Yes, I am speaking to a group of high school students about life.

About the expectations that adults mistakenly project on them sometimes, but how they can take responsibility for their own lives and re-create expectations for themselves.

Doesn’t that sound like something your clients may need to hear?

That no matter how many cool exercises, training methods or PB’s you help them aspire towards, if their own internal compasses are not set with the expectations that are required for them to make the wholesale changes they’re looking for, no amount of training magic is ever going to be enough.

That no matter how society has decided to view them, the way they choose to view themselves as vastly more important.

Do your clients take responsibility?

Do you?

16 years in the fitness industry and I can tell you without question that this may have been the very best lesson I ever learned….

I am writing this per the request of Sam to share my story. The dates, numbers and specifics are to the best of my recall and are ROOTED IN FACT.

There has been much discussion about ethics and integrity in the fitness business arena for many months to many years. I personally cannot substantiate all of the claims (well over 100 I’ve heard/read myself) but I have no reason to disbelieve them either.

Many people have asked about my prior association with, let’s just call him “B”.

This is my “ethics-lacking encounter(s)” with “B”….

Back in 2006, when the Fitness Business Summit was just an idea, I was involved from its inception.  I am not claiming I came up with the idea or had ownership.  I did not.  However, I was intimately involved with many, many aspects of its launch and facilitation.

I learned a lot from the experience.  I learned that all though my intentions were always good, I came across arrogant to some.  I think I was.  Stupid, yet, it was true. It was a great lesson and the beginning of a dramatic and important shift in my thinking and my life.  The rest I owe to my wife Kelli who has enhanced my life a great deal.

I also could have done a better job with email blasts to promote the event. My staff was to handle it and did not complete all tasks. However, I own the company and have to assume responsibility.  I do.

I don’t recall exactly, but just before or just after the FBS event, we decided to put on “The OC Fitness Expo”  - a consumer health and fitness expo at the fair grounds here in Orange County.  B had the job of getting all of the corporate sponsors. That money was to be used to fund a good portion of the event.  My jobs was to secure vendors, speakers and work with the fair grounds. I don’t remember who handled the web site.

The time came to pay the fair grounds for the lease for the space. I had collected about $15,000 or so from vendors as a deposit so they could exhibit their goods/services.

The specific number eludes me.  However, because B had secured ZERO SPONSORS and apparently had done no work at all on the project, but wanted to go forward, we had to pay the fair grounds to keep the deal alive. The belief by all was that sponsors would be acquired.

Weeks before the event, it became obvious there were no sponsors, no money, and we were in trouble. Due to the agreement with the fair grounds, we could not get the deposit back.  Believe me, I tried, I tried, I tried.  No luck.

So, now we could not go on with the event and the money from the vendors was gone.

I felt terrible. I thought, “what where we going to do?“

So, I called B and asked, “What should we do to make this right for everyone?”

His reply was quick and certain.  He said, and I quote, “Fuck them! I’m twice removed”.

Let me explain what that means. When we formed the new company for the expo, each of our companies owned 50% of the new company.  That means when a company owns another company, the owner of the first company is personally removed from financial responsibility from the second.

So, “legally” he/we/I did not owe anything to anyone.  “Ethically” it’s completely different. Ethically we owed a lot to the vendors.

After he said that, we never spoke again. I paid back the vendors out of my own pocket. Why? Integrity, ethics, morals and doing the right thing.  Did I miss anything?

In the recent past, our Adventure Boot Camp owners were “solicited” to jump ship and try his boot camp “system”.  By “system” I am referring to what others have called “egregious ethics violations”.

Yes, it’s a free country and we are all entitled to make a living and get customers.  No doubt.  I won’t go into the ethical details.  Let’s just say the tactics used to lure owners gave people a good case of “the creeps”.  Their words, not mine.

To, you, the reader and the fitness pro, I want to leave you with a few questions, rather than making a declaration…

Why do you think that the vast majority (bordering on all) of the top fitness business and marketing experts in the world no longer associate with B?  Why?  Why would that happen? Why are their blog posts all over the web telling self-described horror stories of tactics/ethics used by B?  Why? Why have so many of the industry’s “leaders” decided to work together to serve the industry (you) with one obvious exclusion? Why?

PS – Fact/Truth is the best defense

Dr. John Spencer “JSE” Ellis
www.JohnSpencerEllis.com

The difference between “love” and “like” can be subtle. One day you could be best friends with someone and the next day you find yourself wondering, “How can I live without this person?” In the fitness world, someone who likes your brand will come back to you each week, put in their workout, go home and not really think twice about it. Yet, someone who loves your brand will become your good ambassador – a walking billboard who shares his or her experience of your brand with friends, family and even random people on the street! Here are 10 ways to make your clients fall in love with you (without using voodoo magic!)

1. Innovate. Push the boundaries of what everyone else in the industry is doing. If the guy down the street gave his clients free smoothies one day, take your clients out to dinner. If another boot camp has created an outdoor obstacle course, make yours better. Do things that no one else is doing. Offer webinars, grocery store tours, and invitations to local community-sponsored events — and transform your little studio into a social club.
2. Be A Trusted Authority. Keep up your community appearances and keep those press releases coming! Conduct studies, write books and attend industry events. Pursue greater certifications and try to win awards. You want to see and be seen virtually everywhere to drive up your star power. Your clients will feel special knowing that their trainer / boot camp operator is a well-respected authority on fitness.
3. Over-Deliver. Few things drive turnover more than overpromising and under-delivering. Clients leave in droves when they feel they aren’t losing weight or achieving their goals, as advertised. You want to make sure your clients set realistic goals, have realistic expectations, lose their 1-2 pounds per week and feel like you provide more value than they could ever repay.
4. Offer Confidence. Many clients come to a trainer for moral support, motivation and positive attitude. A person with confidence and a pleasant demeanor can be very infectious! Your clients will love — not only how you shape their bodies with your workouts — but how you shape their mental state and attitude as well. Look for inspirational music, quotes and merchandise to enrich the lives of those you touch.
5. Create Community. In the past, people went to their local athletic club – not so much to lose weight – but to socialize with their neighbors and meet other like-minded people who cared about leading long, healthy lives. Try to restore that sense of community by creating a program that involves teamwork and group activities – both inside and outside the gym.
6. Customize. People love solutions that are tailored to the individual. We offer one-on-one time with a certified nutritionist where we write up custom meal plans based on a person’s goals, preferences, and medical history. People LOVE this! During classes, walk around and give people pointers on form or explain how an exercise may be modified to be easier or more challenging. When you create your promotions, make ones targeting specific groups – like a “6-Week Bikini Beach Bod” class or a six-month “Goodbye Baby Bump Boot Camp.”
7. Add Value. People love freebies, whether it’s a t-shirt, a chair massage, or a smoothie. This adds value to the experience. You’ll want your terms, conditions, guarantees and pricing to be straight-forward and seemingly low for all the value you’re giving people.
8. Hire A Talented Staff. It’s not the building that makes your brand: it’s the people. If you take time to hire right, compensate fairly and share your company culture with your team, it will pay dividends!
9. Be Empathetic. Use your social media network to reach out to clients. Have quick solutions to all their problems. Deliver answers to all their questions. Back up your promises. Email to say you’re thinking of your boot campers. Ask individuals how their day is going. Spend each day asking yourself, “What more can I do for my friends?”
10. Conjure Magic. Run promotions that are truly exciting. You want people to feel as though they are winning the lottery. You don’t have to give out a million dollars to drive enthusiasm through the roof. Partner with others to secure grand prizes – vacations, cars or gift cards. Give people cash or free services for every referral. Show people why working-out with your brand is an out-of-this-world experience!

Once you have a base of clients who love you, amazing things will happen for your business. You will have high retention numbers, more paid-in-fulls, more referrals, and a passionate group of supporters who make you feel truly blessed every single day. The happier they are, the happier you are. In this world, you get back what you give!

Launching a fitness business is terribly exciting at first. Your dreams of earning tons of money and flexing your creative muscle to create a unique brand will take you pretty far. Yet, soon you find that money and time are in short supply. Suddenly, your dream turns into a nightmare where you feel you no longer have control over your life. There are five tricks to ensure your fitness business launches without a hitch and that you are still in the driver’s seat.

How can you tell if your marketing efforts are working? Luckily, online marketing is very easy to measure. Track at least five sources of leads. Some examples of Key Performance Indicators you may track include: new customers acquired, client turnover, the number of paid-in-fulls you receive, and how much each client is spending.

If you want to transform your desires into action, you must first set short and long-term goals. They need to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. You’ll want to ask yourself questions like: What do I want to accomplish? When do I want to accomplish it? How can I measure my progress? What smaller steps can I take to get there? Do I have the skills needed to achieve my goals? Is it possible to achieve these goals?

Rather than operating by the seat of your pants, you need to have systems in place and a daily list of tasks you must achieve. Every night before you go to sleep, decide what you will do the following day to get closer to your goals. This exercise helps you be more disciplined in everything you do.

Holding weekly planning sessions helps you maintain consistency and ensure that everyone in your crew is on the same page. This meeting should be 1-3 hours and should include assessments of how well the team did at working toward group goals. You can also brainstorm new directions and promotions for the coming week.

No matter how much you think you know, you can always learn more. What separates a person making $20K from a person making $2 million is often their level of intellectual curiosity. The multi-millionaire is never satisfied with his level of education or networking. He knows he can always push himself a little harder and do a little more. Read books, go to industry events, sign up for webinars, take business coaching calls, and attend masterminds. You will be amazed at how things begin to fall into place once you start assembling new pieces of the puzzle.

If you’re designing a boot camp workout program then you want to make sure that it’s as safe, productive, and entertaining as possible for your clients. That’s not always as easy as it sounds but it’s definitely important. In order for your clients to get the most out of your program you might need to do some creative organizing on your part.

The following are the top 6 common boot camp workout mistakes that you should avoid and why you should stay away from them. By avoiding them, you can create a healthy, fun, and productive environment for your clients to exercise in.

Before I get into the top 6 I will emphasize that NOT PLANNING is the Number 1mistake with planning a bootcamp as well as planning a bootcamp program as I have mentioned in previous articles.

1. Not warming up.Duh! Even though you are optimizing workout time for your clients you still need to provide a warm up time. When you don’t provide a warm up time for them, it can cause possible injury. Injuries aren’t good for the client but they aren’t good for your business either. Muscles need adequate time to warm up, especially considering the intensity of the boot camp exercises.
2. Not cooling down. Likewise, muscles also need the chance to cool down at the end of the workout. You can’t just simply stop cold and let everyone leave. There has to be a gradual cooling down period just as there is a warm up period. Cooling down should exist of slow breathing and stretching. Not stretching after an intense workout will cause stiffness and sore joints.
3. Not paying attention to detail. Even boot camps can get in a rut. If it’s not working and your clients don’t seem to be into the workout then it’s time to change things up. Try to get a feel for what your clients like and don’t like and tweak the routine accordingly. Pay attention to the type of clients attending the class and what their ultimate goals are! There’s a big difference in the outcome of your clients when they are bored during a workout versus being stimulated and energized.
4. Doing too much too fast. A good trainer will be able to gauge their clients and how much they can actually handle. Asking them to do more than they can actually do can be dangerous and lead to injury. This is particularly true when it comes to weight training but can be true where cardio is concerned as well. It’s your job as their trainer to understand and know their potential and limitations. Use this to your advantage.
5. Not mixing it up. A good fitness boot camp will have a mix of cardio and strength training exercises. Try to have a combination of both so that your clients are able to get a full body workout. This is one of the main reasons why they sign up for a fitness boot camp to begin with. You want to keep clients moving, motivated and energized so they burn the most calories possible in the 50 minute session. Don’t do the same thing every single time; change it up a little and always add variety.
6. Not providing motivation. In a good boot camp, you want to keep your clients moving at all times. That’s one of the great selling points about a boot camp is that clients are constantly on the move, burning the max amount of calories. But what keeps the clients going besides the music and the person behind them? YOU, the trainer. When you keep yourself involved and motivating the clients they feel they can push a little more and do 5 more reps or 2 more burpees and when they do they get a rush to do even more. Motivation goes a long way. It helps the 50 minutes fly by like it was 30. Motivating your clients is good for client retention and referrals. They want a trainer that is into what they’re doing.

Many of these mistakes can be avoided with proper planning. When you start designing your boot camp you will want to create some sample itineraries and plan them accordingly. You might also want to carry them out yourself to see if they work before you put any potential clients through them. Once you carry the exercises out, you’ll be able to see if there is anything that needs tweaking before you get any warm bodies in them.

Above all, a boot camp should be exciting and stimulating while still providing a high quality workout. Your clients are there to get in shape but they want an engaging experience, too.

Georgette Pann: owner of NutriFitness Personal Training Studio and Bootcamps. She is author and creator of the best selling “Sure VictoryFitness Bootcamp Kit” and “Sure Results:The Ultimate Book of Bootcamp Workouts”

As you may have noticed, Facebook “screwed up” your social media page. Suddenly, your information may look chaotic and the beautiful page you went through great lengths to design has been obliterated. While the changes may seem egregious at first, take a deep breath and keep in mind that this design is meant to help you. The popularity of sites like Pinterest, SlideShare, Instagram, Flickr and YouTube confirms that fact that people are looking for VISUAL content that they can share with their friends. Written content is still important for search engine optimization, but it’s the photos, videos, coupons and visual items that people want to share with their friends. Here is a quick guide to the new Facebook Timelines for fitness professionals.

New Features

• The Cover Photo: You will now have to create an 851 x 315 pixel banner ad to display across your screen.

 Zumba Fitness used a crowd of enthusiastic exercisers to build hype for their brand.

Bally’s Atlantic City used an attractive cityscape to show off their impressive exterior.

Finest Fitness wants to show people what they can do in their sports club.

Wild Iron Gym wants to show off their weight room.

Buffalo Athletic Club has a colorful photo that shows off their demographic.

• Profile Picture: There is also a spot for a small thumbnail-sized profile picture that shows up along with the larger cover photo. This is a good place for your company logo!

• Apps: You will also need to organize the tabs (called “apps”) that appear just under your cover photo. You can feature up to 12 apps on your profile, but the first four are the most visible and most important. You may feature Photos, Contests, Coupons, Likes, YouTube Videos, Maps, the About page, or another app.

• Star, Hide & Pin: You can then determine the importance of your recent posts. You can pin one important announcement to the top of your screen for up to 1 full week. This will always stay at the top, so it’s great for advertising a promotion or issuing an important reminder. You can star messages that are important to give them more real estate and increase their prominence so everyone sees. You can also hide items from your Timeline.

• Enable Messages: Now people can message you directly, which is especially good if you had a lot of haters on your page or people cluttering up your feed with questions. This feature allows you to talk with others, without making your conversations so public.

• Milestones: You can feature milestones and go back in time to make posts based on important events. Many users will find your brand’s history very interesting, especially if you fill it with neat photos and amusing descriptions.  Keep in mind that milestone images are set at 843 x 403 pixels.

Best Practices

-          So, to make the best use of your new Facebook Timeline, you will need to start publishing more photos and visual content. Facebook studies show that photos create twice the engagement as text posts, so be sure to show off your facility, your team and your testimonials. You might want to find a firm that can make charts and infographics for you to add to the visual nature of your page.

-          Don’t forget to customize your Apps images so they look good. You can do this by clicking “Apps” and then “Edit Settings.” Your image should be 111 x 74 pixels.

-          Make sure you pin a new promotion every week or so to control the information flow and drive sales. If you have another call-to-action you would like to feature for more than a week, you may use the apps section to do so. For example, some people have created apps encouraging people to sign up for their newsletters or register for their upcoming nutrition seminars.

-          Post multiple times per day. In the past, people were adverse to brands that “cluttered” their news feeds. However, that has all changed with this new layout. You can literally post every hour and attract a whole new set of eyeballs.

The Bottom Line

Do not fear change. It has already come and there is nothing we can do about it – except adapt! While you are bound to hate Timeline at first, you may actually grow to like it. Social media gives us a unique opportunity to feature different types of content that people can digest and share with others – whether it’s an infographic about nutrition, a humorous video of your grocery store tour mascot, or a picture of your clients’ latest transformations.

We’ve come a long way from the days of direct mail catalogs, letters and infomercials. Today’s main marketing tools include mobile messages, email marketing and website creation. Yet, not everything from “the olden times” should be forgotten. There are a few core marketing rules that every fitness marketer should know.

According to the 40/40/20 Rule, 40 percent of your campaign’s success is due to the audience, 40 percent is due to the offer or product, and 20 percent is due to your creativity. This rule has been tested, tried and true since the 1960s. Often you will find it’s just a matter of getting the right message to the right person at the right time. Design, colors, fonts and medium are all important, but they take a backseat to your pitch and how ready your prospect is to buy.

When was the last time the prospect bought from you or bought this type of service? How often have they purchased this service? How much money have they spent? By assessing this formula, you can prioritize your leads. Consumers who bought recently, who buy often and who spend a lot are obviously your top tier people. Keep in mind that not all exercisers are created equal. You want to find the ones who will stick with your program for life, not just the ones who are in it to lose a quick 10 pounds.

The 80/20 Rule is also sometimes called “the Pareto Principle,” named after its founder, Vilfredo Pareto, who came up with the observation (back in 1900) that 20 percent of the population of Italy owned 80 percent of the land. In business, you will see that 20 percent of your clients generate 80 percent of the revenue for you. This rule also applies to social media in that 80 percent of your posts are read by 20 percent of your audience. Nurture this minority. They are your bread-and-butter.

AIDA is the path people take before buying. First, you attract someone’s Attention with your creative message. Then you pique their Interest by explaining the benefits and solutions. Next, you create Desire by persuading the individual that your solution is the right one. Lastly, you inspire Action by making the purchase as easy as possible.

When you are testing promotional offers, you will find that enticing people with a dollar amount for savings resonates much better than a percentage. A promotion that claims to be “10 percent off” or “50 percent off” just screams out “scam” for some odd reason. The prospects just presume you have a huge markup and are not really offering anything special at all. When you tell people they receive “$100 off” your boot camp program, it sounds like they are getting a much, much better deal.

Now that you’ve brushed up on these timeless marketing rules, you’ll be ready to knock em dead with your next promotion. Remember that not all prospects are created equal and that the minority rules. Keep in mind there is a process that buyers most go through and that people generally like to do as little math as possible. In essence: keep your marketing simple, but effective!

If Lady Gaga were a fitness trainer, you can be rest assured she’d be banking serious cash. Even though she is obviously an eccentric, she has built an appealing brand that brings her close to $100 Million every year. She grew up the daughter of wealthy internet entrepreneurs, but she decided to carve her own niche in music without her parents’ help. It took years of waitressing and dancing in cabaret clubs before she was signed with Def Jam Records – and later, Interscope Records. Now her 60+ million record sales have put her in a category with Enya, Def Leppard, Green Day and Kenny G as one of the best-selling artists of all time. Fitness trainers can learn a lot from the way Lady Gaga approached her burgeoning career.

First, trainers should be themselves. I always tell people that we are in the business of “personality marketing.” If you’re an outgoing and charismatic “people-person,” you will do well in this industry. If your clients look forward to your funny jokes, your warm-hearted dialogue and thoughtful advice, then you are likely to keep the same people for years and spend very little on marketing. Gaga has a rabid following because she is a very different type of personality. People view her as a very genuine person who just does as she pleases, rather than trying gimmick after gimmick. Likewise, you should focus on providing the best service, rather than claiming to be the “#1 fitness studio” or promising to help people lose 10 pounds a week.

Telling your story is just as important as living it. You can be authentic all day long, but if you can’t convey who you are to others, then it won’t matter. Lady Gaga has created a following by sharing her story about being picked on as a child for the way she looked and acted. She has been a very vocal supporter of everything from gay rights to bullying and, therefore, she has picked up droves of followers who embrace her message to “just be yourself.” As a fitness business owner, you probably have an important life story that others can relate to. For example, many trainers were once overweight themselves and found their inspiration to train through the process of working with another trainer to lose the excess fat. Other trainers may have come from another country or an impoverished background and became a self-made success story. Use your “About” page, your email marketing, your blog, and other marketing avenues to share your story with others and earn loyal supporters for life.

Lastly, you need to be accessible. How successful would Lady Gaga have been if she only released studio albums and never toured, never updated her social networking pages, and never released merchandise? Instead, she posts to her Twitter and Facebook five times a day, sharing her causes, photos, videos and thoughts. She interacts with her fans (whom she lovingly calls her “little monsters”) directly as often as possible. Similarly, your fitness business must become an empire. Instead of just marketing to people, offer them tips they can use, free e-books, gifts, money off your services and other special perks for being part of your community. Make your fitness club a starting ground for a community of people who are dedicated to leading fit and healthy lifestyles.

You may not have elaborate costumes like Lady Gaga when you’re running your fitness classes, but you can still inspire crowds with your bold personality, your benevolent nature and your passion for people. Create your brand and share yourself with the world. You just may be surprised at how eager people are to accept your offering.