Marketing Ideas For The Fitness Industry
We're a society becoming more health conscious and more educated on the importance of moving our bodies and eating well. Signing up to a gym, doing fitness classes or working with a personal trainer is becoming increasingly popular and an important part of life for many people. But with the increase in the popularity of fitness comes the increase in people working in the industry too, which can make it hard to cut through and reach more clients.
So what can you do to cut through the noise?
Find your niche
Finding your niche is a buzzword at the moment, but it can really help to differentiate yourself from other fitness industry professionals. You might focus on a specific type of training, specialise in a certain age bracket, target a certain gender, or even on servicing a specific suburb. Your niche doesn't have to be "23-year-old women who want to grow their arm muscles" but specifying what you're really good at and what you enjoy doing can help you find suitable clients while also letting you do what you love. You might have a passion for competitions and love preparing athletic clients for these challenges, or you might be passionate about helping those new to working out to transform their lives. Specialising skills to suit your clients and offering specific options can help a client choose you over another fitness professional.
Go old school
Advertising your fitness programs or your gym doesn't just have to be done online. There is a range of other tools you can use offline to reach new clients. You might consider creating flyers, putting out an ad in the local magazine or newspaper, adding posters to local notice boards, and don't forget about your own network- ask friends if they know anyone who might be interested. You could even offer them a cash reward for referring someone to give them more motivation to help you out.
Use social media
Social media has done amazing things for so many fitness folk in the industry. Don't worry, you don't need the latest iPhone or expensive equipment. If your content is educational, fun, and entertaining, your audience will come organically. You don't even have to be someone who likes to be in front of the camera. You could use a tool like Canva to create informative and educational content, create quote tiles of clients talking about your services, or ask clients to send progress pictures.
If you love to get in front of the camera, Tiktok has been an amazing tool for many small businesses trying to reach new clients. Jump on trending sounds, share top tips for working out or educate people on the best form for specific workouts. Tiktok has huge potential if you're ready to jump in front of the camera and interact with your audience.
Create partnerships with other professionals
Health and wellness isn't limited to getting a gym membership. Fitness links perfectly with diet, mental health, recovery and a number of other areas. You can network with other professionals in similar industries and see how your offerings can support their clients.
Here are some potential examples:
- Working with a dietician to offer discounts for each other's clients
- Asking a local sportswear company if they would offer discounts to your clients
- Working with a yoga studio to offer discounts to classes and your programs
- Working with a physio or massage therapist to offer fitness and massage packages
There's a range of ways you can draw attention to your business but remember. It's always important to pair good marketing with great customer service to keep the customers your marketing draws in. This can happen in many obvious ways, but there are hidden customer service tactics you can offer outside of a friendly smile and be polite. Think of things outside the box like quick and easy onboarding, session reminder texts, and high-quality equipment, and of course, it's worth considering a great payment platform like Billycart. Nasty hidden fees, surprise late fees, and complicated sign-up processes will often impact customer satisfaction. Keep your bills coming in and your customers happy with Billycart.
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Brigitte Cooney
June 13, 2022