The best thing you can do to promote creative fitness marketing is to commit at least 30 minutes a day to yourself. I know it sounds crazy, but action and creative-thinking are not very good bedfellows. Chances are, you are so busy that you don’t have time to breathe, let alone think, most days. You need to allow yourself the psychological space to ponder, to dream and to imagine your next blockbuster idea. So, for 30 minutes a day, pick up a good book and read a chapter. Browse your competitors’ ads. Take a walk outdoors. Peruse your favorite fitness blog. Read marketing studies about what works and what doesn’t. Listen to a radio show. Paint a picture. There are many ways to tickle your creativity.
Don’t get too caught up on depressive thoughts. This is especially important when you consider all the inherent marketing challenges. Sure, I could sit here and think, “Gosh, everything that could possibly be written on this subject has already been written in some form or another” – and I’ll sit here staring at a blank MS Word document for another hour! By the same token, you may be so daunted by the drive to create something truly unique that you’re unable to produce ANYTHING at all! If I can give you one gem, let it be this: Your marketing messages do not need to be one-of-a-kind. They just need to be genuine, clear and interesting.
Creative fitness marketing is a little bit zany, a little unconventional, and a little unpredictable. You never know when the idea might strike you. But I’ve found the best way to make sure you get that zap of lightning is to Network, Network, Network! Always be talking with others. Always share your dreams and ambitions. Always reach out to people who are better, smarter, richer, or more experienced than you. Each year, capitalize on opportunities to attend industry masterminds, retreats, trade shows, conferences and seminars. The collective synergy of the group will astound and amaze you, guaranteed.
One of the best experiences you could possibly have is that of the Millionaire Mastermind Retreats Super-Trainer.com offers in Las Vegas. Imagine how much fun it would be to get away for the weekend and stay at a posh mansion with a bunch of multi-millionaires from the fitness industry? This informal setting is so much more enjoyable than a traditional seminar or conference. You’ll be relaxing on plush couches, enjoying a drink from the bar, swimming in the in-ground pool, riding ATVs in the desert, and picking the brains of serious marketing heavy hitters.
These days creative marketing has little to do with a late-night infomercial or the old Yellow Pages. We’re not plastering our beautiful biceps on billboard ads or wasting our time with lead boxes at neighboring businesses. The heart and soul of effective and creative marketing resides online. These methods are not only more cost-effective and more far-reaching, but they also make it easier to track success, failure and every shade of gray in between. If you don’t have tracking tools in place for all your online fitness marketing channels, I suggest you do this before taking one step further!
What you surmise is the perfect example of fitness marketing may not translate well with your audiences. Even though you have the coolest graphics or the cleverest way of wording your thoughts, you may find your ads just aren’t converting. A/B testing is helpful because it allows you to test-drive two different versions of an ad to see which one leads to higher click rates and sales. Then you can make adjustments quickly before any damage is done.
Let’s move past the Meat Head stereotypes, shall we? So many websites these days are just carbon copies of tanned, hard-bodied trainers and stagnant promises about how much weight loss a studio will help people achieve. You may have the best luck with your efforts when you realize that we’re in the business of marketing PERSONALITY over anything else. As a service provider, your trainers will be the frontline of your business. You want to sell the culture of your business. Ultimately, the meshing of personalities will be what endears most clients to you, what keeps them working out with your crew, and what causes them to refer their friends and family members to you. That last bit is most important!
There are several ways you can sell your personality online. Maintaining a fitness blog is one of the best methods of marketing yourself. Your voice will resonate inside people’s minds to motivate, intrigue and drive action. You can employ many different mechanisms – wit, humor, statistical data, or persuasion, for instance. Many fitness professionals find that online advertising is a great way to supplement their income. This is one way your business can make money for you as you sleep. Email lists and newsletters are a natural extension if writing is in your skill set.
Another way to deploy your creativity is to get into the wonderful world of social media marketing. Sites like Facebook and Twitter encourage two-way dialogue with your prospects and provide a less formal place for you to communicate with clients. When you share information, photos, videos, quotes and posts that are near and dear to your heart, people will get to know you better – and will naturally want to give you their business if they like you.
The vast majority of your fitness business marketing strategies will be online, but you will still be exploring offline marketing methods as well. Retention and referral programs are especially important – and require investment in gift cards, greeting cards, prizes and incentives to drive engagement and enthusiasm for your brand. You can make a big splash in your community by running street promotions at local events, sponsoring 5-K races, and scheduling public speaking engagements.
Creative fitness marketing sometimes requires a fresh perspective. If you feel your team has hit a wall, you may want to consider hiring a business coach, marketing expert, or consultant to take an objective third party look at your marketing efforts thus far and suggest channels, promotions and ideas you may have never considered before. Being creative is not enough to ensure your business’s success. You may need a mentor’s guidance to reveal where your time and energy is best spent.