The new year signals a time of change and new beginnings, making it the busiest time of year for the fitness industry. It’s an annual ritual across North America — every January, sign up sheets fill up in gyms, yoga studios, and personal training facilities.
For personal trainers and yoga instructors, this can be a dream come true, so long as you’re prepared for the rush. In this article, we’ll be taking a look at some tips on how to get personal training clients and take advantage of the inevitable New Year’s rush.
It’s important for fitness professionals to understand where they sit in the local market, so doing some research about your competition is a worthwhile endeavor. Not only will this give you a better idea of how best to start marketing your services and attracting new clients, but it can also alert you to any current trends that you can take advantage of.
For instance, if you find that none of your competitors are offering online personal training courses, providing these types of sessions could be an easy way to get the business that others aren’t.
Many people know going into December that they’re going to cheat on their health and fitness goals and will have to pay the price in January. This means that if you can start offering some incentives late in the year, instead of waiting until January, people may be more likely to sign up for your personal training service.
This can be something like a promotion for five free weight loss sessions if the client signs up to work with you before December 15.
Another valuable marketing strategy to attract new clients, social media platforms — like TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram — offer unique ways to reach new customers looking to hire a personal trainer.
Offering appealing New Year’s resolution themed ads — especially advertising your incentives — is a great way to get potential clients to start thinking about signing up for your service in the months coming up to the new year.
While January is an important month for getting new business and clients, the influx won’t last too long into the year. Whatever your methods for advertising are, you should try to gear them towards keeping new clients for as long as you can.
For instance, if you’re offering a promotion for five free sessions, make it only redeemable for clients that sign up for the whole year. This gives them a financial incentive to keep showing up, since they’ve already paid for the year.
However, the most important thing is to get people into your building so you can “wow” them with your personal and professional skills. If clients like you, they’re more likely to return.
Insurance is key for ensuring the success of any business, as it can protect you from having to pay out-of-pocket for any claims of damages or bodily injury that may come against you, even if you’re not at fault.
Related read: Five Reasons Why Personal Trainers Need Professional Liability Insurance
Here are some policies that are common for personal trainers to have:
Professional liability insurance. Also called errors and omissions insurance, professional liability insurance protects you from claims of negligence and malpractice from clients, even if you’re not at fault. For instance, if a client develops a pain that they believe to be caused by an exercise that you advised them to do, they can come after you for damages, bodily harm, and even loss of income.
General liability insurance. Having this policy means you’ll be protected should one of your clients slip and fall on a wet floor and hurt themselves. Accidents can happen, and if they happen within your studio, you could be held liable.
Contents insurance. Another important policy for fitness professionals is contents insurance, which protects you from having to pay to replace any damaged, lost, or stolen equipment you may need to have in order to run your business.
Are you looking for flexible coverage designed for your specific business? APOLLO Insurance can help with a simple process that will have your new policy emailed directly to your account within minutes.
Get the protection you need in minutes with custom Personal Trainer Insurance from APOLLO.
Originally published November 4, 2022, updated August 25, 2023
Back to APOLLO MagazineGet no-nonsense coverage that's the best value for your money. Purchase policies from your computer or phone, receive your documents instantly, and save when you buy online.
4.7 rating
Get no-nonsense coverage that's the best value for your money. Purchase policies from your computer or phone, receive your documents instantly, and save when you buy online.
4.7 rating
Just tell us your address, your name, email and phone number. And that's it. We'll give you a price in less than a minute.
You can choose to pay monthly or save money by paying for the entire year in one easy payment.
As soon as you complete your purchase, you'll find your proof of insurance and policy documents waiting for you in your inbox.
We’ve provided more than 1,000,000 quotes to Canadians just like you. Give it a try!