So you’ve had a look at our post on the 8 Steps to Starting a Successful Personal Training Business. Let’s assume that you have a professional qualification and the necessary certification. Now where do you start? Remember that location, pricing and marketing all affect and influence each other.
 
There are a few things to consider when deciding on the location of your PT business:

  1. Think of the niche that you’re going to target in your marketing. According to these demographics, where would be the most ideal location for prospective clients?

  2. You need to consider possible zoning restrictions. There might be legal restrictions that prevent you from opening business premises in certain areas.
  3. When you’ve decided on an area, do a little research:
    • How many gyms are in the area?
    • How many personal trainers already run businesses in the area?
    • Do these PT businesses target the same niche as you, or a different one?
    • Could the area sustain another PT business?
  4. Calculate exactly how much space you’ll need and what you can afford.
  5. If you want to work in an already-established fitness centre or gym, get a good idea of the culture that exists there. You need to be happy where you work and feel that your expectations are being met. You will also need to analyse the viability of running your business from that gym according to their membership, the other PTs there, etc.
  6. If you want to train clients in their own homes, you need to think about things like time, transport, space and equipment.