Most personal trainers choose to dive headfirst into their fitness business rather than first narrowing down to the right niche. And this never ends well.
Whether you are looking to build an in-person or online fitness business, understanding whom to market to should be one of the first steps you take.
But, how do you go about it? And what exactly should you consider?
Let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of defining niches in the personal fitness training industry. In this post, I will highlight a few simple tips you can use to find a niche that will help you quickly grow your fitness business.
This article will provide the answers to;
- Why is finding a niche for your personal fitness business critical?
- How to find a profitable niche in the already saturated fitness business industry?
- How to find your fitness niche when you are a new personal trainer?
Inside this guide:
- Chapter 1: Why Is It Crucial to Find Your Niche?
- Chapter 2: How to Find a Profitable Fitness Niche?.
- Chapter 3: How to Find Your Fitness Niche as a New Personal Trainer.
Why Is It Crucial to Find Your Niche?
One of the first questions I ask fitness business owners is whether they have defined a niche before actively starting to market their business. Most reply that they don’t need to because they want to help everyone.
This answer just goes to show how much of a misunderstanding there is on the need for a fitness niche in the first place.
See, you don’t find a niche to limit who you help in your business, but instead who you choose to market.
Suppose your fitness training niche is working moms. If a senior woman walks up to you and inquires about your services one day, what do you do? If you are looking for more clients, you obviously help her out, right? ****
Things work a bit differently when marketing your personal training business. Your website, emails, marketing catalogs, Facebook Ads, Instagram posts, and any other marketing material should target your niche only, which in this case, is working moms.
And here’s the thing.
Marketing your personal training business isn’t *free . It costs you both time* and *money . If you are using Facebook ads _to get leads, you are paying directly for your marketing with _money. And if you are creating lots of content on social media, you are paying directly with your time*.
So, if you want to grow your fitness business, you need to maximize the return on your marketing efforts, whether that includes time, money, or both. If you can get twice as many leads by investing the same amount of time or money, you are bound to grow your business faster.
Now, imagine this…
What if you found a segment in your market that could give you these amazing 2x returns? Would you still keep marketing to everyone? Or would you narrow down on this segment with high ROIs?
Any smart entrepreneur would choose to narrow down because it would help them reach their goals with half the marketing investment.
Simply put- by nailing down your fitness niche, you increase the ROI you get on your marketing efforts, resulting in faster growth for your business.
Now that we have that understood, let’s figure out what to consider when niching your fitness business so you can get a high return on your marketing dollars.
How to Find a Profitable Fitness Niche?
The key to unlocking a niche for your personal training is simple- analyze your happiest clients.
It’s that easy!
Your happiest clients are those who:
- Understood the value of your service quickly
- Bought from you quickly
- Stayed with you the longest
- Have great reviews for your business and spread the word like a true fan!
Niching down is simply analyzing your happiest clients and identifying the type of client that you find the most often among this group.
Are they busy women looking to lose weight? Or are they seniors looking to gain more strength and mobility?
Start paying attention to these attributes to find a niche that could be profitable for you.
Here are three things you should look for in your ideal niche:
- A high percentage of your happiest clients.
- A low percentage of your not-as-happy clients.
- And your niche should be big enough to meet your revenue goal.
Let’s take some more examples.
Suppose you run a local personal training studio.
You’ll probably not target people who want to stay fit as your niche because it is simply too broad. And although it contains your happiest clients , it also contains your not-so-happy clients .
Now, let’s say you are an expert at helping people with rotator cuff injuries. Does this make a good niche for your fitness business?
Probably not.
Again, the problem with this niche is that it is too small for a local business. You won’t be able to get a constant stream of new clients to hit your revenue goal easily.
But, how about a niche like working moms?
If you have many happy clients who are working moms, you should probably consider this as a good niche for your business. It is indeed a big enough market and already contains clients who love working with you.
How to Find Your Fitness Niche as a New Personal Trainer.
What if you’re just starting your business as a personal trainer? How do you find your niche as a fitness entrepreneur who’s new to the game?
Here are three steps you should follow;
Step 1. Your niche market should be big enough to meet your revenue goal.
Again, you don’t have to pick a huge market. Remember, you only need to find a niche that’s good enough to meet your revenue goal. And as we saw in the above examples, a bigger market isn’t always better.
Step 2. You need to have the right skills to help clients in this segment.
Again, this is super important. You don’t want to be focusing on a niche market, which you cannot cater to. So, focus on areas that you feel very confident about.
Step 3. You need to be passionate about this segment and should love working with clients in this niche.
This part is especially vital because it determines how you will excel in your business and build your reputation. Running any business is challenging, and the passion for what you do will come in handy when things get tough.
So, How Do You Find the Right Fitness Niche?
Well, you need to find the slice of the market that is big enough and contains a large portion of your happiest clients.
Once you nail down your niche, focus all your marketing efforts to attract the right clients for your fitness business.
That said, here are two more things you should figure out before pushing the gas pedal on your marketing efforts:
- Get prospects in your niche to choose you over your competitors. Read our blog post on how to find your unique value proposition.
- Learn more about the ideal client in your niche. If you want your marketing content to hit home then you need to know the dreams, struggles, and personality of your ideal client. Our blog post on how to create an ideal client profile will help you figure that out.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why is having a niche important for fitness professionals?
Focusing on a niche allows trainers to attract their ideal clients, offer tailored services, and establish authority in a specific market segment, leading to better results and client satisfaction.
2. How can a fitness professional discover their ideal niche?
Reflect on personal expertise, interests, and the demographics or goals of clients who have had the best experiences with the trainer. Identifying common traits and challenges among these clients helps define a niche.
3. What are some examples of fitness niches?
Popular niches include weight loss for new moms, strength training for athletes, fitness for seniors, rehabilitation exercises, and workplace wellness programs.
4. What is the “one easy strategy” to find a fitness niche?
Analyze your happiest and most successful clients. By finding patterns in their goals, behaviors, and preferences, you can identify a niche that aligns with your strengths and passion.
5. Can a trainer have more than one niche?
While possible, it’s best to start with one niche to establish expertise and authority. Expanding to multiple niches can follow after building a strong foundation in the initial market.