Any independent trainer? - Personal Trainer Community - Forum

[stiguy08]

Hello all. Are there any trainers on this forum that started out working independent right away?

I ask because i quit my pt job at a fitness club after 2 weeks, and am now looking at independent in-home training.

I'm sure it is the harder road, but has anyone successfully done it? I hear independent is the way to go. Please share your experiences. Thanks!

[akyoda32]

I started out independent about 2 years ago. In this economy and depending on you location it can be extremely difficult. My suggestion to you is to do target market research and find out what you have to work with first and foremost. Then carve out a niche that you can do better or that is not covered in your area. Next look into marketing. It does take a little more work to be independent, but that just makes it all the more rewarding. Your real issue will be start up cost with equipment.

[kettlebell king]

Hi, I started up firstly as an independant trainer- theres no problem in doing this but you must be prepared to give it a good couple of years before ou have enough clients to be finacially stable- I had to continue my night job for the first two years while I set up a good client base.

[stiguy08]

thank you guys for posting

[mikeperryfitness]

As the others have mentioned, it is a hard slog. Unless you have managed to gain any clients in your first two weeks at the club, you may find the next few months expensive and depressing.

If you are a good trainer and you are in the business for the right reasons, you will be able to make a go of it. It can take a couple of years to build a stable client base that will keep you paying the bills.

The most important thing is to stick with and believe in yourself.

Word of mouth is the most powerful tool and that takes time.

Best of luck

[PTBizCoach]

The biggest problem I have seen with trainers trying to start out as an independent is the lack of a good sales and marketing plan.

Most trainers dont have a solid plan in place to generate new leads for themselves.

If you have a solid marketing, sales and business plans in place then going independent is the way to go for sure.

If you dont then working for a healthclub/gym is a lot easier due to the fact that they feed you clients.

Hope this helps and good luck!

[simply]

i have just started trainig some few weeks ago, its my first time! its really very tough to be a trainer!

[kaiserS]

I started out independent about 2 years ago. In this economy and depending on you location it can be extremely difficult. My suggestion to you is to do target market research and find out what you have to work with first and foremost. Then carve out a niche that you can do better or that is not covered in your area. Next look into marketing. It does take a little more work to be independent, but that just makes it all the more rewarding. Your real issue will be start up cost with equipment.

Read this. http://super-trainer.com/on-location-training/