What is a personal training business plan?
A personal training business plan is useful for any personal trainers wanting to go solo and set up their own personal training business. Putting together a personal training business plan will ensure you cover all the key events and information you need to successfully launch your personal training business.
In this handy article, we have outlined detail of the different elements within a personal training business plan along with a downloadable template that you can start building on straight away. Our aim is to provide you with all the elements you need to be successful in kick-starting your personal training business and service.
Why do you need a personal training business plan?
Having a personal training business plan will make the process of starting any personal training business smoother. This may include opening your own personal training studio, becoming a self-employed personal trainer or freelancing for a gym. It can become very easy to quickly start working with clients and avoid planning out the bigger picture.
Banks or Investors
If you need additional funding to get started with your personal training business, being prepared to showcase your full personal training business plan to potential investors or banks will put you in a better position. In both cases, you are looking to persuade these people to invest in your fitness business, if they can’t see a clear plan mapped out on why you are worth the investment you may be unsuccessful in achieving the investor or funding. This provides potential investors with the step by step process on how you are planning to get your personal trainer services running.
Approaching this situation with a fully mapped out personal trainer business plan shows that you have thought through all possible elements of the business strategically with evidence on how you have got to this stage to be successful in the fitness industry.
Self Motivation
If you are looking to become self-employed and go out in the fitness world as an independent personal training business has a well thought out plan in place that will keep you on track with your own personal business goals. Spending some valuable time putting together a personal training business plan will be beneficial in the long run to keeping yourself on track, this can be a document you constantly refer back to. A personal training business plan will be what continues to drive you to achieve your ultimate business goals.
Summary & Pitching
The first section will be a summary of your overall business plan which will include business goals/aims, what the business does and any financial projections. The best way to approach this section is to complete it last once you have completed all the research for you to summarise. The purpose of this summary is to outline your business at a quick glance for somebody to understand your main goal and outcome.
Pitching your personal training business plan
A personal training business plan pitch will include a brief summary of what you do and what you are aiming to achieve. In your pitch, you should include your aims and objectives as a business, an overview of financial forecasts, business plan ideas and identify your USP.
The pitch should only be a few sentences long and ensure it is all relevant material avoiding any repetition or filler. The idea of the pitch is to attract your listener, an indicator of a successful pitch is your listen asking questions or wanting to know more about your pt business plan.
Personal background
This section is to outline your own personal background this section will help you outline your strengths and potential weaknesses for listeners to understand.
Use your experience and expertise to boost credentials
Your qualification and experience will have high value in this section with the opportunity to showcase how you have educated yourself and the route you have followed. If you have undertaken additional studies including continuous professional development courses, this is a good place to showcase this.
This is also a good opportunity to identify any training you may need to still undertake to work on yourself, this demonstrates that you have a focus on personal growth and are planned for this. This is a beneficial section to understand for personal growth, working on identifying your own strengths and weaknesses will highlight any sections of the business you may need additional support or training in prior to starting.
Product or service
Personal training is positioned as a service business as you do not sell a physical product, you offer time and experience to your client’s fitness journey. In this section, you will highlight your core service, will you just be offering personal training sessions or is there an option to build out nutrition meal plans? Use this opportunity to explain your service in detail including what you offer the client, how you plan to deliver the service and any resources needed for this.
Outline your USP
In this section, it is also important that you highlight what makes you different and how your knowledge, experience and background has created a USP for your personal training service.
The market
In order to be successful in launching your personal training business, you would need to have an in-depth understanding of the market you are entering. This includes carrying out market research within the potential clients operate in. After this point you will be able to build out a marketing strategy based on your understanding of the client market, this will ensure you are marketing your business in the most effective way.
Target Market research
Gathering marketing research is the process that helps determine the success of your new service which is conducted in line with your potential clients. Market research is carried out by companies to discover their target market in more detail by gathering opinions and feedback on particular interests.
To carry out successful market research you should gather information which providers you insights on the following:
- Current behavioural habits of your clients?
- How big is the personal training market?
- How much competition is there?
- What are the buying habits of your potential clients?
- Current market trends for pt businesses?
Create a marketing strategy
Once you have completed your market research you will be in a good position to map out your marketing plan strategically. Your marketing plan is a huge contributing factor to running a successful business, without this potential clients will not come across your business which impacts revenue and profit.
When creating a marketing strategy you may find the cost can be daunting, however, you should consider marketing as a personal business investment for which you calculate the return on investment as this is essential to your business success. Whilst you are going to have to invest money into marketing, there are also options that aren’t as costly to include within your strategy such as word of mouth, attending networking events and running social media accounts. Marketing has a direct impact on your business which is why it is essential to ensure you cover everything you can to benefit from the market share. For this reason, we have covered everything you need to know to build out a marketing plan with our beginner’s guide to personal trainer marketing and advertising.
Competitor analysis
Competitor analysis is a good exercise to complete to ensure you are entering the market in a strong position. To complete a detailed competitor analysis you should carry out thorough research into who your competitors are, their service, their location, their pricing and their strengths and weaknesses.
Once you have completed this, you should complete a swot analysis on your own personal training business compared to competitors within the market. Doing this will help you identify any pain points you may have as well as a USP which will prove to be a strength within the fitness training business.
Operations & logistics
Operation and logistics are a fundamental part of the business particularly for those setting up their own personal training studio or personal trainer freelancing. This includes evaluating elements of the business operations such as training space and location, suppliers of gym equipment, how to sustain your equipment and any additional products you may need to operate successfully as a business.
Understanding inventory & logistics
This section applies to individuals who are looking to set up their own personal training studio, you should use this area to cover details on where you will be delivering your personal training service, what locations, the facilities you will be using and how you regular sustain any equipment or software.
If you are planning on becoming a freelance personal trainer who is working within different gyms, this section may not be applicable to you as it focuses on how your service will be sourced and delivered.
Pricing strategy
A pricing strategy will help you work out what profit margins you are working towards and understand at what point you will break even and start making money once you have factored in the costs and investment.
When figuring out your price point you need to consider the business needs and client needs, if you are just starting out as a personal training business performing at a higher-end price point is likely to penalise the business success. You need to choose a price which is going to accommodate the business operations as well as appeal to potential clients.
Cost & expenditure planning
As the final part of your personal training plan, you will need to calculate the cost and expenditure involved in how you are planning to operate. This will include calculating gym rent, advertising and marketing, legal costs, personal training equipment, personal training studio rent or gym rent.
Pt business plan: Template
To make the process easier we have put together a personal training business plan template for you to download and use. This template provides the all-important sections needed to create a detailed pt business plan to help you set up your fitness business for success.
Personal Training Business Template – Download Now
Personal trainer business plan conclusion
Writing a pt business plan may seem like a long and daunting task when first faced with it, however completing this is a valuable exercise for your success as a personal training business. As business owners, it is important that this plan is revisited and revised when applicable to ensure your business path and goals are continuously on track and up to date.
Cash flow may seem slow when getting started but with a plan as detailed as this in place, you will be prepared which will motivate and push you into improving your revenue streams. It is important to remember you are a new business and you are likely to face challenges but just take them head-on and create a learning hurdle from them knowing you have a strong business plan in place. Spend hours completing a personal training business plan to make a worthwhile investment in your personal time and energy later on down the line.