A bootcamp marketing guest post from Paul Mort and Dan Thompson
Hey guys,
Hope your bootcamp has exploded after the easter break with guilty people!
With so much bullshit, smoke and mirrors in the fitness industry I though it would be great to bring you a blog post from somebody who has a business that can walk the talk so to speak.
Anyway, when Dan Thompson first approached me to join my mentoring program i was actually quite suprised as he was already smashing it with 5 venues i think.
Since working with us he’s doubled his bootcamp business and created something MUCH more unique than what he had before with his 5 STAR BOOTCAMP business.
Dan also has some GREAT marketing ideas (some of which I borrow), so i though it would be awesome if he could share some of the secrets of his success.
Take it away Dan:
Handsome Dan's on the left ;-0
8 Ways To Rock Your Boot Camps To Multiple Venues
MAKE A FAMILY: From the word go I decided I wanted trainers who wanted to join my little family.
My boot camp in Colchester is my baby, my pride and joy and I wanted my team to feel exactly the same way about there boot camp and members.
I tried paying an instructor in another venue but it never really clicked.
By franchising the trainers I took on have there own business, have to make it work at it to make money but are part of the 5 Star Boot Camp family. The other beauty is 8 heads are better than 1. If I have an idea or a concern I email the team to see what they think.
START FROM THE WORD GO: I actually put on my first boot camp over 3 years ago for a bit of fun! It never occurred to me it would turn into 6 figure business!
But don’t make the mistake I made and treat it as a business from the beginning. Create an operation manual. Later on down the line when I did want to franchise it took me months to write all the systems in a manual for the trainers to follow and actually cost me because the trainer I had in mind went elsewhere because the systems werent in place. If you were to go away could you leave your business on autopilot?
RED, BLUE and BLACK: I learnt this strategy at a James Caan Seminar and I’m going to teach you a watered down version as it changed the way I ran my boot camp business.
Red is your factory, where your product is made, delivered and sold. To you and me thats delivering pt or boot camp sessions and making sales. Blue is the Office, HR, Book keeping, Emails, usually has some sort of cost involved and if your like me you hate doing it! Black is the board room, where you create your strategies for your business. Now write down the top ten things you do most during your day. Probably like me they were mostly blue and red.
The key is making most of them Black and blue. I now spend 3 days a week delivering boot camp sessions and personal training with 2 FULL DAYS working on strategy. The red stuff is now outsourced, I have a part time PA and a book keeper to deal with the crap I hated doing and took up my time. I look after 8 boot camps without this technique.
BTS: Im not a massive fan of BTS but the one thing there brilliant at is quarterly training. Every 3 months my trainers have to go through my training. Its not always workout related, I cant wait for June to teach them the fat loss seminars they will be teaching and how Linkedin is a gold mine for trainers (Hint Hint!). The last quarterly training was Pauls very own boot camp tour where my trainers left buzzing and couldnt wait to get back to teach the band workouts. The point is you need to keep your team updated, one step ahead of the rest and I love teaching them the stuff I learn from my 3 mentors. We go a step further with a weekly phone call to ask questions, go over targets and iron out any difficulties.
CONSISTENCY: Theres no point having lots of boot camps if your all teaching different classes and singing from different song books. Every single one of my boot camps do the same session regardless of if your in Colchester or 50 miles away in Tonbridge. They are all use the 5 Star Boot Camps Inner Cirlce Members Site (I used Kajabi now, ning is so last year but thats another blog post!) and all members follow The Boot Camp Bible. The workouts are planned 3 months ahead so the trainer knows what they need to teach. You cant be in every boot camp to check what everyones doing but if you put the systems in place and make there lives easy and create more time for them they wont want to leave your systems.
WHO TO WORK WITH: I take on 2 types of trainers. Old school or freshers. Your old school trainers are the ones who have taught classes for years and can probably know who Dax Moy or Allyn Cosgrove is before you tell them and there loyal following watches every move they make on Facebook or Twitter. The fresher is someone straight out of finishing there first boy scout badge. There a rough diamond but the training you put into them will be worth it. But they have to have 3 basic principles – CHARACTER, PASSION and a WILLINGNESS to learn and put some serious hard work in the business. My mind is generally made up in the 10 seconds I meet them so you dont have long to impress me!
FOUNDATIONS AND PLANS: Setting up a boot camp in another town with another trainer is hard work even if you do find a gem of a trainer. I only take on 5 trainers a year to stabilise growth and make sure that every boot camp is ROCKING. Learn from the commercial gyms that we all love to slate. They went from a handful of gyms to 50+ within a few years. They lost what they were good at looking after members and everything became about sales, sales and sales. I like to think I, my team and 5 Star Boot Camps are building a strong reputation and I work hard putting systems in place to maintain that. The last 2 trainers I have taken on have both come from trainers that had boot camps with me and sang my praises to them.
LEARN FROM THE BEST: Even before I started mentoring with Paul I was sharing ideas and telling him what was working for me because I knew I would get something back. I now have 3 mentors including the boot camp king himself. Don’t afraid to look outside the fitness industry. Some of my best ideas have come from what I like to call my millionaire mentors. If they have made a few million chances are they know a thing or too about business. Every successful businessman I spoke to or met told me the same thing – I have a mentor. I am not saying this as a sales pitch to Paul but giving you a very big hint. I know I would’nt have multiple venues without learning the systems Paul has taught me.
May 11
5
How to Stay MOTIVATED!
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” – Jim Rohn
The above is a quote I heard around 6 years ago when I first studied with Charles Poliquin in Dublin and while I don’t FULLY agree with it- I understand its logic and I FIRMLY believe that the people you surround yourself with a vital if you’re to be a ‘success’ at ANYTHING.
Just as I advise my 1-1 and fitness camp clients who are trying to get in shape to surround themselves with people who will push them and spur them on, rather than pull them down and try to sabotage them, I believe its essential for fit pros too.
You know what its like for them, they have the friends who say:
“ I couldn’t do that “
“ That sounds a little extreme”
“ Go on, just have one”
“ Your only young once, stop being so boring and have a drink”
“ I wish I had your willpower- no one will know if you have just one”
With ‘friends’ like these constantly chipping away at their belief that they can achieve that goal they so crave, it becomes almost impossible for them to stay on track with their goals right?
Here’s a piece I wrote on facebook a while ago to help them called “ are your friends making you fat?”
Click the link to check it out: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=156916802347
Sound familiar?
Well it can happen with our fitness business too?
Heard any of these?
“ You’re obsessed, do you ever stop?”
“ You need to get a life”
“ That sounds a little unrealistic”
“When are you going to get a real job”?
“There’s too much competition”
“ Oh those bootcamps are all over the place”
Then we have the trainers who slag us off and talk about us behind our back.
Maybe, even hide your business cards or pull down your posters? Even just the sly ‘digs’ on facebook?
Is it any wonder, that us fit pros sometimes feel like we’re ‘on our own’ or we’re ‘fighting a losing battle’?
So what can you do to FIGHT BACK and RISE ABOVE THIS?
A couple of weeks ago I presented at the FITPRO spring convention at Loughborough University. (Don’t tell anyone but it was a pipe dream of mine when I was a delegate just 2 years ago!)
Anyway, the passion, energy, enthusiasm and all round love of health and fitness as always, was INFECTIOUS.
You know what though?
Pretty much ANY course or workshop I’ve been on- I’ve felt like this!
You go back to your clients on Monday BUZZING about the new info you’ve learned, DESPERATE to put it into action!
Then you get the ‘well that doesn’t sounds right’ and ‘that’s bollocks’ and ‘that sounds plain stupid’
You probably argue your corner for a few days, then the doubt sets in and you end up back at square one!
What do I do?
Well I surround myself with PUSHERS. ALL OF THE TIME. From my 1-1 clients, to my fitness camp members, to my mentoring students to my own ‘circle of influence’- people who I can pick the phone up to and ask anything and know I’ll get an honest answer back
Included in this are Dax Moy, Steve Jack, Chris Mccombs, Rachel Holmes, Andy Wake, Steve Hochman, Jayne Nicholls and Michael Heppell.
EVERYONE who I surround myself with is a positive person. No exceptions. I don’t work with whiners; I don’t have complainers on my facebook.
If I ‘fit’ someone I wont work with them- regardless of how much money they pay me.
I attend AS MANY COURSES/WORKSHOP/SEMINARS as I can.
There’s no better feeling that being in a room jam packed with LIKE MINDED people who all share the same common goal and interests. TO BECOME BETTER TRAINERS
On the 20th of May, I’ll be speaking at fitness entrepreneur bootcamp.
You can check it out here- http://fitnessentrepreneur.co.uk
This weekend event is VERY different to any fitness event you’ll have been to in the UK before.
The whole weekend is focused on BUSINESS AND MARKETING SKILLS.
Basically you’ll learn how to make more money, get more clients and take more time off.
Just a few of the names speaking alongside myself (I’ll be teaching on how to become a celebrity in your local area) we have Jon le Tocq and Charlotte Ord- who are the last 2 winners of ‘personal trainer of the year’)
We have Dax Moy- the UK’s most expensive personal trainer who earns multiple 6 figures
Andy Wake the owner of Boxercise Ltd- a multi million pound company
Michael Heppell- The UK’s leading personal development expert, who was on the Alan Titchmarsh Show on Tuesday
Rachel Holmes- who has over 16,000 members on her membership site, she’ll be teaching how to make money while you sleep
Alwyn and Rachel Cosgrove- 2 of the WORLDS leading trainers and owners of the uber-successful Results Fitness in California.
Nick Nanton- SEVERAL times a new your times best seller and a specialist in ‘personal branding’ Nick has a who’s who of world famous celebrities working with him
Steve Jack- My first mentor and a speaker at the biggest fitness conferences in the world.
Tim Goodwin- the website and Internet marketing master!
So as you can see, not you’re ‘learn more kettlebell exercises’ or ‘play with a new bit of kit event’
An event that will actually help you create a business that works for you- not the other way around!
In fact, rather than just giving you more knowledge and ideas that you wont do anything with- we’ve got a session where you’ll actually leave with a PLAN on what to do with you’re new found awesomeness!
You can check it out here- http://fitnessentrepreneur.co.uk
Paul
One of the biggest Frustrations most trainers have is ‘finding the right trainer’ who ‘wont rip me off’, who’ll ‘deliver the sessions like me’ and who doesn’t ‘want something for nothing’.
This guy used to work for me!
I have a really cool piece on this coming up soon, but you know what?
I can tell you EXACTLY how to find one, what contracts you need and how you should pay them based on their performance BUT none of that matters unless you change your mindset.
I recently came back from a 2 weeks stint in Thailand and didn’t get a single email, text or phone call while I was there- despite having 14 bootcamps and 10 trainers ‘working’ with me.
In the summer I‘m heading out to Marbella for 6 WEEKS of holidaying with my little family.
In an era where most fitpros cant take a few days off without stressing about there business and whether its going to be there when they get back, this is indeed quite rare.
In fact most bootcamp owners cancel their camps, take a week break and lose momentum or they run a 2-week camp.
In other words, when they go on holiday- they don’t earn ANYTHING.
I used to be like this too you see. I’ve had the trainers try to steal all of my clients and try to start their own bootcamp!
I had all the systems in place, all of the contracts, the S.O.P manual, the phone script etc etc but it dint matter. I was still scared of taking that ‘next step’ so to speak.
Then after a conversion with Dax Moy, I thought to myself:
“Sure the trainer could take some cash or put a cheque in their back pocket but at the end of the day, I’m still getting money for sitting on a beach. So I’m still earning more than I would have if I just ‘shut up shop’”
Make sense?
To explain my point a little more I asked one of the awesome members of my fitness camp team Katie Bulmer to explain her reasons and mindset shifts when she recently took on her first ‘staff member’:
Here’s Katie:
the BULMER!
8 months ago I gave birth to the most beautiful girl in the world, baby Heidi, and becoming a parent turned my world upside down in more ways than one. Not only has she brought so much joy into my life but she’s also taught me a HUGE amount about business, and kicked me outside of my comfort zone and into making some decisions I should have made years ago.
With my husband working shifts, there is no way I can be out training clients and teaching classes 4-5 nights per week like I was before. So my choices were…give up classes and turn down clients OR bring another pair of hands on board.
This was a MASSIVE decision for me…you see, I’m one of these control freak types who is completely anal about EVERYTHING to do with my business! But I knew that if I wanted to continue to earn great money and be able to give Heidi the best things in life, it was a decision that HAD to be made.
And boy am I pleased I made it! I know only work 1-2 evenings per week but am still able to run and take an income from 5 group fitness classes and a small group personal training course.
So who did I trust with my business’s reputation…the fabulous Alex. She’s amazing! We are so alike…her passion and drive is as high as mine, she wants to grow the business, and she is super keen and always wants to learn!
Next question…how did I find her?
Well, she’s an ex client, who worked with me 1:1 and got fantastic results and she was also a newly qualified instructor.
For me this is the perfect combination for 2 reasons…
1. She knows how I work; she knows methods and most of all she knows they work.
2. Being brand new to the industry she hadn’t been tainted by negative health club, minimum wage, maximum work, jealous instructor type environments. Instead she’s keen to learn and get stuck in.
I would encourage all fit pros out there, looking to take on an assistant trainer, to look for someone just like Alex. Even go as far as identifying an existing client and suggesting the get qualified.
To maintain Alex’s motivation and to make sure that my business values continue to shine through all aspects and avenues of the business I do 3 things…
1. Have Alex attend my classes and vice versa (and provide each other with feedback)
2. Have a development catch up every 6 weeks, to plan new class content and discuss what improvements we can make to the running of the business
3. I DON’T pay her by the class! Why? If I did, it wouldn’t matter to her whether she had 5 or 50 people in the class. Also, she has no ability to increase her income unless she works more hours (I wouldn’t wanna do that so why should I expect someone else to?). So instead I use a profit share plan, with me taking 30% and her taking 70%.
I absolutely LOVE Alex! She gets what I’m all about and shares my mentality, plus it means I get to bath, and put my baby girl to bed 6 nights per week…PRICELESS.
You see, I’m not chasing 6 or 7 figures (if I make that then great), I’m chasing a lifestyle that enables me to spend the maximum amount of time with my family…something you really can’t put a price on!
I hope this article helps you take the often-tough leap outside your comfort zone and into a better work/life balance.
Katie Bulmer-Cooke
Something that I often get asked is ‘how do you get so much done’ in so little time
In case you didn’t know, I currently run 14 different bootcamps (that will be up to 17 in May), a pretty busy personal training business, a very busy mentoring program, a successful business that sells resistance bands- not to mention my UK tour, oh and I have a 3 month old son too.
I’m not bragging here- honest 
ahhahaha
You see, most trainers are struggling with just a successful bootcamp never mind 14.
Truth be told, this is more of an expansion on the ‘strategy’ post I made last week than a new post.
Be honest though, here how many of these do you find yourself feeling right now?
• Working really hard and making pretty good money but having no time for anything else
• Feeling like you’re spinning plates and not really getting anywhere- almost ‘stuck’
• Spending a lot of your days answering emails, texts, returning calls and doing admin that you don’t really like doing
• Not knowing what you’re really supposed to be doing from one day to the next and drowning in your never ending ‘to-do’ list
• Seeing every man and their dog jump on the ‘bootcamp bandwagon’
• Not being able to enjoy your time off for fear of ‘something going wrong’ while you’re away from your business
• Wanting more time to grow your business and take it to the next level but having no time to do it and not knowing where to start
• Spending more time working than you do with your family and friends and having no time to workout and eat well
Pretty familiar?
Yep, I thought so.
I’ve been there too!
Answering the daft emails like ‘I’ve been on your website, can I have more information?’
The voicemails saying ‘I’m interested in your bootcamp, can I have a little more info?’
You know which ones I mean right?
You seem to spend half your time answering these, managing your membership site, replying to facebook messages etc etc
Now this is fine I hear you say, it means you’re ‘busy’ it means people actually want more information.
Well yes, I see your point.
But wouldn’t your time be better spent doing things that are more important?
Such as program design?
Networking?
Improving your product?
Builidng a REAL business?
A business that actually runs smoothly and earns money when you’re not there? One where you don’t have to make ZERO money when you take holidays or time off? (More on this next week)
Or what about it gave you more time to do what you LOVE- actually TRAIN MORE PEOPLE?
That would be awesome right?
Now at this point most of the fitness-marketing gurus would have you looking for other trainers, ‘outsourcing’ the training.
So you can spend more time working ON your business.
Well, what if you LOVE training people?
I Love, in fact I f*cking LOVE training people/
I’ll tell you something else too, I HATE admin
You see, most people have no idea how to work ON there business.
They bring in a trainer to take on some clients and run some more classes- but as a result they spend LESS time doing what they love and LESS time doing what they don’t like doing- the ‘admin stuff’.
Well what about ‘flipping it’ again, like I did with ZUMBA the other week?? (click here to read it- http://www.bootcampking.com/2011/03/26/zumbapingpong/)
What about you could have someone reply to those emails for you?
What if you could have someone put recipes together for your members?
What if someone could return your calls?
What if someone could reply to all of your facebook messages?
What if someone could take care of your member’s only site for you, upload videos, fire up your blog posts and manage a-weber for you?
Oh and why oh why are you designing flyers and working on your own websites?!?!
THAT is a REAL pet hate of mine too- shouldn’t you be leaving that to a professional.
Think about it- isn’t it exactly the same as a client saying to you- ‘look I know its your job to write programs etc, but I;m just going to do it myself because I think I can do a better job’
OUTSOURCE that stuff. NOW.
TRAIN PEOPLE?!
Anyway, Imagine if you handed all of this ‘stuff’ over to someone else.
Do you think it would create more time to do more important things?
Heck it might even create more ‘time off’ for you- remember that?
It might enable you to work on things such TRAINING MORE PEOPLE.
Building your ‘guru status’ in your area with PR
Improving your system so that you can roll out more bootcamps.
Never have to use the ‘I’ve got clients’ excuse when you want to do a course
You see, most trainers don’t run a business at all, their business runs them.
Their business tells them when they can have time off
Anyway, that’s a different rant.
So what are you waiting for?
Well no doubt your gonna give me one of these two main objections
“But I can’t afford to take on a full time assistant Paul!”
Or “ I don’t know where to start Paul!”
Okay so here’s what you need to do.
1. Change your mindset.
Work out how much your worth per hour. For me, it’s around 97 quid. That’s how much I get paid for 1-1 training and the minimum I earn per bootcamp session,
You see, if I can get someone to do the other ‘stuff’ for 8 quid an hour and it frees me up to earn 97. That’s good business right?
Even if your hourly rate only works out at 15 quid, you still earn more than you would if you did it yourself!
Makes sense now doesn’t it?
2. You ALREADY know some that can do this. Sure, you can get a virtual assistant but I prefer someone local that can not only understand what I want them to do but also someone who I can ‘show’ how to do things in my office.
BUT what I would do is ask your current members and family members if they have any office or admin experience and are looking to earn a little extra money.
Pay per hour, or SWAP services. You could give free bootcamp in exchange for having the ‘stuff’ taken care of.
Although I have one full time and one part time PA, you probably only need around 5-8 hours week help.
3. Make a list of the things that somebody else COULD do for you. Such as, uploading blog content, managing your membership site, running your facebook fanpage (click here to see one of mine-http://www.facebook.com/pages/Helen-and-Rachels-journey-to-get-fit-in-2011/181235601898419 ), answering email enquiries, returning phone calls, flyer drops, taking care of your diary, making sure all of the things you need printed are printed when you need them. Banking, booking flights, trains etc.
4. TEMPLATE the things you need help with
Have a templated answer to questions such as ‘’ I have a knee injury, can I do bootcamp?’ “ Can I have more information etc etc’
Basically lay out an idiots guide to this. Step-by-step, word-for-word what you want them to say/reply with.
If its more complicated such as uploading vids to youtube, managing your membership site etc- you can make a ‘screenflow’ or ‘camtasia’ video where you can record your screen and give instructions as you go.
See this post – as an example of a screen flow video.- http://www.bootcampking.com/2010/09/14/flyers/
5. Don’t lay all of the blame me if you suddenly start making more money AND having more time off to spend with your family and friends!
So there you have it, a fool proof way to start taking the chains away from you and your business and start BUIDING your business so that IT WORKS FOR YOU, NOT the other way around!
Oh and don’t blame me if you suddenly start making more money AND having more time off
Paul
Mar 11
30
You’re barking up the wrong tree!
Why you’re barking up the wrong tree
Do you ever feel overwhelmed with you business?
Feel frustrated with how much admin there is? Or that you can’t take
holidays or a day off without losing money?
Sure you LOVE your job, but sometimes you wish you could just switch off- and still get paid?
After some ‘espionage’ in both forums, on facebook and with some of my students and colleague s who teach bootcamps there’s A LOT of us in this situation.
Our ‘to-do’ list is pretty massive. We spend lots of time answering emails, dealing with payments and returning calls and texts.
Our bootcamps are busy we’re making good money, probably more than we’ve ever made in fitness and we LOVE teaching our sessions.
It’s a bit of a ‘catch 22’.
Making good money, loving our jobs but not really having time to do anything else that exciting?
Sound familiar? I’ve been there too!
Until just last week when I was in Thailand for ten days I didn’t realize that for the previous 5 years I’d been barking up the wrong tree and its only this past 12 months that I’ve been climbing the right tree
Lets look at it in another way.
What would happen to your business if you had to take 8 weeks ‘off’ but you still had all of your bills to be and no-one else to rely on?
Tough question huh? MOST of you guys reading this would panic.
Just like that little panic you might have when you don’t know how much money you’re going to make next month because you don’t know how many people are going to sign up for your camp?
Yup- I’ve had those too!
Just like that small panic you have when ANOTHER bootcamp starts up near you and ‘undercuts’ you shouting WE’RE THE BEST/CHEAPEST in town!
How would you react to each of these?
I’ll bet its like I used to.
1- Have sly digs at the other camps and maybe shout’ NO train with us- we’re the best/cheapest’
2- Do MORE marketing and buy MORE e-books, coaching and go to MORE marketing seminars to learn MORE about how to ‘crush the competition’
Maybe even bring your price down to make you more ‘competitive’?
Those 2 sound familiar?
I can still be a little guilty of both of these but now my thinking over the last year is a whole lot different.
Let me tell you why
I started using STRATEGY rather than TACTICS.
This has helped me IMMENSLY. It’s allowed me to create a business that runs on its own, without me being there.
I’m GUARANTEED a certain income every month regardless of whether I’m there teaching or not.
Okay let me get to my point:
Tactics are things that you do ‘adhoc’. It’s the NEXT marketing idea. It’s checking out the ‘gurus’ blogs and seeing the next marketing ‘thing’ its looking at something and saying ‘that looks awesome- how can I make money from that?’
Reading up on ‘SEO’, website design, sales copy, conversion formulas are all forms of ‘tactical thinking’ or what you could call ‘seeking opportunity’
You’re always looking for something else, to put in your diary and get ‘busier’
The problem? Well all of these things give you MORE. Sure more money IF the ‘tactics’ work that is.
But in the case of ‘tactics’ more pretty much ALWAYS means more ‘stuff’ on your plate!
So your already packed day of ‘doing stuff’ becomes even more packed.
Looking for more ideas, tricks and tactics to squeeze into your already hectic schedule is plain crazy if you think about it right?
Why on earth would you look to add more things to the list of ‘to-do’s that’s already as long as your arm?
Look familiar?
TACTICS are the main reason trainers end up feeling overwhelmed- almost like a SLAVE to their businesses.
Unable to relax, unable to take real time off without worrying about what’s going on in there business and having to ‘sell, sell, sell’ month after month.
STRATEGY however is a VERY different animal.
Strategy is where the REALLY successful business owners hang out.
They have a VISION. They know where they want to go where there business.
They don’t jump from one thing to the next wondering ‘how can I make money from that?’
Strategy will EMPTY your ‘to-do’ list and leave in only the things that move your business FORWARD rapidly.
Eliminating you from that feeling of ‘spinning plates you have now’
Strategy will ‘clear your plate’ of the things that you don’t really need to be doing and will let you focus on REAL business things such as:
Developing systems so that your business works when you’re not there
Hiring trainers you can trust and training them to ‘run it like you’
Leveraging your time so you can make more money
Working on things that move your CLOSER to what you’re ‘PERFECT business’ looks like.
And I’m pretty sure that’s not the BUSY-NESS that I outlined at the start
So, take out that to do list and ask yourself these two questions:
Is what I’m about to begin working on TACTICS -which will add things to the plates I’m already working hard to spin?
OR is it STRATEGY-, which will take plates away, enabling me to earn more money and take more time off?
Is what I’m doing creating me BUSY-NESS or a BUSINESS?
WHICH TREE ARE YOU BARKING UP? STRATEGY OR TACTICS?
Mar 11
26
I Just ‘Flipped It’ On ZUMBA
Before you ask NO, I haven’t been smoking weed out here in gorgeous Phuket, Thailand.
.
That’s me and the guys who are out here above just after visiting a ‘ping pong’ bar…. VERY INTERESTING by the way, but thats for another blog post!
I just had to tell you about something that’s taking away a lot of my negative energy recently and I REALLY think it will help you.
I never ever ever ever ever thought I’d here myself say this but I’ve FLIPPED IT on Zumba.
What are you on about Paul? You HATE Zumba Don’t you?
Well, Mrs. Zumba and me have a love hate relationship.
You might say I tolerate her. 
No, really I have no problem with Zumba at all.
Well just the one problem, but that’s irrelevant for now.
You’ve probably heard me ‘slating’ it in the past too.
But alas, no more ‘Zumba Bashing’ from me… I promise!
My client and friend Michael Heppell author of ‘how to be brilliant’ and other awesome books first penned his AWESOME book ‘FLIP IT- how to get the best out of everything’
It’s based upon the fact that you can ‘flip’ pretty much any situation around into a positive.
The book is full of examples so rather than bore you to death with some of my own, just go check it out-http://www.amazon.co.uk/Flip-How-Get-Best-Everything/dp/0273727516 its only 6 quid and superb value.
I’ll wait here while you go get it…….
Okay, good to have you back. Lets crack on with the post.
Now you’re almost probably aware how Zumba is the buzz of the fitness profession right?
Whether its good or bad everyone is talking about it.
The Personal Trainers- they hate it, ‘how does dancing in gym kit get people fit FFS?’ is the main one.
The Group Exercise Instructors- MOST of them love it ‘Ditch the workout, join the party’ is their mantra.
Hell some of them actually have ZUMBA as their middle name!
Not sure what the hell that’s about but hey, each to their own!
So, where do you lie in this? Love it? Hate it?
I USED to HATE it. My problem mainly being with claims of getting people in GREAT shape (It IS actually just dancing in lycra- which last time i looked didn’t help you get a in bikini shape),
REDICULOUS claims of burning 1000 calories an hour and the fact that my 55 year old mother, who works in Asda could go and do the course next weekend and be teaching exercise to maybe 100 women, despite no anatomy knowledge or exercise coaching background.
But the new, ‘more mellow’ Paul (I think its something to do with me becoming a dad 10 weeks ago- that’s baby max below) really has ZERO problems with Zumba.
In fact, I’d now encourage ‘people who don’t exercise’ to do it
Why?
Well, this is where ‘I flipped it’ and went all SOFT in my old age!
You, like I recently did, need to realize you can’t be ALL THINGS TO ALL PEOPLE. Full Stop.
So stop trying to be 
First of all, ANYTHING that gets peoples Asses off the couch and exercising is GREAT.
Whether I agree with it or not, it doesn’t matter.
People who go to Zumba may not WANT to get in GREAT shape. They might just be looking to exercise and get a sweat on. Therefore, my bootcamp, which is aimed at people who are looking to drop fat with a risk free formula, is NOT for these guys.
See where I’m going with this?
So, I reckon because of where they are right now, they aren’t going to come to my bootcamp instead of Zumba YET.
They just aren’t ready for my bootcamp.\
I don’t have a problem with that
Now, once they’ve done Zumba for a while and decide that they need ‘something more focused’ or they have something they need to drop lots of fat in time for, they MAY decide that a bootcamp is for them, BECAUSE they’re already exercising but just aren’t seeing the results they NOW want.
To be honest,my ideal client or ‘AVATAR’ (as discussed in my free report at http://bootcampmanifesto.com) isn’t a couch potato, they’re ALREADY exercising.
In fact, I have NO desire to train beginners. I want to help as many people as I can but I just wouldn’t be a good fit with them- I have ZERO patience and they’d hate working with me.
So can you see how Zumba could be the ‘first step’ to them eventually looking for a better solution?
Which of course are your own bootcamps and mine!
Unfortunately for Zumba, it like most things will have its bubble burst soon and bootcamps will end up this way eventually too.
Unless you’ve created something unique rather than just an ‘outdoor circuit class’
NB, taking your bootcamp indoors ISNT unique it just makes it an ‘indoor circuit class’. You can get that in the gym as part of your membership right?
Another thing that I spend a lot of time looking at and thinking about is the graph below.
I try every day to spend my time and energy trying to get into the top right hand corner.
Being angry at something I can’t effect isn’t going to help me get there.
Lets face it, if you’re really worried about your members or potential members going to a hip shaking, ass wiggling Zumba class instead of your bootcamp then maybe the problem is actually with what you’re offering or you’re belief in how good your product is.
Remember, as discussed in my manifesto, the key to a successful bootcamp STAYING successful and NOT losing clients to ‘cheaper, poorer, jump-on-the-bandwagon’ exercise options is to
DELIVER A PRODUCT THAT PROVIDES GREATER VALUE TO THE CLIENT THAN THE MONEY THEY PAID FOR IT.
So…..
To sum up all of this ‘tree hugging’, ‘everything is awesome’ post, which I bet has surprised you, is.
1.You cant be everything to everybody
2.’Zumbettes’ aren’t ready for your bootcamp
3. Zumba f*cking rocks!
I’d love to hear you comments below, especially if you do Zumba and Bootcamps!
Paul ‘ZUMBA’ Mort
“They only tackle the man with the ball” is something that my mentor at the time and now close friend Steve Jack told me 6 years ago when I started having an impact in my local town.
It’s something I share with my mentoring students almost on a weekly basis as they start to make a name for themselves and other trainers start to ‘call them out’
I actually had to say it to myself again this week after another attack by a ‘keyboard warrior’ – you can read what the gentleman (who tried to hide his real identity) said here: http://www.bootcampking.com/2011/03/02/how-to-make-6-grand-in-60-days/#comments
I actually have to approve all the comments that go onto my bog but I have nothing to hide and I actually think he’s being complimentary.
I’d also love your feedback on whether you guys actually think I just regurgitate information from other blogs. I guest post on those blogs so clearly I don’t.
Anyway, back to the point at hand, there’s a lot of incidents that I here about that I need to clear up today.
“Paul, there’s another trainer in my town who’s constantly having a pop at my business “
I actually over-heard another trainer talking about a trainer I personally know who’s doing very well for herself saying ‘Oh she’s all about the money’.
Or a facebook conversation one of my students had with someone that didn’t even know him where he was called ‘Money motivated’
Alwyn Cosgrove was the first person I heard say the famous words
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win”
In fact, I’m pretty sure it was in a Robbie Williams track once upon a time too.
It was actually Gandhi that said it. Wise man.
You know what though? Its true, because unless you’re doing something worth-while, or saying something worth saying then no-one will bother you.
But once you’re in the limelight a little, making a name for yourself and you ‘have the ball’ then guess what?
People will try to tackle you from all sorts of angles, mostly from behind though as they don’t have the balls to say it to your face ?
I’ve actually been guilty of it myself in the past too and have had to bite my tongue on several occasions.
If I’ve had a pop at you now and you integrity then I apologize here, live on my blog.
If I’ve thrown stones at you in the past and you have no integrity- I stand by whatever I said.
Wow, that feels better
So how do you become bullet proof to these bad attitudes?
1. Understand that if nobody dislikes you, then you’re probably not saying or doing anything that’s powerful enough to get you noticed. You may be ‘vanilla’
2. Recognize that if no-body is talking about you, or taking a swipe at you, then they probably just don’t know who you are yet.
3. Be FLATTERED when people start to badmouth you, it actually means you’re doing something right rather than just being invisible and blending into the ‘me too’ crowd than we see so often in our industry
If they copy you- even better.
Imitation is the ultimate form of flattery.
It’s a sign you’re starting to make a name for yourself.
4. If you piss people off, especially when it comes to opinion, then that’s there problem, not yours.
Do you think people who are offended by what you write in articles or on facebook, or even comments you make in videos are gonna be a good fit for your business?
I’ll answer that- no way; they’ll suck your energy with their complaining and whining. You don’t want those people in your bootcamp right?
Saying what you really think is actually a great way of ‘filtering out’ clients who you’ll hate working with
5. If trainers have a pop at you, there’s usually some sort of envy involved.
If it’s about money- it’s usually because they’re not making any.
Again their problem, not yours.
If their happy making what they are then that’s great. really great but once they have a pop at you- it tells me they aren’t
Its like your clients who lose weight and their usually fat friends telling them they look fine, or trying to sabotage their efforts with calls of ‘one wont kill you’ or ‘ you only live once’ and all that other bullshit.
Look, the money you earn is a direct correlation to how many peoples lives you’re changing.
That’s what you do right? Change peoples lives through the medium of health and fitness?
You SHOULD be paid VERY well for that.
If you THINK you’re not making enough then you have 2 choices
a) Become a better trainer and get better results
b) Have an effect on more peoples lives
It’s that simple
6. ‘Over priced’, ‘expensive’, ‘rip-off’ and all the other bullshit they spout is again just a reflection of them
It just means you value you expertise, your knowledge and your TIME more than they do.
You’re worth is determined by how much better off you think people are working with you rather than without you.
“You pay peanuts, you get Monkeys”
Mar 11
2
How to make 6 grand in 60 days?
I’ve only known my private mentoring student, Chris Brown for 8 weeks and he’s the biggest action taker i’ve ever mentored.
So much so that he’s change his business and his LIFE in just 60 days.
You NEED to read this if you’re serious about making 2011 the year you finally get paid what you deserve for getting people in great shape!
Chris Broooon
Here’s Chris (I should also mention that Chris DOESN’T have a website yet, putting a lot of people who use that excuse to shame! )
Hey guys,
Hope your fitness business is KILLING it right now! I know mine is ?.
If it’s not then you DEFINITELY need to take action on this! The ORIGINAL bootcamp king “MORT DOG” has asked me to write this SUPER cool article on how to build 6 figures in less than 60 days! I know this will help you guys out there struggling to EXPLODE your camps in the build up to the summer months!
I want to teach you EXACTLY what has helped me and how I’ve implemented.
Ok so you probably know that “Human Footsoldiers” are a MASSIVE business builder, you’ve probably heard EVERY fitness marketer out there talking about them; if like me you are a little sceptical thinking “that’l never work” then your right it won’t! I used to actually think the same and guess what? It didn’t work!
So the very first thing I want you to do is have an open mind when reading this and absorb it, it’s a F**KIN’ powerful tool and you’d be MAD not to use it!
1. Creating excitement – GUYS you cannot expect this to work if you are just JOE BLOGGS PT, what makes you different from the PT down the road, who probably has a “BOOTCAMP” also and charging 5 quid a session.
As you know if you’ve read http://bootcampmanifesto.com/ (if you haven’t already go get it it’s FREE) “BOOTCAMPS” are gonna DIE in 2011, UNLESS you can DIFFERENTIATE yourself!
Showing your KNOWLEDGE is one way to do this, start writing articles, start getting frickin’ PASSIONATE and start building up excitement around you as a trainer. You need a mini following in order to get the most out of the “Human Foot Soldier” SYSTEM. People should be BANGING your door down to get onto your “TOP SECRET” Human Footsoldier program.
As my next point will tell do NOT just take anybody on as a “Billboard”; use FACEBOOK and remember these guys are going to help you BUILD your business, they need to be people with drive and determination and people that WANT to get in AWESOME shape, remember good isn’t good enough. Tips to do this, start doing videos get your PERSONALITY across, people will then get to know, like and trust you, once they do this then the one’s that BITE are going to be the one’s that are willing to help you!
2. Recruiting your Foot Soliders – I’m going to be a little controversial here, I know this SYSTEM in the past has been “grab as many people as you can train them for FREE, get them in AWESOME shape and get referrals for fun”!
This is all well and good but you could do ALL of that and get nowhere. I mean you’ll get people that absolutely WORSHIP you, love everything you do and COMPLY with every ask, you know who I mean, the client that does one extra push up!
But on the flip side you’ll also get a lot of FREE loaders who just jump on the next free thing and will give you NOTHING in return. So my first tip is – CHOOSE YOUR FOOT SOLDIER WISELY
I even meet my potential foot soldier and interview them, YOU are in control, and they WANT to drop FAT. YOU are the expert and the person with the knowledge to CHANGE people’s lives right? They have to SELL themselves, WHY should you get them in AWESOME shape, are they going to stick to your nutrition plan, are they going to be the last person standing, are they going to be a LEADER. Think how powerful this person is going to be in promoting your business; if they can’t stick to a frickin’ nutrition plan, they are NEVER going to get you referrals! EVER!
3. Leveraging contacts – I’ve actually targeted my “Foot Soldiers” strategically and specifically. You NEED to be out there, networking, meeting people, showing your PASSION, as Paul will says show your PEKS! Find important people in your area and get to know them. Find out what they do and see if you can help them. Ideally they will want to lose FAT.
Amongst my Foot Soldiers I have a PR lady for one of the biggest night clubs in my area – she has 5,000 friends on her facebook alone, imagine how powerful this is! I also train the owner of a magazine that is distributed to over 20,000 people in Liverpool and I now have a monthly column in the magazine. By having this magazine article I am able to show my KNOWLEDGE and use it as an INDIRECT sales tool.
This goes MAJORLY viral! These people are influential people and have a MASSIVE following, get them on your side and your laughing!
I hope these 3 tips help your bootcamp EXPLODE in 2011, this will give you a clear start and will help you SMASH it in your area! Get excited!!!
Feb 11
24
Unsocial Networking?
So last week we delved into the world of ‘talking to people’ or more specifically- Networking with a purpose.
The purpose-to actually get business.
Now, there’s a lot more to networking than just showing up and delivering a great ‘pitch’ like the killer 60 second one I gave you last week.
You see, a lot of business owners will show up to one of these breakfast meetings, do there ‘stand-up-and-talk –about-yourself’ bit and expect the referalls and business to just roll in.
When it doesn’t, well, they get downhearted and come out with the classic “networking doesn’t work” excuse I hear over and over.
Think about it like this though: You don’t get ripped from one workout right? You don’t pile loads of hardcore muscle on after squatting and benching once right?
One of they keys to getting results in your training program is consistency. You know this.
Imagine one of your clients coming up to you after one bootcamp or PT session and saying ‘I haven’t lost any weight, your program sucks’
You’d go crazy right?
Course you would.
Well its exactly the same with networking.
You gotta be conistent.
Think about this scenario: You give a great 60 second pitch, people are interested but not sure yet.
The next week they’re ready and waiting for you with 3 people who want to join your bootcamp.
BUT you’re not there- because ‘networking doesn’t work’
What do they do?
Chances are they don’t pass the referralls or they look elsewhere.
Hell, even if you don’t get new business from the group in the first 6-8 weeks you need to stick with it.
Sometimes results take a bit of time, agreed?
You probably tell this to your clients all the time.
ESPECIALLY the ones who miss the most sessions- they’re normally the ones who complain about lack of results the most too.
You gotta be RELENTLESS at this.
Understand that trust takes time.
You wouldn’t give important business to someone you’d only spoken to for 60 seconds and didn’t know anything about would you?
You’d want to know a little more, get to know them before you handed over money to them?
Maybe hear from other people about the person?
You tend to ask around when looking for accountants, joiners etc right?
This is the same too.
What you also need to remember is: You get out of it what you put in. you reap what you sow.
You tell your clients this all of the time.
Although we don’t necessarily give to recive, you need to realize that the more referalls you’re seen to give to other people, the more business you’ll get.
One of the key to my success is that I don’t show up expecting to get business. This is where A LOT of mistakes are made.
I look to see how I can help OTHER PEOPLE.
If I do this, I know that when the time comes, when they are someone they know talks about getting in shape, there is only one person they’ll think about me.
Why? Not only because I’ve educated them on what I do every week and proven myself to know my stuff but because I HELPED THEM GET BUSINESS.
Here’s a few more tips for networking success
1. Bring visitors along.
The more visitors you bring, the more the group will be impressed with you. You’re trying to help them and their business grow by introducing them to new people.
2. If you REALLY cant make it send a substitute and TRAIN them
Again, showing up is MEGA important.
Don’t just send a random person.
Prepare them for it, make sure they know EXACTLY what to say and what’s going to happen. Why not ask a client who’s gotten great results to stand in for you? This is bloody powerful!
3. Use the people in the group for their services as much as possible. Like I mentioned last week, I met my bookkeeper, my accountant, my joiner, my car mechanic and my printer there, amongst others.
Making use of these not only will save you money but I guarantee they’ll use you if they’re looking to get in shape.
4. FOLLOW up on all your referalls. Calling people who are interested is common courtesy.
5. THANK the source of the referral and treat the new client like ROYALTY.
That’s it!
Go give it a real go and I guarantee success if you follow the formula. TO THE LETTER.
paul
Feb 11
15
I used to think this sucked!
Is this the fastest way to become a the ‘go-to’ guy or gal in your area?
So social networking is pretty much the main thing people are doing to grow their business right now huh?
Well guess what? despite it being good for bringing in new leads. i’ve recently discovered a better way.
It’s called TALKING TO PEOPLE.
I used to think newtworking was a total waste of time. In fact, I used to call it ‘notworking’
I remember the first time I went to one, I was a ‘personal trainer’ and I felt uncomfortable talking to all of these random people who were stuffing sandwiches down there pie holes like they’d never been fed, EVER.
Me being me I thought to myself “how can I possibly work with these people?’ and promptly gave up.
Then I went to the breakfast club- a few of you have probably been to a similar one and thought, “how can standing up in a room full of people eating a full english fry up possibly bring me business?”
I gotta tell you, I was EXACTLY the same.
I thought it was a complete waste of time and that I could be doing something a lot more productive at that time in the morning such as the good old ‘I’ve got clients’ (which is the fastest way to becoming a slave to your ‘business’ by the way)
Anyway, fast forward FOUR YEARS and I’m now a fully fledged fan of this so called ‘waste of time’
You see I joined a networking group called BNI, yup that one where you pay 500 quid a year to join (500 quid a year I hear you say?).
Unlike other networking groups I’ve been to, they don’t really bother will small talk and chatter. They just get on with the purpose of the networking.
To get each of its members more business.
What I really like about BNI is they only allow one person from each profession there- therefore you aren’t in a room of other bootcamp owners- which wedding fayres tend to be.
I should also mention that I’ve met my accountant. My financial advisor, my car mechanic, my mortgage advisor, my health and safety consultant and a restaurant owner who has ‘fitness camp friendly’ items on his menu there too!. Because they’re part of my ‘circle of influence’ I get discounts from them and you think they meet people who’d be interested in getting In shape? Pretty awesome eh?
Any the reason I like BNI is because it works on the idea of ‘givers gain’
A sort of “If you get me business, I’ll do my best to get you business”
Now I’ve spoke to trainers who’ve had really mixed results with this , but I’ve had GREAT results and I actually think I’ve cracked the code to success at networking meetings such as BNI.
You know what though, its actually improved my ‘ELEVATOR SPEECH’ too.
a GREAT elevator speech!
For you guys that don’t know the ‘elevator speech’ is the answer you give when someone asks ‘so what do you do then?’.
Obviously ‘I’m a personal trainer’ or ‘ I run a bootcamp’ is just going to get an ‘oh, right’ as a reply but what if you had 60 seconds to blow the askers mind.
What if you had 60 seconds every week to speak to between 20 and 40 business owners for just 60 seconds??
You’d want to make it count right?
You’d also agree that’s its actually a pretty good business opportunity too?
There’s actually a science to this 60 seconds and to networking in general though.
Like I said before , I think I’ve got it down to a pretty good level now.
In fact, just last week I got the change to do my 60 seconds in front of almost THREE HUNDRED business owners!
Within 2 hours I had 4 sign ups to my fitness camps. That’s 400 quid- for 60 seconds work! Nice!
So here’s a formula I use for my “60 seconds’ that ALWAYS captures people attention and get’s us a LOT of brand new referrals on a weekly basis as well as MASSIVELY increasing the amount of people who know who I am
1: Tell them your name, company and what you do but BE SPECIFIC.
Your NOT personal trainer and you don’t ‘run a bootcamp’
2: Tell them why they can refer people to you with confidence
Have you trained anyone famous? Do you have a money back guarantee? Have you recently got someone GREAT results? STORIES SELL here
3: Tell them your TARGET client. The most famous hook of them all!
Now be VERY VERY specific here. The word ANYONE or EVERYONE are strictly BANNED. Use some of your ‘client avatar’ I speak about in my bootcamp manifesto from http://bootcampmanifesto.com
4. Repeat you name, company and MEMORY HOOK
the memory hook is KEY here. This MUST be catchy and something for people to remember you by!
5. How about I just give you my KILLER 60 second ‘pitch’
“ Good morning, My name is Paul Mort owner of the fitnesscamp.co.uk and I’m regarded as the UK’s leading expert in creating leaner, firmer and sexier bodies.
I own a series of fitness camps in the north east, they’re a 4 week journey to regaining your health and dropping a boat load of bodyfat.
I’ve worked with athletes such as Kenwyne Jones and Andy Reid, who you may have heard of buy my real passion is working with men and women who seem to have tried every diet going, train in the gym, and even used a personal trainer yet are STILL frustrated with their bodies
I’m the creator of the unstoppable-fat-loss-formula. A unique fat destroying system that’s proven to work time and time again, regardless of what you’ve tried before.
So who do you know that’s ‘tried everythng’ yet still doesn’t look and fell incredible?
I’m Paul Mort, from thefitnesscamp.co.uk- give ME 28 days and I’ll give you a sexier body. Guaranteed”
So there you have it, you can now go to networking meetings and actually make an impact, make new contacts and get some referalls.
Go work on your 60 second pitch now!
Paul
