
You just need to get on over to
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com today and pick up
the 12 days thread to find out what your next steps should be.
I'm NOT accepting applications to the program (It's free)
via personal email or any other format so if you're serious
about growing a massive list and starting 2009 with an
audience who are ready, willing and able to buy your
fitness expertise then get on over there right now ok?
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Seeya there!
Dax Moy
P.S - Even if you're not going to contribute, you should
still check out the amazing free business building resources
we're building up in the community... well worth a look!
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
busy setting up www.12daysoffitness.com
and all of the promotional material that the
various contributors will need.
It's been a pretty hefty undertaking (as usual)
but I'm certain that the work will be well worth
it for all concerned as the list this year is gonna
be a big'n!
We started phase on of our 'soft' release yesterday
and already we have almost 6000 signups waiting
in the wings for December 10th when the gift-giving
starts.
The great thing is, on that date (and the 12 days after)
each and every contributor is going to see their lists
grow by hundreds, thousands or even tens of thousands
of new subscribers.
And all for FREE!
Not bad huh?
Makes me wonder why so many of my readers chose
NOT to contribute. For example, the list you're reading
this mail from has over 8000 subscribers who are all
working hard to grow their fitness businesses.
...But only 250 who are working SMART to do
the same.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that if you're
involved in the World's biggest FREE gift giveaway
with all the products, video's, audios and reports focusing
on fitness that maybe as a fitness professional you should
think about contributing too, does it?
After all, growing a bigger list is the first step to growing
a bigger bank account isn't it?
Well, there's some good news!
If, for whatever reason, you were a little slow off the mark
but you've changed your mind and you really do want to
contribute to the 12 days of fitness then you still have time...
Not much, but a little.
You just need to get on over to
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com today and pick up
the 12 days thread to find out what your next steps should be.
I'm NOT accepting applications to the program (It's free)
via personal email or any other format so if you're serious
about growing a massive list and starting 2009 with an
audience who are ready, willing and able to buy your
fitness expertise then get on over there right now ok?
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Seeya there!
Dax Moy
P.S - Even if you're not going to contribute, you should
still check out the amazing free business building resources
we're building up in the community... well worth a look!
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Saturday, 15 November 2008
Think Like A Farmer For Personal Training Success
Today I want to talk about something that's VITAL to your succes as a personal trainer.
It's called PATIENCE!
Now, I don't know about you, but I'm not the most patient of people by nature. I get an idea in my head and start to run with it and hope to see immediate results from my efforts.
The problem is, that's just not how things work.
Especially marketing!!
Marketing success , like any other success is the result of great preparation, careful cultivation and patience.
In fact it's just like farming.
First, you prepare the ground, next you plant the seed, then you tend the field, wait for the crop and enjoy the harvest.
You can't short-circuit the process!
You can't throw your seeds at the ground, wake up the next morning and say 'where's the crop?' can you? It's absured to even entertain the notion!
So why do we expect something different with marketing?
You know what I mean.
We usually don't prepare the ground at all, choosing instead to throw our 'seed' (our ad materials or website) onto the ground and then immediately wonder why our phones aren't ringing.
And the worst bit?
We do the exact same thing again and again and again and expect something different to happen each time.
THIS IS INSANE!!
And it gets worse yet.
Many trainers are guilty of the worst possible crime of all. They prepare the ground, they plant the seed, they wait a while...
...and then they up and walk away just before the crop comes in!
Are you one of those people?
If you are, things have got to change or you'll never get anywhere!
Let me give you a couple of examples;
Three of my mentoring students (they subscribe to this group so they'll know who I'm talking about)have taken very different approaches to the advice they've been given.
Student 1 listened to what I had to say, nodded in all the right places and agreed a plan of action.
When the mentor call was over, he discarded EVERYTHING we'd talked about and ran ANOTHER ad (that had failed to work for him EVERY time he's ran it)in his local paper.
Result: £568 later and no new clients, he told me he'd have to 'rethink this mentoring stuff' 'cos it doesn't seem to work...
Student 2 listened to what I had to say, implemented nearly every idea into her business, created a great weight management course, new promo materials, had several great press releases published over £2000 worth of newspaper space - fre.e) and yet contacted me this week to say 'I'm not busy enough yet, I'll have to rethink this 'mentor stuff'.
Result: Despite some great results early on, the sprouts of the crop are just coming through. Yet, this crop is likely to get left in the ground and not harvested because of impatience.
Student 3 was like student 2. He had some great successes early on but took these as a 'bonus' rather than the norm.
He got a website up, an e-book published, a google adwords campaign, a subscription newsletter, a series of published press releases and yet he's only just beginning to earn money from his efforts.
In other words, the crop is only just starting to come through.
But he's patient.
He KNOWS that he has never had such exposure, such media potential, such a captive audience as he currently has now. He's getting 'slightly famous' and with that fame comes the money that he needs to get him to the next level.
Look I know it's hard to be patient. I know you want results now or preferably yesterday but, well, it 'aint gonna happen. Not with any regularity that you can depend upon.
BUT...
If you keep preparing your ground - by understanding your market and your ideal client.
If you sow the right seeds - by providing the best possible solutions to your prospect's problems.
If you 'tend the field' - by using 'keep in touch' marketing through as many viable media as possible...
I GUARANTEE that more often than not you will get the bumper harvest that you deserve.
BUT...
If you fail to do these things, I GUARANTEE you'll be met with frustratingly poor results on a regular basis.
So, what type of farmer are you?
Will you fail to plant at all?
Will you plant but then walk away because it's all too slow?
Or, like the real farmer, the master of patience, will you do everything necessary to bring home the crop?
Only you know the answer to that, but while you're thinking about it a little, take a look at every successful person you know of. What type of farmer are they?
To your success
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
It's called PATIENCE!
Now, I don't know about you, but I'm not the most patient of people by nature. I get an idea in my head and start to run with it and hope to see immediate results from my efforts.
The problem is, that's just not how things work.
Especially marketing!!
Marketing success , like any other success is the result of great preparation, careful cultivation and patience.
In fact it's just like farming.
First, you prepare the ground, next you plant the seed, then you tend the field, wait for the crop and enjoy the harvest.
You can't short-circuit the process!
You can't throw your seeds at the ground, wake up the next morning and say 'where's the crop?' can you? It's absured to even entertain the notion!
So why do we expect something different with marketing?
You know what I mean.
We usually don't prepare the ground at all, choosing instead to throw our 'seed' (our ad materials or website) onto the ground and then immediately wonder why our phones aren't ringing.
And the worst bit?
We do the exact same thing again and again and again and expect something different to happen each time.
THIS IS INSANE!!
And it gets worse yet.
Many trainers are guilty of the worst possible crime of all. They prepare the ground, they plant the seed, they wait a while...
...and then they up and walk away just before the crop comes in!
Are you one of those people?
If you are, things have got to change or you'll never get anywhere!
Let me give you a couple of examples;
Three of my mentoring students (they subscribe to this group so they'll know who I'm talking about)have taken very different approaches to the advice they've been given.
Student 1 listened to what I had to say, nodded in all the right places and agreed a plan of action.
When the mentor call was over, he discarded EVERYTHING we'd talked about and ran ANOTHER ad (that had failed to work for him EVERY time he's ran it)in his local paper.
Result: £568 later and no new clients, he told me he'd have to 'rethink this mentoring stuff' 'cos it doesn't seem to work...
Student 2 listened to what I had to say, implemented nearly every idea into her business, created a great weight management course, new promo materials, had several great press releases published over £2000 worth of newspaper space - fre.e) and yet contacted me this week to say 'I'm not busy enough yet, I'll have to rethink this 'mentor stuff'.
Result: Despite some great results early on, the sprouts of the crop are just coming through. Yet, this crop is likely to get left in the ground and not harvested because of impatience.
Student 3 was like student 2. He had some great successes early on but took these as a 'bonus' rather than the norm.
He got a website up, an e-book published, a google adwords campaign, a subscription newsletter, a series of published press releases and yet he's only just beginning to earn money from his efforts.
In other words, the crop is only just starting to come through.
But he's patient.
He KNOWS that he has never had such exposure, such media potential, such a captive audience as he currently has now. He's getting 'slightly famous' and with that fame comes the money that he needs to get him to the next level.
Look I know it's hard to be patient. I know you want results now or preferably yesterday but, well, it 'aint gonna happen. Not with any regularity that you can depend upon.
BUT...
If you keep preparing your ground - by understanding your market and your ideal client.
If you sow the right seeds - by providing the best possible solutions to your prospect's problems.
If you 'tend the field' - by using 'keep in touch' marketing through as many viable media as possible...
I GUARANTEE that more often than not you will get the bumper harvest that you deserve.
BUT...
If you fail to do these things, I GUARANTEE you'll be met with frustratingly poor results on a regular basis.
So, what type of farmer are you?
Will you fail to plant at all?
Will you plant but then walk away because it's all too slow?
Or, like the real farmer, the master of patience, will you do everything necessary to bring home the crop?
Only you know the answer to that, but while you're thinking about it a little, take a look at every successful person you know of. What type of farmer are they?
To your success
Dax Moy
http://www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Monday, 10 November 2008
Making Elance Work For Your Fitness Business
Hey Guys
Been getting quite a few emails about using
so I thought I'd answer a few of your main concerns as well as tell you, from experience, how you can make sure you get the best results in the fastest time for the fairest price.
Note: I say 'fairest' rather than cheapest. You should NOT shop solely on price or you'll always be frustrated...
In terms of how
works, it's pretty straightforward.
You post a job that you want done, all of the interested parties that would like to do that work forward enter a bid. You accept and they do the work.
Pretty straightforward, right?
Well, not exactly.
You see, I've learned that to get the best results from elance you need a SPECIFIC job request put together or you spend the first week going back and forward in a communication that goes something like this:
Them: Dear sir, we are pleased that you have accepted us to do your work on this project. Please send us the details of the task and we shall be honored to complete it for you in 4 working days.
You: Thanks! The job is as laid down in the job description on the bid page.
Them (24 hours later): Thank you sir, am I correct in saying that you would like the job carried out as per the job specification laid out at time of bid?
You: Yes please, that would be great.
Them (another 24 hours later): Ok, thank you sir. Our team will be happy to do this for you and will complete in in 4 working days from this point.
Note: 2 days have elapsed in back and forward 'crap'
3 days later....
Them: Sir, we have completed the first draft of the project. Please look and see if it meets your requirements and we shall amend as appropriate.
You: Thanks, but the page is not laid out as I'd hoped, can we please move the header, change the picture, use a different font?
Them: Of course sir, and we will be pleased to complete this in 2-4 days.
You: I thought this would be 4 days total?
Them (24 hours later): Yes sir, but now we have to change so may take a little longer.
Ok, ok, you get the picture, right?
Boring, frustrating, disappointing.
BUT...
This can be VERY different if you set out SPECIFIC instructions from the start.
For instance....
1. Only allow 2-3 days MAXIMUM for the bidding process. Most people leave 7 days as default but this just wastes time and means you have to wade through bid after bid after bid.
What you want are the fast movers ad the action takers, not those who didn't even have time to read your bid post. They'll take forever to get the work done. Instead, reward those who bid fastest and best..
2. Give a VERY SPECIFIC job description: Instead of 'wanted, 3 page website' (which is what I used to post) say "Wanted: 3 page HTML website running off of CSS style sheet. Page one will be opt in page with aweber code provided by me. Page 2 will be thankyou page with downloadable report. Page 3 will be...."
You should even go as far as to provide several example sites that have the same look and feel as you want for your site. That way they have a template to work from rather than sending ugly site after ugly site that you're not happy with.
3. Give a VERY SPECIFIC time frame for completion: Make it clear from the outset that you MUST have a complete site by 'X' date. I always say "Please do not bid unless you can guarantee completion of the task on or before 'X'" and this has helped dramatically. Don't get into an 'I'm waiting' game that will frustrate and annoy you and hold up your project.
4. Operate a '2 strike' rule: Occasionally, despite laying down specific time frames, those doing the task will overrun. Sometimes with good reason (you may have made more changes), sometimes not. I allow for just 2 minor shifts in completion date before I cancel the job. This is within your rights if you've specified a date and it hasn't been met.
Sounds a bit harsh, I know, but you cannot wait forever for your providers to 'get around to' your task. Every day they hold you up is a day you don't have a site, or graphics or audio.
Give 'em 2 strikes then cancel the job... you'll often find they miraculously get it done within the next 30 minutes.
5. Help them along: If you're going to have audio, video, optins, downloads etc then get these materials to your elancer at the start of the job so it's all there and they can get on with things. Don't send stuff in dribs and drabs and then complain about how long it's taking. Make life easy for them and the effort you put in will pay you back with a great finished result in record time.
6. Budget but don't scrimp: I've had some amazingly cheap work done on elance but I've also had some stuff take ages, be of poor quality and end up basically worthless to me. Don't base your hiring solely on price. Actually read the bids and get a feel for the professionalism of the individual, their previous work and how soon they can get it back to you
In summary
Elance can be a great tool if used correctly but can also be a frustrating, annoying pain in the butt waste of time if you don't.
By all means use 'em and use 'em often and you'll get ten times as much done as you ever would alone, but use 'em strategically and with forethought rather than hapahazardly.
By applying just these six simple steps, you'll be well on your way!
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Been getting quite a few emails about using
so I thought I'd answer a few of your main concerns as well as tell you, from experience, how you can make sure you get the best results in the fastest time for the fairest price.
Note: I say 'fairest' rather than cheapest. You should NOT shop solely on price or you'll always be frustrated...
In terms of how
works, it's pretty straightforward.
You post a job that you want done, all of the interested parties that would like to do that work forward enter a bid. You accept and they do the work.
Pretty straightforward, right?
Well, not exactly.
You see, I've learned that to get the best results from elance you need a SPECIFIC job request put together or you spend the first week going back and forward in a communication that goes something like this:
Them: Dear sir, we are pleased that you have accepted us to do your work on this project. Please send us the details of the task and we shall be honored to complete it for you in 4 working days.
You: Thanks! The job is as laid down in the job description on the bid page.
Them (24 hours later): Thank you sir, am I correct in saying that you would like the job carried out as per the job specification laid out at time of bid?
You: Yes please, that would be great.
Them (another 24 hours later): Ok, thank you sir. Our team will be happy to do this for you and will complete in in 4 working days from this point.
Note: 2 days have elapsed in back and forward 'crap'
3 days later....
Them: Sir, we have completed the first draft of the project. Please look and see if it meets your requirements and we shall amend as appropriate.
You: Thanks, but the page is not laid out as I'd hoped, can we please move the header, change the picture, use a different font?
Them: Of course sir, and we will be pleased to complete this in 2-4 days.
You: I thought this would be 4 days total?
Them (24 hours later): Yes sir, but now we have to change so may take a little longer.
Ok, ok, you get the picture, right?
Boring, frustrating, disappointing.
BUT...
This can be VERY different if you set out SPECIFIC instructions from the start.
For instance....
1. Only allow 2-3 days MAXIMUM for the bidding process. Most people leave 7 days as default but this just wastes time and means you have to wade through bid after bid after bid.
What you want are the fast movers ad the action takers, not those who didn't even have time to read your bid post. They'll take forever to get the work done. Instead, reward those who bid fastest and best..
2. Give a VERY SPECIFIC job description: Instead of 'wanted, 3 page website' (which is what I used to post) say "Wanted: 3 page HTML website running off of CSS style sheet. Page one will be opt in page with aweber code provided by me. Page 2 will be thankyou page with downloadable report. Page 3 will be...."
You should even go as far as to provide several example sites that have the same look and feel as you want for your site. That way they have a template to work from rather than sending ugly site after ugly site that you're not happy with.
3. Give a VERY SPECIFIC time frame for completion: Make it clear from the outset that you MUST have a complete site by 'X' date. I always say "Please do not bid unless you can guarantee completion of the task on or before 'X'" and this has helped dramatically. Don't get into an 'I'm waiting' game that will frustrate and annoy you and hold up your project.
4. Operate a '2 strike' rule: Occasionally, despite laying down specific time frames, those doing the task will overrun. Sometimes with good reason (you may have made more changes), sometimes not. I allow for just 2 minor shifts in completion date before I cancel the job. This is within your rights if you've specified a date and it hasn't been met.
Sounds a bit harsh, I know, but you cannot wait forever for your providers to 'get around to' your task. Every day they hold you up is a day you don't have a site, or graphics or audio.
Give 'em 2 strikes then cancel the job... you'll often find they miraculously get it done within the next 30 minutes.
5. Help them along: If you're going to have audio, video, optins, downloads etc then get these materials to your elancer at the start of the job so it's all there and they can get on with things. Don't send stuff in dribs and drabs and then complain about how long it's taking. Make life easy for them and the effort you put in will pay you back with a great finished result in record time.
6. Budget but don't scrimp: I've had some amazingly cheap work done on elance but I've also had some stuff take ages, be of poor quality and end up basically worthless to me. Don't base your hiring solely on price. Actually read the bids and get a feel for the professionalism of the individual, their previous work and how soon they can get it back to you
In summary
Elance can be a great tool if used correctly but can also be a frustrating, annoying pain in the butt waste of time if you don't.
By all means use 'em and use 'em often and you'll get ten times as much done as you ever would alone, but use 'em strategically and with forethought rather than hapahazardly.
By applying just these six simple steps, you'll be well on your way!
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
Sunday, 9 November 2008
Why is Dax Moy Over The Moon At Earning $158?
It's true, I'm over the moon because this afternoon with a single email I've earned $158.
Sounds strange doesn't it?
After all, $158 whilst still SOME extra income, it's hardly worth writing a blog post about is it?
It is if you understand what that $158 stands for.
Y'see, I recently starting playing about with offering trial periods on several of my products.
Last week I trialled The MAGIC Hundred and very quickly sold around 100 copies with very little effort at all. 100 copies at $59.99 is about $6000... not too shabby for 1 email methinks.
Today I sent out a $4.95 trial of my Look Great Naked Challenge and made 32 sales... within minutes netting me a grand total of $158.
But here's the neat bit.
In 30 days when those sales convert to my full fee of $225 I'm looking at making $7225
Again, these aren't outrageous amounts of money, but think about what I'm sharing here.
I made one post to each list and have brought in about $13,000 in sales.
The moral of the story is a simple one...
Offer a trial of your services and products.
Let people 'try before they buy' by allowing them to access your products for nominal fees and then rebilling them after a trial period elapses (clickbank allows you to do this EASILY)
The benefit to you is an easy flurry of sales because people have had the risk reduced or reversed and feel more comfortable hitting the 'buy now' button. The small $4.95 fee just doesn't feel scary at all, right?
Of course, it goes without saying that your program had better deliver. You'd better back up all your promises and give 'em some great stuff or they'll quit and you won't be able to rebill them for the remainder of the value. As long as you do that you're fine and will see a decent flurry of sales that you may never have experienced otherwise.
Give it a go!
Dax Moy
Join The FREE Community at
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
P.S - Leave me a comment! : )
Sounds strange doesn't it?
After all, $158 whilst still SOME extra income, it's hardly worth writing a blog post about is it?
It is if you understand what that $158 stands for.
Y'see, I recently starting playing about with offering trial periods on several of my products.
Last week I trialled The MAGIC Hundred and very quickly sold around 100 copies with very little effort at all. 100 copies at $59.99 is about $6000... not too shabby for 1 email methinks.
Today I sent out a $4.95 trial of my Look Great Naked Challenge and made 32 sales... within minutes netting me a grand total of $158.
But here's the neat bit.
In 30 days when those sales convert to my full fee of $225 I'm looking at making $7225
Again, these aren't outrageous amounts of money, but think about what I'm sharing here.
I made one post to each list and have brought in about $13,000 in sales.
The moral of the story is a simple one...
Offer a trial of your services and products.
Let people 'try before they buy' by allowing them to access your products for nominal fees and then rebilling them after a trial period elapses (clickbank allows you to do this EASILY)
The benefit to you is an easy flurry of sales because people have had the risk reduced or reversed and feel more comfortable hitting the 'buy now' button. The small $4.95 fee just doesn't feel scary at all, right?
Of course, it goes without saying that your program had better deliver. You'd better back up all your promises and give 'em some great stuff or they'll quit and you won't be able to rebill them for the remainder of the value. As long as you do that you're fine and will see a decent flurry of sales that you may never have experienced otherwise.
Give it a go!
Dax Moy
Join The FREE Community at
www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com
P.S - Leave me a comment! : )
Friday, 7 November 2008
Why is Dax Moy Pissed Off?
I had an unsubscribe from my ptsuccess newsletter this evening.
Now, I don't always read 'em as most of the time people are unsubscribing for mundane reasons like moving company or (occasionally) I get offensive or negative posts that just annoy me (hey, I'm human y'know!) : )
Tonight I got one that was mildly annoying at first but that actually perplexed me as I thought about it...
It read...
"Dax Moy's name is becoming very badly spoken about in the industry, no longer
interested in this blatant sales pitch. Obviously only interested in money."
Now, whenever someone tells you that you're spoken about badly in your industry it can be a concern and worth looking into... so I am! : )
Guys, I make no bones about the fact that I want to make money from my work... lots of it. That's no secret. I'm the highest paid trainer in the UK, I run the world's most expensive coaching program for fitness professionals and I expect to be paid very well for whatever I do.
Because, quite simply, I'm bloody good at it. (If I didn't believe this then I'd be wrong in charging what I charge)
BUT...
In the last year I've done over 50 teleseminars for the public... for FREE.
More than 30 interviews for trainers... for FREE.
Spoken at 3 conferences... For FREE
Run 12 days of fitness and helped hundreds of trainers build their lists... for FREE
Written 3-5 articles and blog posts for each of my 7 blogs each week... for FREE
Created the community at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com ... For FREE
And added as many useful posts and comments to sites like personaltraineru.com and others as my time allows.
Certainly, I'm always looking to see if I can create backlinks, opt ins, potential sales (who wouldn't) but I'm genuinely trying to help my industry to turn into a profession.
What's my point?
Well, I don't know really : )
I guess I'm venting a bit but also trying to understand people like this. People who sign up for newsletters to specifically learn information about marketing their personal training businesses but object to being on the receiving end of the very same marketing they want to use on their own lists.
I guess we all get that way sometimes. A little bit pissed off that we're being 'sold' when all we want is information but, on the other hand, don't you think that there's a bit of a hypocrite in us all too? (myself included!)
Asking for free info on how to make money from your business and then attacking the same person for marketing to you is a bit... backward.
The truth is, as much as we fight it, there comes a time for us all when we simply have to put our hands in our pockets and pay SOMEONE for their expertise if we truly want to get ahead. I've done it, and so has every successful coach I know but some people are of the opinion that they shouldn't have to.
I feel sad for those people as their lack of success is virtually guaranteed. Not because they won't buy from ME but because their mentality about being marketed to will carry out across the board and they'll go through life expecting freebies and blaming others when they don't succeed.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Not to beat up on this guy (or me!) but to hear what you think about complaints about being marketed to when you're on a marketing mailing list. Consider it market research so we can all understand 'where trainers are at'.
To your success
All of you!
Dax
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
Now, I don't always read 'em as most of the time people are unsubscribing for mundane reasons like moving company or (occasionally) I get offensive or negative posts that just annoy me (hey, I'm human y'know!) : )
Tonight I got one that was mildly annoying at first but that actually perplexed me as I thought about it...
It read...
"Dax Moy's name is becoming very badly spoken about in the industry, no longer
interested in this blatant sales pitch. Obviously only interested in money."
Now, whenever someone tells you that you're spoken about badly in your industry it can be a concern and worth looking into... so I am! : )
Guys, I make no bones about the fact that I want to make money from my work... lots of it. That's no secret. I'm the highest paid trainer in the UK, I run the world's most expensive coaching program for fitness professionals and I expect to be paid very well for whatever I do.
Because, quite simply, I'm bloody good at it. (If I didn't believe this then I'd be wrong in charging what I charge)
BUT...
In the last year I've done over 50 teleseminars for the public... for FREE.
More than 30 interviews for trainers... for FREE.
Spoken at 3 conferences... For FREE
Run 12 days of fitness and helped hundreds of trainers build their lists... for FREE
Written 3-5 articles and blog posts for each of my 7 blogs each week... for FREE
Created the community at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com ... For FREE
And added as many useful posts and comments to sites like personaltraineru.com and others as my time allows.
Certainly, I'm always looking to see if I can create backlinks, opt ins, potential sales (who wouldn't) but I'm genuinely trying to help my industry to turn into a profession.
What's my point?
Well, I don't know really : )
I guess I'm venting a bit but also trying to understand people like this. People who sign up for newsletters to specifically learn information about marketing their personal training businesses but object to being on the receiving end of the very same marketing they want to use on their own lists.
I guess we all get that way sometimes. A little bit pissed off that we're being 'sold' when all we want is information but, on the other hand, don't you think that there's a bit of a hypocrite in us all too? (myself included!)
Asking for free info on how to make money from your business and then attacking the same person for marketing to you is a bit... backward.
The truth is, as much as we fight it, there comes a time for us all when we simply have to put our hands in our pockets and pay SOMEONE for their expertise if we truly want to get ahead. I've done it, and so has every successful coach I know but some people are of the opinion that they shouldn't have to.
I feel sad for those people as their lack of success is virtually guaranteed. Not because they won't buy from ME but because their mentality about being marketed to will carry out across the board and they'll go through life expecting freebies and blaming others when they don't succeed.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Not to beat up on this guy (or me!) but to hear what you think about complaints about being marketed to when you're on a marketing mailing list. Consider it market research so we can all understand 'where trainers are at'.
To your success
All of you!
Dax
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
Tuesday, 28 October 2008
How I Quadrupled My List Opt-Ins and Sales Part 2
A couple of days ago I told you how I managed to quadruple my opt ins and sales at my fitness marketing website by changing from a 'soft' opt-in to a forced opt in process.
In case you can't remember what that means, it's simply that my 'home page' is a brief intro to the site and what you'll get when you sign up followed by a sign in box that they MUST go through in order to learn more.
They have a simple choice at this point; opt in or leave. There's no window shopping.
Now, many of the students on my Mentoring and Coaching Program are initially very worried when they hear about this. In fact, they're terrified!
"If I force the opt in won't I just annoy people and they'll leave?"
The short answer is, yes.
Yes, you'll have some people quit, leave and go elsewhere having felt frustrated that they couldn't learn more.
But these people weren't serious contenders for your services or products anyway. After all, if they wouldn't give you their opt in info, how likely are they to give you their credit card info?
Not very, right?
So stop panicking and freaking out about what doesn't matter. The truth is, forced opt in will improve both the size AND the quality of your mailing list almost s soon as you start using it.
Now, I promised a new tip didn't I?
How about another one that increased my opt ins by 400% plus?
Well, long before I used forced opt in I started to use a strategy that I'd seen many of the top internet marketers using for their products on their own sites. It was a simple ideas and one that made lots of sense to me at the time, but one which no-one in fitness seemed to be using. Not for their products and certainly not for their PT services.
So, contrarian that I am, I used this technique on my personal training website and 'Hey Presto!' not only did my subscriptions go up for my newsletter, but the telephone rang more often too. MUCH more often!
Whenever I spoke to my new prospects about what it was that made them come to me they all indicated this one thing as a major part of their choosing to hire my company.
What was it?
Putting a personal audio message on my site.
Just saying Hi, welcoming people and telling them what they can expect as they work through the pages made all the difference.
You see, as I always tell my students, people buy people they don't buy into websites, technology, ebook reports or anything else, they buy into developing a relationship with you, getting to know you, getting to like you and learning to trust you.
Your voice on a site makes you real.
It starts off the know, like, trust cycle that much faster.
It puts power, passion and promise into the lifeless written words on your pages.
It helps people to connect.
And connect they do... in droves!
Yet, y'know, as I look at trainers websites today I have a hard time finding more than a handful with any attempt at using audio on their sites. Those guys are usually already on six figures a year too.
Coincidence?
I don't think so!
The power of audio is not to be underestimated, I promise you. Add it to your site today and see for yourself what results it brings. You'll be astounded.
Here's my favorite audio generation site. I love it because you can get on the phone (or upload via the web), record a message and immediately pick up the code and paste it into your site so that within less than a minute you can have a voice message.
You can use it for client testimonials too. Just imagine, their own 'live' voice on your website telling people how great you are.
Couldn't hurt sales could it?
I promise you, combine forced opt in with audio on your site and you'll see an increase in signups and conversion to sales like you wouldn't believe.
Get it done! : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - In the interests of full transparency I want to tell you that the links to the audio service are my affiliate codes so I stand to gain financially by your purchasing it (doesn't cost you a penny more). But that's not why I'm promoting it. Besides, you can just cut off my affiliate link if you'd rather I didn't get anything....
But I really think you should try the service on your site. Even if for just a month. If it does a tenth of what it did for me you'll be smiling...
In case you can't remember what that means, it's simply that my 'home page' is a brief intro to the site and what you'll get when you sign up followed by a sign in box that they MUST go through in order to learn more.
They have a simple choice at this point; opt in or leave. There's no window shopping.
Now, many of the students on my Mentoring and Coaching Program are initially very worried when they hear about this. In fact, they're terrified!
"If I force the opt in won't I just annoy people and they'll leave?"
The short answer is, yes.
Yes, you'll have some people quit, leave and go elsewhere having felt frustrated that they couldn't learn more.
But these people weren't serious contenders for your services or products anyway. After all, if they wouldn't give you their opt in info, how likely are they to give you their credit card info?
Not very, right?
So stop panicking and freaking out about what doesn't matter. The truth is, forced opt in will improve both the size AND the quality of your mailing list almost s soon as you start using it.
Now, I promised a new tip didn't I?
How about another one that increased my opt ins by 400% plus?
Well, long before I used forced opt in I started to use a strategy that I'd seen many of the top internet marketers using for their products on their own sites. It was a simple ideas and one that made lots of sense to me at the time, but one which no-one in fitness seemed to be using. Not for their products and certainly not for their PT services.
So, contrarian that I am, I used this technique on my personal training website and 'Hey Presto!' not only did my subscriptions go up for my newsletter, but the telephone rang more often too. MUCH more often!
Whenever I spoke to my new prospects about what it was that made them come to me they all indicated this one thing as a major part of their choosing to hire my company.
What was it?
Putting a personal audio message on my site.
Just saying Hi, welcoming people and telling them what they can expect as they work through the pages made all the difference.
You see, as I always tell my students, people buy people they don't buy into websites, technology, ebook reports or anything else, they buy into developing a relationship with you, getting to know you, getting to like you and learning to trust you.
Your voice on a site makes you real.
It starts off the know, like, trust cycle that much faster.
It puts power, passion and promise into the lifeless written words on your pages.
It helps people to connect.
And connect they do... in droves!
Yet, y'know, as I look at trainers websites today I have a hard time finding more than a handful with any attempt at using audio on their sites. Those guys are usually already on six figures a year too.
Coincidence?
I don't think so!
The power of audio is not to be underestimated, I promise you. Add it to your site today and see for yourself what results it brings. You'll be astounded.
Here's my favorite audio generation site. I love it because you can get on the phone (or upload via the web), record a message and immediately pick up the code and paste it into your site so that within less than a minute you can have a voice message.
You can use it for client testimonials too. Just imagine, their own 'live' voice on your website telling people how great you are.
Couldn't hurt sales could it?
I promise you, combine forced opt in with audio on your site and you'll see an increase in signups and conversion to sales like you wouldn't believe.
Get it done! : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - In the interests of full transparency I want to tell you that the links to the audio service are my affiliate codes so I stand to gain financially by your purchasing it (doesn't cost you a penny more). But that's not why I'm promoting it. Besides, you can just cut off my affiliate link if you'd rather I didn't get anything....
But I really think you should try the service on your site. Even if for just a month. If it does a tenth of what it did for me you'll be smiling...
Monday, 27 October 2008
Have Your Say About Guaranteed Personal Training
I just got this excellent email response to my 'Do you have the balls?' post about guaranteeing results from fellow fitness philosopher Christopher Warden and wanted to share it with you all both to demonstrate how to put together a classy and well thought out argument (as Christopher has) and to fill you in on my own beliefs and rationale for taking the viewpoint I have....
"Dear Dax,
Let me preface this first by saying that I appreciate that your writing on PTSA is targeteted to fitness professionals, and so I'm sure this context leads you to write in a different tone, with different points of emphasis, than if you are writing to prospective clients.
You wrote a blog post a few weeks ago about your attempt to transform the fitness industry by challenging the big clubs to offer a "money back guarantee." I think there's an incredibly valid reason for the guarantee: it holds the professional accountable, while encouraging a flood of business because prospective clients feel they have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
But don't you think it also puts an emphasis on achieving the end result without justifying the means? And isn't that emphasis (on speedy results/the quick fix) part of the reason that we've got such a problem with obesity/poor health in the first place?
Are guarantees and deadlines important? Absolutely. But the health and well-being of our clients is of utmost priority. . . and offers of quick results may not be reasonable, or even safe -- especially when considering clients with health restrictions or other limitations. I'm sure you agree that there's much more to this profession than guarantees of rapid physical change; not the least of which is teaching that the "quick result" is not always the best, nor is it necessarily long-lasting.
Your challenge to the fitness industry is incredibly admirable. At the very least, it pushes us to be "ballsy enough" to be better for our clients. Guarantees in our business should be a given. I simply think we've got to be careful about the time constraints we put on change, in light of the variety of (unhealthy) clients we work with on a regular basis.
Your thoughts?
All the best to you as you begin your week!
Sincerely,
Christopher Warden "
What great points!
I love it when someone challenges me and my thinking in this way and makes me have to make my position clearer. It's better all round for everyone, right?
So here's my take on this.
But don't you think it also puts an emphasis on achieving the end result without justifying the means? And isn't that emphasis (on speedy results/the quick fix) part of the reason that we've got such a problem with obesity/poor health in the first place?
There are a couple of questions here and more than a few answers to them : )
First, I think that you're right... there is the possibility of focusing on the end result rather than than the means. But that's not necessarily a bad thing, my friend.
I think that many coaches and trainers get far too caught up in their methodology and often forget what the sessions are supposed to be about... providing and end result!
I'm not really certain we have to 'justify' anything, my friend. I think all methodologies have merit, they all work to different degrees and for different timescales on different people and so, naturally, a good coach will find themselves using a vast array.
However, that said, I believe that the methods applied should be based on principles that are unchanging rather than based upon fads or personal preference.
With nutrition, the PRINCIPLE is clean, organic, wholesome foods. The METHODS may include high protein, low protein, high calorie, l9ow calorie etc.
With exercise the PRINCIPLE progressive overload. The methods are straight sets, supersets, EDT, superfast, superslow etc
The coach can and MUST choose the method that based upon kowledge, skills, ability and experience make the most sense to both the goal and the individual in front of them at that moment in time.
And, of course, maintaining the over-riding principle of them all; DO NO HARM.
This means simply that the best coaches will apply the principles and methods to their clients in ways that will dramatically accelerate the expected results AND they they can do so with a high degree of predictability.
Second, no, I don't think that speedy results/quick fix are that much of a factor in the obesity epidemic actually. I agree that they ARE a factor, just not as big as many people would have us believe.
No-one is fat BECAUSE they expect fast results. Once they are fat they may become despondant about their training/nutrition because the results aren't coming fast enough but the causal factors of obesity have little if anything (in my opinion) to do with quick fix mentality and far more to do with a contaminated food chain, hypokinetic lifestyles and an overload of environmental, social and endocrine stressors.
Are guarantees and deadlines important? Absolutely. But the health and well-being of our clients is of utmost priority. . . and offers of quick results may not be reasonable, or even safe -- especially when considering clients with health restrictions or other limitations. I'm sure you agree that there's much more to this profession than guarantees of rapid physical change; not the least of which is teaching that the "quick result" is not always the best, nor is it necessarily long-lasting.
Again, guaranteeing results based upon your experience and expertise puts no-one in danger unless your judgement is completely wrong. In that case it makes sense to improve the overall standard of the profession to the degree that those who cannot predict a result a relegated to positions of lesser reposnsibility and lesser pay... or out of the profession altogether.
A strong stance, I know, but if our years of knowledge, education and experience don't allow us to predict a result in advance then we're simply not good enough at what we do.
Sure, those with specific health restrictions may have different timelines, but we should be able to predict those too... and guarantee them.
As the senior consultant for the UK's very first medical referral scheme I was responsible for taking those with injury, illness, disability and dysfunction through health reintergration programs and managed to get results in every case in timeframes that most people would deem impossible. This included helping long term wheelchair users to be able to walk again.
When I work with these populations now that I'm in private practice, I guarantee my results based upon the findings of my Kinetic Chain Assessment protocols and STILL get the results within the timeframes I promise... and no compromising of safety.
The whole profession should be able to do this and, indeed, my entire staff as well as my peer group within the profession are accomplishing this also.
Why not the rest?
Regarding the comment that quick results don't imply lasting change, I agree with you 100% but they don't imply that they won't last either : )
I know from personal experience that the faster you can show a person an appreciable difference, the more motivated and purposeful they become about both their training and nutrition whereas when improvements seem slow in coming, the predominant thought is 'why did I bother?'
Fast results work in both our and our clients favor and, if used correctly, can serve to bring about lasting change in those we work with.
I think that the biggest thing we need concern ourselves with as an industry and fledgling position is not safety. That should be a given anyway, id you know anything about how the body works at all (I don't 'concern' myself with it because it simply isn't an issue), but rather, how much do the public believe in us and our abilities.
Providing guaranteed results within definite timeframes is a valid positive step in developing that belief and, ultimately, getting the results we're supposed to help people to get.
After all, no-one WANTS a trainer. They WANT the results the trainer is supposed to be able to help them get, right?
Finally, I think that there's a whole scepticism to getting anything quick. You hear people talking negatively about 'get rich quick' schemes all the time. Seems to me that they're saying they'd rather get rich slow... which seems odd to me : )
Get results quick makes great sense both for the client and our own businesses and I for one aim to devote my career to getting better and better at getting the fastest possible results that I an for myself and my clients.
What a great conversation Chris, thanks very much! : )
NOW HAVE YOUR SAY!
I'd love to hear your comments about what's been written here. Please take the time to leave a comment guys... this COULD change the industry!
I mean it! : )
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
"Dear Dax,
Let me preface this first by saying that I appreciate that your writing on PTSA is targeteted to fitness professionals, and so I'm sure this context leads you to write in a different tone, with different points of emphasis, than if you are writing to prospective clients.
You wrote a blog post a few weeks ago about your attempt to transform the fitness industry by challenging the big clubs to offer a "money back guarantee." I think there's an incredibly valid reason for the guarantee: it holds the professional accountable, while encouraging a flood of business because prospective clients feel they have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
But don't you think it also puts an emphasis on achieving the end result without justifying the means? And isn't that emphasis (on speedy results/the quick fix) part of the reason that we've got such a problem with obesity/poor health in the first place?
Are guarantees and deadlines important? Absolutely. But the health and well-being of our clients is of utmost priority. . . and offers of quick results may not be reasonable, or even safe -- especially when considering clients with health restrictions or other limitations. I'm sure you agree that there's much more to this profession than guarantees of rapid physical change; not the least of which is teaching that the "quick result" is not always the best, nor is it necessarily long-lasting.
Your challenge to the fitness industry is incredibly admirable. At the very least, it pushes us to be "ballsy enough" to be better for our clients. Guarantees in our business should be a given. I simply think we've got to be careful about the time constraints we put on change, in light of the variety of (unhealthy) clients we work with on a regular basis.
Your thoughts?
All the best to you as you begin your week!
Sincerely,
Christopher Warden "
What great points!
I love it when someone challenges me and my thinking in this way and makes me have to make my position clearer. It's better all round for everyone, right?
So here's my take on this.
But don't you think it also puts an emphasis on achieving the end result without justifying the means? And isn't that emphasis (on speedy results/the quick fix) part of the reason that we've got such a problem with obesity/poor health in the first place?
There are a couple of questions here and more than a few answers to them : )
First, I think that you're right... there is the possibility of focusing on the end result rather than than the means. But that's not necessarily a bad thing, my friend.
I think that many coaches and trainers get far too caught up in their methodology and often forget what the sessions are supposed to be about... providing and end result!
I'm not really certain we have to 'justify' anything, my friend. I think all methodologies have merit, they all work to different degrees and for different timescales on different people and so, naturally, a good coach will find themselves using a vast array.
However, that said, I believe that the methods applied should be based on principles that are unchanging rather than based upon fads or personal preference.
With nutrition, the PRINCIPLE is clean, organic, wholesome foods. The METHODS may include high protein, low protein, high calorie, l9ow calorie etc.
With exercise the PRINCIPLE progressive overload. The methods are straight sets, supersets, EDT, superfast, superslow etc
The coach can and MUST choose the method that based upon kowledge, skills, ability and experience make the most sense to both the goal and the individual in front of them at that moment in time.
And, of course, maintaining the over-riding principle of them all; DO NO HARM.
This means simply that the best coaches will apply the principles and methods to their clients in ways that will dramatically accelerate the expected results AND they they can do so with a high degree of predictability.
Second, no, I don't think that speedy results/quick fix are that much of a factor in the obesity epidemic actually. I agree that they ARE a factor, just not as big as many people would have us believe.
No-one is fat BECAUSE they expect fast results. Once they are fat they may become despondant about their training/nutrition because the results aren't coming fast enough but the causal factors of obesity have little if anything (in my opinion) to do with quick fix mentality and far more to do with a contaminated food chain, hypokinetic lifestyles and an overload of environmental, social and endocrine stressors.
Are guarantees and deadlines important? Absolutely. But the health and well-being of our clients is of utmost priority. . . and offers of quick results may not be reasonable, or even safe -- especially when considering clients with health restrictions or other limitations. I'm sure you agree that there's much more to this profession than guarantees of rapid physical change; not the least of which is teaching that the "quick result" is not always the best, nor is it necessarily long-lasting.
Again, guaranteeing results based upon your experience and expertise puts no-one in danger unless your judgement is completely wrong. In that case it makes sense to improve the overall standard of the profession to the degree that those who cannot predict a result a relegated to positions of lesser reposnsibility and lesser pay... or out of the profession altogether.
A strong stance, I know, but if our years of knowledge, education and experience don't allow us to predict a result in advance then we're simply not good enough at what we do.
Sure, those with specific health restrictions may have different timelines, but we should be able to predict those too... and guarantee them.
As the senior consultant for the UK's very first medical referral scheme I was responsible for taking those with injury, illness, disability and dysfunction through health reintergration programs and managed to get results in every case in timeframes that most people would deem impossible. This included helping long term wheelchair users to be able to walk again.
When I work with these populations now that I'm in private practice, I guarantee my results based upon the findings of my Kinetic Chain Assessment protocols and STILL get the results within the timeframes I promise... and no compromising of safety.
The whole profession should be able to do this and, indeed, my entire staff as well as my peer group within the profession are accomplishing this also.
Why not the rest?
Regarding the comment that quick results don't imply lasting change, I agree with you 100% but they don't imply that they won't last either : )
I know from personal experience that the faster you can show a person an appreciable difference, the more motivated and purposeful they become about both their training and nutrition whereas when improvements seem slow in coming, the predominant thought is 'why did I bother?'
Fast results work in both our and our clients favor and, if used correctly, can serve to bring about lasting change in those we work with.
I think that the biggest thing we need concern ourselves with as an industry and fledgling position is not safety. That should be a given anyway, id you know anything about how the body works at all (I don't 'concern' myself with it because it simply isn't an issue), but rather, how much do the public believe in us and our abilities.
Providing guaranteed results within definite timeframes is a valid positive step in developing that belief and, ultimately, getting the results we're supposed to help people to get.
After all, no-one WANTS a trainer. They WANT the results the trainer is supposed to be able to help them get, right?
Finally, I think that there's a whole scepticism to getting anything quick. You hear people talking negatively about 'get rich quick' schemes all the time. Seems to me that they're saying they'd rather get rich slow... which seems odd to me : )
Get results quick makes great sense both for the client and our own businesses and I for one aim to devote my career to getting better and better at getting the fastest possible results that I an for myself and my clients.
What a great conversation Chris, thanks very much! : )
NOW HAVE YOUR SAY!
I'd love to hear your comments about what's been written here. Please take the time to leave a comment guys... this COULD change the industry!
I mean it! : )
Truth, joy and love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
Sunday, 26 October 2008
How I Quadrupled My List Opt-Ins and Sales
Well, this weekend's Personal Trainer Success Seminar with Craig Ballantyne in London was definitely a hit.
We had 35 VERY happy fitness professionals leave that room room by the end of the seminar with an action plan of EXACTLY what to to make a huge impact on their business success quickly.
Craig and I really spilled the beans on every single 'secret', strategy or skill we've used to build our businesses both online and of and, unless I'm sorely mistaken, we're going to be hearing one heck of a lot of success stories coming from that little group real soon.
Now, one of the BIG questions people were asking was how it was that Craig and I had managed to build such big lists of red-hot prospects who were interested in our products and services. Obviously, we spoke about many of the usual things that you probably know about like offering bonuses, 'selling the free', creating irresistible offers etc, but the room was practically agog when I explained the one thing that I've been doing recently to not only build my list faster but also to convert many of those prospects to customers.
I guess it's because it's pretty contrarian (Like a lot of my ideas) and goes against what most people think will work best.
What is it?
Well, it's FORCED OPT IN.
That means, quite simply, that I only allow people access to my site and the fitness marketing information on it once they've provided me with their contact details. The landing page has no clickable links, there's nowhere else to go, nothing to look at no information to learn. There's just the intro to the site and the opt in box... nothing else.
You'd think that would put people off, right?
But it doesn't.
In fact, it works the exact opposite way.
It serves to qualify my prospects and, if anything, make them want to know more.
I've quadrupled both the number of signups and the number of sales I make from visitors to my site from this one technique alone and I'm about to roll the system out to many of my other 'free access' sites very soon now that I'm certain it works.
You should too!
Just try it out on your site for a couple of weeks and measure the effectiveness of it for yourself and I'm sure you'll be hooked like I am.
Go on then, get to it! : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - Tomorrow I'll tell you about the other most effective system for converting visitors to my site. It too increased my opt ins by 400-500% when I first applied it... I'm stunned that I don't see any other fitness professionals using it!
We had 35 VERY happy fitness professionals leave that room room by the end of the seminar with an action plan of EXACTLY what to to make a huge impact on their business success quickly.
Craig and I really spilled the beans on every single 'secret', strategy or skill we've used to build our businesses both online and of and, unless I'm sorely mistaken, we're going to be hearing one heck of a lot of success stories coming from that little group real soon.
Now, one of the BIG questions people were asking was how it was that Craig and I had managed to build such big lists of red-hot prospects who were interested in our products and services. Obviously, we spoke about many of the usual things that you probably know about like offering bonuses, 'selling the free', creating irresistible offers etc, but the room was practically agog when I explained the one thing that I've been doing recently to not only build my list faster but also to convert many of those prospects to customers.
I guess it's because it's pretty contrarian (Like a lot of my ideas) and goes against what most people think will work best.
What is it?
Well, it's FORCED OPT IN.
That means, quite simply, that I only allow people access to my site and the fitness marketing information on it once they've provided me with their contact details. The landing page has no clickable links, there's nowhere else to go, nothing to look at no information to learn. There's just the intro to the site and the opt in box... nothing else.
You'd think that would put people off, right?
But it doesn't.
In fact, it works the exact opposite way.
It serves to qualify my prospects and, if anything, make them want to know more.
I've quadrupled both the number of signups and the number of sales I make from visitors to my site from this one technique alone and I'm about to roll the system out to many of my other 'free access' sites very soon now that I'm certain it works.
You should too!
Just try it out on your site for a couple of weeks and measure the effectiveness of it for yourself and I'm sure you'll be hooked like I am.
Go on then, get to it! : )
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - Tomorrow I'll tell you about the other most effective system for converting visitors to my site. It too increased my opt ins by 400-500% when I first applied it... I'm stunned that I don't see any other fitness professionals using it!
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Use Twitter To Drive Traffic To Your Fitness Business
You know, a month ago I'd never heard of TWITTER but after attending
Ryan Lee's Bootcamp and listening to Andrew Locke talking about
social marketing, I've been making regular updates to my twitter
page...
...and generating an bunch of web traffic that I just would never
have come across otherwise (so thanks Ryan and Andrew!).
The funny thing is, using TWITTER is the most dumbass easy traffic
generation tool I've ever come across, it takes literally seconds
to use, it's free and it exposes me and my business to THOUSANDS
of people
who would never have heard of me otherwise.
The premise of TWITTER is a simple one.
It asks you a question.
'What Are You Doing?"
Just answer that question and get traffic... how easy is that?? : )
For example, I'm getting ready for my even with Craig Ballantyne in
London tomorrow and I've posted a few Tweets about it over the last
few weeks.
I've added a bunch of new leads to my list as well as directly
signed up two of the attendees to the event from this source
alone... and I'm not really trying!
I've added information like 'Just updated my blog at
http://www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com ' and driven traffic
there and told people about products I've used or am making and
have made sales there too.
Ridiculously simple.
I guess it's because people are nosey.
They like to be voyeuristic and see what others are doing and
talking about
(Craig Ballantyne even posts about what he's had for breakfast..
and people read it)
The possibilities are endless and, with TWITTER being free and easy
to use, it's madness not to use it.
So give it a go!
Start by checking my TWITTER page at http://twitter.com/daxmoy
Truth, Joy and Love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
Ryan Lee's Bootcamp and listening to Andrew Locke talking about
social marketing, I've been making regular updates to my twitter
page...
...and generating an bunch of web traffic that I just would never
have come across otherwise (so thanks Ryan and Andrew!).
The funny thing is, using TWITTER is the most dumbass easy traffic
generation tool I've ever come across, it takes literally seconds
to use, it's free and it exposes me and my business to THOUSANDS
of people
who would never have heard of me otherwise.
The premise of TWITTER is a simple one.
It asks you a question.
'What Are You Doing?"
Just answer that question and get traffic... how easy is that?? : )
For example, I'm getting ready for my even with Craig Ballantyne in
London tomorrow and I've posted a few Tweets about it over the last
few weeks.
I've added a bunch of new leads to my list as well as directly
signed up two of the attendees to the event from this source
alone... and I'm not really trying!
I've added information like 'Just updated my blog at
http://www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com ' and driven traffic
there and told people about products I've used or am making and
have made sales there too.
Ridiculously simple.
I guess it's because people are nosey.
They like to be voyeuristic and see what others are doing and
talking about
(Craig Ballantyne even posts about what he's had for breakfast..
and people read it)
The possibilities are endless and, with TWITTER being free and easy
to use, it's madness not to use it.
So give it a go!
Start by checking my TWITTER page at http://twitter.com/daxmoy
Truth, Joy and Love
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
Do You Have The Balls For This?
Way, way, WAY back in January I issued a challenge to the fitness industry at large and the big health club chains specifically that SHOULD have changed the face of fitness dramatically and lead to a major shakeup in the way fitness services are provided.
It should have.
But it didn't.
In fact, as I was researching for an article I was about to write today (I'll release it tomorrow) I thought I'd check in on Google to see whether or not anything had changed for the industry since January.
It hadn't.
Certainly not when it comes to selling real-life, honest to goodness results.
Sure, every ebook out there offers a guarantee nowadays but not so with the actual selling of results to attendees of bootcamps and personal training sessions.
I just googled "Double Money Back Guarantee Personal Training" and only found two search returns that pertained to physical training rather than ebooks.
Mine was number 1 and there is another company that promises a rather vague 'satisfaction' guarantee rather than a specific result.
I'm not knocking them, that's about 1000% more ballsy than anyone else out there, right?
But here's the thing I'm thinking... and you should be too.
Why aren't more people in the industry offering outstanding, jaw dropping, client attracting, risk reversing guarantees based upon the results that clients desire?
Why aren't YOU?
Every trainer I meet tells me that they want to be busier, earn more money, work smarter but most, if not all, seem to ignore the the most obvious truths and instead cling to systems and strategies that simply don't work.
Especially not in a recession.
It's not that people won't spend their money, they just won't spend it on training for training's sake. In fact, they don't even WANT training anyway.
They want the result that training is supposed to provide.
So why not just sell the RESULT?
I know, I know, this is heresy isn't it? It's not how it's done... but it should be!
YOU should be.
When you are, you'll be able to charge more, attract a greater quantity and quality of clients and thrive during the recession whilst others are going under.
On the other hand, if you insist on selling workouts to people who wants results then you may well be in for a bumpy ride over the next few months.
Food for thought : )
Dax Moy
Here's The Press Release!
Fitness industry challenged to provide 'real results' as leading UK fitness expert offers world's first guaranteed results or
receive double money back refund.
London, UK (PRWEB) January 26, 2008 -- Leading UK Fitness Expert, Dax Moy, today issued a challenge to gym chains and health clubs to provide 'real results' to their customers and clients or offer a full refund on memberships for those who fail to see a measurable return on the time, money and effort invested in memberships and fees.
In a dramatic break from fitness industry norms where money from memberships and personal training fees is routinely kept regardless of results attained, Moy has taken the bold step of announcing the world's first no-result, no-pay club model where members join in the certainty that results are never more than a maximum of 21 days away.
In fact, Moy has taken the concept a step further by adding greater incentive to both members and staff at his UK facilities by offering to pay all new members a penalty-fee if an appreciable fat loss goal is not reached by the 21 day deadline.
A full refund of double their fees if they're not a minimum of one clothing size smaller.
Moy, a regular guest expert on UK television and magazines said "With global obesity on the rise it's the job of every member of the health and fitness community to do all we can create effective strategies to help those who are seeking to lose weight, burn fat and look after their general health.
Simply setting up a gym with a bunch of shiny new gizmo's and gadgets and taking money from those who live and work nearby is not enough to make a difference. We've enough evidence of that. Right now there are more gyms, healthclubs and personal trainers on the planet than at any other time in history and yet obesity continues to rise in spite of this."
He continued "If the fitness industry truly wants to make a difference to those who really need help then it needs to start selling results, not just memberships. A guarantee is just the thing to inspire confidence in all those who believe that they're beyond help and will show the public at large that the industry cares as much about them as it does the revenues it creates."
Moy, whose studios in Central London and Hertfordshire service all manner of clientele from pop stars to polar explorers, actors to athletes, soldiers and stay-at-home-mum's as well as those with medical conditions and disabilities is currently the highest paid personal trainer in the UK and attributes much of his success to his results-only approach.
"We often hear that people don't have enough money to become healthy but that's simply not true in most cases. People have money but they're afraid of spending it on their health and fitness because they're unsure of what their money will get them.
If the big players in the health and fitness industry were to offer a no-risk way of looking after their health gyms would be full all day long everyday and with the people who need it most, not just those who want to stare at their biceps for a couple of hours a week."
Asked if he believed anyone would take him up on the challenge, Moy said "I doubt it. 'Big Fitness' has got a pretty easy ride of it at the moment, making most of its money from those who don't even attend. This challenge would require them to actually provide a service to their customers rather than just a facility and I don't think most of them are ready for that."
With the fitness set to become the next trillion dollar industry, it will be interesting to see how it rises to Moy's challenge in the days ahead.
Dax Moy
www.daxmoy.com
Monday, 13 October 2008
How To Climb The Search Engines And Get More Leads For Your Business
As you know, I recently conducted a survey of my fitness professional lists and have come up with some pretty interesting data about what the fitness profession wants from its marketing experts.
Click Here To Take The Survey Yourself
Whilst much of it may be as you'd expect, there were quite a few responses that astounded me, especially when it came to what, to me at least, seem to be the basic fundamentals of business and marketing.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking anyone for not knowing this stuff. After all, you either know stuff or you don't, right?, but I'm just so surprised that with all the great information out there already, that trainers still aren't up to speed with the foundation stuff that can make or break a business.
So...
Over the next few weeks I'm going to be outlining some of the baby steps again, as clearly as I can so that you can take them away and implement into your business immediately.
Sound good?
Thought so! : )
So, one of the questions I got A LOT was related to websites.
Basically, trainers are confused about how to get more people visiting their websites in the first place and then converting them either into subscribers or, better yet, customers.
Well, getting them there is pretty easy.
It starts with a sound website strategy that makes sense to both the searcher and the search engine.
Let's look at the main 7 steps:
First, choose a domain name that most closely matches the specific result that people are searching for.
That means, ultimately, that it'll be keyword rich and in tune with your market.
It's no accident that Personal Trainer Success Academy is called what it is; I read forums and blog posts and saw personal trainers asking questions about success.
There are better names I could have chosen too (and I've already bought most of 'em) but personal trainer success academy is pretty decent in terms of keyword density and description.
So is my fat loss website The Look Great Naked Challenge as it both describes clearly what the public want (I read THOUSANDS of posts and blog entries from people saying that they wanted to look great naked) and they're pretty decent as kewords; though admittedly, not as good as something with the words 'fat loss' in the title.
Take a look at YOUR site now.
Are the keywords (including common descriptors) in the title? If they are then good on ya, you're moving in the right direction. If not, then it's not the end of the world, my MAGIC Hundred site doesn't have anything from a decent keyword list in the title and still does pretty good, though www.onehundredgoals.com would probably work better which is why I just bought it : )
Second, make sure your title tag works for you rather than wasting space.
The title tag is the piece of code that that determines what goes into the header bar at the top of the browser you're viewing your web page in.
Most people waste this valuable real estate by simply putting 'Welcome to xyz training website'.
This is blasphemy!
You can MAJORLY impact the search engines by having a great set of title tags that describe in keyword rich terms what people will find on the page.
For instance, on www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com you'll find the header 'Fitness Marketing For Personal Trainers | Seriously Efective Marketing Strategies For Personal Trainers'.
Could I increase the keyword density?
Sure.
But I want the decription to make sense, not just pad it out with keywords.
What does yours say?
If it's being wasted then get to it. It's easy to edit, just find the tag
YOUR WORDS HERE and insert a descriptive, keyword rich sentence here.
Third, pay attention to your description tags
Most people don't use their description tags at all or, if they do, they tend to write 'home of xyz personal training', again, wasting prime real estate on their site.
Real shame, you see it's these descriptions that you see when you're browsing through the search engines and they attract people further into the site... or not!
Not only this, the keywords add massively to the site keyword density too.
Just use the keyword suggestion tool and type in your primary keyword (fat loss, for example) and you'll recive an bundle of keywords coming back. Use as many of the most relevent and popular keywords within your description as possible.
For example "XYZ training in Tempe, Arizona offer the fastest guaranteed fatloss training system around. Simply commit to our rapid fat loss workouts and you could be burning pound after pound of belly fat in no time at all" That was just off the top of my head but you get the message, right?
Check your site and see if your description is doing any work for you or if it's just wasting space.
Fourth, use all relevent keywords in you keyword meta tags
It never ceases to amaze me when I see that personal trainers and fitness professional have neglected their keword meta tags.
This is like opening a business but without putting out a shopfront sign explaining what you do.
This meta tag is how the search engines initially decide what your site is about and, if you don't use it well, you'll find yourself getting overlooked... exactly as you are now, probably.
Again, use the keyword selection tool and put all relevent keywords into the tag.
You might use fat loss, fatloss (they look the same but they're not) lose fat, belly fat, body fat loss and many, many others. Note: Don't put them ALL as this doesn't help and Google will penalise you.
Check yours today, do you have the right ones in place to make it easy to index you?
Fifth, Use Your Headlines
Not only are good headlines vital to your sales copy, but they play a major role in optimising your site for the search engines too. You see, h tags or header tags search as decription indexes for search engines and so any header tag is working hard for you to tell the web what your page is about (though especially a h1 title).
Make sure your page headline is within a h1 field and that any sub heads fit within a h2 which, again, will seriously increase your chances of getting found.
Sixth, Use Your Images!
Google loves indexing images!
Trouble is, most fitness professionals don't bother to make this easy and leave graphics titled 'man running.gif' or 'woman on scales.jpg' on the site rather than using the 'alt tags' to provide an alternate description of the graphic.
Again, this is wasting so much of your potential findability.
Simply by taking your graphics and making them keyword rich with words like, fat loss, lose fat' etc, you give Google a better picture of what your site is about and make them more likely to point internet searchers in your direction.
You using your images to generate traffic?
Seventh, content is king!
We all know that content is king, or at least, I hope we do, and we should always attempt to put as much content into what we write as possible (like this article) but you can help your articles and your findability MASSIVELY by making use of as many relevent keywords as possible in each and every page of your site.
Talk about what you do in terms of the key search terms rather than in vage and general fitness language.
Check your content to see if you're doing this.
Summary
Getting found on the web is no fluke, it's not luck and it's not haphazard. It's easier than most people think, but few people are doing anything near to what's required to help them climb to the front pages.
Put these seven steps in place, however, and you'll see dramatic improvement almost overnight.
In fact, I'd like you to do something about this right now.
First, go to google and find out the following:
1. What page you show up on for your product or service.
2. How many search returns come back for your product/service.
Post them along with you message about this article : ) in the comments section and then take the action steps I've laid out in this article come back here in 1 week and post 'em again.
In effect, it's your chance to show the world what you've done and how well it works.
You up for it?
Go on, I dare ya! : )
To your success!
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - If you need a hand with writing good web copy then check out http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com/scientific-advertising.asp for what is probably the most complete copy writing course available for fitness professionals today.
Check it out!
Click Here To Take The Survey Yourself
Whilst much of it may be as you'd expect, there were quite a few responses that astounded me, especially when it came to what, to me at least, seem to be the basic fundamentals of business and marketing.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking anyone for not knowing this stuff. After all, you either know stuff or you don't, right?, but I'm just so surprised that with all the great information out there already, that trainers still aren't up to speed with the foundation stuff that can make or break a business.
So...
Over the next few weeks I'm going to be outlining some of the baby steps again, as clearly as I can so that you can take them away and implement into your business immediately.
Sound good?
Thought so! : )
So, one of the questions I got A LOT was related to websites.
Basically, trainers are confused about how to get more people visiting their websites in the first place and then converting them either into subscribers or, better yet, customers.
Well, getting them there is pretty easy.
It starts with a sound website strategy that makes sense to both the searcher and the search engine.
Let's look at the main 7 steps:
First, choose a domain name that most closely matches the specific result that people are searching for.
That means, ultimately, that it'll be keyword rich and in tune with your market.
It's no accident that Personal Trainer Success Academy is called what it is; I read forums and blog posts and saw personal trainers asking questions about success.
There are better names I could have chosen too (and I've already bought most of 'em) but personal trainer success academy is pretty decent in terms of keyword density and description.
So is my fat loss website The Look Great Naked Challenge as it both describes clearly what the public want (I read THOUSANDS of posts and blog entries from people saying that they wanted to look great naked) and they're pretty decent as kewords; though admittedly, not as good as something with the words 'fat loss' in the title.
Take a look at YOUR site now.
Are the keywords (including common descriptors) in the title? If they are then good on ya, you're moving in the right direction. If not, then it's not the end of the world, my MAGIC Hundred site doesn't have anything from a decent keyword list in the title and still does pretty good, though www.onehundredgoals.com would probably work better which is why I just bought it : )
Second, make sure your title tag works for you rather than wasting space.
The title tag is the piece of code that that determines what goes into the header bar at the top of the browser you're viewing your web page in.
Most people waste this valuable real estate by simply putting 'Welcome to xyz training website'.
This is blasphemy!
You can MAJORLY impact the search engines by having a great set of title tags that describe in keyword rich terms what people will find on the page.
For instance, on www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com you'll find the header 'Fitness Marketing For Personal Trainers | Seriously Efective Marketing Strategies For Personal Trainers'.
Could I increase the keyword density?
Sure.
But I want the decription to make sense, not just pad it out with keywords.
What does yours say?
If it's being wasted then get to it. It's easy to edit, just find the tag
Third, pay attention to your description tags
Most people don't use their description tags at all or, if they do, they tend to write 'home of xyz personal training', again, wasting prime real estate on their site.
Real shame, you see it's these descriptions that you see when you're browsing through the search engines and they attract people further into the site... or not!
Not only this, the keywords add massively to the site keyword density too.
Just use the keyword suggestion tool and type in your primary keyword (fat loss, for example) and you'll recive an bundle of keywords coming back. Use as many of the most relevent and popular keywords within your description as possible.
For example "XYZ training in Tempe, Arizona offer the fastest guaranteed fatloss training system around. Simply commit to our rapid fat loss workouts and you could be burning pound after pound of belly fat in no time at all" That was just off the top of my head but you get the message, right?
Check your site and see if your description is doing any work for you or if it's just wasting space.
Fourth, use all relevent keywords in you keyword meta tags
It never ceases to amaze me when I see that personal trainers and fitness professional have neglected their keword meta tags.
This is like opening a business but without putting out a shopfront sign explaining what you do.
This meta tag is how the search engines initially decide what your site is about and, if you don't use it well, you'll find yourself getting overlooked... exactly as you are now, probably.
Again, use the keyword selection tool and put all relevent keywords into the tag.
You might use fat loss, fatloss (they look the same but they're not) lose fat, belly fat, body fat loss and many, many others. Note: Don't put them ALL as this doesn't help and Google will penalise you.
Check yours today, do you have the right ones in place to make it easy to index you?
Fifth, Use Your Headlines
Not only are good headlines vital to your sales copy, but they play a major role in optimising your site for the search engines too. You see, h tags or header tags search as decription indexes for search engines and so any header tag is working hard for you to tell the web what your page is about (though especially a h1 title).
Make sure your page headline is within a h1 field and that any sub heads fit within a h2 which, again, will seriously increase your chances of getting found.
Sixth, Use Your Images!
Google loves indexing images!
Trouble is, most fitness professionals don't bother to make this easy and leave graphics titled 'man running.gif' or 'woman on scales.jpg' on the site rather than using the 'alt tags' to provide an alternate description of the graphic.
Again, this is wasting so much of your potential findability.
Simply by taking your graphics and making them keyword rich with words like, fat loss, lose fat' etc, you give Google a better picture of what your site is about and make them more likely to point internet searchers in your direction.
You using your images to generate traffic?
Seventh, content is king!
We all know that content is king, or at least, I hope we do, and we should always attempt to put as much content into what we write as possible (like this article) but you can help your articles and your findability MASSIVELY by making use of as many relevent keywords as possible in each and every page of your site.
Talk about what you do in terms of the key search terms rather than in vage and general fitness language.
Check your content to see if you're doing this.
Summary
Getting found on the web is no fluke, it's not luck and it's not haphazard. It's easier than most people think, but few people are doing anything near to what's required to help them climb to the front pages.
Put these seven steps in place, however, and you'll see dramatic improvement almost overnight.
In fact, I'd like you to do something about this right now.
First, go to google and find out the following:
1. What page you show up on for your product or service.
2. How many search returns come back for your product/service.
Post them along with you message about this article : ) in the comments section and then take the action steps I've laid out in this article come back here in 1 week and post 'em again.
In effect, it's your chance to show the world what you've done and how well it works.
You up for it?
Go on, I dare ya! : )
To your success!
Dax Moy
www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com
P.S - If you need a hand with writing good web copy then check out http://www.personaltrainersuccessacademy.com/scientific-advertising.asp for what is probably the most complete copy writing course available for fitness professionals today.
Check it out!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
