In the last article we talked about the different fitness niches that are out there. Although it was a fairly comprehensive list, it doesn’t include every niche out there. There would just be too many. Hopefully, though, it will give you a good idea of what niche you’d like to specialise in. But before you choose a niche, there are some other important factors to take into account to ensure your choice is going to serve you well.
Here are some of the factors you should consider when choosing a personal training niche to specialise in:
The size of the market in your area
Although not the be all and end all, it’s important to choose a niche that has a market big enough to supply you with a good amount of clients. There is no point in being an expert in Jewish exercise in a community where there are very few Jewish people within 50km.
A segment you’re passionate about
Likewise, you might be located in an area that has a very high obesity rate, and think that would be a good niche to bring in lots of clients, but if you are not passionate about weight loss or seeing the achievements of clients losing weight, you’ll soon tire of the job and not enjoy yourself. And let’s be frank, you chose to become a PT to enjoy your job.
It’s much better to choose a niche you really care about and have passion for. That way, learning new techniques, reading up on trends and keeping yourself well informed will not be difficult because you’ll be doing it for enjoyment. Think of those interests you have around fitness, things you already care about and actively learn more on, and see if there is a market for it.
What kind of day to day work you’ll enjoy doing
Similar to the above, choose a niche whereby your day to day work is going to be something you enjoy doing. It’s rare that you’ll not enjoy something you’re passionate about, but, for example, you might be passionate about bodybuilding yourself, but would rather not deal with other people obsessed with it. You might prefer the day to day of sharing similar skills but to help clients that want a better body for the summer, rather than training those that will go to the extremes for a bodybuilding competition.
If you have commonality with potential clients
Having areas of commonality can be important and great for building rapport with your clients. For example, if you have lost a lot of weight yourself over the course of your training, you will be able to bond and understand the struggles your weight loss clients are going through. Likewise, if you train for fitness competitions, you might find an ideal niche in training others to take part in fitness competitions. Having that commonality will help you stay passionate about what you’re doing and also help the client trust you more.
The skills and qualification you have
Finally, make sure you are qualified and have the skills to teach your niche. If you want to teach fitness classes you might need more specific qualifications, for example, if you want to run LesMills classes, you will need to take their own qualifications to ensure you know how to run their classes properly. As a PT you might decide you want to teach other PTs certain skills, through CECs, if you are a good teacher, this can be a great path. You might even decide to go on to teach the Certificate III and IV in Fitness itself. To do this you’ll need further education and teaching qualifications.
Conclusion
Choosing a the right niche will not only give you something you can work hard at to become an expert in and something that you can build a community around, or intertwine yourself within to build a reputation and thus a client base, but it will also allow you to focus your learning and marketing message.
If you’re already a Personal Trainer, and need to get further qualifications on subjects like kettlebells, pregnancy, working with children, Olympic lifting, running or more, check out our CEC courses and workshops.
If you’re not yet a Personal Trainer, but like the idea of starting a career in a job you’ll love and enjoy working at, study to become a personal trainer with us.