How Do I Keep My Personal Trainer Technology Expenses Low?

by Jen
(Brookline, MA, USA)

---

Hi Jen,

Thanks for your question. And, thanks for taking the time to read our articles. Much appreciated! There are several no and low cost options to get started. Here are a few ideas that might help to get you started. Be sure to keep an eye on this page in the future, so you can check out responses and ideas from others!

---

---

You may already have social media, whether you're using Facebook, Instagram, X, or other platforms. The downside to these platforms is that entrepreneurs are at the mercy of the platform policies and their algorithms. What worked to earn engagement one day, may not work the next. You can never be sure if you're posts are being seen in the feeds of others. And, there's the potential for having your profile banned, sometimes without any explanation of why, or any recourse for retrieval. That means that the 100s or 1,000s of followers you'd amassed over time can be lost for good. And, you're left with no way to contact them, other than starting from scratch.

You'll want a social media presence, yet to reduce the potential for those negative consequences, you'll want a way to move your engaged followers away from those platforms to a place where you have more control of the outcomes. That brings us to the next section...




To use the HVLP acronym, meaning High Value Low Price, that's used in the context of some gym offerings, there's a way to make sure that your prospect, and client, experience remains top tier, or high value, while keeping your own investments to create that experience relatively affordable.

While I'm a fan of having a dedicated website, as it can lend to credibility, it's possible to get your business started without one. So, there's a cost savings to be had, initially, there.

In it's place, I'd recommend the free version of ConvertKit, as it'll give you the freedom to design unlimited landing pages to your liking, and that fits your personal and/or professional brand. You'll be limited, without an upgrade to a paid plan, in not having a few key features, including automated sequences. However, with the free plan remaining so up to 1,000 subscribers, it's plenty robust for your early list-building efforts.



Once your social media audience members have shown interest, and followed along to your landing page a la ConvertKit (or an alternative of your choosing), an ability to start conversing is key, especially where it's something more powerful than chat or DMs. My preference in this area is for Calendly. There's a free plan that allows for integration with several calendar types, so you can reduce the amount of back-and-forth messaging that would normally occur without this type of software, making it convenient from prospects to book time with you for a video call.

In these discussions with your prospects, you'll learn much more about individual goals, wants, and needs. You'll begin to see trends and opportunities as you have more conversations, and these can help inform any updates or changes to your service offerings.



If things go well in your video calls, and your prospects want to move forward in becoming clients, you'll need a way to process payments for your services. There are a few options here, depending on the services you're offering. Most will come with some level of processing fee, usually per transaction, so you'll want to compare those specifics as you make your decisions.

If you've gone with ConvertKit, they do have a ConvertKit Commerce feature, where you can offer, and process payment for, one-time or recurring transactions. If meeting via video, as you had in the initial video call, is something you'd like to continue, and fits your envisioned delivery of your services, there's a way to attach payment to particular meeting types with Calendly, though this might require an upgrade of the plan type.



I hope these options are helpful. I'll be curious to hear how you progress, and I'm excited to read the recommendations of others in the comments. Hoping to see you in our newsletter and in our community as it grows.

Yours in fitness,

David Bohmiller
Co-founder, Epicenter Training

What advice would you give to Jen? Add your own insight via the link just below.