The Real 6-Figure
Fitness Business Professionals

There are clubs, studios, trainers and other fitness professionals who take home 6-figure salaries year after year after year..!  This level of super-high revenue consistency is really quite amazing.

 

As you can imagine there are thousands of competitors who attempt to copy the business models of their high-achieving peers.  But, they never hit those numbers.  Not even close.

 

• They copy the membership model. 
• They duplicate the personal training structure. 
• They mimic the pro shop, child care, group training and even floor layouts and equipment footprints. 

 

But they still don’t hit those numbers!  So why not?

 

 It’s the Formula

After 30 years of working with successful fitness entrepreneurs and observing the industry as well as asking lots of questions…

 

I can assure you the magical SUCCESS FORMULA ( 3P=2R squared) has nothing to do with websites, marketing campaigns or slick promotions.  Sure, you have to promote your business.  But at the end of the day, long-term, sustainable fitness business growth and success is all about RESULTS.  And, the formula for this is:

3Ps

• Proper Nutrition
• Productive Exercise
• Positive Motivation 

Equals 2R squared (or 4Rs)

• Results
• Retention
• Referrals
• Revenues

Oh Sure… You’ve Heard This Before!

Yes, I know you’ve heard all of this before.  Maybe from me — or a dozen other fitness marketing experts.  But, there’s a difference between talking about it and actually doing it!

 

High achieving 6-figure fitness professionals live, eat and breathe the 3Ps… every single day — with every single client. It’s NOT lip service. 

 

It’s NOT a bunch of hype during the sales pitch.  It’s NOT three bullet points on a website.  They live it… personally and professionally. And, the same commitment is instilled into each and every staff member.

Maybe I’m talking about YOU.  I hope so!  And, if so, maybe you can relate….

The Strong Silent Type

It’s rare to hear about these people or even realize that the person standing next to you at a trade show might be a 6-figure owner. 

 

They don’t brag. 

 

They tend not to be flamboyant or loud. 

 

They don’t share their finances with anybody beyond their CPA. 

 

In fact, one of the most successful millionaire club owners I know still drives his 2005 Toyota Corolla and lives in a modest 3-bedroom home in Florida.

Many of the extremely successful business owners tend to be like stereotypical “tough-guy” actors –  the strong, silent type. 

 

They are humble and understated. 

 

Clint Eastwood as Dirty Harry comes to mind.  So does Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games.

 

To be totally real, I have to admit there are boot camps, boutique studios, express fitness facilities, 24-hour turnkeys and multi-purpose club franchise owners and licensees who have earned some big bucks… but only for a year or two. 

 

And, then, they seem to disappear.    I’m not talking about the “churn and burn” operators.

 

What Happened to the Fitness Industry..?

So, why am I banging on this drum?  Well, I truly want you to be successful.  After all, my business depends on your success! 

 

But it’s more than that.

Over the last five years there has been a noticeable shift in the industry.  In a nutshell, it’s become “fast and cheap.” 

 

This shift is the culmination of several driving forces all converging at once.

• For example, the weak economy has forced clubs to entertain all kinds of new and whacky pricing models… including “loss leaders” that are immediate money losers. 

 

• Technology is another driving force (from websites and social media to in-house wireless systems) pushing clubs, studios, trainers, manufacturers and just about everybody into new capital expenses and significantly higher overhead. 

 

• Consumer expectations have shifted, too.  T.V. shows, print media and the internet continue to create false expectations among a new generation of millennials who demand a “new body” in six weeks…. or less.   So, some in the industry have responded by promoting quickie “weight-loss” programs —  combining high-intensity training with restricted calorie dieting.

Look Who’s Driving…!

 

In most businesses, “fast and cheap” is almost never sustainable.  As our industry heads down this path, it is rapidly becoming a commodity where consumers are in the “driver’s seat” demanding 24-hour access, a low-ball price and brand new high-tech equipment. 

 

Oh.. and the biggest demand of all… a new “hard body” in 6 weeks.  After all, the new “Body Furnace Fat Blaster Program” promised it!

 

Interestingly, within all this craziness, the most successful 6-figure clubs, studios, trainers and other fitness professionals do none of it!  Instead, they continue to live, eat and breathe the 3Ps resulting in the 4Rs.  They also:

• Command premium rates
• Hold normal business hours
• Keep overhead at a minimum
• Pay attention to cash flow
• Manage client expectations
• Tell the truth about creating physiological change
  

Beyond the 3Ps…

 

Here’s something else I’ve learned about successful 6-figure professionals.  They innately know something that many in our industry have either forgotten or never understood in the first place.   And, it is this:

• Clients and members are PEOPLE. 
• They are PEOPLE who seek CHANGE.
• They are PEOPLE who seek CHANGE through a CONNECTION.
• They are PEOPLE who seek CHANGE through a CONNECTION with YOU.

 

So while consumers may want a “deal” on a 24-hour access facility that promotes a new body in 6 weeks — what they REALLY WANT is for someone to CARE about them.  They want to CONNECT with someone they trust.

 

Six-figure fitness professionals understand this.  Maybe it’s the way they were brought up.  Maybe it’s just naturally hard-wired in their brains…. but, every single 6-Figure Fitness Professional that I know, personally… understands this CONNECTION.

And, because of it, their businesses flourish with constant:

• Positive word-of-mouth
  
• 90% Retention Rates
• Floods of pre-sold referrals
• Unsolicited media attention 
• Invitations to speak, network and attend social gatherings

 

At the end of the day, a long-term successful fitness business is not about “fast and cheap”  It’s about being REAL.  It’s about CONNECTING.  And, staying focused on the “Success Formula.”

3Ps will get you 4Rs…   Every time!