Show Notes
Now, if you're a trainer looking to grow your business and attract more clients, you're in the right place. Because in today, I’m going to talk about the number one thing that will grow your business.
And yes, you can boil it all down to this one thing. It is something I do, well, it’s something that we all do to some extent, but I would bet that we can all be a lot better at it in one way or another.
The whole business at Invictus is built on this and yours can and should be too!
So what am I talking about?
Engagement.
Engaging with your audience and potential clients is the number one way to achieve your goals, whether you train people in person or online.
So, whether you're a new trainer looking to build your business or an experienced one wanting to expand your reach, this episode is for you.
So let’s get started.
What is Engagement?
So just in case you are not sure, what do we mean by engage?
Well, engagement is all the different ways that you can communicate with your audience and potential clients wherever they might be. It is about looking for engagement opportunities where you can create ways to communicate and talk with various people, add value to them and help them in some way. It’s your marketing in a nutshell!
And where they might be will depend a little bit on what type of trainer you are.
If you are an in person employed trainer, then most of the people you need to engage with are foiling to be on the gym floor. If you are a freelance online trainer, then you’ll need to focus more on finding your people online where things like social media become a bit more important.
Engagement for Gym Based Trainers
So what if you are an in person trainer? The first thing you are going to need to do is to get on the gym floor. No hiding in the trainers cabin waiting for the gym to feed you clients. That might work, but it isn’t anything exceptional. Plus, clients from the gym from enquiries are not quite so high quality.
When you are on the gym floor and engaging with members, and by that I mean talking to people, helping people out and adding value, you get better quality clients.
This is because you have built rapport, you have built trust and you have demonstrated your expertise.
When you go into a trial session or a consultation, they will be more open with you and share on a higher level.
The higher connection you have means you will have a better chance of working with them in a paid capacity and they will be more engaged with you. Meaning they will trust what you say more, they will be more consistent and adhere to the plan more.
Talk to Everyone...and I mean EVERYONE!
And make sure that you engage with people even if you know that they won’t hire you. Because actually, if someone says ‘no’ to you. It is a no for right now.
It may not be the same in the future. And if a person wants to hire a trainer in the future, you want to be the trainer that is top of their mind.
Maybe in the future they won’t take your services, but they have a husband or wife that wants training. Or even a colleague. You want them to recommend you when someone asks about trainers at the gym they go to and who they think is good.
So getting on the gym floor and talking to people, building relationships, and adding value is key.
Avoid being the greasy salesman and being pushy with people.Instead focus on helping and genuine relationship building.
Engagement for Online Trainers
As an online trainer, engagement is going to look very different.
One of the best ways to start engagement is to consistently share content that is useful and relevant to your ideal client. You can build trust and credibility with them over time by showing your personality, your expertise and your methods.
Content for Social Media
Creating valuable content that your audience will love can include workout videos, nutrition tips, workout tips, healthy recipes and progress reports with testimonials along the way.
But you do have a huge advantage when it comes to engaging with potential clients with social media. By using platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, you can reach a much bigger audience of people who are interested in what you might have to offer.
And don't forget to interact with your audience by replying to comments or messages that they leave on your content. Replying like this shows them that you're mindful and responsive to their needs, which can help to build stronger relationships with your audience.
So overall, social media is a really powerful tool for online trainers who want to engage with potential clients and grow their business. By using it wisely, you can reach more people than ever before and build a thriving online fitness community.
Creating Paid Ads
Another option to engage on social media is to create ads on Facebook or Instagram. You can target your ads to specific audiences that match your ideal client based on their interests, age, location, and other demographic or psychographic factors.
By using the right keywords and targeting options, you can make sure that your ads are seen by people who are most likely to be interested in your services.
Check out session number nine where I talk about knowing your ideal client to help you with this.
Creating ads on platforms like Facebook or Google can also help attract potential clients especially if you're just starting out and don't have a large following on social media. Although they will cost you some money, they can help you start to build that audience and start getting clients.
All Trainers can Join Communities and Discussions
Joining communities on Facebook groups, Reddit, and Quora can also be useful in growing your business. By getting involved with discussions and offering your advice, you can position yourself as an expert and hopefully attract potential clients who are looking for help.
Now one thing that both online and impersonal trainers should do to engage is not always with potential clients.
Partnerships
As a personal trainer, you can build joint ventures and partnerships with people in similar and complementary industries, such as physios, massage therapists, nutritionists, and chiropractors.
By building these partnerships, you can expand your network and reach more clients through mutual referral systems.
For example, if you have a client who is experiencing some pain or is on the end of a new injury, you can refer them to a physio you link with that can provide better care and support.
By building these relationships, you're not only providing a better service to your clients, but you're also building trust and credibility in the industry.
And these people will do the same back with you by referring people that need your service.
To build partnerships, start by reaching out to people in your local area or through social media. And if you have a favourite physio that you have personally used that you can reach out to then even better.
Check out session 21 where I talk about this whole process and the types of people you can reach out to.
It’s simple.
You can offer to meet up for coffee or a virtual call to learn more about each other's services and how you can work together.
This you will be doing locally and there is more you can do to spark engagement with potential clients or people that can refer clients.
Google My Business
One way is to create a Google My Business profile so you can appear in search results. You can also get involved with local organizations like the chamber of commerce or businesses like supplement shops.
This kind of engagement can be really effective when people go to trusted sources, like Google or the local supplement store for advice.
Events
Another thing all trainers should be doing is to attend industry events or webinars and introduce yourself to people who work in these complementary areas.
You can also attend local events that are health and fitness or even food related. Even sports events too.
No matter what type of trainer you are, attending health and fitness-based events can help you expand your network and reach more clients. You can also include trade shows, conferences, and seminars, as well as local events like 5K races or fitness challenges.
At these events, make sure you bring promotional materials, business cards or other more modern tools like an NFC card that will load your details directly onto a person's phone for them to save. Take the time to introduce yourself to other people there, you never know who you might meet or what opportunities may arise.
Finally, as a personal trainer, you have a lot of knowledge and expertise that you can share with others. So one way to engage with potential clients and build your network is to create and host your own events.
This could be in the form of workshops, webinars, or even live classes.
When planning your event, it's important to remember your ideal client and make sure what you plan and create will be useful, interesting and exciting for them to come to.
As an example, if you specialise in weight loss, you might host a workshop on nutrition, or a challenge such as a 21 day workout plan.
You can also partner with other professionals like I talked about earlier but this time create joint events that offer even more value to your audience.
You could team up with a nutritionist to host a workshop on healthy meal planning, or partner with a physio and host a workshop that focuses on injury prevention.
When promoting your event, make use of social media, email newsletters, and other marketing channels to get the word out. Encourage attendees to bring friends and family members, and offer special incentives for those who sign up early or bring a guest.
That way you can keep engagement high in the build up to the event. Also, try and have a ‘next thing’ that you can lead people to that take part in the workshop to keep the relationship going once it has finished.
By hosting your own events, you can showcase your expertise, build stronger relationships with potential clients, and establish yourself as a leader in the industry.
With a little creativity and planning, you can create events that offer a huge amount of value and help you grow your personal training business.
All of these things are essentially your marketing in different forms.
Website
Other forms you can also include on this list are your website. It is another place where you can create engagement opportunities with potential clients by adding value and just helping them in some way.
You can offer a free download called a lead magnet that they can get in exchange for their email address. From that point you can keep engaging with them via email every day of the week if you wish.
So, like I said. It’s all about engagement. What opportunities can you see where you can create engagement points to bring people into your world, and then engage with them after to build and grow a relationship to build your business?