Fitness Business Insights with Matt Robinson

Hosted by Matt Robinson

Business Careers Health Fitness

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Episodes

344

Latest episode

Sep 2026

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EN-GB

About the show

Fitness Business Insights with Matt Robinson is your weekly dose of strategies, systems, and success stories for Personal Trainers, Coaches, and Gym Owners. Each episode dives into topics like fitness marketing, client acquisition, gym floor systems, client retention, and lead generation — giving you practical tools to grow a thriving fitness business you love.

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September 30, 2026Episode 37829 min

Grow Your PT Business by Promoting Less (Sometimes)

Most personal trainers have the same problem with promoting themselves. They know they should be doing it. They don't want to come across as pushy. So they end up doing almost none of it, all year round, and then wonder why the business feels stuck at the same level it's been at for three years. There's a better way to think about it, and it starts with accepting that you shouldn't be selling at the same intensity in November as you were in September. This episode maps out four pillars across the fitness year. When to push, when to ease off, and what to be doing in the months in between so that pushing actually works when you come back to it. In this episode: The two periods every year when people are actively looking for what you sell, and why they're not the same as each other Why your current clients should be the first thing you look at, before you think about new ones The collective challenge idea, including the year my clients tried to walk the circumference of the earth How direct you can afford to be in September and October, and why most PTs are nowhere near direct enough A client of mine who added six one-to-one clients in the first two weeks of the month doing exactly this What to do in November and December instead of selling, and why that's the bit that makes January work Why January is not a repeat of September, and the one thing you need to change in your messaging How to run the same cycle again through March, May and July The people coming back in September are usually trying to get a routine back. The people arriving in January often haven't been near a gym in ten years. Same offer won't do. Find me on Instagram: @mattrobinsonpt Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

September 23, 2026Episode 35740 min

27 Years of Personal Training Advice in 40 Minutes

Between us, James and I have spent 27 years working in the fitness industry. So for this episode, we decided to try and condense as much of that experience as possible into 40 minutes. We each brought five lessons to the table. No idea what the other person had written down, no carefully coordinated list, just the things that have stuck with us most after years of working with clients and building fitness businesses. And interestingly, almost none of them were about exercise selection, programming or nutrition. We talk about: Why you need to stop trying to be the cleverest PT in the room The difference between selling Personal Training and solving someone’s problems Why we both wish we’d collected more reviews earlier How to make sure your business actually rewards you as it grows Why a full diary doesn’t automatically mean you’ve built a successful business Taking time off before you desperately need it Why “I don’t know” can sometimes be one of the best answers you give a client The importance of getting your policies right from day one Why your goal should be to create clients who don’t actually need you And why I wish I’d taken myself a little less seriously when I first started These are the lessons that tend to come from making mistakes, getting things wrong and spending years figuring out what actually matters. Hopefully, we can save you a bit of that trial and error. If you’re a Personal Trainer looking to build a better business, become a better coach and make the industry work for you over the long term, there should be plenty in this one for you. You can find me on Instagram at @mattrobinsonpt or visit mattrobinsoncoaching.com if you’d like some help building a high-profit, low-stress fitness business.

September 16, 2026Episode 35631 min

Nobody Notices When It Goes Wrong

Nobody asks why you haven't signed a client this month. Nobody notices that three have just left. Nobody tells you your prices haven't moved in four years. Nobody points out that you stopped marketing the minute you got busy. And nobody knows you've had a really shit week. That's the bit of self-employment nobody puts on Instagram. This week's episode is a bit different. It's less about what to implement and more about something I've been thinking about for a while. One of the best things about working for yourself is that nobody tells you what to do. One of the hardest things is exactly the same sentence. In this episode: Why you can be surrounded by people in a busy gym all day and still be completely on your own What freedom actually is, and why I don't think it's the money, the cars or the holidays The systems most of us are quietly trying to break away from, and why doing that is harder than anyone admits Freedom doesn't mean having no structure or support. It means getting to choose your own Why the hardest periods of my own business weren't the ones where things were going badly The trap you can build for yourself after escaping everyone else's Two questions worth sitting with this week, including the one I'd want everyone listening to answer honestly The question isn't whether you're capable of doing this on your own. You clearly are, or you'd never have started. The better question is why you'd want to. Join the weekly newsletter: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/newsletter Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

September 9, 2026Episode 35541 min

The Loyalty Ladder: How to Keep Clients for Years, Not Months

Slight change this week. I'm sharing something that hasn't gone live anywhere else yet. This is a full training I recorded for Fitness OS, the second in a set of master resources we're building. The video version isn't out yet. You're getting the audio first, and I've made the workbook live early so you can use it as you listen. The topic is retention, which is the thing almost nobody in this industry talks about properly. Every bit of fitness business advice out there is about getting clients. Leads, marketing, offers. I've made plenty of that content myself. But almost nobody talks about what happens after someone signs up, and how you make sure all that effort doesn't quietly go to waste three months later. In this episode: Why retention, referrals and reactivation aren't three separate things, and what changes when you treat them as one Two trainers, same price, same clients. One retains for three months and one for six. The gap ends up being four times the profit, not double Why the most expensive part of your service is the bit you keep repeating The two real reasons clients leave, and why the first one happens before they've even started The Loyalty Ladder. Two rungs, one rule, and why everything on the top rung is pointless if the bottom one isn't nailed What unreasonably consistent actually means, and why it's the basics rather than the technical stuff The First 12 Weeks Blueprint, built on Robert Dunbar's work on how relationships deepen and Joey Coleman's research on the first hundred days Why the client review disappeared from personal training, and what you lose by replacing it with a check-in form The birthday example. The difference between a half decent trainer, a good one, and the one nobody leaves Your clients aren't just comparing you to other trainers. They're comparing you to their hairdresser, their last hotel stay, and the bloke who was supposed to fix the boiler on Tuesday. Grab the free workbook: https://fitnessos.co.uk/how-to-keep-your-clients-as-a-personal-trainer Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

September 2, 2026Episode 35458 min

Paul Mutlow Interview

Paul phoned the course provider to ask if he was too old to become a personal trainer. He was in his late thirties at the time. He's now 51, working full time as a PT, with a target market of 40 plus who specifically want someone with a bit of life experience. The thing he thought was a problem turned out to be the whole point. Paul's also been a listener of this show since before the pandemic, so it was good to get him on the other side of it for a change. What makes his story worth hearing is that he's built this with zero footfall. No gym floor, no passing trade, nobody walking past him on their way to the treadmill. Everything has had to be created from nothing in a local area. In this episode: Going from a finance career in the city to full time PT, and the two things that nearly stopped him Why his age is now one of the biggest reasons his clients choose him How he went from the messy middle of not really knowing what he offered, to exercise therapy and a genuinely prescriptive service The trial offer we built together, how it's evolved from four sessions at £29 to three at £75, and why it still converts into packages of £200 a month and up What his three session structure actually looks like, including the whiteboard session that does most of the selling for him Getting clients from local Facebook groups with a proper rotation system rather than posting when he feels like it Six new clients in six weeks, in August, which is not supposed to be the good month Why he got a coach early rather than waiting until he'd struggled for three years The second pillar he's building around youth speed and strength work, and why it doesn't have to be online coaching Paul's honest about the wobbles too. Worth a listen if you're building something without a gym floor underneath you. Find Paul on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pmfitness74/ Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

August 26, 2026Episode 35350 min

10 PT Clients in 90 Days: Starting From Zero

What would you do if tomorrow you had no clients, no testimonials, no social media following, no website and no email list? Just your PT qualification, your experience and access to a gym floor. In this episode, James and I set ourselves a simple challenge: Get 10 Personal Training clients in 90 days, starting from zero. We break down exactly how we would approach it, what we would focus on first, and just as importantly, what we would completely ignore. We cover things like: Why becoming an influencer would be nowhere near the top of our list Why speaking to people on the gym floor still gives you one of the biggest advantages available to a PT The daily targets we would set for conversations and new contacts How we would turn those conversations into consultations and paying clients Where a simple front-end offer can help reduce risk and make it easier for someone to get started How we would use referrals, local businesses and gym staff to create more opportunities Why training in the gym you work in can become a genuine business-building activity What to do if you reach week five, six or seven and things still aren’t moving quickly enough This isn’t about chasing followers, building complicated funnels or trying ten different marketing strategies at once. It’s about focusing on the opportunities directly in front of you, building relationships, collecting data and staying consistent long enough for the numbers to start working in your favour. If you’re a newer Personal Trainer, struggling to build momentum, or you simply want to strip your business back to the fundamentals, this episode will give you a very practical place to start. You can find me on Instagram at @mattrobinsonpt or visit mattrobinsoncoaching.com if you’d like some help building a high-profit, low-stress fitness business.

August 19, 2026Episode 35232 min

This Beats ANY Niche

You’ve probably been told at some point that you need to find your niche. But I think there’s something more important that most Personal Trainers barely think about at all: Your marketplace. In this episode, I explain the difference between a niche and a marketplace, why finding the right places to be visible can be far more valuable than endlessly refining your ideal client avatar, and how I used this approach to generate clients throughout my own PT career. I’ll walk you through five marketplaces you can start thinking about within your own fitness business, including: The marketplace that could already exist inside your gym How to find local “starving crowds” Why an “able audience” can become incredibly valuable over time How I used golf clubs and local businesses to consistently generate enquiries The online marketplaces that can help you reach people already looking for what you sell Why simply being present isn’t enough — you need to be visible None of this requires a huge social media following, complicated funnels or some ridiculously specific niche. It’s about putting yourself and your business in the places where the right people already spend their time, then showing up consistently enough to become the obvious choice. If you’re a Personal Trainer or Fitness Professional looking for a more practical way to generate leads and build a high-profit, low-stress fitness business, this episode is for you. You can find me on Instagram at @mattrobinsonpt or visit mattrobinsoncoaching.com if you’d like some help with your fitness business.

August 12, 2026Episode 35132 min

Ready for the September Rush?

A client asked me recently what the ones hitting six, seven and eight grand a month are doing that he isn't. The answer was short. They're unreasonably consistent. That's really what this episode is about. September is the second busiest month in fitness and it's worth preparing for, but the preparation isn't a September thing. It's the same handful of simple actions done for longer than most people are willing to do them. I go through what to do with the people you've already got first, because that's where the money is and almost nobody starts there. Then everyone else. In this episode: What the latest data says about the busiest months, and why the year is steadier than it used to be Why a September enquiry is often a better client than a January one, even though January brings more of them The three things to do with your current clients, ex clients and leads before September arrives, none of which involve speaking to a stranger Why I don't want you giving as much attention to people who don't know you yet as you probably think you should How to speak to the September mindset, which is not the New Year, New Me mindset What unreasonably consistent actually looks like in practice, and why it's the same thing you already tell your clients Do a decent job of the first section and you could pick up three to eight clients in September. That's a couple of hundred a month recurring, or a couple of grand. Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

August 5, 2026Episode 35041 min

Fitness Business Lessons from Mickey Mouse

I went to Disneyland with my family and came back with a notebook full of business lessons. I'll be honest, I wasn't that bothered about going the first time. That was 2019. We've now been three times, and each visit has been longer and more expensive than the last. Which tells you something in itself. In this episode I go through what I noticed while I was there, and how it maps onto what we do. Not the theme park stuff. The bits underneath it that most people never consciously register but absolutely feel. In this episode: Why the details you think nobody notices are the ones doing the most work How Disney turn queuing, the most mundane part of the whole experience, into part of the experience itself, and what that means for the six days a week your client isn't with you The reports I used to write for my accountant clients and my teacher clients, and why they became the thing those clients looked forward to most What standards actually means, and why you can still look scruffy in a uniform How easy is it to be your client? Really? Why your clients are comparing you to their hairdresser and their last hotel stay, whether you like it or not Around two hours of a four day trip were spent on rides. Everything else was the experience. Worth thinking about if you only see your clients for an hour a week. Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt

July 29, 2026Episode 34951 min

How to Do Online Coaching Properly with Ajay Sidhu

Most people think online coaching means a laptop, a beach, and total flexibility. Ajay Sidhu is here to tell you that's not even close to reality. Ajay works full-time as an online coach, managing 60+ clients at once, delivering body transformations for a US-based client base. In this episode, he breaks down exactly what proper online coaching involves, the structure it requires, and why it's often more demanding, not less, than working in person. Matt and Ajay cover the biggest mistake coaches make when someone first signs up, how to build genuine rapport without ever meeting a client face to face, why a single Loom video can save you hours of back-and-forth messaging, and what coaches should actually be charging for this kind of service. Matt also shares his own take on the business model he'd recommend to any in-person coach looking to add online coaching properly, without sacrificing what makes their in-person work valuable. This episode is genuinely one of the most detailed, practical breakdowns of online coaching delivery you'll find anywhere in this space. In this episode: What online coaching actually is, and why most people misunderstand it The mistake Matt made himself when he first tried online coaching Why front-loading the relationship matters more than jumping straight into training and nutrition How to structure check-ins, calls, and ongoing communication properly Why Loom videos build more trust and save more time than text messages What to do when a client stops being compliant or goes quiet What coaches should really be charging for online coaching The hybrid business model combining small in-person groups with premium online coaching If you're a personal trainer considering adding online coaching to your business, or already doing it and wondering if you're doing it properly, this episode will give you a clear, honest picture of what it actually takes. Find Ajay: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajaysidhucoach Book a Business Breakthrough Call: https://mattrobinsoncoaching.com/speak-with-matt