Solutions For Personal Trainers

Leveraging personality for stronger programs, gyms and emails

Personal training is challenging because most of your clients don’t want to work out in the first place. Besides that, some clients don’t show up to sessions.

Oh, and building a newsletter takes consistency, which is a hump to get over—especially when you first start your business.

Training sessions take time to plan.

Social media algorithms are a thing.

Your audience has likes and dislikes to be aware of.

I can go on and on. And I will. But before I tell you the biggest problems that most personal trainers have, I have some good news.

The first step in becoming a strong personal trainer is to be aware of the pain points that trainers have in the first place.

After that, all it takes is for you to actually do something about it.

Personal trainer pain points and solutions

There’s more to personal training than what the common person thinks. You don’t just stand behind your client and give them tips and strategies.

At least you shouldn’t.

If a personal trainer wants their business to grow, they should do more than what the common trainer does. The first step to doing more is realizing where you aren’t doing enough.

I know. That sounds so theoretical and jargony.

But when I list out the common pain points for trainers now, and what to do about each, this whole thing might make sense.

Pain point 1: Trainers are unsure how to be themselves

Listen, this isn’t fluff.

To run a business that works, you got to be yourself.

No kidding.

You’ll be happy that you’re comfortable enough to run a business that way. Your clients will feel satisfied knowing that their trainer is as cool as you.

Cause let’s face it.

It’s so much better to get trained by someone who isn’t just giving you hard fitness or nutrition facts all the time. You want to laugh and stuff, too.

Basically what I’m saying is that it’s better to workout with a Kevin Heart than a David Goggins. Well, maybe a mixture of both but you know what I mean.

Personality is something you can sense. That’s why in things like emails, videos, and any form of contact you have with potential leads or clients should have some sort of you spice in there.

Here’s what to do:

• Create a narrative about who you are into your programs

• Tell ongoing stories about you or your client’s within email series

• Themed campaigns that align with the program or gym’s goals

• Videos about you (not just working out) on your socials or in your emails

The point is to meet your clients where they’re at. If they’re down about their fitness progress, you should lift them up. A major way to do that is by showing them that the person who will help them can lift them up in a journey they’re embarking on.

This brings us to the next pain point that personal trainers might have.

Pain point 2: Clients don’t like to work out

Ughhhhh is what some of your clients might say when they have to do something that you tell them to—work out

Many of them downright hate working out. I know some people that cannot possibly get themselves to a point where they enjoy working out

No shame, just personal preferences

As a personal trainer, this is where you go crazy. If you’re known for being able to pump up people to workout and help them get results they desire, you’re good. Because believe it or not, most personal trainers don’t accomplish this, at least not long term or sustainably.

Here’s what to do:

• Know your audience super well.

• Segment your email list in a way that it divides people who are really motivated vs those that aren’t so motivated.

• Personalized emails that show your audience you’re a real person too—someone who has gotten results, showing them that they can too.

• Milestone emails to motivate your audience about achievements from other clients you have (might make some people jealous).

• Visuals because no one will read your emails if they’re just blocks of text

Pain point 3: Starting a business as a personal trainer

Starting one of these things can be challenging. You’re coaching yourself along the way like you would be with your clients. Obviously in a different way, but you’re motivating yourself to start up a business that will transform lives.

Here’s what to do to get your personal training business started

• Keep your social media channels updated

• Learn a lot (from different sources) of what makes a personal training business successful

• Practice cold-calling

• Set tangible goals

Pain point 5: Keeping your fitness business steady (rewrite)

Make your business exciting. Run specials during holidays or reward clients for their hard work, like gifting them a free protein shake or something.

Maybe good workout routines would hav been enough for fitness programs years ago, but not anymore. This is especially true when it comes to social media. People that workout see that there’s a lot of trainers with really engaging and “out there” social profiles.

You got to beat those trainers.

Just kidding.

But whether or not you’re competitive like that, adapting to current social media trends is vital. Even when it comes to your email marketing. Those emails should be really engaging. This is how you have better chances of having your business stay afloat.

Besides being engaging, ask current clients for referrals. Word of mouth is everything. If you have a client that’s trying to get their body right and be healthier, their best friend is probably trying to do the same.

A third way to keep your business strong is to push out blogs and entertaining content that highlights your brand and services.

Pain point 5: Avoiding burnout (rewrite)

Part of keeping your business steady is avoiding burnout.

I have two approaches to avoid burnout as a trainer when it comes social media presence.

1. Be natural with posting content

2. Schedule posting your content

The first one will only work if you genuinely enjoy posting content in the first place. I used to schedule content and I hated it. The rigid structure of keeping a schedule with posting content felt unnatural. I post a lot anyways, so I left the idea of scheduling content in the dust.

The second one works if posting content doesn’t come natural for you.

Pain point 6: Keep clients motivated

Keeping your clients motivated literally helps with all of the above. As a trainer, you want to keep clients happy.

Like I said, motivate them with gifts and free things. But not too many. Their motivation should be intrinsic and not extrinsic. So if you bribe them with a lot of gifts, they won’t truly want to work out because they want to genuinely improve on the fitness part of their life.

So here’s some other tips to keep clients motivated

• Make workouts fun

• Track their progress

• Showcase their progress online (with their permission)

• Build a strong community by introducing clients to each other for more accountability

Pain point 7: Difficult clients

Always set clear expectations with a new client and show them tough love. That’s all I have to say on this.

Three things every personal trainer can do to better navigate the passion gap

I already said that personal trainers and clients have different passions for fitness. You love it and they don’t. So here’s what you can do about that.

1. Get to know your ideal client

Ask them questions about their journey and their fitness goals. But get to know the type of person you’re aiming to work with before you even start working with that type of person.

1. Make sure your marketing reflects your ideal client

The content on your socials and website should reflect your ability to understand their pain points. This way, when clients see your stuff they think “if I work with them, they would understand me”.

Speak their language and appeal to what is important to them.

Obviously showcase your passion for fitness in your socials, website and emails, but also address how you understand that certain things might not come easy to others.

A lot of what holds clients back is thinking they won’t have control during training sessions with you. That you will have full control and they won’t. In other words, they might be afraid to speak up.

Let them know that you’re the type of personal trainer that would let them express themselves fully and that you will hear them out.

3. Get deep with your existing clients

Figure out what your client likes. If they have worked out on their own before, or with another trainer, what things do they enjoy and what things don’t they enjoy.

How do they feel about their current progress? What exercises make them feel tough and hot?

By understanding these things, you’re better able to leverage your passion for fitness in a way that is appropriate for them

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I help personal trainers and gyms with their email marketing so that they can get and retain clients and members.

I have been a runner for 9 years and have regular experience in the gym. In my fitness journey, I’m at the stage where I’m putting in the work to build muscle.

But my only motivator isn’t to look jacked. It’s to maintain a healthy lifestyle and mental clarity, something your clients want too.

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