How to Find the Personal Training Clients You Want

Have any of these thoughts crossed your mind? I wish I could train celebrities. I wish I could train athletes. I wish I could charge more. (I wish I could fly, survive in no atmosphere and train aliens. Okay, that one might just be me. Good to have a goal, though.)

In the last year, four of my trainers hit £100+ an hour, training A-list celebrities, athletes and high-income individuals, royalty included. That is not the goal for everyone, and it is not realistic for everyone. What is realistic is a fair price and clients you genuinely love working with.

What your price actually means

A lot of trainers believe price reflects their experience or competence. It does not. Whatever you charge, you should be confident and competent before you train anyone. That is a given.

Price is really a message to the market about the disposable income of the clients you are targeting. Your marketing and your delivery decide how successful you are, not the number itself. Every client deserves excellent service, so treat price as a targeting decision, not a report card.

Build your service in tiers

A useful exercise is to map out the essentials of your service and build up from there.

Level 1 service is your non-negotiables:

• On time, every time
• Pre-session and post-session texts
• An easy payment system
• Smart and presentable
• Well-designed sessions
• Qualified in the right field

Level 2 service adds a bit more care:

• Client branding, like T-shirts or water bottles as rewards
• Homework and exercises between sessions
• A private, invite-only group
• Recipes
• Social gatherings and events

Level 3 service is where you tailor to the exact client base you want to train. Getting there takes research: look at the other products and services those clients already use and find attractive.

Those products tell you what to build. A more price-conscious client tends to value value, so Level 3 might mean loyalty rewards, free sessions and money-off offers. A higher-income client tends to value quality, so Level 3 might mean better qualifications, better results, and using your client base as a networking asset for them.

Being visible when the itch hits

Once your pricing and service fit the client, you have to be findable. The best description of marketing I have heard came from a workshop called The Check-in Strategy Journal: marketing is "being visible to a client when they have the itch to purchase your service."

To be there for the itch, you have to build content and show up where those clients already look. Marketing well today needs:

• Storytelling across your social media and website
• Photography and design, which can be outsourced, though original work sets you apart
• Budget, because social media is crowded and being seen often means paying for it
• Engaging content tied to your storytelling and your clients' success
• Genuine expertise, so your content actually reflects that you know how to train

In our FSQUAD group we help you find your tilt: the characteristics that make you, you. Once you can name those traits, you can replicate and amplify what already makes you likeable.

The seven-step summary

1. Identify the client you want to train, in as much detail as you can.
2. Research the competition and build your business plan around the maximum price that group can afford.
3. Look at every place, product and service that attracts your client.
4. Build your marketing in the same style, and your service with similar traits.
5. Market, usually paid and social, to the clients you want.
6. Attend the social events and business meetings your clients go to.
7. Use PR, current clients, friends and other professionals to get introduced in person. Network like crazy.

Final thoughts

Edgy marketing does not mean swearing and being smug about it. The more authentic you are, the better you sell. And remember: your skill and experience are what keep clients, not what attracts them. Persistence and daily action will be your best traits as you build.