Continuing education is the standard to maintain certification status but can also be utilized as a marketable tool to enhance your credibility, showcase new skills and provide auxiliary services to clients. Keeping abreast with the newest research on nutrition, programming, equipment, and special populations allows plenty of content for expanding your training portfolio.
These factors can certainly dictate which courses to take in regards to enhancing your current credentials, but research in current trends will keep the fitness professional in a position as an industry leader. National conferences offer a variety of courses that can be applied to multiple client goals. Focused singular courses can be concentrated on a particular modality of interest for a specific demographics. Once obtained, it would be beneficial to market these new skillsets to increase the value in your programs.
To Current Clients. After your course, share your newfound education with your current clients. Incorporate your new education into their programs and showcase how this information benefits them. This will demonstrate that the value of their investment in you will keep growing, which will allow for increased resigning percentage. They will undoubtedly share what they learned to close associates, which can lead to referrals.
Marketing in the Facility. Once you are comfortable with the content, begin showcasing these new skills in the facility. For certifications, update in-club biography while offering consultations in that area. Smaller courses can be marketed in the gym with seminars, classes and demonstration tables. Both types of continuing education should include visual presentations such as posters, community board flyers and front desk visibility. These methods should be expanded into cross-marketing with outside facilities where this type of specialty is applicable.
Marketing Online. Fitness professionals are in a time where online presence is just as important, and showcasing new education is a great way to rapidly express your interests while providing new content. Posting pictures participating in the educational event validates credibility while networking with other professionals. Small videos demonstrating new skills will show how you will incorporate them into your programs. Tagging media of the equipment used or courses taken may expand into sponsorship and discounts on further education. All of these should be shared on multiple social media platforms, club websites and professional listings for online optimization.
While continuing education will certainly enhance your professional worth, purposeful considerations of utilizing the marketability of the courses can expand the value of your investment and provide measurable returns in the field.
