5 Ways to Promote Your Personal Training or Fitness Business

It is said that you have to spend money to make money, and in the case of business promotion this is generally (but not always) true. Even products that practically market themselves, like the iPhone or iPod, have massive advertising campaigns behind them to ensure that every person on the planet wants to run out and buy them. Of course, you don’t need to spend the millions on advertising that Apple does.

If you’re a personal trainer or you’re running a fitness business (creating workout DVDs and selling related merchandise or running your own gym, for example) you can find means of promotion that don’t necessarily require you to buy air time for advertising on a global scale. What you should do, however, is explore several different avenues of promotion so that you can reach out to the largest possible segment of interested consumers. And here are a few great ways to do just that.

With the new year upon us and seeing where the world didn’t end on 12.21.2012, fitness resolutions are about to blow up. Personal trainers will be booked for the next 3 months, gym memberships attendance will probably double for a month or two, and online health and fitness related searches are sure to increase. Use these tips to take advantage of the hype by getting your brand out into the public eye.

1. Word of mouth

   For personal trainers and fitness gurus, the very best form of promotion is a brand ambassador. You want your current clientele to talk you up. In some cases, such as fitness model Carrie Pullaro’s (right) personal trainer, the results they achieve will garner the notice of people in their lives, prompting them to ask. But you can certainly help the process along.

   For one thing, you could offer clients a free session if they bring in a friend. Or you might encourage them to bring in a group and give everyone a discount. Chances are your free session or a small gift will cost you far less than if you advertise your gym on search engines, social media, or local billboards.

   Even if you don’t want to offer deals or freebies, a professional attitude and excellent service will speak for itself. The hope is that your clients will refer you to family, friends, and colleagues as a trusted source, promoting your business for you.

2. Social media

   These days you really can’t talk about business promotion without mentioning the role that social networking accounts play. Some important social media sites that you NEED to be on, include:

   • Facebook – specifically a Facebook Fan Page for your business
   • Twitter
   • Pinterest
   • Instagram
   • Google+
   • Foursquare
   • StumbleUpon

   Whether you are active on these, or other social sites, it’s important to stay current and optimize your accounts so that you can use them to your best advantage. In some cases this could mean pushing discounts and deals through these platforms, or you might offer daily fitness tips or exercise tutorials as added value for clients and a draw for prospective customers. What you shouldn’t do is ignore the potential these forums have to help promote your business.

   One individual who uses social media with great success is Roger Lawson, aka Rog Law (right). His Facebook profile is the stuff of strength coach legend.

3. Apps

   There’s no denying that there are already plenty of fitness apps on the market. But whether you’re looking to bring in more clients locally or expand your business outside of your geographic region, creating a fitness app in keeping with your practice could be a great way to increase your brand recognition and boost sales.

4. Events

   Local clients provide the bread and butter for most personal trainers and some other fitness businesses, so promoting locally is a must. A good way to do this is by participating in local events. If there’s a street fair happening, you might want to purchase booth space so you can hand out pamphlets and give demonstrations. This is a great way to shake hands with people in your area who might be seeking your services.

5. Local promotions

   Aside from events, there are a number of ways you can promote your business in the area in which you operate. You can start with store signs that let passersby know when you’re running promotions (like discounts for new clients that sign up after the New Year).

   You might also create a mailing list and send out monthly newsletters with fitness tips (although this can also be done through email) or advertise via print, radio, and TV. And you could collaborate with related businesses like nutritionists or diet groups, health spas, or even other fitness facilities (gyms, yoga studios, etc.) in order to share business and ensure that clients have all the resources they need to reach their personal fitness goals.

Don’t miss out on the new year fitness traffic. Do you have any awesome ideas or strategies that you have or will use for your fitness business in 2013? I have about 100 of them, but I need to make time to put them into effect. If you have any great thoughts you want to share, please leave them in a comment below.

Tags: Business, fitness, marketing, personal training, strategy

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