Whether you are a freelance personal trainer or run a fitness center, it is crucial to have a website so that you can reach new people online and solidify your reputation as one of the best in your local area and niche.
When creating a fitness website, there are several options at your disposal. You can leverage one of the available DIY platforms, yet this takes much time, and you won't get much in terms of personalization.
READ MORE: The Top 5 Fitness Website Design Platforms
You can outsource this task and hire a website designer if your budget allows. This is the best way to get a personal trainer website that looks incredible, functions intuitively, and brands your business to perfection.
But how do you find the right designer, and what else should you consider during your website build? In more detail, let's look at five secrets to a successful fitness website design.
1. Find the Right Designer
The first step is to find the right designer for your project. Of course, you will want someone with plenty of years of experience and the qualifications to back it up. However, choosing a designer who understands the fitness industry is also imperative.
Competition is fierce, and it can be hard to stand out from the crowd, especially if you offer online training and your competitors extend beyond your location. This is why it can give your website project an advantage when working with a website designer specializing in the fitness market. They will understand the challenges you face and how to overcome them best. You also won't have to explain the fundamental aspects of your business and ideal clients because they will already have built plenty of websites for personal trainers.
We also recommend you take the time to read reviews others have left about the designers you are considering. Use independent review websites so you can be sure that the comments that have been left are genuine. Reviews help you understand what the website designer is like to work with and whether they live up to their sales pitch.
Competition is fierce, and it can be hard to stand out from the crowd, especially if you offer online training and your competitors extend beyond your location. This is why it can give your website project an advantage when working with a website designer specializing in the fitness market. They will understand the challenges you face and how to overcome them best. You also won't have to explain the fundamental aspects of your business and ideal clients because they will already have built plenty of websites for personal trainers.
We also recommend you take the time to read reviews others have left about the designers you are considering. Use independent review websites so you can be sure that the comments that have been left are genuine. Reviews help you understand what the website designer is like to work with and whether they live up to their sales pitch.
2. Evaluate Cost and Value
You need to determine your budget. Website designers can differ in cost considerably, so understanding your price range will help you narrow down your search from the offset.
Don't only factor in the cost of your website design but your needs regarding maintenance and updates. For instance, website hosting and domain names are ongoing expenses that require monthly or yearly payments. So one of the main questions is whether or not the designer you found will take care of the domain and web hosting for you, or you will have to do that yourself.
That's where the difference between a web designer and a web developer usually comes out. Designers might give you the visuals and the concept, but you'll have to find hosting yourself. So, in terms of costs, it makes sense to hire a designer with developer skills and a platform that can host your website for you.
When evaluating prices, do not just look for the cheapest. If something is cheap, it's usually cheap for a reason. Value is what matters. A quality website pays for itself, so do your research, talk to a few designers and find out what you get for the price.
Don't only factor in the cost of your website design but your needs regarding maintenance and updates. For instance, website hosting and domain names are ongoing expenses that require monthly or yearly payments. So one of the main questions is whether or not the designer you found will take care of the domain and web hosting for you, or you will have to do that yourself.
That's where the difference between a web designer and a web developer usually comes out. Designers might give you the visuals and the concept, but you'll have to find hosting yourself. So, in terms of costs, it makes sense to hire a designer with developer skills and a platform that can host your website for you.
When evaluating prices, do not just look for the cheapest. If something is cheap, it's usually cheap for a reason. Value is what matters. A quality website pays for itself, so do your research, talk to a few designers and find out what you get for the price.
3. Do You Need Maintenance and Management?
When it comes to ongoing costs, you might want to consider if you need a team that takes care of all the technical and content updates for you, or you'll be happy to do that yourself. It is always important to clarify what is included in advance so you know exactly what you are getting for your money. What level of support is provided? If there is an issue with your website, will you receive instant help?
Make sure the company is transparent about what you get for your money. Some of the different maintenance tasks that may be included are as follows:
These are just a handful of examples.
We at My PT Website offer a fully managed service to our clients where revisions and updates are included. Our clients look after their blog content, and we do all the rest for them, so they have more time to do what they do best: get their clients results.
Make sure the company is transparent about what you get for your money. Some of the different maintenance tasks that may be included are as follows:
- Searching for 404 errors and fixing them or redirecting them
- Checking for broken links
- Removing spam comments from posts and pages
- Making sure forms are running correctly
- Making updates to website plugins and software
- Reviewing your security scans and making sure nothing is out of place
- Checking your website's load speed and making sure nothing is bogging it down
- Testing different browsers and devices to make sure the website is being displayed correctly
- Updating your services when you add new tiers
- Changing content on the About and Home pages when you pivot
- Making changes to any of the pages
- Adding new pages when you need them
These are just a handful of examples.
We at My PT Website offer a fully managed service to our clients where revisions and updates are included. Our clients look after their blog content, and we do all the rest for them, so they have more time to do what they do best: get their clients results.
4. Have a Website Marketing Plan
You can have a website that looks incredible, but if no one sees it, it will not drive results. You need to attract traffic to your website, and this is something that requires a strategy.
Many elements, such as SEO, email, and social media, come together when putting together a fitness marketing plan. However, it would help if you always began with extensive research. You need to understand your target audience, where they hang out online, and how to appeal to them effectively. When working with a web designer who's conscious of a website just being step 1 of your online fitness marketing strategy, they will ensure you cover all these right at the start of your website project before your copy is written.
Once the website is live, you can work on optimizing the on-page elements of your website to ensure you feature high up on the search engine result pages. Quality content is imperative, as is a consistent social media presence. You will also need to concentrate on link building, i.e., having high-quality links that point to your website and email marketing to enhance loyal relationships with your subscribers.
Many elements, such as SEO, email, and social media, come together when putting together a fitness marketing plan. However, it would help if you always began with extensive research. You need to understand your target audience, where they hang out online, and how to appeal to them effectively. When working with a web designer who's conscious of a website just being step 1 of your online fitness marketing strategy, they will ensure you cover all these right at the start of your website project before your copy is written.
Once the website is live, you can work on optimizing the on-page elements of your website to ensure you feature high up on the search engine result pages. Quality content is imperative, as is a consistent social media presence. You will also need to concentrate on link building, i.e., having high-quality links that point to your website and email marketing to enhance loyal relationships with your subscribers.
5. Review and Pivot When Needed
A website needs to evolve. Sometimes, it can even drive the growth of a fitness business. For that to happen, you need to regularly assess what elements of your strategy worked and what didn't so that you can tweak your online fitness marketing for better results.
Powerful analytics will help you stay on top of your efforts, giving you a complete picture of how people interact with your website, any frustrations they have, and ultimately, where you can improve.
Our longest-serving managed website clients have changed their fitness website whenever they decided to pivot, offer a new service, move away from in-person training, or even change their brand message. We're here to help them brainstorm ideas and make changes as and when needed.
Powerful analytics will help you stay on top of your efforts, giving you a complete picture of how people interact with your website, any frustrations they have, and ultimately, where you can improve.
Our longest-serving managed website clients have changed their fitness website whenever they decided to pivot, offer a new service, move away from in-person training, or even change their brand message. We're here to help them brainstorm ideas and make changes as and when needed.
Building a Fitness Website That Helps You to Reach Your Goals
As you can see, a lot needs to be considered when building the perfect fitness website for your business. However, if you work with an experienced designer who understands what it takes to succeed in this competitive field, your money will certainly be well-spent.
