Truth bomb: There is so much more to personal training than trading your time (AKA a single session) for money (AKA your hourly rate). Online personal training packages open the door for your fitness business to go way beyond this outdated business model.
Going online opens up two key opportunities for fit pros: to scale your business, and to increase the effectiveness of your training programs.
Enter training packages.
A training package encompasses both of those key opportunities—it allows you to sell more than just a session, and it allows you to have a way bigger impact on your clients lives. You need to be able to build a long-term plan for your clients! The best way to do this is to develop and sell complete training packages.
These packages will deliver on that plan, and keep them coming back. Which keeps your business growing, too!
Defining training packages
A training package is a complete service offering that is offered to your clients, for one set price. For that fee, they receive a bunch of different tools, services, and products—and it’ll all work together to accomplish that client’s goals.
Typically, you want to offer a few different training package options to a client, at different price points and perhaps at different levels of time commitment.
To define your training packages—you need to establish a few core components. Your business model is first up.
⚡️Step 1: Choose your business model
With Trainerize, businesses operate using five key business models:
- Online – online only, via the app
- Hybrid – both online and in-person training
- Enhanced in-person – in-person training, using the app for tracking and communication
- Group – group challenges and programming
- At-home – online only, with limited equipment
The business model you choose will dictate the rest of your training package. Establishing the business model that is right for you may vary depending on your niche, or you may be locked in as one of the five above.
To learn more about online training business models, download our FREE GUIDE: 5 Ways to Train with Trainerize. You’ll learn the basics of who, what, when, where, and why for each model—and how to market them. You’ll also receive a handy chart that compares and contrasts the different models, which will help you choose what’s right for you.
⚡️Step 2: Choose coaching categories
Trainerize might be known as a tool for fitness coaching, but we don’t stop there. We offer a 360º approach to coaching: fitness, nutrition, and habits.
When developing your training packages, you need to decide what categories should be included in each option. While it might be your instinct to only include nutrition and habits in your higher-priced packages, keep in mind how those coaching categories can support your clients results—and try to build your packages with results in mind.
Personal trainer and Trainerize product education specialist Tiffani Bassi suggests starting with habits to win over new clients.
“Habits are a great way to ease beginner clients into training. So perhaps add habits into your lower-priced packages and your clients can focus on those small wins (drink more water, walk to work, bed before 10 pm, 5 minute daily stretch) instead of being intimidated by a 5 day split at the gym. These small wins encourage and motivate them and slowly they want to take on more—and this is your chance to upsell!”
If you don’t offer nutrition or habit coaching, Tiffani says to start small.
“Offer nutrition guidance as opposed to meal plans and macro counting if that’s not your thing. Perhaps that’s through a monthly coaching call! Use the time to reflect on your client’s eating habits over the previous month and to create a goal for the next month. #SmallChangesBigResults”
Of course, you can consider partnering with third-parties too—and decide how to include those offerings in your training packages as well.
⚡️Step 3: Choose offerings
This is the hard part! You have to decide what offerings, services, and features are included in each of your personal training packages.
Here’s Tiffani’s reco, which is only some of the options you can offer!
- Custom video workouts (let clients follow along!)
- 24 hour 1:1 private messaging
- Custom workout scheduling based on the client’s schedule
- Workout and progress tracking
- On-demand video library
- Weekly accountability calls
- Monthly goal setting calls
- 1-1 video call sessions for personal training
- Custom session packs for personal training packages
- Meal plans
- Nutrition guidance through meal photos, custom nutrition habit tracking, monthly nutrition coaching calls and nutrition support groups
- Nutritional tracking – calories, macros and meals
Upon choosing your offerings, you need to separate out a few packages. Think about the most valuable elements of your packages, and make sure to put them in the top tier. For the basic package, make sure it’s still impactful and represents your expertise and your standards. There’s no point promoting a low-priced package that doesn’t deliver results—it’ll just cheapen your brand. Make sure all your packages are effective and motivating.
FREE GUIDE: A Complete Pricing Guide for Personal Trainers and Online Coaches
⚡️Step 4: Identify pricing
Next up, you need to establish the best price for your training package options. When offering a few options to clients, you want to provide different price points, too!
To calculate your pricing, consider a few perspectives:
- CLIENT TIME: How much time the client is spending
- TRAINER TIME: How much time you are spending
- VALUE: How much value the client is getting
Ultimately, the price should reflect the third component—the value they’ll receive. This means knowing the pricing of competitors in your niche, as well as the pricing for alternative fitness options. Lastly, consider what the client is worth to you and make sure your profits reflect that.
Once you’ve established your pricing, decide how to present it to the client. If you prefer clients to make a three month commitment, then show them a total package price—and divide it up into a monthly fee. If longer commitments are better for you, consider offering a lower price point for longer commitments.
⚡️Step 5: Market your training packages
Lastly, you need to market your online personal training packages. Start with a landing page on your website. Ideally, you’d show all your package options in a grid, and demonstrate the difference between them.
When preparing the landing page content, consider the features of what you’re offering—but think about how to frame it to focus on outcomes and benefits!
What is clear to you (like impact, outcomes, and goals) may not be clear to consumers—so err on the side of over-explaining rather than under-explaining.
Explain why they should choose one or the other—including why the pricing is different. Explain how each package will work, and why each might be right or wrong for a person based on goals, budget, and time commitment. Lastly, clearly outline what’s in and out of scope for each package—particularly the time-expensive components (messaging, one-on-one time, and adjustments).
Then, think through your distribution strategy for promoting the landing page.
- Choose your channels: Decide where your most valuable audiences are and focus on promoting there. If it’s Facebook, link to your landing page (and make sure your preview image is enticing and descriptive!). If it’s Instagram, consider a few elements—Stories, Reels, and a Carousel, perhaps. For email, create a series of emails, not just one!
- Choose your messaging: Create a clear approach for sending people to the landing page. What exactly is the most appealing element? What “hook” will get people to click?
- Choose your “boosters”: Paid ads? A cross-promotional partnership? Referrals? Events? What marketing tactics will you use to go beyond your existing audience and reach more of that niche market?
Scale your business with online personal training packages
You’re ready to grow. Online personal training packages are the way to go beyond trading time for money—and prepare your business to excel. As your grow your business, always stay true to you, your personal brand, and your niche’s key goals—and keep “personal” relationships at the core of your business.