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Internet = Next Training Frontier?

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According to the 2010 IDEA Personal Training Programs & Equipment Trends report [IDEA Trainer Success, September 2010], only 19% of respondents offer online training programs. Nearly 50% provide online client reminders and information. These data may seem unimpressive now, but IDEA member Jason Bosley-Smith, CSCS, believes the Internet is the perfect venue for business growth. He recently traded his brick-and-mortar training facility for www.thefitrx.com, a website that provides online coaching and training, among other offerings. “I made the decision to expand and diversify my offerings with online training to serve as another component to my current business model and to differentiate myself in the market,” he says. Online training provides a client with the advantages of mobility and convenience. He can access programs from anywhere using a smart phone or laptop, and work exercise into his schedule as he sees fit.

Interested in tackling the online training market? Here are Bosley-Smith’s top tips for setting up your online services:

  • Find the Right Platform to Meet Your Needs. Several companies offer comprehensive platforms for online training. Check out www.efitnesstracker.com, www.trainerforce.com, www.hyperstrike.com and www.fitsync.com.
  • Develop a System. Systemize your online training process so that, from start to finish, you have a method for intake, program design, coaching/interaction and client feedback.
  • Establish a Consistent Online Marketing Presence. Set up a blog or basic website using WordPress or Blogger, and market your services to your contact list, social network, Google AdWords or other venues.

He concludes: “As technology continues to evolve and clients go online more often for retail transactions, banking, information and entertainment, online training will grow to provide fitness professionals with the means to deliver services and connect with clients anywhere, anytime.”

Do you offer online training services? Have you found this model successful? We want to hear about it. E-mail [email protected] and share your story.


Ryan Halvorson

Ryan Halvorson is an award-winning writer and editor, and IDEA's director of event programming.

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