The sooner you can land those first high-paying fitness coaching clients, the better. One of the best ways to learn is to observe what others are doing; that’s why I’ve put together this guide on how to get clients as a fitness coach, using real-life examples.
These are strategies used by real fitness coaches to get those higher-paying clients everyone is looking for. Not all of them may work for you, but you can get some inspiration on how to build momentum and get those clients rolling in.
Table of Contents
1. Host Virtual Workshops and Webinars
I’m going to bang the drum for virtual workshops and webinars, because I’ve seen so much success from them myself, and because I’ve witnessed others getting new clients this way.
The good thing about workshops and webinars is that they can be low-key. You can dig right into your niche and make it specific: for example, you could go for nutrition for postnatal mothers, and focus purely on that. They’re a great way to give people valuable content and to position yourself as an expert.
The downside is that it does take time to create content for workshops and webinars, and live presenting does take practice.
Sara Artemisia
One of my clients, Sara Artemisia, focuses on plants and how they can impact your general well-being. She offers many services and online resources, and one of these is a virtual webinar.
Sara is clearly showcasing her expertise here. The actual webinar is hosted by another online community, rather than on Sara’s own website. This is perfect for Sara, as it brings her content to a brand new audience, and may bring her some new coaching clients.
Key Takeaway: Don’t be afraid of workshops and webinars. These are brilliant ways to demonstrate that you know your stuff while reaching a wider audience.
2. Host a Virtual Summit
Virtual summits are another good way to get more followers. Summits are a little like webinars and workshops but on a wider scale, and you can bring other experts in to ease the load of content creation.
Summits are also brilliant for networking. They widen your audience and connect you with others. Plus, you can ease the load by inviting guests to be interviewed, which provides valuable content for your attendees and still positions you as an expert, too.
Carl Cincinnato
Carl Cincinnato is one of my clients, and he runs regular Migraine World Summits. These are popular and useful for people living with migraines and chronic headaches.
The Migraine World Summit gives people valuable content while also connecting them to various experts, including Carl himself.
Key Takeaway: Summits can draw a large crowd with the right marketing strategies, so in my experience, it’s worth investing your time into them. They could be a crucial first step in your high-ticket sales funnel.
3. Host a Podcast
I’m passionate about podcasts. I love podcasts so much that I run Talks.co, a service designed to connect podcast hosts and guests. If you have enough expertise to host a podcast, you should go for it.
The benefits of hosting a podcast include connecting with other experts, finding prospective clients in the form of listeners, and having a built-in platform to advertise your coaching services. The downside is that it takes time, effort, and a little bit of money to create a great listening experience.
Kathlyn Carney
Kathlyn runs a podcast, Connecting the Dots, which connects several areas of health, including fitness, nutrition, sleep, and more. The idea is to create a holistic view of health.
This allows Kathlyn to talk about several different areas of wellness, positioning herself as an expert and connecting her with a wider audience of people looking for advice.
Key Takeaway: If you can, host a podcast – you’ll gain a pool of listeners that may one day become high-paying personal training clients, because they’ll see you as a fitness professional.
4. Create an Instagram Profile
Of all the social media platforms, I’d recommend Instagram as one of the main contenders for fitness coaches. Instagram has several options to allow people to get to know you: you can post Stories throughout the day, you can post Reels, which are short form videos, and you can post images to your grid.
Instagram is a visual platform, making it good for those before-and-after shots that people love to see, and it’s still thriving, with over 2 billion active users. Overall, Instagram is a great place for coaches.
Anna Kaiser
Anna Kaiser is a global fitness expert, who creates workouts that people can do anywhere at any time. She posts a variety of content, including workouts, behind-the-scenes glimpses of her family life, and product recommendations.
Anna’s profile shows that you can create short-form content for social media, and if you do go viral, you have a chance to gain a whole bunch of followers in your target audience – in Anna’s case, over 288,000of them.
Key Takeaway: Instagram is a visual platform that is ideal for fitness coaches. Browse through Instagram and find some examples of the content fitness coaches post – you should be able to create content on the go as you train your clients and go about your day.
5. Create an Online Community
Getting fit can involve a lot of accountability, and creating an online community is ideal for this. The good thing about this is that you can get to know your community on a deeper level. The more they get to know you, the more likely they will be to go with you for one-to-one coaching.
You can run an online community on Facebook, Discord, or even your own forum. You can lock this behind a paywall, or allow anyone to join. The positives are that you can actively cultivate a passionate community; the downside is that it takes time to post and moderate.
Jen Wilderstrom
Jen Widerstrom is a good example of this. She offers a paid community, connecting clients to each other for support and guidance. Jen advertises the benefits of joining on her landing page:
Jen’s community is small (at 112 members at the time of writing), but this allows her to get to know them on a more personal level.
Key Takeaway: Cultivate an accountability group or an online community of some kind. This will enable you to get to know your potential new clients, which builds trust and authority. You can advertise this community on social media platforms like LinkedIn, too.
6. Start an Email Newsletter
Email newsletters are a good marketing tool for fitness coaches. I’d recommend keeping your newsletter short and sweet with actionable steps the reader can take: a short workout video, or a recipe for a healthy meal, for example.
The good thing about running an email newsletter is that you build yourself as an authority figure. People will start to become familiar with you as they see your email in their inbox each week. The downside is that it does take time and effort, and it can take time to build up an audience.
Amanda Bisk
Amanda Bisk is a good example of this. She offers a free 7-day pre-training program that is accessible by entering an email address, which builds up her mailing list. Any kind of lead magnet you offer will entice people to join your email list. Plus, this 7-day program allows people to see Amanda’s skills before signing up for her coaching or services.
People want to feel confident in their decision before parting with money, which makes sense – give them a glimpse of what they could get via email newsletters.
Key Takeaway: Regular emails will start to build familiarity with potential personal training clients, building you a good email list along the way.
7. Create a TikTok Account
While you might not feel 100% comfortable filming yourself, it’s a good idea to try to get over that as a coach. Here’s why: people feel way happier signing up for coaching services if they can get to know what their potential coach is like, and video conveys that.
Adam Wright
Adam Wright is an anti-diet culture coach, and his videos on TikTok focus on food and fitness habits that create a long-term healthy life. He creates videos chatting about fitness and diet trends, as well as reacting to other people’s videos.
TikTok allows Adam to showcase both his personality and his expertise, and he comes across as a friendly, trusted expert.
Key Takeaways: People want to know they’re interacting with a real, authentic coach, especially in the age of AI and fake profiles. So try to get over your fear of videos if you can, and try posting on TikTok. It allows potential clients to bond with you, so it’s worth a try to reach your target audience.
8. Offer a Free Coaching Session
This sounds counterintuitive, but if you’re really in a rut when it comes to finding new clients, offering a free coaching session could reignite your personal training business.
The pros of offering a free coaching session are that you can build your experience and gain valuable testimonials, which are worth their weight in gold. The downside is that you are, of course, offering your time with no immediate monetary reward.
If you don’t want to offer a full coaching session, you can offer a free workout instead, in exchange for a social share or a testimonial.
Coach Abhi
For example, Coach Abhi offers a free workout routine every now and then. This is a good way to a) encourage engagement (because you have to comment ‘ME’ to get a link to the video) and b) give people a free taster of what they could expect from your services.
This is a good strategy if you’re just getting started, or if you’ve been established for a while but would like a boost of potential new clients.
Key Takeaway: Offer free services if you’re struggling to get new clients. Many business owners advise against it, but sometimes it’s a good way to establish your services and gain feedback and testimonials.
9. Niche down
There are a lot of fitness coaches out there. And that’s great, but that means you’re facing a lot of competition. One way to get new clients is to be more specific. For example, do you have a lot of experience helping people with back problems? Lean into that.
The good thing about getting specific is that it allows you to connect directly to your ideal client. People are more likely to go with you if you’re offering specific, targeted advice for their needs. The downside is that it may put off other clients who aren’t in that bracket – but still, I’d say that building your authority in one niche is worth it.
Lift With Emily
Emily is a fitness coach focused on helping mothers build their strength during pregnancy and postpartum. She’s especially focused on strength training, which many mothers don’t know how to do, as there isn’t a huge amount of information out there.
Emily has positioned herself as an expert in this area, and thus new mothers may be more likely to pick her as a coach because they feel that she knows her stuff and will therefore be able to help them reach their fitness goals.
Key Takeaway: Don’t be afraid to get super specific with your niche. People want to know that you are an expert, and they’re more likely to pick you if you have deeper knowledge in one niche.
10. Offer Your Services to Real-Life Fitness Events
Networking events are important no matter what industry you work in. But I’d also recommend checking out local community events. Is there a festival or event happening in your town, and could you offer a demonstration of your coaching services, for example, a free group workout? This could be a fun way to get new clients without using social media.
But in general, I’d recommend offering your services to fitness industry events. The pros are that you’ll meet a bunch of new people, some of whom may be looking for a new fitness coach. You may also be paid for the event. The downside is that these events often cost money and may involve travel, too.
Julius Maddox
A good example of this is Julius Maddox, a world record holder and fitness trainer. Maddox makes appearances at events like FitFest, which is a huge event attracting all kinds of people looking for fitness advice.
While you may not be able to access events at the same scale as this, you can still look for local events and offer similar services to attract new clients.
Key Takeaway: Look for events that are local to you. Offering free classes or advice is a good way to hook new personal training clients who may not have found you using your social media marketing efforts.
11. Post on Facebook
Facebook is a great place for coaches to find local clients. Small businesses can use Facebook’s built-in booking system to have clients book appointments, which is useful, and you can grab reviews and recommendations there, too.
People looking for local services will often use Facebook; it acts as a good directory and a social media platform. The pros are that it’s easy to get started; the downside is that gaining any kind of following for your fitness business does take time.
Coach Keshia
An example of this is Coach Keshia, who uses Facebook to advertise her health coaching services. She uses all elements of Facebook, including live streaming, videos, polls, and more. But I want to focus on the business information on her page:
Clients want maximum information in the least time possible, so having this list is a huge bonus. If you want somewhere that acts as a central ‘hub’ for all your business information, including bookings, pricing, scheduling, and contact information, this is the place to be.
Key Takeaway: Facebook offers so many tools for fitness coaches, including booking, pricing, ratings, and reviews. Local people will often look on Facebook for personal training services near them, so you need to get involved to catch new clients near you.
12. Start a YouTube Channel
YouTube allows for longer-form content, which is perfect for posting fitness routines, recipes, and ideas for healthy living.
The obvious pro of YouTube is that it positions you as an expert, and people will have a chance to get to know you, which means they’re more likely to go with you.
Naomi Kong
Naomi Kong is a fitness instructor, and her YouTube channel showcases her knowledge. She posts workout routines, mistakes to avoid, and offers tips for beginners.
Naomi’s content is focused on workouts, but your videos can be sit-down talks to discuss any aspect of fitness.
Key Takeaway: YouTube is perfect for building rapport with your audience and positioning yourself as an expert to your target audience. It may take a bit of time to get going, but if you offer good content, people will start to subscribe and may feel you’re the right person to help them reach their fitness goals.
In Summary
While finding new clients as a fitness coach can be tough, these are 12 ideas you can try to get the ball rolling.
Whether you decide to go for YouTube videos, TikTok content, or email newsletters, you’ll find a way to build a rapport with your followers and nurture them into high-paying coaching clients.
While you’re here, make sure you watch our free training on how to get coaching clients for even more ideas.