Run your personal training business as a business

There are many personal trainers who are very good at improving the shape and fitness level of their clients. They retain very specific and detailed measurements of the improvements made. However, when it comes to running their own business, they are much less rigorous and organized. This leads to a lack of development in their personal training business and it performs at a much lower level than it is capable of. In simple terms, running a business like this means that the business leaves a lot of money on the table.

A lack of systems and organisation leads to poor retention rates of clients, poor lead generation figures and ultimately low revenues. There are a number of strategies that can be implemented to maximise your income level.

The first thing that you need to implement in your personal training business is a set of systems. A business is essentially a system that operates for profit, but many small business owners don’t consciously set up the system. Inside the overall system of running the day-to-day operations, you need to have a formal lead generation system. This is the way that you attract and bring in new prospects (either to call you or to sign up for your newsletter).

You also need to have a sales system in place to convert prospects into buyers or clients. You can create a template that you use for a prospect when they call you or visit your training centre. It is much better to have a sales script that leads to the sale.

You also need to have a training system in place. This will help you to asses the client and design a program especially for them. Having a template system is more effective than trying to create a brand new training program each time you get a new client.

Another system that you need to have in place is a referral system. As you are working locally, this is a very powerful form of marketing. You can set up a systematic referral system with your current clients and other local business. There are many businesses that deal with the same clients you have. For example, hairdressers are a great example. They have a large number of clients that would like to loose weight and may be interested in a personal coaching session. You can contact the local hairdressers and offer them a monetary incentive each time they make a referral to you. You can also do this with other local businesses. It will cost you nothing unless you gain a client, so the system requires no money.

You should also create a system of offering memberships instead of training packages. Selling in terms of memberships is a different mind-set to take and it will improve the value of your personal training sessions. You can sell memberships of 12 or 24 packs. This will immediately add a great deal of income to your bottom line, and members will feel much more included in your gym.

These simple systems will ensure you run your business as a real business. They will make everything more specific and lead you toward your income goals.