Four Ways to Increase the Revenue of Your Fitness Business
Expanding your Revenue Streams to Maximize Your Earning Potential
A summary of the faculty panel presentation at the 2019 IDEA World Club and Studio Owner’s Summit
This year’s Club and Studio Owner’s Summit at the IDEA World Fitness Conference hosted a jam packed lineup of experienced fitness entrepreneurs from around the world, sharing their best advice for building and growing your most successful fitness business. I had the honor of joining Kendra Bylsma, Founder/Owner of Allegro Coaching, and Brian Nunez, Founder/Owner of FNS 360, on a panel presentation discussing methods for increasing the revenue of your fitness business. Below, I have shared the top points from the talk in hopes that they inspire and assist you and your business with increasing your revenue.
To start, there are FOUR basic ways to increase your revenue:
Increase the number of customers you serve.
Increase the transaction size, spending density and/or frequency of purchases for your current customers.
Add additional revenue streams to your business.
Raise your prices.
Let’s discuss the leading advice for each of these methods.
INCREASE THE NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS
Consider ways that you can connect with your ideal client by offering services in your community. Consider partnerships with Commercial/Residential Property Management , Local Sporting Good Stores/Retail Partnerships, Physical Therapists, or Physician Groups.
In order to stand out within a crowded market place, be brave in defining a unique set of differentiators for your business and the product offering you are providing to your ideal clients. Consistently ask yourself, ‘Why would my ideal client select my business over all of the other options within my market?’ Be creative in determining a strong answer to this question and then use this message in all of your marketing. Check out our ‘4 Steps’ coursework to assist you with honing in on your ideal niche client + differentiators.
At the end of the day, focusing on client retention is often just as valuable as bringing in new clients, and usually much easier to do. Celebrate the successes, anniversaries, and birthdays of your clients. Connect with them on a level deeper than just fitness and exercise, showing them how much you care about their results and appreciate their continued business and trust.
INCREASE THE TRANSACTION SIZE AND/OR FREQUENCY OF TRANSACTIONS OF YOUR CLIENTS
One of the leading subjects that our clients need help with is NUTRITION! Determine methods for adding nutritional products, programs and services to your standard offering for an additional fee. Consider offering one on one nutrition coaching, group coaching, meal prep programs, or sell e-books. Partnerships with registered dietitians, personal chefs, and meal delivery companies can also become a profitable relationship.
In addition to your base product(s), offer supplemental technology, products, services or coaching for an additional fee, that can help clients with achieving their goals in a more efficient means.
Study the entire journey of your typical client, from day one (aka The Before Version) to their completion of their ultimate goals (aka The After Version). Create a list of all products, services, and tools needed by clients to assist them with reaching their goals (i.e. foam rollers, massage therapists, an app to store their homework workouts, etc). Once you have created this GIANT list, go through each item and come up with a way of incorporating each need into the product offering for you business. Use the ‘Build Your Next Revenue Stream’ worksheet and blog to decide on the new products that will be the most profitable for you and your business.
SELLING PACKAGES VS MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTIONS
A large number of our trainers have found GREAT success in moving to monthly subscriptions for clients instead of selling ‘10 session packs’. Check out the blog link here in order to hear directly from four trainers that have found great success with monthly subscriptions.
ADD NEW REVENUE STREAMS TO YOUR BUSINESS!
1. Corporate Wellness is a lucrative business revenue stream that both personal trainers and facility owners should consider tapping into. Kendra recommends considering the option of a la carte services vs. annual partnerships. Some potential services you can offer to local workplaces right now include:
Onsite fitness or meditation classes
Onsite wellness workshops/lunch + learns
Health coaching
Stress management seminars
The benefits of providing corporate wellness include:
No space needed
9 – 5 hours (“fillers”) HUGE need
Big pockets of corporations
2. One of the best ways to add revenue streams to your business is to use your resources to hire HELP and build a team to help you with building and growing your business! Brian recommends the following:
You can’t add more services if you don’t have the service providers to do so.
Employees don’t cost more money, not having a team will cost you growth. One person can only do so much.
More people who can sell and provide a service allows for more growth.
3. Grab a copy of our ‘Build Your Next Revenue Stream’ worksheet and follow along with our instructional blog here to decide on the new products that will be the most profitable for you and your business.
RAISE YOUR PRICES
Kendra’s advice: Be sure that you are continuing to create and add value to your customers as you increase your pricing. Consider what your ideal customer values in your business and on an annual basis, continue to make upgrades in these areas.
Brian recommends: You can only raise your prices when you have the social proof to back up your product. Share results and testimonials DAILY!!! If people don’t see you winning everyday and associate you with the best, they will not have the consumer confidence to buy your product.
Billy’s tip: Fully research your competitors and market to know EXACTLY what your competition is offering and for what price point. Do not feel pressure to charge the same as everyone else if your product goes above and beyond what they are providing. Your research will provide you with the information and the confidence to successfully raise your rates.