I love everything about it.  One of my favorite things to do on a sunny Saturday morning is to get some fresh-squeezed lemonade, grab a seat on the dock and people watch.

Enough About Lemonade…

Mary Shelley

But enough about that.  Lets get on to what this post is all about – what fitness business owners can learn from a 59 year old wood carver.

Mary is the wood carver’s name.  She’s at the market every weekend.  Her booth holds her wood carvings for sale.  The cool thing about Mary though… is while people are admiring her work… she’s actually creating her next piece of work right there in the booth!

So you can watch her work – which is absolutely amazing.  There’s a video of her down the page, but it doesn’t give justice to seeing this woman carve and slice her way through a piece of wood.

Mary Restored My Hope Because She “Got It”…

So I stopped by to admire her work and watch her carve away.  She noticed I was there and said hello.  And then she said something that made me grin from ear to ear.  Her exact words were “Please take my business card or you can just Google ‘Mary Woodcarver Ithaca’ or better yet sign up here and I’ll friend you through Facebook.”

Mary's Website

I am always talking about building a community of raving fans through your website, blog and social networks.  But honestly… sometimes I think people think I am crazy in asking them to push their fitness business to the next level by using technology.

But then this little 59 year old woodcarver restores all my hope.  If Mary has a solid website and Facebook page, don’t you think your fitness business should have them as well?  In all honesty, people are more likely to search for fitness related information than a local woodcarver.

YouTube, E-Newsletter, Happy Buyers…

Mary does a wonderful job with everything she does.  She shows how intricate her work is by actually doing it right there in front of you, she has a YouTube video of her working on her website, she has an e-newsletter, she has a Facebook page, she ranks on the first page of Google, and she even has a page called “Happy Buyers” which has quotes from her customers.  Think Success Stories for your fitness business.

She has all the information someone would need to know about her, her works and her services right on her website.  I’d make some tweaks and changes to things, but the over all thought to grasp is Mary’s ability to draw the prospect in… educate them about her work and then when they’re ready to buy… they will.

What About Your Fitness Business?

Is your fitness business utilizing technology?  Do you have a website and blog that draws targeted visitors?  Engages them?  Pre-sells them?

If not, what is stopping you?  In today’s business world it is critical to have an online presence that uses video, audio, images, conversational pieces (blog) and more.  It may seem overwhelming, but don’t let it be.

We make it super simple to get started.  Check out InControl Websites for more information.  There’s no reason to not utilize technology.  Even Mary the woodcarver agrees!

More About Mary Michael Shelley…

Here’s a video from Mary and her website: http://www.maryshelleyfolkart.com

In case you are not sure what I am referring to, take a look at this sales copy for our fitness website design service.

It’s one of those long sales pages that seem to go on forever and ever.  So the question is…

Who Really Reads All That?

Here’s the thing… long sales copy has its place in the world.  And yes, people do actually sit and read the entire message.  But here’s the kicker… not all do and there’s a reason why.

Who Reads Your Long Sales Copy - only those that are truly interested.  They want as much information about your fitness product or service as they can get.  They are serious buyers and are willing to read long sales copy to get as much info as possible.

Who Does Not Read Your Long Sales Copy - those that are not that interested in your fitness product or service are more than likely NOT going to take 10 – 15 minutes of their time to read your sales pitch.

BUT… some people may be interested in what you have to offer… but they’re not really interested in reading all of your text.  It’s just not how they want to digest your information.

The Solution - the solution is two-fold.

Part 1 - the first part is offering something for everyone.  Try making your long sales copy as interesting as possible.  Include real life case-studies and stories.  Include photos.  Also, make your headlines tell the story as most people will simply scan your page and read the headlines first… then if the headline interests them… they’ll read the paragraph or two for that headline.  Also, include bullet points.  People are more likely to read bullet points before the actual text.

But also consider adding more multimedia content like video and/or live chat.  Adding video and live chat will help those people that ARE interested in your product or service but who will not read all your sales copy.  Adding video or live chat enables them to get your sales pitch in another format.  Adding different ways to “digest” your sales pitch means you are reaching more people before.

The idea is to get as many targeted people to digest your information.  Some prefer long sales copy.  Some prefer audio.  Some prefer video.  Some prefer to call you.  Some prefer live chat.

Part 2 - The second part is all about testing.  Try putting up long sales copy for one month and measure your statistics.  How many people bought?  Then for the next month, try putting up just a video of you talking about the product or service with a few bullet points and see if your purchases increased or decreased.  Then try a combination of long sales copy +  a video (place it above the fold) and see what those results look like.

The thing to keep in mind is to measure your results using as many controlled factors as possible.  For an example, it wouldn’t be fair to judge the effectiveness of just video and bullet points when you decide to launch a major PPC (pay-per-click) campaign to that page.  You want the organic traffic to be similar in both test methods so your results are as spot on as possible.

Does Long Sales Copy Work?

It does work and it does have its place in the online marketing world.  Many people still swear by it and it has been shown to increase a product or service’s validity – after all if someone can write a 15-page sales pitch on something… it must be a great product offering a great solution, right?

What’s My Personal Opinion on Long Sales Copy?

I personally believe long sales copy has its place… and should be tested appropriately for each website niche.  But I also believe long sales copy is becoming less popular.  I am moving my company more into video as it captures people’s attention more than anything else.

But I will not leave long sales copy behind… my job is the same as yours… test, test, test and test some more.

When you’re developing a squeeze page or an opt in page, a simple layout is key to success.  Here’s some pretty cool proof:

Motley Fool, a widely popular investing info website, is launching a new membership program soon.  Would you like to see the squeeze page of a multi-million dollar company that built it’s roots and foundation through the Internet?  Here it is – Click Me to Find Out

Was it what you expected?

Most people think that flashy colors, tons of images and all sorts of banners are key to success.  More often than not… they are the key to failure.

When you are developing your fitness website squeeze pages, keep a few things in mind:

1) Keep the rif-raff to zero.  Only include what’s absolutely needed to get someone to give you their name and email address.

2) Use the power of video.  People LOVE video.  It interests them and more often than not… your video will be watched.  You should be warm , inviting and professional in your videos.  This pre-sells your services even more.  And always include your MWR (most wanted response) at the end of your video (which for a fitness squeeze page it would be to fill in the form below, etc).

3) Keep the form on the initial opt in page short.  Just ask for the necessities like name and primary email.  Include your privacy statement or link to it.  Including a short privacy statement is preferred.

4) Your font should be arial and large enough for easy reading.  We use arial 15px.

5) Text is limited only to a few lines or bullet points.  The less people need to read… the better.  Keep your copy short, to the point and benefit rich.

6) Your background image should be a light color or white.  Flashy design detracts from your MWR.  I know it’s pretty and cool… but direct response marketers and uber-successful online businesses know that simple layout and design is key to success.

As you think about your fitness website design and layout, remember that your website is often the first impression a potential client has of your business.  Having a professional fitness website design and layout is critical to increasing opt in’s and delivering your MWR.

The Story…

I recently purchased a magazine subscription as a Christmas present for someone.  I purchased the gift subscription on their website.  Right before I was about to checkout, an offer appears.  The offer is to add another magazine subscription of a different magazine (but in the same genre) for just $5.

The offer is almost perfect.  Not only are the magazines one that my friend would like, the price is perfect too.  The offer is $5 for an entire year of another magazine in the same genre.  They even go so far as to offer two titles my friend may like and then they offer an option of bundling together the 2 additional mags.

My options: do nothing – add 1 of the additional titles for $5 – or add both additional titles for $10.

Take a look at the image here (opens in a new window)… even the wording is great.  Notice how they use words like “Today Only” and “One Click Is All It Takes!”

The only thing that could have made this offer better was a bundle of both magazines at a discounted rate.  Even if it was only a buck.  I would have also added another headline that said something like “Get 2 More Magazines Subscriptions for (insert friend’s name) for just $9 bucks!”  Other than that… they did a nice job.

]]> http://www.personaltrainerwebsitedesign.com/fitness-website-design-ideas-shows-you-how-to-upsell/feed/ 0 http://www.personaltrainerwebsitedesign.com/theres-something-freaking-me-out-lately/ http://www.personaltrainerwebsitedesign.com/theres-something-freaking-me-out-lately/#comments Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:33:40 +0000 Lynn From InControl Websites http://fitnesswebsitedesignideas.com/?p=39 From my years as a personal trainer, I remember the calm before the storm.  I remember knowing that I had to get my sh*t together NOW so that I could handle the onslaught of January clients.  I was a trainer years ago, but I still remember the feeling.  It was almost panic as I didn’t have any systems set up or anything that could help me manage the new client base.

The Obscure Things People Search For…

In fact, I used to have a little comic strip hanging on the gym bulletin board.  It was of two treadmills talking to each other while people were running and sweating away on them.  The one treadmill said to the other “I SO hate January’s”.  I tried finding the comic on Google images so that I could show it to you, but nothing came back.  Just proves the obscure things people search for and why it’s important to optimize your images!

I am no longer the lost trainer trying to make it.  I developed systems and marketing campaigns that worked above and beyond my expectations.  I was able to dramatically increase my client base at any given moment and that felt great!

I’ve Grown… And I’ve Learned…

I’ve grown as a business women quite a bit over the last few years, and in that time I’ve learned more about business than I could possibly have imagined.  Today, my web company has the chance to help personal trainers and fitness professionals expand their business and streamline their systems and marketing both online and offline.  I did this for myself back in the day and get a chance to do it all-day every-day for other personal trainers and health clubs now.

My holiday wish for everyone is that their client base explodes in January AND continues to explode throughout the year.  But honestly there is something that has been freaking me out lately…

I Just Don’t Get It…

I’ve heard from quite a few leads of mine that they are praying they can make it through the new year without closing down their business.  Whenever I hear that I get a bit thrown off.

Here are possible leads of mine (which means they have no real website presence, no online marketing funnels, no online lists, no organic search engine traffic, etc) talking about making it through next year.

But when I present them with some basic options to get them started on a legitimate online presence… they find an excuse to delay the start of their business growth.

After years of personal training and even more years as a webmaster for fitness professionals, I’ve come to realize something very profound… for me at least 

Some Fitness Professionals Are Like…

Some fitness professionals are like habitually over weight people.  They refuse to take control of their situation and make a change.  Doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result is the definition of insanity.

Doing nothing results in nothing but lost time, lost money, and lost possibilities.  Period.

I get into conversations quite a bit with my family about ethics and personal responsibility.  I associate myself with successful, big-heart’ed, intelligent, and responsible individuals because I’ve found that folks exhibiting those traits tend to have personal responsibility.

They’re successful at life because they take intelligent action.  They understand what needs to get done and they do it.  They do not whine.  They get it done.  They take responsibility for their life and their businesses.

So I change my holiday wish for everyone… I instead want everyone to surround themselves with the type of people they aspire to be like and to take the next step in their personal and professional lives.  It’s about following the old SBI motto that got me through my first year in business – Ready –> Aim –> Shoot and not Ready –>  Aim –>  Ready –> Aim –> Ready –> Aim

Keep Your Focus…

Keep your focus and build a solid online and offline marketing campaign that drives targeted leads to your business.  Then close those leads into sales.  That’s it.  No get-rich-quick scheme will do.  This is business.  Get in there and get serious about it 

1) His #1 Rankings at Google for Various Keywords

2) His Blog and its Cult Following

How Can Wii Help Your Fitness Business Develop Another Profit Center?

3) How Using Autoresponders and Contact Management Software Automated His Offline and Online Marketing Systems

… and all the other good stuff.  But he told me one thing that really caught my attention.  His rehab specialists are using the Nintendo Wii as a way to rehabilitate some patients. I thought this was brilliant!

Several people in my family have had the need for physical therapy at some point or another.  The one thing they all had in common was that they hated going!  They just hated it!  The #1 reason was boredom.  They certainly wouldn’t have been bored if they could have played a little Wii Ski 

As I listened to my client explain how his staff are using the Wii for different rehabilitation services my mind couldn’t help but think of all the possibilities technology has opened the door to.

Even the famed Swiss Army Knife now comes equipped with a USB flash drive.  How crazy is that?

The point of this post is pretty simple: technology is changing the way EVERYONE does business – not just those of us in the fitness world.

Whether it’s SEO for your Fitness Website, Bootcamp Blogging, Fitness Internet Marketing, Automating Your Sales Process or just chatting about the Nintendo Wii… if your fitness business has not yet become a customer of ours, we’d like to personally invite you.  Check out InControl Websites for rates and information about our website design service.