Why do Personal Trainers Fail? Unfortunately, the reality is not everyone will make it in this industry. Actually, that’s an understatement – 90% of PTs won’t be able to generate sufficient income to support themselves from their coaching business.
As a coach you should always ask yourself this question; have I tried everything to succeed as a trainer and business owner? We created Hapori Coach to help coaches have a better business structure, system and organisation in place, however it’s down to you to maintain your business’s growth and success to become the best it can be.
Below are some key things that will prevent you from doing this:
Failure to plan – where do you want to get to?
Planning helps a business identify its goals. Having a clear plan for the future allows a business owner to understand clearly where they want to be and the path to get there. When you set clear milestones and goals, you can work toward an outcome and have clear purpose. If you want 30 clients, firstly you must learn how to get one, retain them, and then continue to grow your customer base day by day. Here you need data, such as how many people do I need to speak to to get one customer, and how many emails do I need to send to make a package sale to my prospects. Action makes things happen, and volume creates opportunity. Furthermore, PTs are commonly a one-man team, being not only the service provider, but also the manager and marketer of your business. Therefore, the solution is planning ahead and being realistic about your schedule. If you’re going to use an assistant, make sure they are skilled in the same areas as you so that there are no mishaps with training or marketing materials. It is also crucial to maintain energy levels by eating well, getting enough sleep, and staying healthy – walk what you talk!
Bad Time Management
If you don’t know what you want to achieve, then you won’t know where to focus your time. When a plan isn’t in place, coaches often waste time on tasks that bring little or no added value to the bottom line. This links to the previous point; good planning allows a coach to determine which actions are most important and necessary, allowing for effective time allocation to complete the most important stuff. For example; how many posts have you posted on Instagram and how many clients have you generated from the work involved – was it worth it? Focus your time on the right stuff, which are the things that will generate income and help you hit your goals.
No Financing
If you want to succeed in business, expect to invest and spend money. While starting out with nothing is possible, growing your way up would be difficult, and finding momentum will be slow. Don’t be afraid to borrow money. With a good business plan, you can get a business loan from your bank. Even a few hundred pounds will help you get your basic marketing assets set up so you can position your business in front of people who might buy from you.
Offering clients the wrong packages & services
Are you a specialist or a generalist (neither is right or wrong here)? It is essential for a successful business to understand who your demographic are in order to offer clients what they need. If the gym is full of over 50’s then Powerlifting may not be the right option! Nobody buys something they don’t need, therefore to succeed you must identify your clients issues and offer solutions.
Failure to Pivot
Failure to Pivot is the inability to adapt to changing times, therefore it is crucial to keep monitoring current fitness trends and capitalise on them. For example, fitness programs that work in one decade (like counting calories) may not be relevant to the next. A successful PT will review their methods regularly and stay ahead of trends by always researching new ways to motivate clients and get them the results that they see value in. Today, to pivot means to take your business online as we adapt to the global changes we’re currently facing.
Stopped educating themselves
For many PTs, qualifying is the end of their learning journey. To grow you must keep your knowledge up to date. Being up to date will help you to deliver a better service and increase your customer base. As well as expanding your fitness knowledge, you will also have to keep learning about business, marketing and sales to build your company. For example, knowing how to promote your business and how to engage customers is essential for anyone willing to scale a coaching business.
Provided really terrible customer service
As a coach you will face fierce competition, thousands of new coaches graduate every month and each of them wants to be successful. One of the most essential skills for a personal trainer is listening to their customers. Personal training is one of the most customer-centric jobs you could do so listening to your clients is paramount. If you are unable to provide great customer service you are in trouble – your clients are not only the lifeblood of your fitness business but they’re also your biggest marketing asset. It is so much harder to gain a new customer than it is to retain one. Great service means you will receive repeat business from your clients over and over again. So, question your clients often about what they like, what they don’t like, and what they need help with. Then, use this information to make necessary changes to your business and also as ammunition for your blog posts and social media posts.
They are not likeable, even arrogant
Make yourself likeable. Some coaches just have ‘it’ – everyone around them seems to like them and it is hard to resist the charm. I’m sure you know at least one coach just like this. If you are not naturally likeable you need to work on it. You should start with your communication and people skills – improving in these two areas will automatically make you more likeable.
Had poor communications skills
Solid communication skills are crucial. You need to work on the frequency and tone of your communication and its clarity. You need to be able to approach people in a friendly yet professional manner in order to build relationships and make people aware of who you are and what you do. Communication is essential in face to face actions, but also your written language must be grammatically correct and coherent. Social media is also a great way to communicate with clients, and it is essential that your content is interesting and engaging.
They are lazy in business
Too many new coaches expect great results without putting any real graft in. They are not willing to hustle. They are not ready for a challenge. At the very start, you will need to get out of that comfort zone and do the stuff others are not willing to do. You need an entrepreneurial “go get ‘em” attitude to succeed.
They don’t work smart and don’t embrace change
Hapori Coach is a prime example of working smart. Clients get a personal service that includes: better organization, professional invoicing, daily updates on sessions left, offers, email marketing, personal session reminders, the ability to reschedule themselves, and much more. Our coaches pay a few pounds per week to save 100s of hours each year.
Hapori lets clients pay through the software, loads up their account and sends them a receipt for each payment. It also loads all this into the PT financial section for month-end, year-end accounting. This saves this coach hours and hours each month. That’s working smart!
Being a personal trainer, much like any small business owner, can be prone to making mistakes. We hope this article will help you avoid some of the most common pitfalls. Remember: Success is not impossible!
Read Also: 5 Top Tips for Building A Successful Online Program
