Three Surefire Ways to Dramatically Increase Your Website Conversions

Today just about every fitness business owner has a website, as they should. But let me ask you…

What's the purpose of your website?

I hope you didn't answer with something like "To get my name out there" or "To sell supplements, get people to call my business, sell e-books, sell affiliate products AND to get my name out there"

The sad fact is that most fitness, health club and personal training business owners go about their website all wrong. They're trying to do WAY too many things and their sites are all over the place.  They're trying to be all things to all people.  There's way too many links to click, way too many things they're trying to sell, and just way too many damn things going on at the same time. This not only creates a weak message but it confuses the hell out of the visitor, and a confused visitor doesn't respond, they retreat and go to your competitors site.

What you need to do is focus on getting a response from your visitor, THAT"S IT! Don't try to be cute, don't try to impress your visitor with fancy graphics and expensive looking corporate logos and please DON'T TRY TO GET YOUR NAME OUT THERE…

If the visitor doesn't respond right then and there chances are they'll never come back to your site and they sure aren't going to do a damn thing with your name.

The more things you're trying to get your visitor to do the more you're gonna dilute your message and your response.

If you really want to increase your conversions, it's that simple.  Focus on one market, one message, one outcome. (I learned this from the great internet copywriter Michel Fortin)

One Market

Focus on one niched group of people.  It could be people who want to lose fat, or it could be men between the ages of 45 and 65 who want to improve their golf swing, or it could be 20-year-old college athletes who want to be better in their sport. Whatever it is, focus on one group of people.  Don't try to be all things to all people or you won't be anything to anybody. 

The way you need to speak to a 25 year old female who lives at home, makes $28,000 per year, wants to look hot and get more attention from her cheating boyfriend is much different than the way you want to speak to a 53 year old business owner who lives up in the hills, has 4 kids, makes a six figure income and wants to improve his golf swing so he can show up his buddies on Saturday mornings.

If your site tries to speak to both of these people at the same time, you've lost em'

One Message

Speak to the one problem that your visitor is trying to solve.  Don't be all over the place by saying we'll help you lose fat, gain muscle, improve your golf swing, increase your 40-yard dash time, improve your health, improve your mood and make your feel sexier.

Speak to one problem instead of many. 

People want someone who specializes in fixing their specific problem, and the more problems you try to position yourself as being an expert in solving, the less experience you're perceived as having in any of those areas.

People can smell the "I specialize in everything" B.S. faster than a horny teenage boy can find a keg party, and they'll know that if you claim to be good at everything you're probably good at nothing.

One Outcome

Get them to take one simple action, which is usually contacting your service.  For exapmle, if you're trying to market a personal training business don't have a bunch of products, e-books and supplements you're trying to sell on your site. 

If your service has a lifetime value of $1,000, then why would you try to sell someone a $50 supplement that can distract them from your main message? 

If you throw too many desired outcomes up on your site you'll confuse your visitor and they won't know what to do. If you want to sell supplements fine, but do it on another site.

Focus on one outcome.

The Typical Fitness Professionals Site

I see a lot of personal training sites that basically read like this:

 "We specialize in training all ages from 6 year-old-little-snot-nosed-kids to 93-year-old-curmudgeons. We work with everyone from beginners to experts, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR FITNESS LEVEL! We specialize in weight loss, bodybuilding, muscle toning, flexibility, sports performance, cardiovascular health, mood enhancement, confidence building, helping you heal your inner-child, wealth building and people skills. We'll beat anybody's price and you'll be the YOU you always wanted you to be. On this site you can achieve everything you've ever desired. Our training will fix everything in your life including your golf swing,100 yard dash time and fat ass! Our supplements will help you live to be a hundred, and our e-books and affiliate programs will make you rich on the internet! If you don't feel like calling today please bookmark this site and come see us again, and remember WE"RE YOUR EVERYTHING SPECIALISTS… so please get our name out there!"

The one thing I do love when I see fitness sites that convey that type of message is that it makes it so much easier for those of us who follow direct response principles to really clean up.

Bottom Line

Break your website down into these three simple areas, one market, one message, one outcome; and you will dramatically increase your conversions. Try to be all things to all people and you'll be nothing to nobody.

Work Less and Make More

Chris McCombs is gym marketing specialist and he teaches mixed martial arts instructors, health clubs and fitness professionals how to market their business. One area where he really specializes in is how to market personal training. You can read lots of free marketing articles on this blog.