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| The business of fitness • 18th January 2022

Part II: Which is better...Personal Trainers and Compensation

Which is better, to hire a personal trainer as an employee or as an independent contractor?

In Part I of this series we looked at the very basic options that both gym owners and personal trainers have when hiring and being hired. I received a great response with an overwhelming majority of personal trainers who work as independent contractors. I have yet to receive feedback from gym operators. Regardless, some of the personal trainer responses described their independent contracting experiences

| The business of fitness • 11th January 2022

Which is better to hire, personal trainers as employees or as independent contractors?

On fitness forums, I have seen this question posted quite frequently:

Which is better, to hire a personal trainer as an employee or as an independent contractor?

In the following weeks, I will attempt to explore this question from different topic angles with addressing the very basics. However, I would like to get a more in-depth perspective for my own personal knowledge as a gym owner. I ask for feedback from you, the reader, no matter where you fit in the fitness industry!

As a Gym Owner Wh

| The business of fitness • 4th January 2022

Resolutions for Action

What your fitness business should do in 2022.

At first glance you might think that I’ve already covered this topic for the year. But this is a little different; it’s intended to be a straightforward list of resolutions for the New Year. I want to make this a post about looking forward and in the last post on making plans there was a lot of content that I left out simply because there was too much good stuff for one post to cover.

So, this is a list of what a fitness business should resolve to

| The business of fitness • 28th December 2021

Time To Reflect And Make Plans

How Does It Look? What Does It Mean? What Needs To Be Done?

It’s a great time to draw a line under the past year by looking at what was good, what was bad and what looks to be changing. I’m not talking about Taylor Swift or politics here, but specifically in the marketplace that you serve as a small gym owner.

I’ve been writing about a lot of different topics this year and it’s worth a review to remind readers of what’s been covered and some key points to take away. This is a list that covers

| The business of fitness • 3rd August 2021

Fitness Trainer Sales Training Time

If I had wanted to be in sales . . .

Yes, it’s true, if we wanted to be in sales, we probably wouldn’t be working in the physical fitness business, would we? I know that it’s a common sentiment in this business. People become fitness trainers for lots of reasons. However, I’ve yet to hear anyone convincingly state that they did it because they wanted to consistently up sell to the “platinum package deal” or make sure clients walk out with sacks full of merchandise.

I get that. But this is a bu

| The business of fitness • 27th July 2021

Checklist for Hiring Personal Trainers

Do you use a checklist when you are hiring staff at your gym? What follows here is the checklist for hiring personal trainers that I use as a structure for the interview and hiring process.

As a small business owner and fitness center owner and manager you have to be organized to the point of being obsessive compulsive. In the corporate world of big gyms and worldwide fitness franchises you get all kinds of support that’s not available to the independent owner. Being an independent business own

| The business of fitness • 20th July 2021

Fitness Professionals Who Continue to Inspire the Fitness Industry

Fitness Pioneers Who Continue to Inspire the Fitness Industry

The fitness industry has seen some very inspirational figures that changed the way people perceive health and fitness. I am sure in some form or fashion, all of us that are part of the fitness industry today were inspired by at least one of these notable figures, Jack LaLanne, Joe Weider, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. These individuals redefined what it is to be fit and were pioneers in their time. These fitness gurus have redefined hea

| The business of fitness • 13th July 2021

Gym Brand Products Promotion

You know that you need to establish your brand name and image in the fitness industry, but how will you do that? Giving excellent customer service and providing state-of-the-art gym equipment and facilities are just some of the initial steps. You also need to create some buzz about your gym and appeal to the public at large. While we strive to get creative promotion ideas, we tend to overlook one of the simplest and most effective promotion technique – giving out promotional products.

Using bra

| The business of fitness • 7th July 2021

Have Fun in Solving the Membership Retention Riddle!

Every fitness facility, large or small, well-established or just barely opening their doors, is faced with the retention riddle. Health and fitness is a commitment toward a better lifestyle. It requires time, conscious thought, planning, and let’s face it, a lot of hard work and effort! Everyone can agree that hard work and no play is no fun. What causes no fun? Lack of interest! So, at the very least, one can deduce that at least one step towards solving the retention riddle is to incorporate f

| The business of fitness • 30th June 2021

Cool Summertime Health Club Events and Promotions

Summer is the time when people start finding time to relax and have some fun. As people are becoming more and more health conscious by the day, health clubs are becoming a popular hangout for people of all age groups. Health clubs can leverage this demand to their advantage, and come up with events or promotions that people enjoy. This will also increase the popularity of the health club significantly. Here are a few simple ideas for cool summertime events and promotions in your health club.

On

| The business of fitness • 9th February 2021

Top 10 Reasons Why New Gyms Fail

If you have opened a new gym, you must know that it is, after all, a new business. So you should be prepared to run and develop that business as a business. To do so, you must acquire knowledge about the fitness business industry, and also be aware of the pitfalls of why new gyms fail so you can be sure to avoid them. In my opinion, here are the top 10 reasons why new gyms fail…

No business plan can be fatal to your new gym. Before starting a gym know:

Capital is the life-blood of a business.

| The business of fitness • 5th February 2021

Optimal Temperature & Volume Settings for Your Gym

If you are an owner or operator of a gym facility, I am sure you get daily, if not hourly, requests to turn the temperature down/up or to set the music at a higher/lower volume. It can be difficult to balance all of your member requests and it will be impossible to make all your members happy. The best thing to do is to follow recommended guidelines so that way to can ensure your member base that you are following the rules to ensure their health and safety.

Going to a gym is a great way to los

| The business of fitness • 2nd February 2021

How Can Your Gym Offer Awesome Customer Service?

Customer service is important for any business to succeed. If you own a gym, your revenue source will be directly linked to your membership base. In order to ensure your gym business survives and remains competitive in today’s fitness industry market, you have to consistently provide your members with high quality service. Customer service plays a vital role in member acquisition and member retention — research by IHRSA shows interaction with fitness staff significantly decreases member dropout.

| The business of fitness • 29th January 2021

Best Fitness Business Owner Forums for Help in Running a Great Gym or Studio

Networking through the Internet has opened a whole new world for those in the fitness industry – from gym operators to personal instructors. It enables you to reach out to potential clients and effectively address your target audience. However, there aren’t many social networking sites for gym owners, connecting one fitness business owner to another. People looking to maintain their physique can easily reach out to their peers through social communities, but what about those looking for peer sup

| The business of fitness • 26th January 2021

Want to Work With The Disabled? There’s A Certification For That!

If you want to train disabled people or your fitness club could grow by catering to special populations as a market niche, there’s a certification that enables you to do just that. It’s the Certified Inclusive Fitness Trainer (CIFT) certification, which was developed by the American College of Sports Medicine, in collaboration with the National Center on Health, Physical Activity and Disability.

I’m sure you’d agree that, as a fitness trainer or gym owner, it never hurts to have additional tool

| The business of fitness • 22nd January 2021

10 Cost-Effective Ways to Promote Your Fitness Business

Marketing your gym is an ongoing process. Placing an advertisement periodically here and there will not be enough for your business to survive. You always have to be proactively thinking about the next promotional idea, slogan, or campaign. There are a handful of ways that are cost efficient and will effectively promote your gym business your within your immediate target area.

Here 10 ways to help get you started.

Simply choose a charitable event or charity organization and do short term and l

| The business of fitness • 19th January 2021

Risk Management for Fitness Facilities

Developing a risk management strategy for your fitness facility, health club, or personal training studio involves three basic steps:
• Evaluate the severity of the potential risks;

Taking a cold hard look at your facility from a risk management point of view is the first step in developing a risk management plan. Take some time to tour each area of your facility and imagine what possible hazards could possibly arise in each area.

One of the most common issues involving locker rooms is insuffi

| The business of fitness • 15th January 2021

To Buy or To Lease Gym Equipment? That is the question…

Should I buy or lease gym equipment for my business?

The decision to buy or lease commercial gym equipment depends on the amount of capital you have and your tax situation. There are pros and cons to both approaches. Leasing allows you to change out fitness equipment every few years while incurring lower maintenance costs, and payments are generally deductible as a business expense. It is also easier to obtain leases than equipment loans. They may, however, cost your health club more money in t

Gym Insight Blog | The business of fitness • 13th January 2021

The Benefits of Buying Used Gym Equipment

There are many advantages to buying used fitness equipment. Used or previously owned commercial fitness equipment can be purchased for less than one-third the cost of new gym equipment. Since most gym equipment is made up of easily replaceable parts and rarely breaks, there is little risk for owners. Most importantly, new health clubs can pay off used equipment faster, making it easier for their businesses to quickly reach profitability.

Every gym member uses some type of exercise equipment

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