When running a business as a personal trainer it’s important to have a plan in place. This plan will guide your decisions in every aspect of your business, including your services and products, and cost and income management.
Without a plan, your business will be limited to what you can accomplish each day. If you’re seeking finance or investments, you’ll need a detailed business plan. Any lender would require this before even thinking of lending your business money.
To successfully create a personal trainer business plan, you need to have a clear vision for what your business’s future will be. Here are eight steps to help you build and accomplish your personal trainer business plan.
Executive Summary
This is your opportunity to share the proposed identity of your business. Start with your mission statement, which explains what your personal trainer business will accomplish. This should be condensed into a well-thought-out single sentence.
To make your business stand out from the rest, you must clarify what makes your business different. You can do this with two things.
- Core values.
- Training philosophy
Each of these points relates to you as a person. Core values – what you personally believe in. Training philosophy – your training method and beliefs. When you answer those two questions, customers will understand the value your business holds. Then your brand can do the marketing for you.
Once you’ve settled on a mission statement your executive summary should include the following:
- Your fitness specialty.
- Who your customers will be.
- Location of operation.
- Basic financial information.
Competition Analysis
Now you need to get a grasp of the personal training market. You need to analyze your local area as well as national personal training trends. Compare your personal training business to others in your area. What is the competition doing that’s successful? How are they attracting and keeping clients? How can your personal training services be a step above the rest?
Having good competition analysis shows your expertise in the personal training industry. It helps you stay up to date on your business’s target market. It can also give you ideas and methods of how to improve your business.
To get a feel for your local area market, search for local gyms and fitness centers. Check out their websites, and even visit them in person. Understand what customers want by talking to local gym enthusiasts.
For a national analysis, social media is a great tool. Connect with customers as well as fellow personal trainers.
The competition analysis should include the following points:
- Who is the competition.
- Competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.
- What they provide to customers.
- Competitors’ marketing strategies.
- What makes your business different from theirs?
- How you can capture the market share.
Customer Analysis
In your personal trainer business plan, you need to include what your target market is. It’s important to be detailed. Don’t say you’re simply going after “gym-goers.” Your target market is who your ideal customer will be. They should reflect the services you’ve stated in your executive summary.
Include information on your local demographic, such as population size and age ranges. You can also include what it is that drives your customers. Discover what motivates them, the ways they like to work out and why they would need a personal trainer. This is vital information for you to use in the marketing and operational portions of your personal trainer business plan.
You can go after a certain niche but, don’t limit yourself to working only in those market parameters. Pursuing a certain target market shows your ability to see gaps in market coverage and fill them.
State What It Is That You Offer
As a standard, a personal trainer business will provide a certain service. However, you may want to provide your customers with products as well. In this section, you will highlight what your services and or products will be.
This step is vital. Many personal trainers miss opportunities to expand their revenue. This can happen by not thinking thoroughly about what you will offer and sell. In your business plan, you need to be specific about what the product will be, who will buy it, how it will be delivered, and what benefit it brings the customer.
Good questions to ask yourself are: How will you deliver your service? Will your training sessions be one on one or will you do small group classes? Could you supplement your income through online personal training sessions?
As a personal trainer, be careful not to overload yourself with too many services. Start with one or two revenue streams and see how they progress. It may be that one provides enough income to warrant more attention, while another may not be worth the time required.
Sales Plan
The sales plan is your opportunity to outline how you will make sales and how many you expect. This section should have the following:
- The number of sessions you will provide each week.
- The cost of each session.
- Will you provide any discounts? Such as for clients who buy sessions in bulk. Or people who refer friends to the business.
This information can give you insight into how much revenue to expect each week or month.
Creating your sales plan will provide you your costs as well as industry standards. This can help you set a session price that is profitable but competitive.
If in your business plan, you will sell products you’ll need to include the companies from which you’ll source your products. Provide an inventory list of what you’ll need to execute your plan.
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Operating Costs
When developing your business plan, you need to analyze your operating costs. This will include costs like rent, insurance, equipment, staff pay, and administrative fees. These all compile into your overhead cost and show you the minimum amount of income you need to keep your business open. Remember that taxes need to be calculated into your operating costs.
Now create your revenue projections by making a high-low chart, including one column for your worst-case scenario and one for your best.
The best-case scenario is your revenue projection if everything went right and you met or exceeded all expectations. The worst-case scenario would be the opposite. It would be the absolute minimum amount you would make.
In the operating costs of your personal training business plan, you need to explain and justify your prices. These need to be compared to those of your competition and demonstrate how they will fulfill market trends.
Another piece of information to include is your profit margins. You can calculate the margins per hour or month. If once you’ve completed your margins you’re not happy with them, go back and adjust your sales plan.
Advertising and Marketing Strategy
At this point in your personal training business plan, explain how you will attract your target clients. You must decide on what marketing avenues you’ll use. You also need to explain how you plan to keep the clients you attract.
As a personal trainer, you excel in fitness training and helping clients achieve their goals. However, if you don’t develop and follow a detailed marketing plan your personal training business won’t last long.
Avenues of marketing:
- Active social media presence.
- Using referrals to encourage word-of-mouth marketing.
- Using PPC adverts on Google (You can check the best PPC companies to get some help with this)
- Advertising in your local gym or fitness center.
- Adding your Google My Business listing.
- Advertising in local office buildings or other places where your target customers gather.
A common facet among profitable businesses is most of their budget goes to advertising and marketing strategies. The same goes for your personal training business. A consistent stream of new clients is what you’re after.
How Your Business Will Operate
In this section of your personal trainer business plan, you will provide details on where your business will operate, such as the physical location, facilities required to provide your services, and any suppliers if you’re regularly buying software or equipment.
This information needs to be as detailed as possible. It can let you know if you’re missing anything. Describe the following points:
- The number of sessions and when they will be completed.
- Session location.
- How you will monitor clients’ progress.
- Will you provide any amenities to your clients (water, etc.)?
- Client payment processes.
- How will you manage client bookings?
- Will you hire additional staff? How will they be organized?
- Are any certificates or licenses required to start your business?
Financial Plan
As a personal trainer, your business plan needs to include a financial plan. If you wish to seek investments, this section will provide insight for potential investors.
Things to include:
- Startup costs.
- Operating costs.
- Expected revenue.
- Break-even analysis.
These will provide you with what your business requires to stay afloat and financially viable. This will show if you need to make any changes to your personal trainer business plan, whether you need to adjust session prices, or lower costs.
Personal trainer business plan templates
You can also use some already made templates that you can edit:
FAQs about personal trainer business plan
1. What should be included in a personal trainer business plan?
An overview of your business objectives, a description of your target market, a pricing strategy, a list of your competitors, financial predictions, and a staffing plan should all be included in a personal trainer business plan. It should also include a thorough explanation of the tools you employ and the services you provide.
2. How do I determine my target market as a personal trainer?
As a personal trainer, take into account variables like age, gender, fitness aspirations, and geography to define your target market. You could also want to take your target clients’ lifestyles and income levels into account. You can gain a better understanding of your potential customer’s wants and preferences by conducting market research and polling them.
3. What are some effective marketing strategies for a personal trainer business?
One of the best ways to market a personal trainer business is to establish a strong online presence on social media and a website, run sales and promotions to draw in new customers, network with other fitness industry experts, and offer top-notch client service to encourage positive word-of-mouth recommendations.
4. How do I set pricing for my personal training services?
Consider aspects including your level of expertise, the services you provide, local competition, and the income range of your target market when determining the price for your personal training services. Other pricing options, such as discounts for several sessions or monthly memberships, might be something you want to consider.
5. What are the startup costs for a personal trainer business?
The initial investment needed to launch a personal training business might vary depending on the business’s location, available equipment, and marketing costs. Gym rental fees, equipment purchases, insurance, and marketing charges like website design and social media advertisements are a few examples of typical startup costs.
6. What kind of insurance do I need for my personal trainer business?
To safeguard themselves against any injuries or losses that may occur during a training session, personal trainers should think about purchasing liability insurance. Other insurance choices could be disability insurance to cover any potential work-related accidents, as well as property insurance to safeguard any equipment you possess.
7. How do I create a financial projection for my personal trainer business?
Consider aspects like your operating costs, revenue sources, pricing, and marketing budget when putting together a financial forecast for your personal training firm. Based on market research and competitive analysis, predict your costs and prospective income; then, if the market or industry changes, update your projections.
8. How can I differentiate myself from other personal trainers in the market?
Consider offering specialized services or qualifications, giving great customer service, concentrating on a particular niche or target market, or any combination of these to set yourself apart from other personal trainers in the industry. Think about your special skills and expertise and how you can use them to give your clients a better service.
9. What should be my staffing plan for a personal trainer business?
Your personal trainer business’s staffing strategy may be influenced by variables including the size of your company, the number of clients you have, and your growth projections. As your company expands, you might want to think about employing more trainers or administrative personnel to assist with running your daily operations.
10. What are some key performance indicators (KPIs) that I should track to measure the success of my personal trainer business?
Revenue growth, client retention rates, customer happiness, and social media engagement are some key performance indicators (KPIs) that you may wish to monitor to gauge the success of your personal training business. You may find areas for improvement and change your plan as necessary by monitoring these KPIs.
Ending thoughts on your personal trainer business plan
Your business plan is vital for you as a personal trainer. Even if you don’t seek outside investments, this plan will be a valuable reference tool for you. However, remember that no business plan is complete.
No business plan succeeds without any issues. Don’t get sidetracked by small details. Your business will be ever-changing. You as an owner will constantly have new ideas and avenues to pursue.
The goal of your business plan is to give you a vision of what your personal trainer business will be. Just as you as a personal trainer provide a guide for your clients, your business plan will do the same. As the business develops so will your business plan.
