If you are working as a personal trainer or fitness professional, it can be tempting to make yourself available to as many people as possible. After all, the wider your target market, the more clients you will get, right?
Well, the truth is it doesn’t’ always work like that. In most cases, in fact, you will be far better off working out who you serve best, and focusing on defining and delivering to that niche.
There are some incredibly compelling reasons to take this approach. Today, we’re going to take a look at them – so take a look and see if it inspires you to establish your niche.
Differentiation
Want to stand out from the crowd? Then focus on defining your niche, and you can cut through the competition like a hot knife through butter. Let’s face it, the professional fitness world is incredibly competitive right now. Fitness courses are cheap and accessible to everyone. There will be hundreds of people trying to establish themselves in a region at any one time. And, it can also be a cut throat industry. The only way to prove yourself is by focusing on a narrower niche. It might be that you love working with older people, or, perhaps, you want to run body weight classes. The point is, focus on something that you do well, and you will stand out from the crowd.
Simplify everything
When you focus on a narrow market, it is much easier to create compelling marketing messages. If you know you are targeting young mums who want to shift baby weight, for example, you can address their problems directly. And in doing so, you will attract their attention. They will see your message, realise it is a solution for the problem they have, and then they’ll get in touch. Simple, right?
Become a master
The Jack of all trades might be able to help people. But do they see him or her as an industry leader, expert, or master? People buy into expertise, and focusing on a niche helps you start to specialise on more distinct sets of problems. You will develop your knowledge over time and become much deeper involved with it. It is impossible to know everything – narrowing your focus enables you to learn precisely what is needed.
Charge more money
As soon as you offer specialism, the more you can charge. It’s simple market economics, of course. People will pay more money to experience specialist services if they need them. So, while your competitors are in the midst of a price drop war, your prices could increase. Because, within your niche, you are the only person with the ability to help specific problems. As long as what you offer is better than your competitors, there is no reason why you shouldn’t charge for it.
As you can see, there are enormous benefits to developing and defining your personal training niche. If you want your career to have the edge over the rest, you must consider narrowing your focus. All the best – and let us know how you get on.