The PT Roadmap

A weekly newsletter for personal trainers to guide you to become a better coach and build a better business.

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Thanks for opening up today's newsletter. I appreciate you being here.

This past week, I watched the Beckham documentary on Netflix. I’m a huge David Beckham fan. I grew up trying to copy his haircut. I bought a pair of Adidas Predators boots, thinking they’d help me hit freekicks like him. I binge-watched the doc over 2-days. It's well worth a watch if you’re a football fan or are interested in the behind-the-scenes of how he got to where he is now.

Loads of you signed up and replied about the social media templates. Thank you!

One theme kept coming up: “I’m not sure if they’ll be right for me. Is there a way to sample them?” 

This makes sense, as it’s hard to know if they’ll work for you if you don’t know what kind of templates they are… So - if you’d like to access two of the five from this first month for £0, reply and say “templates”, and I’ll send them over!

In today’s issue:

✅ Business

✅ Recommended exercise

✅ Coaching cue

✅ Social post worth your time

Let's get into it!

Business

Should you have a trial offer in place for your PT?

A trial offer, a low-barrier or a front-end offer, is most often used by gyms.

You’ll know a trial offer when a company offers a way to try their service or product without paying the full price.

The best example is streaming companies like Netflix and software companies like Canva. You can try both out for free or at a reduced price.

But should you, the personal trainer, use one?

The answer lies in your answer to a couple of questions:

1. Is what you’re doing for lead generation working just now?

2. Can you ‘turn’ on your lead gen and confidently get clients?

You don't need a trial if you answered yes to both. At least not right now.

You do need one if you answered no to either of those.

What are the benefits of having a trial offer?

There is one big reason having a trial offer is beneficial:

A trial offer makes it easier for an interested person to sign up simply because it costs less.

And as it’s usually time-bound (e.g. 7, 14, 21, 30 days or 6 weeks), it feels less of an ongoing commitment.

It narrows the gap between an interested person and someone who signs up.

You know your PT service is great, but even a warm lead doesn’t until they try it.

Okay, so how do I go about creating one?

You’ll need to consider the following:

• who it’s for

• the length

• the cost

• what you’ll provide

Knowing who your trial is for is essential.

Simply offering a 30-day trial might be a step in the right direction, but it’s not enough.

You need to be specific about who your trial is for. The more specific the target market, the better a name you can give it.

Plus, you’ll be able to make better decisions about its logistics as you’ll know the person it’s trying to target.

Example Target Markets:

• 30-Day Fitness For New Mum’s Who Want to Ease Back Into Being Active.

• 14-Day ActiveLife Trial - For Over 40s Who Hate Gyms But Want to Get Fit and Improve Their Health

• Lagers & Lunges - 6 Weeks to a Leaner, Stronger DadBod Without Giving up Weekend Beers

The length can be anywhere in the 7-30 day range. 6 or 8 weeks is also common.

Your current pricing will dictate the cost of your trial. 60-80% is a good ballpark.

And what you’ll provide is also dictated by your current set-up. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel here - what you offer right now will do just fine. You’re just packaging it differently.

Let’s use an example:

• Service = 1-1 PT

• Who is it for? = Women who want to start strength training so they can tone up, gain strength and improve their daily energy.

• Length = 30 days.

• Cost = £199 (£280 would be the normal price, so roughly 30% off)

• What’s provided = 8 x 1-1 sessions

• Name = Lean & Strong in 30: Women’s Weight Training Trial

If I could return to when I was trying to get clients, I’d tell myself to set this up.

I’d use this in my consults to sign up clients.

I’d contact every ex-client and lead who went cold to tell them I’m offering a 30-day program called Lean & Strong in 30 they can test.

I’d use it in my social media copy when discussing how someone could try my PT out.

I’d use it in ads to give people an easy way to try personal training.

Essentially, it would become my go-to offer when trying to sign up new clients.

Let’s use another example:

• Service = Small Group PT

• Who is it for? = people over 40 who hate gyms but want to get fit and improve their health as they age.

• Length = 14 days

• Cost = £79 (£100 would be the normal price, so 20% off)

• What’s provided = up to 4 SGPT + 1 large group session

• Name = ActiveLife14

This one is shorter in length as we’re selling a different service. And honestly, the only way to figure out what offer you should use is to test.

For some PTs, a 30-day one will work.

For others, an 8-week one will do better.

And for others, a 7-day free trial might be the best one.

It’s all just one big experiment with your marketing.

Test one for a month, see if you sign up some clients, assess your retention, and then decide if you will try something new.

Once they are signed up on the trial, deliver an amazing service and (hopefully) sign them up for an ongoing PT package.

I hope this helps you decide if a trial is right for you and how you could go about setting one up.

Exercise

This Week’s Exercise: Plank Row Iso Hold

I picked this one up from Ben Bruno.

It’s a nice plank variation for your more advanced clients.

Set up as if you were about to do a straight-arm plank, but place one dumbbell outside your hand. Then, perform a row with the dumbbell while holding the plank, but hold the top position isometrically for 10-30 seconds.

You get an unreal core workout and a nice bit of back and bicep!

Coaching Cue

Recommended Cue:

What is it for?

Teaching the posterior pelvic tilt.

You’re not going to use this cue with ALL of your clients, but for the right ones, it is perfect 🤣

It reminds me of Ben Bruno’s one for teaching the hip hinge: “Imagine you need to do a pee, but you’ve got morning wood.”

Again, not one for all of your clients, but for the right ones, it works a treat.

No image here today for obvious reasons 😂

Social Post

Nice post from the folks over at Two Brain Business

This is something I talk to my mentoring clients about weekly.

Focussing on the wrong metrics on their socials.

Likes, comments, etc feel nice, but they don’t pay any bills. If you want clients, you must pay attention to whether your content is getting you messages, enquiries, consults and sign-ups.

If it’s not, you need a better strategy.

Thanks so much for reading.

Until next Friday, Stuart.

Here is how I help in-person PTs like you build businesses they love:

Monthly Social Media Templates

Get sent five done-for-you social media templates each month. These are tried and tested templates, allowing you to post better content consistently.

You’ll build stronger relationships, showcase your expertise in better ways and get more people enquiring about your services.

Try a month for £12

1-1 Mentoring

I work closely with in-person PTs to help them fix & grow their business so it’s profitable and on a schedule they don’t hate.

This is 1-1 mentoring where I work with you just like you do your 1-1 clients.

I’ll get to know you and your business before I offer any advice, and we’ll work together to make a plan that gets your business looking and feeling how you want it.

Then, we’ll talk on the phone every single week. And I’ll support you on WhatsApp, so you’ve got a place to ask questions and receive feedback.

Many PTs need someone to listen to their problems and goals, help them make sense of where they want to go, tell them what to do, and help them stay accountable.

This is why it’s 1-1 and not group coaching.

Talking 1-1 is essential to staying accountable and receiving individual advice.

Plus, I love 1-1 coaching.

If you’re interested in chatting about how mentoring could help you bring in more clients, increase your income and get your business running how you want it, hit reply, and we’ll set up a free 30-minute consultation.