What is fastest way to attract potential clients for a PT business?
describe the market, big, small, old, young?
describe the product. (there are different ways to market different products because the target audience will be different)
that would be a good start
Whew, you asking a big question on marketing demographics. I could write a book here. You need to narrow it down or google your stuff.
One thing i want to bring up thought. Many poeple on this site slam PT’s for being stupid or incompetent. They base their opinions on what they see in gyms. One thing that they don;t realise that PT is a business. You’re a business person. That means customer satisfaction. Often times clients are argumentative, difficult and insist on doing some exercises.
Exercises that others see and think them incompetent. Swiss ball squats? What a stupid trainer, he should make him or her Squat !! All fair and good. But once you PT you’ll learn some clients don’t even like to sweat. If you make them sweat, they won’t renew sessions and go someplace else. PT is mostly about giving the customer what they want and not what you think is best for them, no matter how hard you’ll try to change a person, they won’t. This will be true 95% of the time with some rare exceptions.
Most of your clients will PT for the staus symbol. So learn to understand the business and how it does not have much to do with actually getting in shape 95% of the time. It’s really about the person BS’ing with you, doing some light weight work and that’s it, again for 95% of your clients.
Caterig to your clients percieved needs as opposed to what you know is best for them will make you very sucesfull. Your customer will be happy. Afterall the basics for sucess in any business is for the customer to be happy, isn’t it?
Keep in mind that this advice is for the generall population. Specialty PT in hardcore gyms is different. But the money is with the mainstrem public.
Offer free hamburgers with each PT session. That will get the fatties that need the training in.
PT = Physical Therapist, not personal trainer. Big difference.
[quote]Krollmonster wrote:
PT = Physical Therapist, not personal trainer. Big difference.[/quote]
Big difference but the marketing’s the same.
First deicde to whom you are going to market. You can rent an unbelievable amount of mailing lists for just about any type of niche you’re trying to target.
after that it’s you just have to make contact and sift through the uninterested. The fastest way is to mail out a post card offering a free report, 10 way to lose 10 pounds and keep it off, or something like that, have them call your 24 recorded message for info about receiving the report. It’s important you mention the call is a recording, people will have a fear of “being sold” if they know a person is going to answer.
have the the calls go directly to a voice mail box where people can leave their info. This is a great great way to buld a highly tartgeted data base.
Now, obviously, the ninth way to lose the weight is going to be to use a supplement line you carry or distribute (you do have a back end sales plan right?) and the tenth way to keep the weight off, is to hire a qualified personal trainer, or if you’re a PT make the report about spinal health and the benefits of a regular manipulation, or what ever. It’ll work for any business.
google Eric Ruth, Ryan Lee, Jim Labadie. You get enough info, even free stuff, to get a good start.
If you work at a gym (assuming your a personal trainer and not a PT), display you free report(s) whereever you/the gym display the business cards for the trainers. It postions you as the expert. You can also write and self publish a small book about exercise and fitness, it doesn’t even have to be that good. If some asks you a question, you can tell them you cover all that stuff in your book.
If your the client, whom are you going to train with? Trainers that have read books, or the trainer that writes the books.
Monthly newletters, goldmine for new clients. You become the person they associate with fitness, if you stay in their heads.
PM me if you have more questions, I could go on and on.
i think about this shit all of the time, and i think we overcmplicate the snot out of it … remember, less is more, simple is better … so:
release a product … a dvd, a how to ______ pamphlet, a top 10 list, a crock-pot cooking article, whatever [it doesn’t even matter if it is good … i see stuff in my local paper (town of 300,000) that SUCKS and is bad information, but people don’t have a clue … (hopefully your product will be good)]
contact the radio stations in town about your product … get on the morning shows to discuss your product and toot your own horn