Using Email Marketing to Grow Your Fitness Business

Generating customer leads is a necessary part of growing your fitness business. Converting those leads to clients is how you build your revenue. One of the best ways to market to potential customers is through email. Email was one of the first forms of web-based interaction but is still far from being outdated.

So, how do you find those potential customers to email? And what do you even say to them?

Attracting the Right Leads

To build an email list you must have something to offer. This could be access to a blog, newsletter, eBook, nutrition guide, etc. Offer free content to subscribers that is irresistible to consume. Once you decide what that is, create an advertisement to attract attention to it.

Social media ads provide an effective way to dive into digital marketing. You can build an email marketing campaign by collecting leads on Facebook and Instagram. The advertisements you create will direct prospects to a landing page. This is where they exchange their name and email for that enticing content you offered in the ad.

To attract the right customers, ensure your ad is clear and precise. Even though the goal is to collect emails, you do not want unqualified leads. Campaign personalization helps ensure you attract the right customers. For a local bootcamp, you're going to limit your ad to users within a certain radius of your location. Or for a free weight loss eBook, skip people interested in powerlifting.

Converting Leads to Paying Clients

Now you've collected a list of emails addresses from everyone who followed your ad and downloaded your free content. What's next? Getting a potential client to make a purchase. The email marketing process is your sales pitch and determines if the potential client purchases or not.

The objective of your first email is not necessarily to sell. The first email is an introductory email to familiarize them with your business. This is your chance to remind them why they are receiving the email.

Inform them of who you are, what you do, and the services or products you offer. Welcome them to your blog, newsletter, eBook, or Facebook group.

This first step to the follow-up process is all about setting your audience up for the sale.

Drafting an Email That Gets Results

So, how do you get results? Craft an engaging and effective email.

Good emails get prospective customers to open the email and take action. There are five key aspects to creating a successful email:

1. An eye-catching subject line

2. An engaging message

3. A motivating call to action

4. Prompts for social media

5. Personalized reply and signature

1. Create an Eye-Catching Subject

The subject line is the first thing recipients see after your name. It should immediately engage the recipient. As they sift through their inbox, yours needs to stand out from the clutter.

Keep subject lines short and enticing to increase open rate. Consider including a deadline for the offer inside or emphasize that there are limited spots available. Include the recipient's name and keep the subject to 6-10 words.

Example: "John, Weight Loss Secrets—Your Free Guide Expires 2/5"

2. Craft an Engaging Message

Once you get your prospect to open the email, you need to keep them there. Are you introducing a new blog article? Get them interested to go read it. Announcing a new bootcamp class? Get them excited to sign up.

As you write, be yourself and avoid getting too scripted. Write as though you're having an in-person conversation to build a true connection. Stay true to your brand. There are many options for blogs and classes they can sign up for, but they're here for you.

• Use personal, conversational writing with words like "you" and "your".

• Ask questions, just as you would in regular conversation.

• Keep it useful—offer them something and don't ramble.

• Make it easy to read with short paragraphs, a clean font, and simple visuals.

• Make sure your email is mobile-friendly as 61.9% of clients open email on their phone.

3. Motivate with a Call to Action (CTA)

Encourage clients to navigate to your webiste or blog to sign up for or download your email offer. If you provided the free content within the email itself, implement a CTA to educate clients on a different part of your business. They can subscribe to your blog or check out the nutrition coaching side of your business.

Make your CTA specific and tell readers exactly what to do:

• Click here for more weight loss tips on the blog!

• Watch this video to learn more about our upcoming bootcamp!

• Sign up here to be notified when registration opens for the fitness challenge!

• There are only 20 spots available for Powerlifting 101—sign up now!

Remember, not every email is a sales pitch, but rather an avenue to direct them to sell themselves. Continue offering your knowledge and expertise to build trust and relationships. Clients will buy you first and your product second. If they trust you, then they will believe that your services or products will work for them.

4. Include Links to Your Social Media

Social media is a great place for prospective clients to get to know you and get comfortable with your brand's identity. The more they see your content, the more they relate to it. Include social sharing buttons for Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or whatever platform works for your business.

5. Personalize Your Reply and Signature

To keep an authentic feel to your emails, skip the no-reply sender name. The goal is to create emails that feel like they're coming directly from you to them. A no-reply sender email leaves people feeling like part of a mass message. Using your name on your email and in your signature keeps that personalized feeling going throughout the entire message.

Track Behavior and Use Segmentation-Triggered Automation

The frequency of emails depends on the type of content, prospects, and business you have. Whether you send emails daily, weekly, or monthly is up to you.

Demographic responses will help you determine how often prospects receive relevant content. Over time you begin to build groups of potential customers and key content for them to receive. Once your follow-up system has these principals in place, you can begin to introduce additional subscriptions and promotions.

Lastly, discover what type of leads are buying and what types of products each customer purchases. Look at what products they leave in the checkout cart and what services they requested but didn't finalize. Ask for feedback on the fitness content you produce. Track progress and accumulate feedback to adjust over time. Create a better marketing funnel based on the behavior of current clients.

Segment customers into categories based on behavior, interests, and purchases. Utilize personal interests and websites they visit to retarget. Campaign software and tools help you personalize this content without having to individually do it yourself. Some provide real-time analytics, email automation, integrations and more.

The key to making a sale in a personal trainer business is to ask for it. Guide prospects to sell themselves. Be consistent with your emails and ensure potential customers are receiving the right content.

Be confident in getting certified and using these email marketing tips to grow your business. Consider having a broad horizon of fitness knowledge to provide different forms of content in your campaigns. Check out ISSA's Fitness Coach bundle. Become a Certified Personal Trainer and choose a specialization course to complete. This way you have more to offer potential clients.