- Last Updated:
- 2/24/25
- Chelsea Ramsey, ACE CPT
I never considered myself much of a salesperson. My desire to help others with their fitness goals often butted up against my fear of coming across as pushy or dishonest. That’s how I knew selling my services as a personal trainer would be a challenge.
I had no idea how to “do sales.” Do I cold call people (my personal nightmare)? How do I get hesitant people to commit? How do I find potential clients? Have I made a terrible mistake!?
Eventually, I learned that self-doubt is natural and more common than I thought. Push past your hesitation and fast-track your personal training sales skills with these tips, tricks, and strategies I wish I had when I started as a fitness instructor.
6 Steps for Selling Personal Training Successfully
Selling your services is a skill. Like with any skill, you have to start somewhere. The more you practice, the easier it becomes. Improve your self-marketing abilities with these six steps.
Getting prospective clients to know you exist is half the battle.
1. Get Potential Clients in the Door
You can’t sell your fitness services to clients who don’t exist! This is why locating your potential clients – who they are, where they hang out – and speaking directly to them is one of the first and most critical steps in your business and marketing plans.
Getting prospective clients in the literal or figurative door can be the most challenging part of starting or growing your business. Once they walk through the door or reach out to you online, they’ve already made the first step in their buying journey.
Encourage contemplative, uncertain, “maybe-one-day” future clients to make that first move with tools and strategies like:
- A distinct brand with clear messaging
- A professional, engaging website that’s easy for visitors to navigate
- Business cards or flyers with your website, socials, and contact information
- A social media presence with an emphasis on channels where your ideal clients are most likely to find you
- Social media and marketing content that’s relevant to your target audience
- Networking strategies that empower you to interact with as many people as possible, both online and in person — do not overlook or underestimate the power of networking!
Pro Tip: Learn how real life personal trainers attract new clients and delve deeper into marketing strategies for fitness instructors.
So if we started a training program tomorrow, this is a general outline of how we could get you clocking eight-minute miles at your next race.
2. Offer Introductory or Consult Sessions
Further encourage prospective clients’ first steps by offering one-time, heavily discounted (if not free) intro sessions. For example, conduct 15 to 20-minute meetings for new individuals who are trying to decide if working with a personal trainer is right for them.
These offerings may appeal to and convert hesitant clients by being:
- Low commitment: The meeting is short and avoids potentially off-putting money talk
- Unassuming: There are minimal expectations placed on the client which helps reduce first-workout or fear-of-judgement anxiety
- Informative: Clients receive a dedicated time slot to ask all the questions they want, as well as get to know you as their potential personal trainer
These sessions also help you:
- Get to know the potential client, what they’re looking for, and if you’re a good fit for each other
- Determine how serious they are about starting a fitness routine (or what their stage of behavior change is)
- Learn about their goals and overall experience with exercise
- Tailor your not-a-sales pitch to fit the specific person
3. Develop a Non-Salesy Sales Pitch
Avoid the “used car salesman” approach – don’t focus on the price tags right away. Too often, this comes across as pushy and disingenuous. Or even worse, that you don’t care about helping them, only about making money.
Use these techniques instead:
- Be confident, not arrogant
- Ask open-ended, engaging questions to continue building good rapport with the client and to learn more about their goals, needs, and personality (also known as motivational interviewing)
- Focus on the benefits of exercise and working with a personal trainer
- Highlight how you specifically can help them reach their goals (share a tentative program plan and/or your unique approach or philosophy to training)
4. Address Concerns or Objections
Many new clients, especially novice exercisers, will still have some concerns about starting a personal training program. The most common objections involve:
- Time
- “I don’t have enough time”
- “My schedule changes a lot”
- Money
- “I’m not sure I can afford it”
- “It’s too expensive”
- “I need to weigh my options”
- Fear and Uncertainty
- “I’m too out of shape to work with a personal trainer”
- “I’ve had a bad experience with fitness/another trainer”
- “I’m not ready to commit”
- “I need to ask…first”
I’ve been thinking about trying personal training, but I’m worried it’ll be too expensive or this 20-year-old trainer will judge me.
Avoid treating these concerns as silly or unrealistic. Address the individual’s concerns and discuss ways to overcome or mitigate those obstacles.
Additional tips for mitigating objections include:
- Emphasize the concept of personal training as an investment in their long-term health
- Educate them on the parts of your job beyond workout programming, like monitoring their safety and teaching and supervising proper form
- Review available options for scheduling, planning, or payments
Addressing potential clients’ concerns goes a long way toward easing their worries. It also displays professionalism and fosters trust by showing that you know what you’re talking about, you care about your clients, and you’re not trying to trick them into buying something.
My guys, if you schedule sessions together, it’ll be less expensive for both of you, and you can keep trash talking each other at the same time!
5. Offer a Range of Options
Providing options goes hand-in-hand with addressing barriers that keep potential clients from booking with you. Maybe they can’t commit to three times a week for six months, but they can commit to 10 sessions now.
Tips for providing options for clients include:
- Be flexible (to the best of your ability) with scheduling
- Make genuine efforts to find a program or schedule that works for both of you
- Suggest a program you believe will work best for that person
- Present alternatives to your suggested or preferred schedule, like once a week with you and an agreement to do the workout a second time on their own (after all, something is better than nothing, and a baby step is better than no steps)
- Offer deals on session packages (if pricing is within your control) and/or share any promotional deals your facility runs
Ya! I signed up for a training program and the personal trainer seems pretty cool, so I’m actually really excited about it!
6. Get the Commitment
The last step when selling your personal training services is confirming the commitment.
Based on your previous conversations, present the client with a plan.
- Establish a time and date for the first official session
- Outline what that first session will look like
- Present payment options with confidence
- Be clear and concise to avoid the sense you’re unsure of your worth or that you’re trying to trick them
- Follow up (within reason) if they say they need more time to think about it
And remember, even if the potential client doesn’t buy today, you’ve laid the groundwork for them to come back to you when they are ready.
Today – at home yoga for friends and family. Tomorrow – the world!
How to Sell Fitness Programs Online: Quick Tips
Selling fitness programs online allows you to reach more potential clients compared to in-person training since you’re not limited to one physical location or a gym’s operating hours.
Tips for selling personal training services online in addition to the strategies outlined earlier:
- Be flexible: Offer multiple price tiers or program packages
- Provide social proof: Highlight testimonials and client success stories (with permission) on your social media channels or website
- Make it easy: Ensure your website and any scheduling, payment, and communication processes are straightforward and user-friendly
- Engage your audience: Interact with the online community by hosting events like live Q&As or express workout livestreams, promotional challenges, and giveaways
- Leverage SEO: Use search engine optimization (SEO) tools to optimize your social media and website content
- Grow your network: Engage with your in-person community as well as the online one, and discover more ways to find new online clients
Sure! I can totally show you how to use that machine!
How to Sell Personal Training on the Gym Floor: Quick Tips
You have the benefit of meeting potential clients in person right away when you work in a gym. Naturally, this lends itself to developing relationships with potential customers before you “sell” to them.
Additional strategies to help you sell your personal training services in person include:
- Be friendly, approachable, and personable
- Be professional: Keep your language polite and respectful. Follow your gym’s dress code and avoid overly loud, wrinkled, or branded clothing while working.
- Be visibly active on the floor: Engage with gym members, walk around the facility, and don’t hide behind a desk or in an office. This helps members get to know you.
- Provide assistance or advice (when appropriate): Offer to spot someone preparing for a heavy lift, ask if you can help when you see a member struggling to adjust a machine.
- Provide tours to new members: Show new gym members around the floor, chat with them, and let them know personal training is available. Encourage them to reach out to you with any questions. Offer free demos, consultations, or fitness assessments: Showcase your vast wealth of knowledge and skills to new or established members!
- Teach a class: Leading a group exercise class lets you meet people and show off your exercise programming skills. If students like your class and are interested in personal training, chances are they’ll ask you.
- Substitute: Everyone needs subs for their clients or classes eventually. Subbing exposes you to new groups of people, so remember to include that you’re a personal trainer when introducing yourself!
Don’t judge: Avoid making snap assumptions based on members’ age, weight, or other physical attributes. Regardless of their outward appearance, anyone could be looking for or benefiting from personal training.
Hi Jan! Yes, I would love to talk to you about starting an exercise routine to help you get stronger before your knee surgery!
Additional Resources
Do a deeper dive into some of the topics discussed above:
- Motivational Interviewing for Personal Trainers
- Force of Habit: How Behavior Change Science Impacts Success
- 12 Things I Wish I Knew When I Started My Fitness Business (from the American Council on Exercise)
- Average Personal Trainer Salaries
And remember:
Protect yourself and your clients and get personal trainer insurance (yes, you need fitness liability insurance even if you only work online; yes, even if you’re only working with friends or family. Plus — no, you’re never too small to need liability insurance.)
FAQs About Selling Personal Trainer Services
What Is the Best Way to Price Personal Training Services?
- Research local rates other gyms and trainers charge
- Account for your training, education, and experience levels
- Factor in the hours you spend hands-on or face-to-face, as well as any out-of-pocket expenses you have
- Learn more about how much to charge for personal training services
What Are the Best Ways to Build Rapport With Potential Clients During the Sales Process?
- Show empathy
- Practice active listening and mirroring
- Ask open-ended questions
- Make connections and find common ground
- Acknowledge clients’ feelings, accomplishments, and fears
How Do I Follow Up With Leads Without Being Too Pushy?
- Keep your wording friendly and casual while still being as informative as necessary
- Offer to follow up through their preferred method of contact — email, text, or phone call
- Set an expectation regarding when and how you’ll follow up with them
- Do your initial follow-up in the first 24 hours while you’re fresh in their mind and conduct following contact attempts with several days in between
- Hold off on further contact if you receive no replies to the first three attempts, and keep additional attempts limited with a week or so in between them
Chelsea Ramsey, ACE CPT | Copywriter
Ohio-based copywriter and licensed insurance agent Chelsea Ramsey leverages her experiences as an American Council on Exercise (ACE) certified personal trainer, a role-playing game writer, and a former auto claims adjuster. She holds a bachelor’s in English from Ohio State University and a TEFL certification from Oxford Seminars. Before working at Veracity, Chelsea wrote for Zulily and trained clients at her local community center. She now writes to assist fitness professionals and entertainers in finding their ideal insurance policies.
Ohio-based copywriter and licensed insurance agent Chelsea Ramsey leverages her experiences as an American Council on Exercise (ACE) certified personal trainer, a role-playing game writer, and a former auto claims adjuster. She holds a bachelor’s in English from Ohio State University and a TEFL certification from Oxford Seminars. Before working at Veracity, Chelsea wrote for Zulily and trained clients at her local community center. She now writes to assist fitness professionals and entertainers in finding their ideal insurance policies.
