As a personal trainer you know that if you don’t work out, you usually feel like crap. Well, the good news for marketing yourself as a personal trainer is that there is some scientific research that backs the aforementioned un-scientific statement and you can use that to get in front of lots of potentially great clients.

The scientific stuff, which was even covered by an article in Forbes, goes something like this:

• Businesses are more profitable when workers are more productive;
• Employees that workout are more likely to be productive because they have greater energy levels as well as higher self-esteem. These healthy employees take fewer sick days, have lower absenteeism, and cost the company less in health care costs, all things that lead to money saved for the business;
• Thus, companies that encourage or offer employees fitness programs can benefit from increases in productivity, lower costs, and ultimately profitability.

This stuff practically sells itself if you know who to sell it to. Guess what? I’m going to tell you who to sell it to (hint: here’s where your local Chamber of Commerce fits in).

A great place to sell the idea of employee group fitness packages is at a place where business owners congregate. One of the first places that comes to mind is the local Chamber of Commerce (although you can approach any other organization that may have business owners).

I know what you’re saying, “Aren’t Chambers the types of places where realtors and florists go to try and get business?” Well, yes, but you are smarter than that because you’ll make these people want to come to you rather than you having to awkwardly try to shake a million hands to hunt down the decision-makers and tell them about your great employee productivity/profitability idea

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Here’s what you do (assuming you are a member of the organization you are going to approach):

• Contact your local Chamber of Commerce (do a Google search “[city] Chamber of Commerce”) and visit the About or Board of Directors page to track down the contact information for the President or Executive Director. You may even want to call the general number to see who the appropriate person to speak with might be.
• Next, tell them that you want to host a workshop on “How Group Fitness Programs can Increase Company Profitability”

Hell, let’s make this easy for you. Here’s a script you can use:

Hello Director Gluteus,

I’m a new Chamber member, and I’d like to get more involved within the organization. I’d like to hold a workshop at the Chamber offices on the topic of “How Group Fitness Programs can Increase Company Profitability.” This is a research-backed topic that shows how an investment in fitness programs for employees results in increased employee productivity and profitability.

Please let me know if this is something that you think the members would be interested in attending and I can provide more details.

Regards,

Personal Trainer Bob

Now that you’ve gone directly to the source and asked for their help in organizing an event that benefits their members, you’ll probably get a resounding “yes” for your request. Now you’ll have to begin to put together your presentation you built up so much.

Using the following studies (A, B, C, and D) as reference points, create a PowerPoint presentation that hits the following points:

• Uses science to show how fitness results in decreased absenteeism, increased productivity and profitability.
• Shows them your recommendations for group fitness programs that meet your criteria for helping employees stay physical fit (for example, twice a week sessions).
• Shows them that you have already created an amazing program that they can enroll their employees in today!

Now, the Chamber is useful because they will market your workshop for you. To give them a proper nudge, request that they send out the news about your amazing workshop to their entire email list as well as their social media networks. 

Also, make sure you emphasize that the workshop is for business owners or decision-makers so these type of people show up. The email will likely also attract general personal training clients as well and that ain’t a bad thing!

To take it a step further, try to mention in the marketing that space is limited and that the follow up email should say “only a few seats left” or something like that that showcases demand for your workshop. Get a list of all the attendees before or after the workshop so you can follow up on your own and thank them for attending.

Chamber memberships are around $500/year (give or take) so if you get just one client it is likely it will pay for itself.