Making Personal Training Tangible
How do you make personal Training tangible?
Personal Training is not tangible or physical because you cannot physically take personal Training with you.
Personal Training is a service, and it is a luxury service. The problem with luxury services is that the personal trainer is the first to be cut out of people’s budgets. Think about your finances, and now think about your physical fitness goals.
As you think about these two areas of your life, you will assume that personal trainer costs close to $800 + your gym membership, which may range from $20 to $60 a month. If you want to save money, you will think the trainer is unnecessary regarding reaching your fitness goals.
You will begin to think, why don't I pay my membership, get off my ass, and train myself?
The easy choice is to pay for the gym membership because it’s cheaper. Remember that you are a personal trainer, and your income is based on people NOT treating you as a luxury item and more of a necessity.
How do you change their minds or ensure these thoughts never enter their minds? The way to avoid this is by making personal Training tangible. Creating a physical workout program is a way to make personal Training real.
I will give you three techniques to quickly design a program that will give your client a tangible product to warrant the amount of money they pay for Personal Training.
Technique #1: Write their first-day notes down.
When you assess a client on their first time meeting you, treat it as day one of their programs. Even if they haven't bought Training from you yet, every person who allows you to assess them is a person who wants you to train them, or else they would have never given you an hour of their time. Make sure the person sees you writing notes because, like a doctor, you are the professional, and when you visit a professional writing notes about you, you start to think about what you're doing a little deeper. For example, when a doctor asks you to open your mouth, they look in it and immediately start writing notes after observing your tongue; your mind says something is going on, and I don't know what it is, but this doctor needs to fix it. The same goes for Training. When you ask a person to do squats, no matter their fitness level, and you write notes, they immediately think something is wrong with their form or technique and look to you to correct them. This starts the process of making personal Training tangible.
*Side note*
Don't just write random notes down. Write actual notes about your client; don't use their session as an opportunity to write your grocery list.
Technique #2: Have a set number of sessions ready to be pitched.
I know I just said to stop selling sessions and start pitching programs. This statement is not a contradiction. Remember, sessions are part of programs, but selling a random number of sessions just for the sake of selling sessions is not pitching a program. Having a set number of sessions in your head that matches your program makes it easier for you to instruct how often a client needs to meet with you. At the same time, it gives them an ending point that allows them to feel like they are purchasing something that will produce results instead of just giving money to a trainer with the blind hope that they will get them in shape. For example, a two-day-a-week 30-day program is eight sessions, a two-day-a-week 60-day program is 16 sessions, and a two-day-week 90-day program is 24 sessions. When you have these set number of sessions ready to present, it's easy for your client to focus on the program instead of the number of sessions they buy. This allows them to separate the price from the program.
Technique #3: Write out the first month with the client.
A handwritten (or typed) calendar is the most valuable item a trainer can give a client. It's a literal road map for the client to reach their goal, giving them a physical object that allows them to see when they will get to their destination. It also serves as an additional tool for motivating your clients when you are not around. Writing the calendar out with a client helps them feel empowered by the process of starting their fitness journey with you. After the program is written, you have a tangible piece of personal Training that makes a person feel better about purchasing personal Training with you.
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