Fitness, Business, Fitness Business, & Achieving Life Goals

One of the most important things you can do to market your business is to establish yourself as an expert in the field. Speaking/presenting to local groups is, not only a way to achieve that, but also to create rapport and trust.

Now I realize that it’s not as simple as that for many people. The fear of speaking in public is one of the greatest fears out there. Technically called glossophobia (for trivia’s sake), this condition can significantly limit how you can get public exposure for yourself and/or your business.

So, how do you get started, what do you speak on, and who do you speak to? Well, if you are uncomfortable speaking to large groups (or even small groups) you may want to take a public speaking class. Toastmasters is a renowned organization that has classes everywhere. There may be other classes near you as well. Beyond taking a class, look to speak to small groups. Maybe invite a few of your clients for an informal talk.

The topic should always be something that your audience will benefit from hearing about and that you are interested in talking about. If you’re bored with the topic, your audience will be too. What are the demographics of your group? Are they all trying to lose weight? Improve low back health? Increase function for daily activities? Target your topic to fit them.

As I said, you can start by speaking to existing clients, or you can seek out local groups like Weight Watchers, TOPS, PTOs, Rotary Clubs, the Chamber of Commerce, etc. They all look for local speakers to add value to their groups. When you present to these groups, give them something of real value that they can take away and use immediately. I’ve heard certain fitness pros say that you never give the audience answers and that if they want answers, they can sign up with you after the talk. I couldn’t disagree more. I would rather you give them something they really appreciate and start to create a relationship with them. However, you do want to get them on your contact list if you can so you can continue the relationship that the presentation started. You could get them to sign up for your newsletter (or helpful tips e-blasts, etc.) Or, you could offer a giveaway for those giving you their email addresses.

So get out there, share your knowledge, establish your expertise. Start small and build as you get more confident.

Note: It helps to video record you presentations. You can use these recordings to critique how you did and/or post them (or parts of them) online to help promote yourself as the go to person for fitness information.

I watch my kids go through phases of not trying new things and know that, for the most part, there are a couple  of reasons why they won’t try them. First, it just plain old doesn’t interest them. In that case, who can blame them? Second though, they don’t try because they don’t want to look or feel stupid. That fear or intimidation is not unique to kids. We all have things we don’t attempt for the same reason. We don’t want others to think that we’re unintelligent or uncoordinated.

What if we got over it? What if we didn’t care what others thought? What if we thrived on the idea of trying something that was so different that we would feel completely out our element? Beside the fact that adding new abilities, skills, experiences can enrich our lives, it is exactly what keeps our bodies and our brains healthy and fit.

Ask yourself, if you if you could try anything in the world, what would that be? Take a moment and write down the top 5 things you would do. Now, what’s holding you back? Go try it and embrace the process of learning something new.