(Today I wanted to pass along a fitness marketing guest post from my good friend Fit Jerk…ok, that’s not his real name, but he’s developed a bit of a cult following online through his blog, his training style and philosophies, and his incredible personality.

I will warn you ahead of time: Mr. Jerk can be exactly that…a bit of a jerk! So reader beware.

But I thought it was important to show you how he keeps his clients happy in his personal training business, supplements his income through his fitness blog, and generally speaking, lives a kick-ass lifestyle being a fitness entrepreneur!

I am proud to have Mr. Jerk in the System 5 Inner Circle as he fully represents what is possible when you bring together your passion for working out and health and fitness, while discovering your niche and catering to it. Enjoy!)

How To Overdeliver To Keep Clients Coming Back For More

By: FitJerk

If you’re a personal trainer in these so called hard economic times, then today is your lucky day.

Post after post on fitness forums are filled with run of the mill trainers whining and shaking in their boots about how their clients are leaving their asses behind. When asked how much they are charging for the type of service they offer, it all becomes very clear.

It’s like duh! You deserved to be dumped dude.

They over-charge and under deliver, and to top it off have nothing special about what they offer.

The times of just delivering results is over.

Delivering results is like getting a CD player when you buy a car as standard equipment.

You gotta go above and beyond that.

In this post, I’ll be revealing how I do things and maybe, just maybe, a few of you will be able to increase your bottom line and stop the insanity that is client loss.

1. Unique Skill-Set

Sure, just like everyone else I could have chosen the traditional personal training course in college but I’m not like everyone else.

Instead I did something that a) love and b) that which separated me from the competition.

I studied sport physiology with a specialization in gymnastics.

So now I have a level 2 nationally recognized certification which also includes an extra side certification for trampoline and I attended all the same courses as the personal training students did.

The difference was that my abs took shape inside a gymnastics gym with elite athletes and not a weight room.

What does this mean?

This means I don’t train clients in a traditional gym (I’ll get to how I manage that in a second).

I train them in a gymnastics gym where I’m the director of my own program. I charge what I want, when I want and pay the gym a minor fee.

How many personal trainers do you know that train clients inside a gymnastics facility?

To top it off, my “stick ratio” is through the roof because not many people have had their abs blasted on an Olympic size trampoline for 15 minutes straight. It’s an experience no trainer in the traditional gym next-door can deliver.

Oh, and you can bet your ass they are pissed when I suck the clients from them. If you’re angry right now then you should be. It’s a competitive world if you don’t feel like competing then this is the wrong career for you. Go vegetate yourself inside a cubicle and get outta my way.

And it doesn’t stop there. Not only am I certified to coach this stuff but I was a competitive power tumbler myself.

This means I can put on a 1 min demo for the client to show what they can actually accomplish. Want to learn how to do a back flip after you lose those 5lbs? No problem, here’s what it looks like and here’s how were gonna do it.

Then I have my Black Belt in Karate, which means I can now compile a kick ass (literally) cardio routine together instead of throwing them on a treadmill and making them run on the same spot like a lil hamster. There are so many options even I haven’t exploited them all.

Now think about this for a second: after going through this crazy-fun experience, do you think that this particular client will return? You bet your ass they will!

2. I Embrace Technology

Let me be straight with you for a second: If you aren’t using social media to expand your business, make connections and find great partners then you’re a complete fool.

Quit now because you’ve already lost. Let me give you an example, I run my own fitness blog which you can see here: http://www.fitjerk.com

This blog has allowed me to tap a market that I couldn’t previously.

You see, I can’t train you in a traditional weight lifting gym in-person because I don’t have that piece of paper. It would be legally wrong. Now you might be thinking “FJ, why don’t you just go get it?”.

Well I could, but right now I have so much stuff going on that I don’t need to.

While I can’t technically train you, I CAN consult you because the body I have is a result of proper resistance training.

And to top it off, you can’t be a gymnastics coach without a seriously in-depth knowledge of body weighted training and conditioning. Go look at the body of an elite level gymnast or coach — we know what the heck we’re doing, thank you very much!

So getting back to my point, how do I deal with clients who want to lift weights? Simple, I E-Train them.

Here is my simple E-Training web page: http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/e-training-sales.html

I have plenty of clients that pay me monthly to come up with a workout, meal and supplement plan for them and all of them see results.

Through technology (video, audio, text) I am able to correct their technique, recommend proper training guidelines and have constant contact with my clients. If they ever have a question, I’m just an email away. If they aren’t doing what they are supposed to, then THEY’RE only an email away. Failure isn’t an option if you’re paying me to deliver then I’ll be on your ass to get it done. It’s a 2 way street, and it works.

Now a lot of people say but E-Training can’t substitute real training because you aren’t THERE with them so it can’t work!

First of all it CAN and DOES work because I have results to prove it, but the problem is that most people would most likely be too greedy to SCREEN potential clients.

Mind you, I don’t just let anyone E-Train with me.

Just because they have some disposable income doesn’t mean I’ll train them. They need to meet certain requirements.

For example: I wont take on complete newbies or people with serious medical and/or health conditions because they really DO need the personal one-on-one attention.

But those intermediate souls who just can’t seem to get to the next level? They can train with me and see seriously effective results for a price that just cannot be beat.

The value I offer for the price I ask is almost ridiculous but there is a method to my madness. The bottom line is that you need to embrace technology. There is no reason why it can’t be one of your alternate revenue streams.

3. Value For Money

This one is simple I offer value through the roof.

I educate, motivate, yell and shove people into results. Whatever it takes, I do that plus more.

It’s a simple philosophy – offer more than you are actually charging and oddly enough you can increase your rates as time passes.

I’m ALWAYS trying to find ways to add value to my programs, and when I feel that I’ve added a lot, I’ll up the price and the process will start all over again.

This way the client never feels cheated (it’s all justified) and you aren’t living on scraps.

4. Social Proof

Another simple concept.

My inner circle of friends knows what I’m about and what the hell it is I do.

If they have fitness questions, they come to me.

If they need advice, they come to me.

And if someone else needs advice, they send them to me.

Do WHATEVER it takes to build up your reputation. If it means giving away free sessions, do it. If it means bending over once or twice, do it, it’s an investment, not a sacrifice. The benefits of a solid reputation far outweighs the initial price you have to pay. Just get it done, no excuses.

P.S. On a side note, do WHATEVER it takes to protect your reputation once it’s built. There are sore-losers out there that will try and throw rocks at the castle you poured a massive amount of sweat into building don’t let these jerk-offs chip away at your accomplishment. Be bold and defend what’s rightfully yours.

5. I Stay Up To Date

I am constantly educating myself on new methods and techniques.

Hell, I’m even trying to innovate every now and then just to see what type of results I’ll get.

I plan on taking further courses such as PICP and Biosignature Modulation created by the legend Charles Poliquin.

I plan on taking courses from this crazy dude named Paul Chek who believes that if you’re a personal trainer, you should be in great shape and be able to coach in your undies. Truth be told, I actually agree with this. I’ve read so many fitness books from so many killer authors that your eyes would bleed and I plan on reading hundreds more.

And you know why? Because it’s all worth it.

A Clarification: Now when I say I stay up to date I don’t mean I put every one of my clients on stupid bosu balls, recommend the newest diet pill and have them spewing out the latest diet jargon. Screw that crap.

I’m talking about quality info. Forget fads. They are called fads because they come and pass.

And while you can make some extra cash if you spice up your normal routines with them, I wouldn’t recommend making them your bread and butter system which real people rely on to deliver results for a healthier lifestyle.

Know what I’m sayin? Good.

Bottom Line:

So there you have it.

5 ways I differentiate myself from the huge crowd of personal trainers.

I’m not out to make a million and one FJ’s here, so don’t do exactly what I do.

Chances are you’ll fail miserably.

But DO take inspiration and start becoming creative.

Recession doesn’t mean the world is getting poor — get real. It means money is shifting, you just need to be awesome enough to shift the tide in your favor.

Cheers.

- FitJerk

Author Bio: While he has a passion for writing and oozes the entrepreneurial spirit, FJ is a Fitness Expert first, and focuses on impeccably accurate advice that is delivered in a straight forward, No-BS style. Check out his popular Fitness Blog and E-Training program!

(Chris here again…well, there you have it! What can I say…he’s a bit of a jerk, but I still like the guy!

He’s proven over and over that just being who he is, being real, and not trying to please everyone has really worked well for him…while he isn’t appealing to everyone, the people that like him don’t just like him, they LOVE him.

That’s what you want as a personal trainer and fitness entrepreneur.

You want a small, viral, almost cult-like following of people that love you and will stick with you through thick and thin.

Cater to them, serve them and always be true to yourself and your personal training roots, and you will create a successful and thriving fitness business!)

(Read Time: 20 Minutes)

Do you know how to write a fitness press release, or why you should be writing them all the time for your personal training, boot camp or fitness business?

I’m talking about ALL the time!

The problem is, most personal trainers have no clue — NONE — about how fitness press releases work, the reasons why they should be writing them all the time, and exactly how to create and distribute them for maximum effect and benefit to build their businesses.

How can creating and submitting a fitness press release further your marketing efforts, your business reach and increase the number personal training clients you get?

Well, like the human bodies that we train, a fitness marketing plan has a lot of parts.

While some parts of your personal training marketing do the heavy lifting, other parts of your marketing plan are there to support your current efforts or to perform a specific task.

Such as the fitness press release.

When activated properly, a press release can be a powerful and cost-effective part of your fitness marketing strategy — both online and off — and increase not only your credibility and exposure, but also your bottom line.

What Is a Fitness Press Release?

In its most basic form, a press release does the specific task of letting reporters, news agencies, blogs and websites know about your business or about something in particular that is currently newsworthy within your business.

Simply put, you write a news story about your personal training business and send it out to newspapers, magazines, web sites and even radio and television stations. From there, these media outlets have the option of picking up your story and spreading it to their readers or listeners.

There are many ways that you could structure a press release — I’ll show you a basic outline below for your own personal trainer press release — but essentially a press release is a statement of fact that reads like news, not self-promotion or hype.

Sure, there can be some elements of self-promotion tastefully done within the release, but if you resort to hype or unsubstantiated claims in a press release, your odds of being picked up by any credible media source are next to zero.

In the end, remember that the job of the press release is to inform someone in the media of something newsworthy.

Therefore, make sure that your press release adds something of value to the media and their audience.

For example, if you are creating a fitness press release on a new cardio program that you just launched in your local community, an editor at a community newspaper might very well be interested in this for the health and wellness section of their paper, provided what you are doing is interesting, has value and adds to their reader’s experience.

I’ll go into more detail on how you accomplish this later on.

Why Bother Creating a Fitness Press Release?

There are many reasons why you should be putting out press releases left and right the minute anything potentially newsworthy or interesting happens in your fitness business.

As well as being a cost-effective (basically free) form of promotion, having news about your business appear in the media adds credibility to your venture, not to mention loads of potential traffic and personal training leads!

Here are just a few reasons why you NEED to be creating fitness press releases:

• Credibility/Social Proof: In your mind, which holds more weight – a newspaper ad for a new product or a news story about the product?  Which do you feel would have more pull with your potential clients – a copy of your magazine ad in the gym, or a copy of a magazine interview with you (maybe even with your picture)?
• Media Exposure: If one local news agency picks your story up — say on how you are helping a local charity raise money through a workout-a-thon or something similar — the odds of other media outlets picking up the story increase dramatically. This can only be a good thing for you!
• Traffic/Leads: Here’s the beauty of the world we now live in: You can post your fitness press releases online AND also submit them through traditional means directly to editors and reporters. What this does it take advantage of the time and effort that you spent creating the press release by allowing your website to gain free backlinks and traffic exposure from the web, while also increasing the chances that other websites, blogs and local websites find your press release! You kill 3 birds with one stone, and help your main website rise in the search engine rankings!
• Content: This might be a little less obvious but goes along with the “Credibility/Social Proof” aspect. You can store all of your past press releases in a special “Media” section of your website and take advantage of basically creating free content for visitors to read when they visit your site, AND giving search engines more keyword-focused content within your website to spider and track for overall search engine optimization for your fitness business! Not to mention the “cool” factor that you as a personal trainer or fitness business owner actually have a “media” page to begin with showing off all the cool things you’ve been up to!

Getting the Press to Pay Attention To Your Fitness Press Releases

You can write a press release about anything — your latest achievement (such as a business anniversary or winning an award), an event, a new product or service or adding a new personal trainer to your fitness team.

In  fact, if it were up to me, I would have you writing a press release for all of these events all of the time for the very reasons that I talked about above.

The trick is getting the media to pay attention to your news.

Making sure your story is newsworthy is key. It’s also important to make sure your press release fits the publication you are submitting it to and that your release makes it easy for reporters to do their jobs.

Here are a few guidelines to getting your press release read by the media:

• Make it Newsworthy:

The most critical factor to consider before writing a fitness press release is determining if the story is newsworthy. Things that make a story worth publishing are:

• Timeliness – did your news happen recently or is it connected to a current event?
• Significance/prominence – are you training high-profile clients? Did you land a noteworthy corporate wellness contract?
• Location – is your fitness product or personal training service accessible to the publication’s readers?
• Relevance – does your story fit and makes sense in the publication?
• Usefulness/impact – will your story educate someone or help them make a lifestyle change?
• Interesting (human interest) – what is unique and interesting about your business, event, cause, etc.?

While all these things play a part in determining newsworthiness, the bottom line is to make sure your story will be interesting and useful to the publication’s readers, and again not be overly promotional to the extent that it reads like spam or loses its legitimacy.

• Make it Fit
:

Another part of getting the media to pay attention to your news is to make sure it fits the publication. While news of your fitness boot camp might be newsworthy for both a web site catering to winter athletes and a women’s lifestyle magazine, chances are, you would make minor changes in your press release to make it relevant to the very different audiences that read these publications.

This can be as simple as changing your quotes or examples.

Here are a few examples:

• The Body Max Fitness Boot Camp can help extreme sports enthusiasts reach new heights in fitness and can make the trip down the mountain faster and safer.
• The Body Max Fitness Boot Camp can help women take off inches, tone thighs and bellies and improve overall health and stamina.

To make sure your message is tailored to the readership of each publication, it may be helpful to look over the publication (or their web site) before you write.

In fact, when you submit a press release to a particular writer, blogger, reporter or editor, make sure you know a little bit about them first, their writing style, what they like to write about and the topics that they typically cover.

Nothing makes you look more foolish or amateurish than sending a generic or poorly formatted press release or message to an editor that caters towards local women’s health issues, while your release is about male bodybuilding!

Ouch…good luck getting them to write anything about your personal training business when you didn’t even take the time to find out what they do!

Quick Tip: As you go about your daily routine, make note of what kinds of stories you see in the publications around you. Does your local newspaper run stories about new businesses? Does the senior-focus magazine in the waiting room have stories on fitness? What are your potential clients reading? What kinds of stories run in those publications?

• Make it Easy:

Another part of getting the media to run your personal trainer press release is to make it easy for them.

For example:

• Correctly formatting your press release
• Spelling counts: Since some media outlets may print your press release “as is,” you need to make sure the story is well written and error-free.
• Including a photograph will help a press release get published. Make sure the photo is of good quality, interesting and relevant. Clearly identify the action and each person in the photo. Be sure to have permission on hand from each person pictured.

If sending a press release via email, make sure each image is less than 1 MB, and don’t include more than 3 MB’s of attachments. Print publications require high-resolution images (3000 dpi), so if your hi-rez image size exceeds one MB, send a low-rez version and make the hi-rez version available as a download from your web site.

The Format of a Fitness Press Release

Now we get the juicy stuff!

You are ready to write your own press release and submit it to the world for publication and to start lining up some awesome interviews and TV/radio spots.

Well, before you get too excited, there are a few tried and true things you need to to do to ensure the highest possibility of getting your press release read and reprinted.

Correctly formatting a press release isn’t hard; however, it’s important, especially in the age of digital distribution.

When in doubt, use a press release template or mimic the format of a press release you find online.

I also posted a press release online for my fitness marketing website that you can read by clicking here.

Here are the necessary elements you need when creating your own fitness press release:

• Headline
:

This goes at the top of your fitness press release. Your headline should grab attention and be a snapshot of what your story is about. Use keywords (think web search engines) and an action verb. Capitalize Relevant Words in Your Title. DO NOT USE ALL CAPS.

Some online press release services have limits on the number of characters that can be in a headline, typically between 80 and 100 characters, including spaces. If you go with a digital distribution service, be sure to check their specific requirements.

• Summary:

The summary is a single paragraph (about three to five lines) that sums up the key points of the story and sells your idea. Some online venues will only display your headline and summary, so make these sentences count.

• The Body:

1. Dateline
: This tells where the story originated and the date. It should look like this (City, State — Month 1, 2010).
2. Lead
: This is the first paragraph of your story. It should cover the who, what, when, where and why of your story. In the event space is limited, this may be all the coverage you get, so the lead should give all the important facts.
3. Details
: Further explain the details of your lead. Include statistics, background or other details to support your first paragraph.

A typical personal trainer press release should run about 300 to 800 words and be a minimum of two paragraphs, each made up of five to eight lines. Leave a blank line between each paragraph.

Make sure you us an active voice and write in third person, unlike this blog where I am writing you in the first person –  use he and they, instead of I and we.

Make each word count and avoid industry jargon.

Try to think of an angle for your story – thinking back to what I discussed above on what makes a story newsworthy.  You can also include a quote after the first or second paragraph. Make sure the quote adds something to the story.

It’s also ok to quote yourself.

• About:

The about section is a short statement about your business.

For example:

Bob Smith is a certified personal trainer and owner of Body Max Fitness in San Jose, CA. Body Max Fitness has been working with elite and professional athletes since 2006. More information is available by calling 555-555-5555 or online at www.BusinessName.com

• Media Contact Information:

This section tells the reporter who to contact for more information. Include your company’s legal name and the name and title of the contact person if it isn’t you.

Also include the business address, phone and fax numbers (if applicable), times the contact person is available, email and web site address.

If you are sending your press release for online use, be aware that spiders may collect your email address and bombard you with spam — this is a big problem! You can eliminate this from happening by omitting your email address or formatting like this:  bob at yourbusiness .com.

How To Distribute Your Fitness Press Release

Once you have your personal trainer press release written and formatted, you will need to send it to all your local media contacts.

Here are a few way to get your press release out there:

• Your own list: You may have an in-house list of relevant publications that you’ve been gathering or keeping track of.
• Distribution service: you can use an online/offline distribution service to take care of the task of sending out your press release.
• In-person: This can include dropping off the fitness press release in person (not recommended!) or simply forwarding the release to the appropriate person for each of the media types that you are going after once you determine who the main contact is for your type of story.
• Your own website: This should be obvious, but put all of your press releases somewhere on your website or at the very least, links to them.
• More info: I found a great website that deals way more intimately with press releases than this post can cover, and in fact lists about 50 distribution websites that you can use to get your release out there. Here’s the link.

Fees for the various distribution services range from free to several hundred dollars. Just bear in mind that distribution does not ensure a publication will run your story. However, having a newsworthy, interesting and correctly formatted fitness press release will help.

Quick Note: Be a persistent SOB! I can’t tell you how many emails and follow up phone calls I did to get my press releases and stories about my business promoted in the local newspaper.

You have to understand that these guys get bombarded by hundreds to THOUSANDS of press releases every single day!

In order to make it through the crowd — aside from a catchy and relevant headline and ad copy — is to be on their butts all the time!

I mean you have to be relentless!

If you aren’t, then you might as well forget about getting REAL media exposure and just settle in a nice little comfort zone of getting the trickle of traffic you’ll get from online sources and the potential backlinks from spiders finding your press release.

But to really be effective, and give your personal training business the gift that keeps on giving, you MUST be relentless, persistent and patient all at the same time.

Quick Resources:

Here are some resources that I have used and that you can use to submit your press release and get it out there, aside from just plain old persistence:

• http://www.free-press-release.com: This website allows you to create free press releases, BUT the paid options are way better because you get to choose your backlinks, have more control over the look and feel of the release and it is way more valuable. Prices range from $0 to $30 per release. But if you just want to dip your toes into the water, give it a try. It’s easy, and quick and is done online so you’ll get some search engine juice from it.

• http://www.prnewswire.com: PR Newswire is one of the largest and most well-known press release distributors. I will warn you though, a package with them can be expensive, BUT it will get your press release done right, and delivered into the correct hands. This is a higher end option, but the results could well be worth the added time and expense.

• http://www.prweb.com: This is a mid-level option, with a simple release starting at $80, going all the way to $360 per release with more options and html and backlinks to help your search engine optimization for your website. This is clean and simple way to get a higher end press release out there to the world that has more clout than the Free-Press-Release.com option.

There are many, many others out there, in fact you can get overwhelmed with all the choices, but I wanted to keep things pretty simple for you.

If you want more choices, here’s a great website for all things devoted to press releases and their entire list of press release distribution sites.

Bear in mind that the above services do NOT guarantee that anyone of significance in the newsroom will see your release!

In fact some of the options are online-only, and never will cross the desks for important editors and reporters.

For that you will need to manually submit your release to specific companies and news outlets in your local community where you want to ensure that they at least got your release, and then follow up with them like crazy.

==> Example Fitness Press Release:

Here’s a link to a press release I created using Free-Press-Release.com for this website when it went live not too long ago:

Fitness Marketing Blog Launches Aimed At Helping Personal Training Entrepreneurs Explode Their Business

Bottom Line: Create a Fitness Press Release!

I don’t think I have to tell you how important getting your fitness press releases out to the media is to boosting your overall fitness marketing plan.

In fact, a well-crafted fitness press release can help you reach new clients and add credibility to your personal training business in ways that no other marketing can!

While the results are less tangible and measurable than say offering a coupon to your email newsletter list and seeing how many people respond, the results of a correctly written and distributed personal trainer press release can enhance your fitness business like no other form of marketing.

Just think of the credibility that you will get from a story in your local newspaper about your fitness business; how much traffic it will bring your website; how many phone calls it will bring your business and ultimately, how much clout, future credibility and social proof you can feed off that one story for years to come!

This kind of marketing should be highly coveted and is priceless!

All you have to do is create a well-written, timely and informative fitness press release and make sure you get that release — depending on it’s topic and timeliness of course — to as many publications or media outlets (websites, newspapers, TV/radio stations, etc.) as possible.

Doing this consistently is one of the true hidden gems for getting your personal training, boot camp, or fitness business flowing with traffic, goodwill and credibility.

I gotta laugh…

You see, sometimes I am completely at a loss for words when I see a personal trainer or fitness business owner with some crappy vinyl decals on their car trying to attract clients.

What are these guys (and gals!) thinking?

So, for the last few weeks, I made sure to take some pictures of some good examples of how this sort of branding and marketing should be done if you are going to attempt it at all.

Oh, and I also threw in an absolutely hilarious picture that just cracked me up.

Do’s and Dont’s for Fitness Business Decals

Let’s go over some do’s and dont’s before I get into the pictures, of why you should and shouldn’t put decals on your car to try and attract business and use it as a lead generating tool.

The reasons why you SHOULD consider some vinyl decals:

• You have an awesome vehicle that properly reflects your brand
• You have 2 vehicles and use one for business and one for pleasure
• If you DON’T have 2 vehicles, then you don’t mind driving around with your car plastered with advertising
• You have a very memorable domain name, phone number or company name
• You can make it very clear what you target niche, audience and demographic is quickly
• You are doing a bunch of other free and paid advertising for your fitness business and this is just one more spoke in your wheel, not your whole wad

The reasons why you SHOULD NOT consider some vinyl decals:

• You have a crappy vehicle that should be driven off the nearest cliff, let alone used for a marketing campaign
• Doing so would cheapen your brand or standing with your target audience in some way
• Your company brand name or domain name is REAAAAAALLLLLLYYYYYYY long, hard to remember or just not conducive to a quick glance from another driver to be memorable
• Your target audience and niche would not be easily identifiable by taking one look at your decals
• Your fitness business isn’t yet listed on Google Local or Google AdWords, you aren’t in all of the major directories, aren’t using Craigslist, or have somehow skipped over way more impactful and immediate forms of marketing

Now the Fun Stuff

Now that the formalities are out of the way, we get to have some fun looking at some pictures of the good, the bad and the just plain ugly!

Let’s start with the Bad ==>

Umm...yeah...this isn't a good example of anything, hey at least they have a phone number to call!

If you want to rest in paradise, based on the quality of this guy's decal, you know you're in good hands...

Now let’s look at the GOOD ==>

The only problem is that the domain name is not EASY to remember, but the color scheme and look are very professonal and nice.

The WINNER ==>

This guy killed it, and is one of the BEST examples of using decals and vinyl advertising on your car I've ever seen a personal trainer use.

Look at the color scheme, the brand of vehicle and the name of his business! Then read through the services he provides. Genious and perfectly matched to the brand of vehicle, color scheme and perfectly targeted for his audience. This is A+ work here.

The UGLY…and FUNNY ==>

It wouldn’t be a good day without something to laugh at…check this out:

This cracked me up for days!! Love it.

The Bottom Line:

As you can see from the pictures above, there is a big difference between just slapping on some vinyl decals on your car or truck to attract personal training clients, and actually taking the time to plan out your marketing strategy and create a cohesive plan of attack to brand your business and make your specific advertisement memorable and help you get leads.

I know it can be pretty exciting and seem cool to put your advertising on every single piece of stuff you own, but just remember that you are ALWAYS marketing yourself and branding your business.

When you are training clients in the gym, you are branding your business.

When you choose what clothes to wear, you are branding your business.

When your body looks a certain way, you are branding your business.

For better or for worse, remember that people are always watching you and everything you do, even the food you are eating when you are not training clients!

Just make sure that if you are going to drive around town training clients and have people notice you, they are noticing you for the right reasons and because you have kick-ass vinyl decals on your car or truck specifically branded to help your fitness business attract leads, and not turn them off!

You’re training a client, or on the phone with a potential client, and something doesn’t quite feel right.

There’s something in the air, a vibe.

There’s been a shift in the relationship or interaction, and it is no longer as appropriate or professional as it once was.

Has this ever happened to you?

Has a client ever looked at you a certain way, said something a little “off”, been a little bit too friendly?

Have you ever gotten that strange initial phone call from a “potential client” asking if you are “open minded” and if you offer “full service”?

LOL…

Or have you ever crossed the line with a client and said something you shouldn’t have or even started dating a current or ex-client?

C’mon admit it…if you’ve been a personal trainer or worked in the health and fitness industry long enough — whether you are working with people in the gym, or even as a massage therapist — it’s probably happened a time or two.

Well, today, I wanted to share a little rant about inappropriate client behavior that recently happened to one of my coaching clients and I’m also going to share with you some of my own interesting stories of past clients and strange things that have happened and how to deal with them.

Enjoy!

Click here to download the MP3

PS: Do you have a little secret to tell? C’mon you can admit it…go ahead and leave a comment below with your funny story.

I helped Laura see her true potential and her first book is only the beginning of her empire!

(Read/Watch Time: 15 Minutes)

One of the single largest determining factors in your success as a personal trainer lies in getting a coach or mentor to help you when times are tough, or when you simply are at a crossroads in your career and don’t know what to do or how to take your business or income to the next level.

I personally have coaches and mentors and people that I bounce ideas off of all the time. Without them, I wouldn’t be anywhere near where I am today, or gotten there as fast.

In fact, every single successful entrepreneur has at least 1 and usually many mentors, including some of the largest names in business and marketing out there.

Not one successful business person has ever made it to the top without someone else helping them, showing them the way, pushing them when times were tough, or making that one killer suggestion, remark or introduction that forever changed their lives and businesses.

So too it must be in your personal training and fitness business.

If you don’t have mentors and coaches that push you to another level, you are taking the long slow road to success and might not ever get there at all!

A big part of what I try to do through System 5 and this fitness marketing blog is to show you how to properly market, position and grow your fitness business.

I guess you can say that I am like a mentor or coach to you too.

Whether you get continuing education, read books, watch TV or use some other form of learning, it is vital that you find others in your chosen field or profession that are where you WANT to be, and then COPY what they do.

Sometimes that’s easier said than done, but if you really respect someone and like what they do, you owe it to yourself and your livelihood to do everything in your power to contact them and learn from them.

With a Little Mentoring Laura Took Her Life To A Whole New Level

One of my coaching clients, her name is Laura Andolini, recently wrote a book that was published called “Diet Secrets of a Toddler” and is getting another one published as we speak!

I talked a lot in System 5 about Laura and how I helped her hone in on what she wanted out of life and was capable of, and trust me when I say, that this is just the tip of the iceberg for her.

In fact, not only has Laura written an actual physical book (yep not some ebook junk like some folks around here…ahem…), but she was also featured on a local morning news program talking about her new book.

This sort of exposure can’t be bought, and is priceless for marketing, social proof and getting your fitness business in the conscious awareness of the public.

Here’s the video:

I am super proud of Laura by the way.

She absolutely changed her life, her mindset, her peer group and did all the necessary things the she had to do to get to where she wanted to be in life.

Things that I told her to do because I learned them from someone else and applied them to my own life with great success.

This is how knowledge is passed on from one person to another.

When I first met with Laura, she didn’t quite know what she wanted to do (although being a personal trainer was on her “maybe” list) and so I took her on and tried to determine what really mattered to Laura, what she was passionate about, and how she could hone in on all of what was inside her heart to create a successful and thriving business, whether in health and fitness or something else.

Laura and I talked quite a bit and met in person, and as I got to know her, I realized that she DIDN’T want to be a personal trainer!

Shocking right!?

Well, not really…

The last thing I ever want for someone is for them to be “stuck” doing something that they don’t want to be doing.

I know what that feels like, and it was my job as a friend, teacher and mentor to help Laura figure out what she really wanted to be doing with her life and get there as quickly as possible.

Anything else would be selfish and unfair of me.

So what did we determine?

A few things:

• Laura didn’t want to be a personal trainer
• She did love inventing things in her spare time and submitting patents
• She LOVED cooking, being a chef and expanding her knowledge of food and food preparation
• She wanted to travel the world and use those skills for a blog, book or some other medium to share her experiences
• She wanted to do this with her son and share in the joys of motherhood

So what did we do?

Well, I showed Laura how and why to create a cooking for fitness website, which covered 2 of her goals in one shot and allowed her a platform as well to make some MONEY!

You can check our her website here: http://www.cooking-for-fitness.com/

Making money was on the list too by the way, it just wasn’t one of the reasons she got up in the morning.

But in order to do all of those other things, she needed more of the green stuff unfortunately!

So that’s where all of this ties in for you and your personal training business.

Sure, it’s all fine and dandy to get up each morning and make a certain kind of living, but is that what you consider LIVING?

In other words, when you look upon the vast landscape of your fitness business and see where it has been, where it currently is and where it is going, do you see a future in it for you?

Are you fulfilled with the vision that you see before you?

Or are you just feeling “stuck” and cornered almost as if there is no way out?

It’s Time To Escape!

If you look into your future and see something that you don’t like, then it’s time to start doing something about that right now!

Part of that entails getting, finding and surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals, like we have in the System 5 Inner Circle, that think like you, act like you, talk like you, and want the same things you want.

OR…finding NEW people that think how you WANT to think, act like you WANT to act, and are already doing and enjoying the things you WANT to have and are where you WANT to be.

Because guess what happens when you spend enough time around these sort of folks?

You become like them!

Now that can be a very good thing, or a very bad thing, depending on what types of people you are surrounding yourself with and what their ulterior motives are, but one thing is certain: You absolutely MUST find a mentor, coach — or at the very least — friends and colleagues that are willing to help you get somewhere new, or at the very least, people that are headed in the same direction you are so you can hop on that boat with them and paddle together towards your ultimate destination.

The Bottom Line

Success breeds success.

In order to get to somewhere you’ve never been before without years of hard work and trial and error, instead find a mentor, coach or respected colleague that can get you there much quicker.

Learn from other people’s mistakes, save time, and rocket your personal training, boot camp or fitness business to places where you expect it to be, but just haven’t had the guidance to get there yet.

Above all else, make sure that you get to where you want to be by surrounding yourself with and learning from those who play at what you have to work at.

These directories are patrolled and updated by human beings, unlike the search algorithms that are commonly used with most search engines, and therefore the big boys like Google, Yahoo and Bing often place a much higher value on links coming from directories.

This is especially useful to your fitness business because a link from one of these websites, both free and paid, can greatly increase your overall search engine “juice” and lead to higher rankings for all of your pages and the credibility of  your website, which leads to higher traffic and more clients.

In this post I’m going to explain why you need to submit your personal training,  boot camp or fitness business to these directories, which directories you should submit to, how long it will take for the results to show up, and how much it will cost you if anything.

Why Should You List Your Fitness Business in Directories?

Back in the “old” days of the Internet, there were no such thing as search engines.

Directories were where you went to find websites related to a certain topic or purpose.

These websites were vast resources of human edited links to websites all over the Internet.

The problem with this process was twofold: first it was time consuming as there are only so many humans to go around and verify that a website was legitimate, and two, the data was limited in reach and scope as only the very best websites that were deemed to have significant value were accepted into these directories.

The directories were snobby and oftentimes would exclude websites that they didn’t think were appropriate or good enough for their selection of sites.

On the flip side, there were some good things about the directories too in that usually the quality of the sites within them was very high and tended to correspond greatly with the category and focus that they were listed under.

The bad news was that niche and highly targeted websites (like yours and mine!) were often excluded leaving many users very unhappy with the overall results.

Those days of course are long gone as now a quick search in any major search engine (Google is by far the largest with about 70% of the market share), will yield you thousands of results in about 1 second flat.

But here’s where being listed in directories can help your fitness business search engine ranking and marketing strategy:

Directories are still in use today, not so much by normal people, but by OTHER search engines to determine which websites are the very best and are the most important.

In turn, if you are listed in these directories, Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Ask, and other search engines put a higher value on your personal training website because in order to be listed in them your website first had to be reviewed by a REAL LIVE human being.

Therefore, when it comes to your local personal training or fitness business, it is ESSENTIAL that part of your overall marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy revolve around spending a little time and yes, a little money, to get listed in these directories.

Being listed in a few choice directories can yield a great return on your investment as a result of the increased traffic, SEO lift and overall perceived quality of your website content which in turn will yield you all sorts of great things in return, not the least of which is more clients!

How To List Your Fitness Business In Directories

Getting listed in the major directories is not hard, but it can be a little time consuming, frustrating and expensive, not to mention take forever for your fitness business to actually show up in the results and propagate to other websites across the web.

This is where a real lag can develop as the actual time it takes from when you submit your website to when the search engine rankings increase can be a very long time.

Some directories are free, but VERY difficult to be listed in (humans are slow and picky!), while others like Yahoo! require a fee to review your listing BUT do not guarantee that you will be accepted!

In the case of the paid directories, if your website is reviewed but not accepted your money is gone and you do not get a refund.

Pretty sneaky huh?

So here’s the breakdown (in order of importance) of all of the major directories that you should be concerned with right now, how to submit your site to them and how much it will cost you if anything.

There are many more directories if you want to find them and spend time submitting to them, but the list below should be a great way to start and yield the best results for the time and money invested.

• Yahoo Directory: https://ecom.yahoo.com/dir/submit/intro

Yahoo is at the top of the list because it is probably one of the most influential directories for Google. (Cost: $299 to submit your website, then $299 per year recurring if it is accepted.)

• Google Directory/DMOZ: http://www.dmoz.org/add.html

The open directory project located at DMOZ.com is heavily used by Google for its own directory and search results. This directory might take 2-3 months for you to get listed in, but it is well worth it! (Cost: FREE)

• Best Of The Web (BOTW): http://botw.org/helpcenter/submitcommercial.aspx

Use this directory if you have a website and NOT a blog (see next listing for blogs). It is one of the most trusted directories out there and has been around for a long time. (Cost: $149.95 to submit your website, then $149.95 per year recurring if it is accepted OR $299.95 one-time fee.)

• Best Of The Web Blog Directory: http://blogs.botw.org/helpcenter/submitblog.aspx

This is the Best Of The Web directory for blog style websites. Please note that your site must have at least 6 months of content on it before it will be approved by this directory! Don’t lose your money because you didn’t read all the fine print! (Cost: $75 to submit your website, then $75 per year recurring if it is accepted.)

• Joe Ant: http://www.joeant.com/suggest.html

Joe Ant is lower on the list but still worth your time and energy since it is cheaper than other directories because they subsidize their revenue with advertising. (Cost: One time fee of $39.99)

• Gimpsy: http://www.gimpsy.com/gimpsy/searcher/suggest.php

Gimpsy has a few options for submission, but to nobody’s surprise, the best option is the most expensive! (Cost: 3 options ==> A: Free, can take up to 6 months; B: Standard, $29 one-time, no refund, limited promotion; C:  Premium, $49, one-time, partial refund ($20) if site is declined, strongest promotion within Gimpsy)

Important Guidelines for Submitting Your Personal Training Website

REAL IMPORTANT: There are a few critical elements that you should know BEFORE you submit your website to any of these online directories:

• Make sure your personal training or fitness website is finished and has a decent amount of GOOD to GREAT content on it: Directories absolutely hate when websites are under construction, have broken links or are otherwise substandard. Make sure that your website has at least 25-30 pages of unique content on it and has no broken links and pages that aren’t working right. Remember, humans are reviewing it, so make them love your site and they are more likely to include it in their directory!
• The fees that you pay are for your site to be CONSIDERED, NOT ACCEPTED: Your money is non-refundable in most cases, so if you pay the fee and they don’t like your site, that money is gone forever. Buyer beware!
• It might take awhile: It might take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months for your fitness website to start showing up either within that directory (usually a few days for the paid ones), or across the Internet. Be patient, and don’t resubmit your site to the free directories for at least 2-3 months or else you can be knocked down and delisted, or penalized.
• Read all instructions carefully and follow orders: The directories all have their own way of doing things. Take a few minutes to read their instructions in detail so that you don’t mess up your submission. This includes making sure that your description of your website isn’t overly promotional (they hate that!), that it is submitted to the correct category (they hate when it isn’t) and that you’ve done everything they have asked. Failure to do so could greatly delay your listing, or have it be denied entirely and lose your non-refundable submission payment!

Final Word On Directories

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, directories are a necessary evil when it comes to getting higher search engine rankings for our personal training websites and ensuring that your fitness business gets the highest possible quality scores from Google and the other major players for proper SEO.

You can submit your personal training  or fitness website to all the directories that I suggested in a few hours and to all of these directories at the same time (better have your credit card handy, and please read the fine print!), but it is something that you SHOULD do and the sooner the better because it might take months before you get noticeable traffic and measurable search engine ranking improvements from these efforts.

But your time will pay off as your business grows because you’ll start to rise in the search engine rankings automatically, receive higher organic placement for your content, and ultimately be rewarded with a more solid and successful web presence that will help you get new personal training or boot camp clients and add one more spoke to your fitness marketing wheel.

(Read/Listen Time: 15 minutes)

Have you ever wanted to run your boot camp or group personal training classes at a studio, gym or other facility but felt that it wouldn’t be a good fit for you or them because they also ran or hosted boot camp classes?

Well, today I wanted to share with you a special joint venture script and audio recording that I did where I not only show you how you can partner with ANY facility that already runs their own boot camp, but even have them run your boot camp for you!

I also go into how these types of deals — and what might at first appear to not be a good fit — are actually times when you need to dig deep, and rely on my 3 “P’s” for creating a successful fitness business and overcoming any obstacle that is in your way.

Here’s what’s in this post:

• How I use the 3 “P’s” (Passion, Persistence, Perseverance) in my personal training, boot camp, and fitness marketing businesses.
• A KILLER way that you can partner with a gym, health club, fitness center, CrossFit box or other personal training facility to run your boot camp or have THEM run your boot camp for you!
• A FREE, done-for-you, boot camp joint venture script to give you some ideas on how you can partner with local gyms and studios even if they already run a boot camp out of their facilities!

Securing a Boot Camp Facility Using the 3 “P’s”

I wanted to share a special audio recording where I talk about how I was able to close a deal for a location for my boot camp franchise at a facility that at first glance does not seem at all suitable for what I was trying to accomplish because of the fact that they already ran their own boot camps and ran them at the SAME times that I wanted to run mine.

This might seem like a total non-starter and a time when you would just say “move on” or “next”…

But that’s NOT the way I saw it.

Instead with the possible joint venture deals that I cam up with, in my mind I thought that they would be foolish NOT to take me up on my offer!

So I came into our meeting with a list of possible win-win solutions (7 total).

One of those options was to offer to train their boot camp classes for free and have their clients join our classes.

The facility then keeps 100% of the profits from those clients, while I still pay them a pre-negotiated amount of rent for the rest of the participants that we are bringing in.

Now you noticed what I did here?

This deal was all about creating VALUE for the facility owner and showing them how having us there would increase their revenue and value proposition while leveraging their facilities — not to mention allowing the owner more time off from training classes because we would be doing the heavy lifting for them!

Doing this deal, as well as other similar deals that may at first seem impossible, is all as a result of using what I call the 3 “P’s” which I use every single day in my personal training marketing,  boot camp marketing and when making deals for System 5

Listen in as I explain everything in this short audio post:

Click here to download the MP3

Special Notes:

• Be sure and pay attention to the  3 minute mark where I specifically talk about how I secured the deal with a fitness studio for my boot camp franchise when they already ran their own boot camps!
• At the 5:25 minute mark I talk about seeing how something CAN be done rather than why it can’t will serve you BIG TIME in your personal training business.
• At the 6:20 minute mark, I talk about how I am using this philosophy to secure some high level joint venture deals for System 5.

Special Boot Camp Joint Venture Script

I’ve also got something special for you today!

I am GIVING you my special joint venture script that I drew up for this special negotiation so that you can apply it to your own boot camp franchise or group training classes and secure a great facility that you really want to train out of.

Here’s the script (Just click to download)

The Bottom Line

After all is said and done, nobody is responsible for your success but you.

Being small minded and not looking at all the possibilities will never get you where you want to be in your personal training business.

What at first glance might seem like an obstacle or a non-starter is merely a small roadblock that you need to find a way around, not a permanent detour that is insurmountable.

When you approach a business to create a joint venture with them, always think about their needs first.

How can you help them personally?

How will your boot camp or personal training classes help them?

If they already have their own classes, what can you do to add more value to them, help them out, ease their burden, add value to their club or in some other way, add something of deep value to make their decision a no-brainer?

Look at the possibilities within your business, seek out the partners that you need to make it happen, and then NEVER take no for an answer!

Be creative, resourceful and passionate, and you will succeed whether you own a boot camp, train clients one-on-one or work for a gym or club.

Use your creative and dynamic voice to structure a win-win joint venture that will add tremendous ongoing value to that particular facility and get you one step closer to your goal of becoming financially free!

Without partnering with the right people and businesses, that goal becomes harder and harder to achieve.

Get to where you want to be quicker with the right joint ventures where everyone benefits and watch your fitness business explode.

I have something interesting, or rather gross — it all depends on how you look at it I guess — that I went through late last week.

I got braces…and had a front tooth removed.

And at the same time, I overcame a limiting belief in my mind about what that meant for me as a businessman, personal trainer, fitness business owner, and Internet marketer…

I mean, what would people think?

How would I talk?

How would my braces look?

All sorts of stuff was going through my mind, and none of it was EMPOWERING or REASSURING…

Rather it was all negative and counterproductive…

Well, I wanted to share a video with you about my journey on this little trip that I took through my own head, limiting beliefs, and how I eventually turned what could have been a very bad limiting belief and thought into action, power, and something very positive and that now I am extremely happy about.

I will warn you, there’s a really gross part in the video, but it’s rather short, and the rest is really fun.

Here you go:

Click here to view the embedded video.

So the next time you are looking at something in your life or fitness business — whether you are feeling intimidated because you’ve never run a boot camp before, or trained a client with a particular injury, or are nervous about going off  and starting a personal training business on your own — or something else in your mind focuses on the negative and stops you from doing what you know you have to do, remember that no matter what it is, all you have to do is reframe it and look at all the good that will come from that particular action or changing that negative thought into a more powerful and enlightening one.

I wasn’t too excited about getting my front tooth taken out and having a large gap in between my teeth, or my mouth being filled with wires for the next 2 years, but I turned it into some fun (sorry for the gross part in the video!) and can’t wait to show off my new mouth!

Click the banner to watch the video

If you’ve been following my blog and all of my mindset training for your personal training business for awhile now, you know that I am a big fan of Tony Robbins.

To me he is one of the most influential gurus that we have out there helping us overcome limiting beliefs and has inspired millions of people to change their lives and take action to get to where they want to be through a tried and true proven process that he developed through years of trial and error.

Tony’s passion for helping people live more fulfilling and passionate lives is so powerful that it exudes from every pore in his being, and is reflected in the way he does everything.

So today, because we all struggle with sticking to our true path in life, and sometimes we get derailed while trying to achieve what we really want for ourselves, I wanted to share a powerful video that is germane to us as personal trainers and for health and fitness in particular.

You’ll find out why in the video, so please take about 30 minutes of your day, sit down, relax and just enjoy a very motivating, powerful and inspirational video that will help to get your personal training, boot camp or fitness business mindset back on track and your career pointed in the right direction.

I learned a helluva lot from this video, and it really left me refreshed and renewed thinking about where things are headed with my own fitness marketing business, and I know it will do the same for you.

Here’s the video:

http://tonyrobbinstraining.com/468/new-year-new-life-2/

“Whatever you really want, wants don’t get met consistently, standards do.”

"...wants don't get met consistently, standards do."

While watching the video, there are several key points and takeaways that I thought were extremely useful that I have taken the time to write down here along with where they are in the video.

Below are all the awesome things that we can use towards helping us and our clients to lead more fulfilling and successful lives, along with where in the video you’ll find these tidbits (minutes:seconds).

Getting What You Want From Your Fitness Business Takeaways:

• 95% of those that have made a New Year’s Resolution have broken them by Jan. 15th.
• The secret to real happiness is progress. (2:30)
• Change is automatic (happens all the time all around us whether we like it or not), but progress is not! (3:20)

Here’s how you get what you want in life and in your personal training business:

• First, visualize what you are going to get, not what you’re not going to get. (An amazing body, rather than losing 10 lbs., or not being able to eat out or drink, etc.) It has to be a compelling vision that pulls you towards it, not something you have to push yourself to do. (4:46)

Most “resolutions” fail because they are built on willpower and willpower never lasts because it’s not coming from inside of you, your passion that compels you to do something

• Second, aside from the compelling vision, you have to have strong enough reasons to pull you through when the going gets tough. (6:30)
• Third, you have to review it and “feel” it everyday!

More Takeaways:

• Why the RAS (Reticular Activating System) finds exactly what you need when you’ve given yourself no other choice but to succeed. (8:48)
• To create ultimate improvement in your life, all you have to do is RAISE YOUR STANDARDS! (10:09) how and why…while you might not reach your goals, you’ll always reach your standards!
• Our standards are defined by how we identify and see ourselves. It determines our outlook, beliefs, actions and ultimate success. The way we see ourselves and identify who we are is how we approach life and how we act. (13:00)
• The elephant metaphor – how we are all bound by past beliefs. (13:50)

When was your “elephant” moment? Good and bad…when did you change an old belief and your life was never the same again? For me it was when I finally decided that I’d had enough of this sh*#, pardon my French of never making enough money or having the funds to make ends meet and slaving away as a personal trainer.

• A special message for us as health and fitness professionals and the clients we train: why we look like we do! How our outside is a reflection of exactly who we see our self as! If you see yourself as an athlete, you do whatever it takes to stay consistent with how you define yourself!  (16:00)

Working out has become a “must” for us, it has become our identity, and we don’t see ourselves any other way…the results we have gotten are from the rituals we have followed day in and day out.

• Money is the same way! (18:41)…you follow your standard for better or worse…if you feel you deserve $40 an hour, you’ll make exactly that! I decided I was worth $3,000 per month…then $4,000, then $5,000+! Then I still wasn’t happy, and knew I had to take it up to a whole new level because my standards, my “must” was much higher…I must become financially free…
• All the results in our life come from our rituals (21:58) It starts with your standard, and then your rituals follow it up…found out how.
• Success and failure are not giant events, they just don’t show up…instead they are a culmination of all the “little” things and the rituals that have defined you being done over and over that sometimes seem to lead to a “chance” event, or “luck” or  a “overnight success” but what it really was, was your hard work and determination and rituals being reproduced over and over to attain your standards!  Doing all the little things that lead you to that outcome…that’s where success comes from…(23:10)
• Great quote: “People are rewarded in public for what they’ve practiced for years in private.” (24:00)
• Where have we heard this before: (27:37) – “Who you spend time with is who you become”…your standards are lower because those you surround yourself with also have lower standards. You can make yourself look “good” and feel good if you find someone with a lower standard than you, but it’s an illusion, and never makes you feel truly fulfilled because you know you can do better.
• “It’s not what we get that makes us happy, it’s who we become, and what we’re able to give because we become more.” (30:35)

Action steps towards getting what you really want and improving an area of your life that you aren’t happy with:

1) Select an area of your life you would like to improve and describe what that area is like for you currently. Be Specific! Write down how it IS!

2) Write down the rituals that have shaped your current conditions in this area. Be honest!

3) Write down what you want. What’s your compelling vision. Be specific!

4) Write down the rituals that will get you there. What do you need to do differently each day to get what you want?

• Final quote: “Willpower doesn’t last, but rituals can last a lifetime!”
• Final, final quote: “There’s 2 kinds of pains in life: There’s the pain of discipline and there’s the pain of regret. Discipline weighs ounces, regret weighs tons.”

The Bottom Line:

As you can see from my takeaway list, this video, while short, is very long on content and powerful not just for finding out what really motivates us and makes us tick, but how to specifically address these issues head on and take our personal training and fitness businesses — and more importantly, our lives — to a whole new level.

I find myself reading these takeaways right now and being so inspired that I’m ready to run through a wall!

For that reason, I wanted to share this video message with you, and hope you get a lot out of it.

Here’s the video again:

http://tonyrobbinstraining.com/468/new-year-new-life-2/

(Read Time: 15 Minutes)

So I’ve got a small secret to share with you.

For the last 3 months or so, I’ve been heavily involved in a boot camp business franchise that I started with a business partner.

Why?

Because I wanted to get my feet wet and learn more about this particular side of personal training so that I could better serve you and give you some killer tips, tactics and methods specifically for boot camp marketing.

My goal is to start with one boot camp franchise, and then expand all over my local area with many locations (which should be YOUR goal too by the way!) and in the mean time, become a boot camp marketing master to compliment my knowledge of fitness marketing and personal trainer marketing.

I’m still out there collecting data, assessing what does and doesn’t work and refining all of my system and techniques, but today I wanted to pass along an amazing bootcamp marketing tactic that I just thought of and can’t wait to implement because it’s going to explode my business, and it’s going to do the same for yours!

This simple and powerful joint venture strategy is a an absolute fitness marketing gem that I bet you’re NOT doing if you own a boot camp or own your own personal training studio or gym.

In fact, I go into great detail in System 5 and on all my previous coaching calls and various blog posts — and especially in the Million-Dollar Fitness Marketing Mastery Series — about how joint ventures are critical to your success as a personal trainer, especially if you run a boot camp business.

So I wanted to take that notion to a whole new level today and share with you an amazing idea that should be worth literally thousands of dollars to you each and every single month if you do it right.

I’m talking about forming a joint venture with local hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts and other local places where people stay overnight whether for business or pleasure.

The Power of Hotels to Your Boot Camp Business

The power of forming a joint venture with local hotels can't be understated!

I’ll explain in a second exactly how this is done and how you should execute this fitness business strategy, but suffice it to say, when I thought this one through and realized how truly powerful it was and that it wouldn’t cost you a DIME in marketing expenses, it’s something that I had to share with you immediately.

So, if your boot camp is located anywhere near a hotel, motel, bed and breakfast or large chain resort that doesn’t have it’s own boot camp or group exercise class, even if they have a gym, then they are ripe for the taking with this powerful joint venture proposal.

The hotel should generally be within 1 mile — and perhaps up to 5 miles — away from your boot camp location because some or most guests, depending on where it is and what type of hotel and market it serves, might not have transportation to get to your boot camp.

But aside from the logistics for the guests, you are going to create a win-win scenario for the owner/manager of the hotel because you will be offering unlimited boot camp workouts for all the guests, and possibly the employees as well, for a small fee that in turn will bring you another stream of steady revenue while delivering amazing value to the hotel, their guests and their employees!

Here’s How You Work the Deal

So here’s what you’re going to do:

You’re going to contact the owner, manager, or CEO  (if it is a small local chain), and offer them a package they can’t refuse.

Tell them that your boot camp class is relatively close and you would like to offer every single guest that stays at their hotel the ability to workout in your boot camp and perhaps their employees as well.

There are several ways that you can market this to the owner or manager of the hotel to make it a win-win for both businesses.

Here’s 3 basic ways to structure the deal:

• Flat monthly fee: In exchange for a flat monthly fee, anyone that stays at that hotel can participate in any of your boot camps at any time, any location (although they will most likely stick to the one nearest them), as many times as they want.

So for instance, say you charge a regular client $197 per month for your boot camp classes, then all you do is charge the hotel $197 a month and any guest can come and workout as often as they want.

This should be adjusted based on the size of the hotel, how many rooms it has, guests that stay there, occupancy rate, etc. You need to work the numbers to make sure that it makes sense for you to even offer this to them, and also makes sense for them to work it in their budget on an ongoing basis.

You have to be fair to the hotel, but also your boot camp business as it wouldn’t be that great of a business arrangement if you get flooded by 100 new people for just $197, so play around with the numbers to make sure it’s a true win-win.

Either way, this is a powerful joint venture that can absolutely explode your fitness business and at the same time offers a great service to that hotel owner.

Think about the power of a deal like this for a second…

First of all, you know as well as I do, most hotel guests will NEVER use this offer and you are likely to never see more than 5-6 people in any one month, which is actually LESS than a single paying boot camp member who might attend 10-12 classes per month!

Second, once the hotel agrees to this arrangement, they are more likely to remain on board because for them, that expense is relatively small in relation to the service they are offering their guests, and because hotels are usually larger businesses, they are more likely to remain on EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer – for recurring billing) for a long period of time since they won’t be looking at their statement like a normal client would every single month asking themselves if they should keep paying because they aren’t using the membership.

Finally, it’s an absolute amazing option for anyone staying at the hotel whether for 1 night or 1 month because now they have access to an awesome boot camp workout for FREE that they can access whenever they want for as long as they stay at the hotel.

Do you think that a guest will appreciate that extra level of service, even if they never use it, and are more likely to stay at that hotel the next time they are in town?

This is an absolute win-win-win for all parties and could be an amazing boost to your boot camp marketing efforts — all for free!

• Flat monthly fee for guests and employees: The next option for this plan is to offer the owner or manager the option to extend the program to everyone associated with the hotel including employees, management and guests.

Because employees are more likely to take the business up on this offer and work out at your boot camp, this plan is obviously more expensive than just the guest option I already listed.

So for example, if you charge one client $197 per month for your regular boot camp, and then you charge the hotel that same amount for their guests to come, you would then increase the rate to extend the offer to their employees depending on how many people they have working for them.

If it is a small staff, then double should be fine.

But if it is a large chain with 500 rooms and a staff of 100 people, then you need to adjust your rates accordingly and charge closer to $997 a month for employees and guests to come and work out, likely much more!

Again, think about how this makes the hotel look good and benefits your fitness business.

You get a nice chunk of super high margin revenue for your boot camp business from just ONE deal without putting in any extra work or time or hiring any extra staff, the employees of the hotel in essence get a “wellness” program for free, the hotel guests get free access to a great workout and exercise program, and the hotel owner gets to sit back and offer this service to all of their guests through all their marketing and welcome packets, and update their website and branding with this special offer that no other hotel has.

• Other joint venture: If the owner or manager doesn’t have the authority to make a deal like this with your boot camp, or they aren’t interested in paying any money for it, you can still make a deal with them.

The final option is to run a true joint venture — where you give them something, and they give you something — and everyone comes out on top.

In fact being flexible with your fitness marketing and boot camp marketing initiatives is the key to building the spokes on your marketing wheel to gain more and more clients for your fitness business.

So in this scenario, there’s a few things that you can do to still enjoy the benefits of the hotel’s traffic and resources.

First, offer the hotel the option to have people come to your boot camp on a one-off basis.

This means that they can still host your advertisements (and even give guests a free gift certificate or flier for you) while not spending any money.

In return you get people coming to your boot camp and you can either charge the hotel on a person-by-person basis (messy), or just charge guests a $10-$20 fee for attending one of your classes (less messy).

Again the hotel looks good by providing the info for this class and service, while you get more clients for your boot camp classes and some might be local enough to want to join your boot camp or tell others about it.

Another option would be that you could offer to run a boot camp class in the hotel’s exercise area if it is big enough, or outdoors (less desirable) for guests that might be interested in exercising and doing a boot camp class while they are staying at the hotel.

This could work the same way as the previous joint venture deal in that you would either charge the hotel for those that attended (less messy) or charge the clients individually that attended (messy).

Obviously this last joint venture idea is nowhere near the beautiful and clean as the recurring cash flow revenue model in the first two, BUT a deal like this could lead to a longer term juicy contract with a chain once you’ve proven your concept and that demand is high enough.

Don’t Forget The Benefits!

I shouldn’t have to say this, but just in case I will.

All of your fitness marketing and boot camp marketing efforts, especially when it comes to joint ventures, should ALWAYS put the other party’s interests first.

In other words, what can you do for THEM to make them look good and help their business, their customers or make their lives easier.

When it comes to hotels, they are always looking for ways to differentiate their services and add more value to guests who come from far away places to relax, get away or are in town on business and would love the convenience of a nice 6 AM boot camp class to start their morning off right!

So when approaching these businesses please bear in mind that if you just come looking for a handout: “Hey, would you like to pay me for my boot camp classes?”, you aren’t going to get very far.

Instead look at if from their perspective:

They are busy, probably looking to actually cut costs, while at the same time raising their value to their guests.

How can you help them do that?

Paying for a fun, motivating and convenient boot camp might be especially valuable for a hotel without a gym in it that could increase their value to their guests without spending the thousands of dollars that it would take to build a gym or hire a trainer.

Research the hotels you contact before you contact them, call them and ask if they have an exercise room and if they do how big is it, ask them if they offer workout classes or wellness programs for their employees, and just make sure you do your due diligence before making a formal proposal or offer, including actually visiting the place a couple of times before you approach management with your proposal.

Please Don’t Steal This Idea…

LOL, I had to write that!

Why?

Cause I know the minute this gets out there, it will be on every fitness marketing, boot camp marketing and fitness business website in the world…

Just remember where you read it first!

Check the date of the post and then see when others have posted their awesome “hotel” joint venture idea.

I’m just kidding actually…if I was worried about someone “stealing” my idea, I wouldn’t have posted it of course.

My real goal is to help YOU if you own a boot camp business to learn a great strategy that you can use TODAY to start making an extra $1,000 – $5,000 a month in beautiful recurring cash flow!

Think about making just 2-3 deals with some local hotels for about $497 each on average.

With just 3 deals you’ll be earning an extra $1,500 a month,  or $18,000 a year, in your boot camp business without doing much work at all, and the amount of people that your classes gets from these deals might be very inconsequential.

Special Insider Info?

You’ve probably noticed the special “Insider” section on my website.

Well, this section is something that I’ve been working on for awhile now while trying to get a feel for what I should offer in it.

For instance, information like what I just gave you today is worth something right?

In fact it might be worth multiple thousands of dollars a month to your boot camp or personal training business.

And what if I gave you the proposals that you could use to make a deal or the legal documents to secure the contract with these hotels?

What about a script for when you call the hotels on the phone, or what to say in an initial and follow-up meeting with the manager or owner?

Would that help you out? Would it be useful to you?

What would you like to see in the insider section?

The reason I am asking is because the “Insider” section is yet to go live as I am struggling a bit with how much to charge (it would be a monthly recurring program) and what sort of information to put in this section that cannot be found anywhere else on my website or other websites.

Don’t worry though, if you have already purchased System 5, you’ll get complete access to all of this information for at least 3 months if not more so I’ve got you covered there.

But what I wanted to do was offer a lower cost solution to those that might not be able to afford System 5, or the monthly cost of the Inner Circle, or the Million-Dollar Fitness Marketing Mastery Series.

So, in the comments section below, I would love if you could do me a favor and tell me your thoughts on all of this.

Tell me specifically:

• What sort of information you would expect in a special “Insider” section on my blog and
• How much you think that information is worth to you on a monthly basis

What I will do as a special “thank you” is select 10-20 responders randomly when the “Insider” section is ready to launch, and give you a free membership for 3 months just for taking your time to write me your thoughts.

Boot Camp Business Marketing

So, there you have it.

A quick way to grow your boot camp business through some shrewd fitness marketing and joint venture deal making that won’t cost you a dime to execute but could be worth thousands of dollars for your boot camp business!

I hope that you got a lot out of this special boot camp marketing post as I’ll be posting this type of stuff more frequently as I get my own boot camp franchise ramped up and start perfecting more fitness marketing, boot camp marketing and overall fitness business initiatives to help you out whether you own your own personal training studio, train clients one-on-one or run a boot camp.

Don’t forget to leave me your comments below letting me know:

• What sort of fitness marketing information you expect in a special “Insider” section on my blog and
• How much you think that information is worth to you on a monthly basis

Oh, and real quick, come back to this post once you’ve done a deal or two and let me know what results you have gotten from using this technique and what did and didn’t work for you.