How to Choose the Right Clients

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By Sal | December 30, 2009

Have you asked yourself, “What type of client should I be training?”

Success in any business requires that you pick a target market.  Rather than try to be everything to everyone, entrepreneurs - and as a personal trainer you are an entrepreneur - need to focus on a group of clients that they want to attract.  Rather than casting a wide net in an attempt to catch as many potential clients as possible, personal trainers need to focus their message with laser-like precision in order to be successful.

A personal trainer who runs their own business - whether you have your own facility or work in a facility as an independent contractor - should target clients who are strictly looking to work with a personal trainer.  This may sound like a, "Duh" moment, but it really isn't.  And I'll explain why.

Finding your target market:
• Targeting more clients won’t improve your chances of growing your client base
• Don’t try to please everyone; this will distract you from appealing to clients with specific needs
• Be specific!  This is the best way to attract clients have want exactly what you’re offering.

Your best shot at finding clients, the kind of clients that you can build a business with, will come from being able to clearly articulate what you do and what benefits your clients will reap by working with you.  And when you can communicate who you are and what you do you will weed out the people who aren't suited to work with you.

When I started my business the fitness craze was in full swing and it seemed like every month there was a new, hot training method or gadget people were clamoring to work with.  A lot of personal trainers and facilities geared themselves to address the fleeting demands of the general public - casting a wide net - and as a result training clients and exercising turned into an effort to entertain people.  Aerobics classes, step classes, spinning, Tai Bo, cardio-kickboxing and on it went.

I had a passion to work with clients on a one-to-one basis and didn't want to waste time on people who wanted to be constantly entertained with the exercise fad "du jour."  I set myself up as the guy who only worked with clients who wanted to work with a personal trainer and could commit to 2-3 days per week, every week.  I didn't want people who would only train occasionally, were aerobics class junkies or who looked at training as if it were just the latest fitness novelty.

By clearly communicating with prospects, I was able to:
• save time and energy
• weed out “tire kickers”
• attract clients and keep them for 20 years!
• own and operate a successful gym dedicated exclusively to personal training

As a personal trainer your target market needs to be clients who just want to work with you.  If you are passionate about what you do, know - and are passionate about - the kind of people who you want to work with, you will attract these people as clients and be successful as a result.

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