How to prioritise which marketing channels to use for your PT business

Standing out in the competitive world of personal training means choosing the right marketing channels. Great marketing is how you connect with customers who want and need what you offer. By prioritising the right channels, you can use your valuable time wisely and snag clients who will rapidly shape the growth of your PT business.  

But how do you select the right channels? Remember that your marketing strategy should always be aligned with your business goals! Do you want to improve your brand presence, get more leads, or keep your existing clients coming back for more? By targeting your marketing efforts wisely, you will be in control of shaping your business.

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Understanding your audience

Before you can choose the right marketing channels, you need to know your audience. Here’s how…

Identify your target demographic

In Personal Trainer Marketing 101: How to Become a Sell-Out PT, we learned that it’s crucial to understand your target audience’s age, location, fitness goals, and scrolling habits before you can market effectively. Once you understand these factors, tailor your pitch and content to suit. The better you know your audience, the better you will be able to engage them.

Create detailed personas

Engaging your audience should always be front and centre when considering any marketing strategy. By creating detailed personas, you will understand your potential clients and the best ways to communicate with them. By piecing together their motivations, challenges, and what they value in a fitness journey, you can create connections that will turn casual browsers into new clients.

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Setting clear objectives

Your strategy also needs direction, and that’s where SMART marketing objectives will help. Have you heard of these? Briefly explained, if you keep your marketing efforts in line with the following principles, you will be on a clear path to success. Make sure that the content you put out into the world is:  

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Time-bound

Let’s take a quick look at how this works in practice:

• Example 1: If you want to increase brand awareness, you might aim to grow your Instagram followers by 30% in three months using targeted social media marketing for fitness campaigns. ‍
• Example 2: If you’re focusing on lead generation, you might set a goal to gain 50 new leads per month by offering a free trial workout session when someone signs up for your newsletter. 
• ‍Example 3: If you’re looking to improve customer retention, you could introduce a loyalty program and aim to increase client retention rates by 20% in the next year.

Whether you want to boost your brand awareness, generate more leads, or keep current clients engaged, SMART objectives are a great way to stay on track.

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Evaluating marketing channel effectiveness

From social media to email marketing and everything in between, every potential channel for your marketing offers advantages and disadvantages. For example, social media is fantastic for quick engagement and brand visibility, while email marketing nurtures leads over time through personalised content. And let’s not forget content marketing, which will help establish your authority and grow your audience organically through insightful content.

It’s tempting to be everywhere, all at once, but always consider the two ‘R’s. These are:

• Reach
• Relevance

Casting a wide net is great, but it needs to be the right net. A sensible budget for each channel and plenty of consideration for your return on investment is key. Paid channels like Facebook ads require more upfront investment but offer quick, precise results. Meanwhile, sharing workout videos or health tips on platforms that support visual content is an organic way to engage – without breaking the bank.

You must also consider your content’s suitability (or relevance). The platform on which you engage with an audience needs to gel with the kind of content you’re producing. If you love creating dynamic workout videos, a platform like YouTube or Instagram will work really well. Every marketing channel has strengths, and aligning your content type with the right platform is very important.

Multi-channel marketing strategy

An integrated marketing approach is the best way to solidify your brand presence. You could combine social media marketing with email campaigns, or complement your content marketing with targeted ads. This coordinated effort will reinforce your message and extend your reach.

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Social media marketing for fitness professionals

Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok are a gift when it comes to showing off training skills and fitness tips. They’re perfect for the high-energy, visually engaging content we excel at as personal trainers.

Take ‘Yoga with Adriene’ on YouTube, for example. Adriene Mishler has turned her soothing yoga sessions into a global phenomenon, and her 12.6M subscribers are a testament to how consistent, quality content (along with a likeable personality) can build a huge following and grow your business profile.

Pros of social media marketing

• Brand-building: Show your expertise and get noticed by potential clients.
• Chatty: Start conversations and showcase your personality.‍
• Free: Start without breaking the bank.

Cons of social media marketing

• Time-consuming: Keeping up with posts, replies, and trends takes time.‍
• Busy: Standing out is tough – it takes a well-thought-out strategy and creativity.

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Email marketing for personal training businesses

A dedicated subscriber list of email addresses gives you a direct line to potential and current clients, and allows you to communicate with them on a personal level to motivate, inform, and inspire. But I’m not talking about mass emails; you must deliver a segmented and well-targeted dialogue to keep your audience engaged.

Pros of email marketing

• Direct: Direct communication with potential clients is personal and immediate.
• Inexpensive: Email marketing can generate a big return for minimal investment.
• Tailor-made: You can speak directly to your audience's needs and interests.‍
• Trackable: Gather data on opens, clicks, and conversions to refine your strategy.

Cons of email marketing

• Spam: Your emails can end up in a spam folder, missing your potential clients.‍
• Maintenance: Requires continual updates to keep content fresh and engaging.

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Content marketing for fitness business owners

Content marketing, particularly through blogging and SEO, can help you attract organic traffic without breaking the bank. Compelling, optimised blog posts will help potential clients find you through search engines like Google.

Pros of content marketing

• Control: With full control, tailor your content to align with your brand and message.
• Expertise: Regular, insightful content builds your authority in the fitness industry.‍
• SEO: Optimised blogging enhances your search engine rankings.

Cons of content marketing

• Time-consuming: Writing high-quality content takes time and effort.
• Slow: Results from content marketing can take a while.‍
• Crowded: Challenging to stand out among fierce competition.

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Paid ads for personal trainers

Paid advertising offers a faster track to visibility. Targeted ad campaigns, such as those run through Google Ads or Facebook ads for personal trainers, will pinpoint ideal clients and ensure your marketing budget is spent wisely. You can get immediate feedback as you continually refine your approach.

Pros of paid ads

• Impact: Paid ads deliver immediate results, increase visibility, and attract leads.
• Precision: Your ads will be seen by the right people at the right time.‍
• Scalability: Paid advertising is scalable, so you can adjust your spending.

Cons of paid ads

• Cost: Paid ads can become expensive when competing for keywords or audiences.
• Training: Expertise (or practice) is needed for ad targeting and campaign management.‍
• Short-term: Paid advertising can lack long-term audience engagement.

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Prioritising which marketing channels are right for your PT business

Choosing the right marketing channels for your personal training business is all about creating a strategy that aligns with your brand goals and engages the right audience. By carefully considering the most effective channels, you won’t be throwing hard-won resources into the wind but investing in genuine, measurable growth.

And remember, what works for you today might not work tomorrow, so stay agile and proactive! By continually reassessing and tweaking your approach, you can stay aligned with market trends and your business objectives.

I hope you’ve found this article helpful, but if you’re still feeling unsure, don’t sweat it! Reach out to us at Strong Collective Mentoring for more personalised marketing support. We can give the advice you need to stand out in the fitness industry and smash your business goals. Let’s get those results you're after!