A Fitness Marketing and Business Post by Big Chris

Hey there, hope you’re doin’ great

This is one of those posts where I just had to write…  I PROMISE there will be lots of good lessons, tips and strategies to help you more money in your fitness business in it

Two days I had hernia surgery… it’s actually a redo… 4 years ago I blew a hernia doin’ box squats ( one of my favorite exercises) ..had it fixed, and then about a month or two ago I went in for a heavy squat/sumo-deadlift/good-morning workout and blew right through the mesh the doc put in 4 years ago… and this time the hernia was HUGE…

So I just had it fixed again and have been stuck at home with GIANT purple grapefruit sized … uh… organs.

But a few good things have come out of this…

One – I was able to spend time on my Apple TV searching for and downloading a KILLER playlist for upcoming workouts… basically I went on and asked my Facebook friends what their favorite workout songs were, then I checked it all out in Itunes, and if the tune was cool, I checked out other popular songs by that artist… I ended up making a playlist of almost 300 songs… spent a whole day in bed with my big purple.. uh… organs… searching for, listening to and downloading songs.

AWESOME!

A few of my new favorites artists are “Vinnie Paz” that Omar Abdelfattah turned me onto and my bud Jason Ferruggia got me into “La Coka Nostra” … love it

The playlist is basically angry hip hop, metal and of course Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger”… ala Rocky 3

I LOVE working out to testosterone-heavy super-aggressive music

So that’s one good thing that came out of it.. and the other is…

Two – While lying in bed pampering my big purple buddies I strategized a new program that will make me an extra six-figures a year, allow me to help 12 of the coolest trainers in the industry and fits perfectly into my “lifestyle/purpose/passion” standards and requirements that all business endeavors I take on MUST match up to

I mind-mapped out the entire thing, it’ll take approximately 19 to 23 working days out of my year and make me an additional six-figures net income doing what I love… plus it’s gonna be super fun

So…

Remember to look for the good in every situation, as soon as I blew this damn hernia out again I asked myself, “what good can come out of this?”

I knew something would be there if just looked for it

Hell, I figure I needed a deload week anyway… but I was also able to strategize and layout and entire money-machine that I’m gonna have a hell of a good time printing out dollar bills with ( not to mention, helping some awesome people)

Ok… so onto some more “Big Purple Ballin’ Lessons”

Surround Yourself With The Right People… And Here’s How To Get To Know The Right People…

Nothing new here… but it’s so simple most trainers totally overlook it

Lemme give you some examples

Last night was my good friend Andy Jenkins Birthday party… he turned 40 five days before I did… Andy is probably one of the top five internet marketers in the world and one of the coolest guys I know.

His party’s are always small, fun and a great time.. not to mention the top internet marketers in the world are usually there, and he lives in a HUGE house on the beach in La Jolla… so goin’ is always a no-brainer

But, because I JUST had surgery, my wife is outta town, and I’m a little looped out on pain killers … I’m not supposed to be drivin’ …with my big purple… uh… organs n’ all… I needed a ride

So I called my bud Big Mike to drive me down… and since Andy knows Big Mike, he was the perfect guy to drive me down

Big Mike is one of the most big-hearted, down to earth, smart, successful and interesting guys you’ll ever meet.

For about 25 years he was a big time marijuana grower and smuggler, had hundreds of people working under him in his “organization” and was doin about $20 Million a year… illegally

Well, eventually it caught up with him, he ended up in a shitload of legal trouble and decided to go legit. ( I can mention the illegal stuff cuz the statute of limitations has completely passed now)

Fast forward to today, he owns a runs a LEGAL business that does $52 Million a year helping marijuana growers grow the biggest most potent buds possible… and his business is 100% legit

Big Mike revolutionized the entire marijuana industry by being the first seller of grow supplies to admit his products actually were for marijuana…  cuz up until then, all the other big players in the industry said there stuff was for growing hydroponic “tomatoes” and “orchids” … leaving the typical marijuana grower to wonder if these products were actually the best one to use for growing weed… the question lurked in every growers mind if they were using the best nutrients to make their weed as potent as possible… well Big Mike was the first to answer that question… meeting a need that had always been there in the marketplace but no one else dared address.

When he did this a few things happened…

1. He pissed off a buncha the “Good Ole Boys” in the industry

2. He revolutionized the ENTIRE industry

3. He became an EXTREMELY successful man… LEGITIMATELY

I first met Big Mike a few years ago in a mastermind we were in together and we’ve been great friends ever since

BTW… if you’ve ever watched the show Weeds on Showtime you’ve seen his product line in use, and probably even seen him on the show… he’s on it sometimes, they use “only” his product line on the show, and he’s the one who goes in and tells them how to set the gardens up to make them look as real as possible.

Knowing guys like Big Mike has been PARAMOUNT to my business… not cuz of the weed thing, in fact I dont even smoke weed these days… but LOTS of things I do in my business were ideas I got from Big Mike… he’s a straight up business genius

And Andy is another one, cuz of HIM I learned how to get my websites #1 in Google for HUNDREDS of my keyword terms

And as usual, Frank Kern was at Andy’s party, Frank is by FAR one of the greatest marketing minds of our time… and tomorrow I have a business strategy call with Frank to dial in a few places I’m where I’m leaving money on the table… there’s probably no one better in the world to do a call like that with than Frank

The point is… Bedros, Hochman, Seven-Figure Sam, Andy, Big Mike, Frank…. I SURROUND myself with like minded successful direct response marketers

People who I can help reach their goals and they can help me reach mine

Who you know and who you hang out with is HUGE

If you hang out with mostly broke and outta shape people… there’s a good chance YOU’LL be broke and outta shape

In fact, recently, when it became inevitable that I needed hernia surgery…  I reached out to some of my good friends, who ALSO happen to be the top fitness minds in the world.. about what I can do to safely start lifting again as soon as possible.

I reached out to Eric Cressey, Jason Ferruggia, Craig Ballantyne, Shelby Starnes, Jason Pegg, AJ Roberts, Rick Kaselj, James “Smitty’ Smith and “Napalm”Jedd Johnson…  and in a few hours I literally had entire programs written up for just me that I could start one week after surgery… from the best minds in the industry… and none of it cost me a dime

These guys are the best in the world at what they do… and for me they’re all only a phone call, email or text message away.

Most people only get to learn from these guys from magazines like Mens Fitness and on sites like T-Nation… but I’ve purposely and strategically put myself in a position where I can reach out to each and every one of them directly… and they know I’m here for them as well… especially when it comes to business questions

I know quite a bit about working out, bet these dudes TRUMP me when it comes to ‘workout’ knowledge… so it makes more to just ask them then to try and figure it all out on my own.

I make sure to be good friends with the top minds in the world when it comes to ANYTHING I’m into… be it internet marketing or strength  training… in fact one of the reasons me and Bedros are making the documentary “Add to Cart”  was so we could get to know the top marketers in the world… and guess what? It worked ( That was Bedros’ idea BTW.. the dude is a straight up genius)

The point is… whatever it is you’re into, get to know the best of the best in the world in that niche/hobby/business… whatever it is

And if you don’t know the guys, what do you do?

Help them, go OUT OF YOUR WAY to start out those relationships the giving hand with no expectation of reciprocity

Find out what they want in life and what is most important to them, and then do a few things to help them get there

Be a ‘Value Adder” and not a “Value Extractor” … just like you would treat your market… going into your market helping them get what they want and the money will follow… do the exact same thing with building relationships with the right people in all areas of life

In fact, Frank Kern actually did a blog post about how me and Bedros began are relationship with him… you can see it by clicking here. It’s a SUPER COOL post

Ok, now for the next lesson… wanna double your income?

Use… The 20 – 20 – 20 – 20 – 20 – 20 Factor

It’s simple, in many businesses finding the BIG IDEA isn’t the shortest line between where you are and where you wanna be

Sure the big idea can be huge… but often time we overlook the easiest way to grow our business

What is it?

Simply improve every money making aspect of your business by 20%

Let’s say you own a fitness training business, make 70K a year and want to make 150K a year… instead of thinking it’s ONE BIG THING that’ll get you there, it’s often easier and more surefire to do this…

• Improve your web conversions by 20% by testing and tweaking
• Get 20% more traffic to your site through free and paid methods
• Keep clients 20% longer implementing strategic client retention strategies
• Ask for referrals 20% more often than you now
• Grow your list by 20% more than you’re growing it now.. by either improving opt-in rates, investing more in what already works to get leads… or usually by doin’ BOTH these things
• Refine your closing and sales process to increase your closing ratio by at least 20%
• If you take cash and checks… switch to EFT… this will almost ALWAYS increase your average lifetime value of your client-base by MORE than 20%
• And if you charge monthly, make sure the two times a week people pay for 8.666 workouts a month instead of just 8 and the 3 x a week people pay for 13 workouts a month instead of just 12… this little tweak wont quite add 20%… but it will ad seven or eight percent… which DEFINITELY ads up ( I use this formula: Cost per workout x workouts/wk x 52 weeks in a year divided by 12 months = monthly rate… or as prefer to call it ” ALL for Just One Low Monthly Rate”
• Optimize your website for 20% more keyword terms
• Get 20% more links to your optimized pages
• Provide 20% more content
• Email your list 20% more offers
• Raise your prices by 20%
• And on and on and on

These changes are extremely simple to make and the compounding factor is HUGE… often this can OVER double your business

And the final lesson for the day…

You Gotta See it In Your Mind First

I just turned 40, and everything I have today I saw in my mind years ago

The huge house, the view, the beautiful wife, happy and healthy kids, sports car, Harley, good friends, in good shape, the dream businesses, the two hour work days… all of it… I saw it in my mind and now it’s my reality

( That’s a pic my wife just took of me a few days ago BTW… my veins are coming back in… like seeing a welcoming old friend)

My life today…I focused on it, believed it possible, felt deep inside like I already had it… and my Reticular Activation System went to work to make it all happen

Giving me the right ideas at the right time, connecting me with the right people, making the right actions obvious and putting the right path in front of me

If you’re focused on the economy being bad, that’s what your mind is gonna make sure is the reality you experience… a bad economy…your subconscious will go to work to give you as much of THAT experience as possible

I don’t EVER worry about the economy, and immediately block-out anyone who complains about it

I ONLY think about MY economy… and MY economy is always good… cuz I focus on how good it is and take to the necessary actions to make it that way

( BTW, one of my biggest pet peeves in the world is people complaining about things, especially the economy… don’t complain about things… if you see something you don’t like… do something to make it better… but don’t bitch about it… at least not to me.. cuz I won’t listen)

Alright, my ol’ freind the big purple ball o’ infinite wisdom is telling me it’s time to go back to bed, lie down and rest

Before I go I want to thank you for being a reader of my blog, for being a customer of mine and for helping people get into shape… when you change someones life like that it effects pretty much everyone around them in an extremely positive way, which effects still OTHERS in a positive way… and the ripple effect keeps getting wider and wider

As a fitness pro, you’re making a HUGE difference in the world… far beyond what you can just see what your eyes

YOU are making the world a better place… and for that I thank you.

Before you go, if you’d like my personal help to grow your business to the high six or even seven-figure level… even if you wanna work just part time hours like I do… and you’re a cool, positive, down-to-earth action-taking person.. then check out my coaching program

I’m not sure if Ill be offering it for much longer, but click here so you can learn more about it while it’s still available

And click here to see a blog post one of my coaching clients wrote for me COMPLETELY unsolicited the other day, it’s pretty cool stuff

I’d love to hear your comments below…