You’ll want to keep long hair tied back and facial hair well-groomed so that your clients can clearly see your face, after all a smile and warm body language go a long way towards building trust with new clients, and you can’t do that if your face is hidden.
In terms of clothing, you should be dressed to workout. Clients will feel more comfortable if you’re wearing similar attire to what they’ve chosen for themselves, so athletic clothing and footwear is always the best choice. You could even take this one step further and wear your own personal trainer uniform to help reinforce your professional image and leave a lasting impression.
On an additional note, if you use images of yourself in your marketing, try to look as close to those images as possible. That means keeping the same hair-length/style and same clothing style, otherwise, you could confuse new clients who expect you to look a certain way.
2. Be prepared!
You’ll likely have discussed your clients’ fitness goals with them before you meet face-to-face for the first time. So, for your first session, you can prepare exercises and nutrition plans that match your clients’ aims.
This is an easy way to show new clients that you care about their goals and that you’re the right trainer to help them get to where they want to be.
Setting up personal training software to help your clients access what you’ve prepared will also build trust as they’ll feel supported from the very beginning.
3. Stay organised!
Never double-book your clients! This is the easiest way to lose clients as they will instantly feel undervalued and forgotten.
Using PT software can help you to keep your sessions clear, with all client information together so that you can easily access or adjust exercise and nutrition plans for specific clients.
The lack of paperwork will also help you to respond to each client faster and to answer their questions more efficiently.
4. Be Respectful!
As a personal trainer, you’ll meet clients of all abilities. Some might be seeking you out specifically because they’re not comfortable training in a gym environment or because they have no experience doing exercise.
If you make your clients feel uncomfortable or judged in any way, you’re likely to lose them before the first session is over.
You should be supportive and encouraging of people regardless of their ability or physical condition. This will go a long way in earning their trust and encouraging them to continue using your services. It could also lead to referrals from others who are in similar situations.
Making a great first impression doesn’t need to be difficult. All you have to do is look the part, act the part, be on time and be respectful. It’s that simple.
