Fitness Marketing Truths... Can You Pass The Test?

Most of the personal trainers and bootcamp instructors that I talk to believe they know a fair bit about marketing.

Tell them about SEO and they say 'Oh yes, I know that'

Tell them about building lists and they're like 'Yup, doing that'

Tell them how to write ads and they respond 'I've been doing that for ages!'

A funny thing though, for all their 'knowingness' around what they should do and how they should do it, most of them still seem to be struggling to earn a decent living from their fitness businesses or, even if they make good money, they only achieve it by giving up huge amounts of their life to do so.

This isn't knowing.

This isn't marketing working.

You can read all the books, attend all the seminars, watch all the videos and sign up for all the masterminds and mentoring programs you want but that doesn't mean you've any savvy around marketing.

Every single mentor program I've run has had AT LEAST one or 2 of these people on it. They 'mmm hmmm' and 'uh huh' in all the right places, tell you that they understand the importance of what you're saying, tell you that they're ALREADY doing that because they read the books before the course and yet they STILL fail to see any appreciable growth.

Why?

Because they're confusing information with knowledge.

Information is just data. It's meaningless in most cases.

Knowlegde is information applied.

If you're not DOING what you've been told works then quite simply, you lack savvy.

As Yoda said 'There is no try, only DO!'

You're either DOING good marketing or you're not. If you're doing it, then it's working to bring you increased income and the lifestyle you want. If you're not well then...

Are YOU as savvy as you think you are?

Ready to find out?

Answer these questions as honestly as you can then check your score at the end.


I know EXACTLY who my target clients are

Do you know their age, profession, educational status, income bracket, marital status, parental status, pain points, pleasure points and more?

Can you name AT LEAST 2 major challenges that they face on a daily basis?

What SPECIFICALLY are they challenged by every day? What 'itching, burning, swelling' are they experiencing in their lives that are making it difficult to achieve their goals?

Do you have a clear solution strategy that demonstrates your value?

A solution strategy is a fully laid out plan of attack that encompasses every single aspect of overcoming your clients greatest challenges. You know these IN ADVANCE.

Do your prospects clearly understand EXACTLY what you can do to help them?

Being 'a trainer' means nothing. You need to postion yourself as a specific solution to a specific problem. Is your solution clear? Can your prospects understand how what you do is different to other trainers?

Do you have several services available, each matched to a niche within your niche?

Having a niche is important but that doesn't mean you should only sell one thing. Do you have 'bolt on' services that make your primary offer better or more complete?

Do you have a 'signature' product or service that is exclusive to your business?

This means NO-ONE else has what you have to offer. It's as uniques as your own signature and stands out from everything else (eg. Afterburn and Turbulence are similar but they are unique too. The products serve as the authors signature products)

Do you have have AT LEAST 1 free product or report that prospects can use to assess your knowledge of the area you work in?

People like to 'try before they buy' and a free report is a perfect way to show that you know your stuff about your area of expertise. This is not just beneficial, it's CRUCIAL in today's market.

Do you have a website that clearly explains my Unique Market Identity?

If I were to land on YOUR website right now, could I easily recognise that what you offer and how you offer it is different to your competitors or would I be hit with the 'me too' factor?


Does your website has a strong WIIFM factor?

Nobody wants personal training or bootcamps. They want the results that those services bring. They're asking 'What's in it for me?' Is your answer clear and unequivocal?

Does your website allow you to follow up with visitors by asking for opt-in ?

Got both an opt in box and a good reason to do so? Does your free report have professionally designed graphics representing it?


Do you have a regular newsletter that is content-rich?

Are you 'pushing the button' on your clients at least twice a week and giving them immediately useable information that they'll value or are you always plugging another affiliate product?

Does your website contain testimonials that serve to demonstrate the quality of your work?

Got testimonials, videos, audios and pictures from raving fans telling the world how good you are?

Does your website gives people a reason to visit more than once?

Does your site have any 'interactive' components that will make me come back or is it 'static' meaning that once viewed I never have to see it again?

Do you write articles that you post on your website at least once a month?

Blogs are great, but are you adding to your site too?

Do you submit articles to suitable link-sites that will enhance your site status on a weekly basis or more?

Are you writing and contributing articles to sites that can provide high value links and traffic back to your own site?

Do you have a clear site optimisation strategy that works?

Are you in the top 3 pages of search engines? If not, the answer is no.

Do you have a pricing strategy that ensures your services are attractive for the clients you serve?

If you're trying to attract bargain hunters is your prce low enough? If you want high end clients, are you expensive enough to be taken seriously? (Hint: most trainers pick their price by their competition NOT by the market they serve)

Do you regularly assess the market to ensure my prices are having the best possible impact

Or are you habitually stuck on the price bracket you're in?

Do you have a clearly understood risk-reversal strategy in place?

Do you make it easy for prospects to do business with you by actively shouting from the rooftops about your guarantee?

Do you regularly ask for (and get) referrals from clients?

Lack of referrals means lack of belief from your existing clients.

Is your client retention is high. Do they stay with you for 18 months or more on average?

Yes, we know that a good coach empowers their clients and that they may leave as a result blah, blah, blah but in truth, clients who love you, what you do and results you get them will stay for longer.

Do you have a brochure and business cards that are professioanlly created?

In the internet age we've been persuaded that many aspects of marketing are now 'old school' and unneccessary. They're not. Offline, people are still looking for that touch of class. Do you have it?

Do you have a uniform which is colour co-ordinated, smart and bearing your company logo ?

Or is it dirty sneakers, and old clipboard and whatever sweatshirt came to hand this morning?

Are you well known within your community as an expert on health and fitness?

Not just to your clients and your mum but to the community at large. Do they even know you exist?

Do you have a system of issuing press releases that gets you into the news AT LEAST 80% of the time?

Are you a regular newsmaker for your region?

Do you regularly give quotes to the media as their chosen expert on your subject?

Are you the 'go to guy/girl' for your expert area or do the press always seem to pass you by for joe trainer at the gym down the street?

Are you asked to present and talk on fitness related subjects AT LEAST 3 times a year ?

Are you getting talking requests for radio, TV or live events that involve you grandstanding your expertise to the public... or is Joe Trainer getting all that action too?

Do you feel that your marketing brings you all the clients you can comfortably handle right now ?

Are you as busy as you'd like to be? Are your employees? Do you have employees to earn you money while you sleep?

Do you have a mentor with industry experience who coaches you to faster results?

Or are you going it alone and making it up as you go, hoping that 'this year will be different'?

Is your business is AT LEAST 50% more profitable than 12 months ago?

Well, is it?



There's a lot more to ask, of course, but these 30 questions are a good place to start the exploration of just how savvy you really are about making a success of your fitness business.

If you answered yes to less than 15 of these (which will be about 80% of trainers reading this) then you really do need to start thinking about taking action right away. Fail to do so and your career in fitness will either be short lived or extremely stressful and unfulfilling... or both!

If you've accomplished 15-20 of these tasks already then you're doing slightly better than your average fitness coach but you still have a long way to go so don't rest on your laurels. Make it a priority to address your weak links right away and you should start seeing a pretty rapid improvement in your business success right away.

If you're at 21-29 then you're above and beyond most of the industry. Congratulations. Keep on doing what you're doing, tweaking, measuring and adding the missing aspects from the list above. Don't drag your feet on this. These few tweaks could quite literally double your profits overnight.

If you're at 30... what are you reading this for? Gimme a call and teach me everything you know : )

To your success!

Dax Moy
Fitness Marketing Made Simple

P.S - Be honest, how did you score? Tell us all and be done with it : )

Marketing Your Fitness Business To The Wrong Crowd?

**THIS POST IS A RE-RUN IN RESPONSE TO A BUNCH OF 'PANIC' EMAILS I'VE BEEN GETTING LATELY... READ IT AGAIN!!**



I must admit, it's beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

I mean all this talk of recession.

It seems everyday I'm getting emails from personal trainers who're panicking because of impending recession and worried thattheir bootcamps, their studios and their gyms are going to go underor see such a big drop in business that they'll be struggling toget by and pay their bills.

The sad thing is, most of them are right!

Not because there's not enough business to go around and not because people are spending less but because they're choosing to accept that recession exists.

It doesn't.

Not for everyone, anyway.

Sure, it's easy to think that when something like a recession comes along that we all have to 'tighten our belts', curb our non-essential spending and ride out the storm until the next upswing but that's because we've been trained to think that way.

And we've trained ourselves to think that way too.

But the truth is, the only reason that so many people get hit so hard during times of recession is that choose to play the recession game.

Especially personal trainers.

They see their client list get smaller and their appointments drop off and so they start to discount their prices to attract more business. But the clients still don't come so they discount them even more.

If they're lucky they may see a little rise in business only now, because they're charging less, they're working longer hours, earning less money and in danger of losing even these clients as the recession kicks in.

Sad to say but this is what most personal trainers will do. In fact, from the emails I'm receiving, many are already doing it!

So that's the bad news, but like I said, it doesn't have to be this way.

There's something you can do TODAY to not only avoid the recession but thrive during it.

You can stop being a 'luxury item' to your clients and start becoming an asset.

What do I mean?

Well, what's the first thing that goes out the window when people are struggling financially?

Luxuries, right?

Or in marketing speak 'non-essential spending', meaning everything that's not essential to that person's ability to get through life.

Food, mortgage, utilities etc are all essentials that people MUST have. New cars, personal training, opera tickets on the other hand are, for most people, luxurious, non-essentials that are cut as soon as the R-word begins to be taken seriously.

And here's the problem; the way most personal trainers market themselves is based upon the 'luxury items' model.

They sell their services to people with disposable incomes that, most of the time, allow for the 'luxury' of personal training. These people are 'treating' themselves to PT, they enjoy it (mostly!), they want it and they may even need it but it will always be something that they're happy to keep in their lives for as long as it doesn't interfere with their necessities.

Trouble is, for most trainers this group makes up the largest proportion (if not all) of their client base meaning that they ALL purchased their sessions with you based on price and will all quit when the price seems too high.

Yet consider this; there are groups of people out there who don't consider ANY price (or at least, any price that a personal trainer could ask) as expensive or luxurious. They simply decide what they want and are determined to get it because they see it as an asset or investment that will benefit them.

For example, my clients pay me £150 and hour (that's around $300). The kind of people that can pay that kind of money aren't worried about inflation, depression or recession. They simply know what they want and are willing to pay the price to get it.

I've routinely been paid £2500 ($5000) plus for a day's work.

I've been paid £30,000 ($60,000) for a single month's PT plus $1000 a day expenses whilst travelling.

Right now I'm putting together a PT program that will cost £10-12,000 a week. Yes, you read that right, per person per week.

And all of this (and more) is going on during a so-called downturn.

How?

By removing myself from the luxury market of people who have to scrimp and scrape to work with me and instead focusing my efforts on those with greater affluence. Those who know what they want and are happy to pay for it regardless of the percentage rate the banks are charging.

To them, it simply doesn't matter. Not one little bit.

If you're thinking "That's all great for you Dax, but how does this benefit me?" then here's your answer.

Put your prices... UP!

Seriously, put your prices up. Move away from those who consider your services to be a luxury and instead start marketing to the affluent, the wealthy and the downright rich.

Sound too mercenary?

It's not.

Working with the affluent is no easy ride You'll earn every single penny you earn from them.

They expect better service, better results and, well, better everything. And they're right, after all, they're paying for it aren't they? They're paying for exclusivity, for that little bit more, that 'something extra' that isn't delivered by the $40 and $50 an hour PT's.

So you've got to be better and, more importantly, you've got to be seen to be better.

And better is more expensive, no if's, no but's.

Look, I know this runs contra to everything you've ever been told about recession but nevertheless it's true. Putting your prices up, taking your business 'upmarket' and deliberately attracting the affluent is the best way to recession-proof your business.

Still not sure?

Try this; add a high end service to your current marketing materials. Call it 'platinum coaching', call it what you want but make it clear that this is for those looking for that something special rather than simply personal training.

Proudly state that you're the most expensive coach around (I do it all the time because I am) and then wait.

It may take a little while but sure enough you'll come to know that what I'm telling you is correct; they're out there. Money in hand. Ready, willing and most able to pay you every single penny you're worth. They always have been; you just never asked before.

So ask!

Dax Moy
Fitness Marketing Made Simple

Joined Our FREE Fitness Marketing Community Yet?

Dead Fly Secrets To Fitness Business Success

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"How A DEAD FLY Taught Me The Secrets Of Personal Training Success"

Not that long ago, I was sitting in the reception of one of my personal training studios. It was a nice day so we had the studio door open to let in some `real' air and freshen up the place a little.

As I sat there watching people come in and out for their training sessions I noticed a large, black fly had flown in and after buzzing around for a few minutes and finding nothing of interest, it decided to leave.

It flew right past my head and with a `thump', hit the plate glass window before bouncing off and falling to the floor in a daze.

After a few seconds of circling around on the floor it took off again and took what I can only describe as a 'run-up' (fly­up?) at the window in a greater attempt to get through the barrier that was keeping it from its goal of the outside world.

With an even louder `thump' the fly went down again and spent more time on the floor.

Well, to cut a long story short, that fly got up again and again and again and pounded at that window with all of its might for over 10 minutes before I had to get up and take care of a customer.

About 30 minutes later I sat back down in the same spot having totally forgotten about the fly and went back to my `people watching' when, out of the corner of my eye I saw the fly laying at the base of the window on its back, legs in the air.

It was dead.

Now, usually the death of a fly is not worthy of remembrance but this one I will always remember because its death taught me one of the greatest success lessons I've ever learned and I continue to reap the benefits of its teaching to this day.

(In fact, just before posting this message today I realised that I'd forgotten the lesson I'd been taught and realised why I'd been feeling a little stressed and frustrated today)

What Did It Teach Me?

That Working HARDER Simply Doesn't Work!

You see, in theory, that little fly was doing everything right. (According to the goal setting experts anyway)

It had a clearly defined goal − To get out.

It had passion − It risked and eventually paid with its life.

It was willing to work as hard as necessary to bring about its goal.

In fact, that little bug kind of reminded me of Me!

Actually, not only did it remind me of me, but of many, great personal trainers
that I'd met who knew what they wanted, had passion and were willing to work as hard as necessary to achieve their dreams but who were, over and over again bashing their heads in on the same invisible barrier that did for that fly.

And whilst it may not have ended in physical death for the trainer (I hope not!), nearly always it ends in the death of their hopes and dreams which, to me at least, is pretty much the same thing.

No, at that very moment it was clear to me that working harder would only ever
take me so far but that, if I were willing to do what the fly and so many other people were unwilling to do, I could achieve far more than I was that time.

All I Had To Do Was...

Change My Strategy!

You see, that's where that little fly had gone wrong and, truth be told, where I had gone wrong so many times, (including this morning!) is that it doggedly stuck to the same strategy even once it had failed to work.

Instead of flying 5 feet over to the open door to its freedom and whatever life awaited it beyond that invisible barrier, it continued to bang its head off of the window and, despite the fact that it was giving it everything it had and despite being so close to reaching its goal... failed miserably.

Just 5 feet in another direction would have made all the difference.

I'm sure you get the moral of the story but let me spell it out for you just in case...

If you think that working harder is going to get you what you want, you're probably wrong (unless you're really lazy already). If that were true then builders, scaffolders and any number of manual workers would be millionaires, right?

Hard work can only ever get you so far.

You've got to work smart.

You've got to look for a strategy that works and USE it rather than dogmatically sticking to one that you've become accustomed to or, like that fly, you'll end up on your back, legs in the air with nothing to show for all your time, all your efforts, all your money.

Only YOU know if your strategy is right or not.

If you're consistently achieving more, earning more and having more of the lifestyle that you always dreamed of then your strategy works. Keep using it and yes, in this case, work harder at perfecting it.

If, on the other hand, you're struggling with your income, your expenses, your time, your relationships and your health then there's no ifs or buts about it, your strategy is plain wrong.

Stop trying to make it work on muscle alone. Working harder won't get you what you want. Quit what doesn't work and start over.

So, c'mon then, what's NOT working for you? Identifying it is the starting step to change, so spill the beans : )

Dax Moy
Fitness Marketing Made Simple

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at www.personaltrainersuccess.ning.com TODAY and switch from working harder to working
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