Training Consultations

GETTING TO KNOW YOU...

Now that we have explored our purpose with clients, how to get them, and how to set prices that will hopefully play a big role in keeping them, we can finally begin to discuss the actual process of training clients.

Before you do any training, you have to get to know your client, what they want, what their limitations are, etc...

Joe describes this as the evaluation/consultation and below are the areas he feels you need to cover in order to do your best:

Evaluation/Consultation

• Goals
• Motivation
• Current nutrition/exercise profile
• Injury, physical/medical limitations
• Marital/Family status
• Financial/Employment status
• Availability

Disclaimer

Be honest from the very beginning with your clients about the work they need to on their own as it pertains to their goals (you will avoid being a scapegoat when clients are not progressing).

Pricing

THE COST OF BEING THE BOSS

We spent this week discussing pricing. Pricing is a very important part of a successful business. Joe explained how you can lose customers right from the start if you don't understand how to set prices correctly.

Here are a few key things to think about when it comes to pricing your service or product:

• Price is determined by market (high income=high prices / moderate income=moderate prices)
• Market is the income, habits, wants and needs of consumers in a specific area
• Offsite training is more expensive than onsite training
• Independent trainers generally make 70-80% of training price after expenses
• Commercial trainers generally make 20-30% of training price set by gym and doesn’t account for taxes being deducted

Client Acquisition & Marketing

HOW TO BUILD YOUR CLIENT BASE

This week the focus was on how to acquire clients through different types of marketing. Below are the main ways that Joe uses and recommends:

Immediate circle (family, friends, members)

• Need to be personable, professional, pro-active
• In a commercial gym floor hours, cold calling, management referrals

Social Media

• Set up a professional branded page for your personal training persona
• Post consistently
• Utilized paid advertising
• Engage with and respond to your friends/followers

Print Media

• Business cards
• Flyers/Handbills
• Posters

Merchandise

• T-Shirts, hats, hoodies etc…

Complimentary Session/Services and Promotions

• 1-3 free sessions depending on circumstances (you have to give to receive)
• Annual, bi-annual, or quarterly promotions are necessary to grow a successful business

Word of Mouth

• Once you have established a good reputation, the recommendations/referrals from your existing clients will always be the primary way you acquire new business

Purpose of Training

PURPOSE

This week I learned what the purpose of personal training really is. In Joe's professional opinion, it means to help people achieve their personal physical goals.

Joe believes this is the most important thing to learn because many trainers focus on what they want or think is best for the clients. However, it has been his experience and observation that trainers who do the best in the business in terms of retaining clients and achieving goals and financial success, are the ones who understand what the client truly wants and help them to achieve it.

It doesn't mean that a trainer shouldn't utilize their expertise to help guide clients in the right direction or help them gain a better perspective of health and physical fitness, but ultimately it is not our place to decide for someone what they want for themselves.