If you make your living in the fitness industry and ever find yourself struggling to find customers, it's not because they aren't out there. The fitness industry is a multi-billion dollar industry, full of different niches — some that haven't been discovered by anyone, some you personally aren't aware of, and some that you can even create yourself. Look at CrossFit, for example. They created their own niche and built it up to a massive size. If you only have 10 or 100 clients, it doesn't matter; you're still part of the war, and you want to be part of that war. You're still part of one of the biggest ponds you could be in, with nearly endless opportunity to grow.
WATCH: elitefts Fitness Professional Summit — Owning A Business Is Harder Than You Think
In this video from the Strong(er) Business: , Dave uses a Pink Floyd quote to explain a rule to follow, no matter where you are in your personal life or professional development: once you're the big fish, it's time to move to a bigger pond. Don't give up your place in a good war for a role in a cage.
When Dave was in powerlifting, using this rule was simple: once he became the strongest person in the gym, he left. As soon as he wasn't training around people stronger than him, he went to find another gym where he wouldn't be the strongest. This is why Westside became his final destination as a powerlifter — it was where he could never become the strongest lifter. Once he was in this environment, he became way better than he ever thought he could be. Lifters who don't do this — who fail to seek out people better than them—are doing themselves a disservice and selling themselves short.
The same rule applies if you're a professional in the fitness industry, Dave says. Even at the local level, there are more customers than you even know exist, and you should never stop looking to be part of the bigger pond. If there's a gym down the street that you're frustrated with because they offer the same service and you think they're taking your members, forget about them. If you're worried about the size of a competitor, forget about them. If you're concerned about comparing the size of your business to someone else's, stop thinking about it. Who cares what your market share is if you don't even know the size of the market? The fitness industry is larger than you can even understand. Don't limit yourself. Don't put yourself in a cage.
Dave closes by making the point that once your business finds its identity, commit to knowing exactly who you're going to serve and how you're going to serve them. Elitefts is in the business of helping people who care about training, who place it as a top four priority in their lives. These people are the target of elitefts — a niche, not the whole market. And elitefts is only able to serve these people by relying on three things: focus, trust, and strength.
Reflecting on Strong(er) Business: elitefts Fitness Professionals Summit
