The Ultimate Guide to Finding Personal Training Clients

Starting out as a personal trainer? Want to know how to get more clients? Then look no further than this blog as your guide. We break down all the ways to get long-lasting clients and keep your personal training career growing from strength to strength. 

Starting a new job or business in the fitness industry can be a little daunting, but that's okay it's a normal feeling! It’s all new and exciting. But having a clear plan of how you want to progress your business is the key to success. 

And success as a personal trainer all starts with repeat and new clients! Whether you have a few clients already or are newly qualified, this guide will be your best friend when growing your pt business. From marketing to networking, we cover all the basics to give you the confidence to get more clients. 

But before we dive into the way to get more clients, there are a few things you need to do to get yourself started as a personal trainer. These are:

Qualifications

To have a long successful and safe career as a personal trainer you must be qualified. The qualification you need is:

• Level 3 Diploma in Gym Instructing and Personal Training

This qualification allows you to have the skills, knowledge, and confidence to train clients. It's an essential qualification to become a personal trainer. If you need a little extra information on how to become a personal trainer, we made a handy blog that covers all things from qualifications to insurance. Check it out here. 

Decide on Your Training Space

This is the best place to start once you’re qualified. It can also be one of the toughest decisions when starting out as a new personal trainer. Knowing where you want to train your clients will allow you to grow your business. You have a few options so let's dive into them:

Working in a Gym:

If you want the security of a wage and a space to train clients easily, then working in a gym is a great starting point for personal trainers. This will allow you to have a regular, stable job, network in the gym for more clients and allow you to learn from other personal trainers. 

Woking in a gym isn't for everyone though. Some gyms take a cut of your personal training fees or charge rent. They also offer you set hours which might not work around your lifestyle. Therefore, you may want to look at another option. 

Self Employed:

This gives you the ultimate freedom to be a personal trainer in your own way. Whether you set up your sessions outside, have created your own gym, or are training people in their homes, you can personalise your pt business to work around your lifestyle.

Once you figure out where you want to work, you can start building your clients from there. Knowing this as a foundation will offer your clients certainty and specific services that they can buy into. It will allow you to show off your skills with confidence rather than worrying about where you will train clients next.

Don’t forget, you can always change! Find what works for you and run with it.

Brand Yourself

Now you know where and when you will be working, it's time to create a brand. This will make you stand out from the crowds. So where do you start? We’re glad you asked!

Here are a few simple ways to get your brand started:

• Name: You can either use your name or a brand name. Make sure it's catchy, short, and easy to remember.
• Set colours: A great way to plan out your brand's look is to set your colours and fonts. You can use them throughout your brand, like logos, pictures, websites etc. You can use websites like Canva to create brand guidelines, making it easy to refer back to when you need it.
• Logo: Having a logo is a great way to make your brand memorable. There are some great free generators like Canva, where you can design your logo yourself for free. Or you can use sites like Fiver where you pay a small fee for someone to create a personalised logo.
• Website: Creating a website isn't essential to your brand, but it's a great tool to have. It can guide people to your services easily, you can also use ads to drive traffic to your site and use SEO tools to boost your rankings on google to get noticed. We love websites like Wix that allow you to build a website for free (until you published it live). They have a simple drag-and-drop design making it really easy to create a beautiful website with no prior experience needed. 

Now you have your brand, qualifications and place of work, you can start building your clients. Here are our favourite ways to build personal training clients:

Our Top Ways to Build Personal Training Clients

Use Marketing and Social Media

This is one of our favourite ways to attract new clients. Mainly because a lot of it is free! Some of our favourite platforms to use are:

• Facebook: Create a public figure profile so people can like your page, this allows you to generate interest, run ads and allow anyone to view your profile. You can also create a Facebook group for your clients to post new materials, showcase your latest offers and create a community space for people to get to know each other.
• Instagram: Reels, reels and more reels. Instagram is the place to post all your picture and video content. Whether it's before and afters or tips on how to train in the gym, it's the perfect platform to attract new clients. If you set up an Instagram account as a business, you can even track how well your posts perform. This a great insight to steer you in the right content creation direction.
• Tiktok: As much as you may not like it, TikTok is here to stay. It's a great way to post lots of content fast and gain huge numbers of followers meaning more potential clients. 
• Pinterest: This platform is a great way to link people back to your website. Here you can post inspirational photos, blogs, and student testimonials. This is a sure and steady platform that will drive traffic to your website. 
• Mailchimp: Our favourite marketing tool for emails is Mailchimp. It's free to sign up for and the more your business grows, you can pay to upgrade. You can tailor your emails to represent your brand or target specific groups of clients, all while tracking their performance. So whether you’re showcasing your latest offers or a new blog you have just written, this marketing tool will help you secure more clients and keep you in contact with your current ones. 
• Blog writing: Not only is writing blogs a great way to boost your website up the google rankings, but it is also a great way to share your latest news, tips for training and promotions. If you can set a little time aside to write, it will pay off in the long run with more clients! Start by writing your local gym, guest column in a magazine or paper. Not only is it great marketing, but it's also a wonderful way to share your thoughts on the fitness industry.

These are just a few of our favourite ways of gaining new clients online. Using these platforms will boost your online presence and showcase what you can offer as a personal trainer. Don't be afraid to get creative and stand out from the crowd. All of these platforms and ways are free and take a few minutes to set up, so get started today!

Offer Free Trials or Discounts

A great way to attract new clients is by enticing them in through special offers, free trials and discounts. This can be as little as a discount if they block book sessions to as much as a free week of group PT sessions.

This gives you a chance to showcase your pt skills and how you can help potential new clients. Not only does it benefit you, but it also benefits your clients. It's a win-win!

Upskill Yourself

The learning doesn't stop once you get your Level 3 personal training qualification, that's just the start. It's time to offer your clients the complete package. 

You can train as a sports massage therapist and offer your clients the complete package. Helping with clients aftercare gives them a better chance at achieving their goals and staying fit and healthy while they do it. 

Another great qualification is the Level 4 strength and conditioning coach. This course not only progresses your knowledge as a pt, but it also allows you to work with some of the top athletes in the UK and abroad! 

With both of these qualifications, you can offer your clients a complete package of personal training. It's also great to attract new clients with the additional services you offer. Check out our courses for personal trainers here. 

Set Up Referrals

Word of mouth is one of the best ways to bring in new clients. A great way to reward your current clients and attract new ones is by offering a referral scheme. 

A great way to do this is to offer one free session to any new clients who are referred to you from your existing client. In return, you can give your existing client a free session. It's a simple way to gain new, long-lasting clients.

Network with Other Fitness Professionals

Communication is key as a personal trainer and it's also really important when networking with other people in the fitness industry. From gyms to health professionals, to other pt’s, it's important to reach out to like-minded people. Not only will this spread the word about your services, but it opens new doors to new collaborations.

A great way to network is through social media. By connecting with people on an authentic level, you can create lasting professional relationships. If you like to chat face to face, head into your local gym and organise to chat with the owners or manager. The more you communicate and network the bigger your business will grow.

Attend Fitness Shows

There are 100s of fitness shows in the UK, and one of our personal favourites is BodyPower. It's a great way to connect with like-minded people and connect with future clients. They don't have to be big international shows, your local gym may be doing an open day or a local CrossFit competition may be happening in your local area.

Get out and chat with potential clients while soaking up the electric atmosphere.