Email marketing is a hugely powerful tool for personal trainers. It allows you to speak directly to an audience that already know, like and trust you. It doesn’t depend on an ever changing algorithm that buries your content and it’s absolutely free. With an average open rate of 20% (according to MailChimp), the ROI outperforms every other form of digital media.
However, email marketing for personal trainers is hard work. It takes hours of research, perhaps the development of a lead magnet, you’ve been priming your list with consistent updates- and the more expensive your product or service, the longer it takes to establish rapport and connection.
Even if you’ve written an incredible and persuasive email sequence that’s got your potential customer falling over themselves to give you their credit card details, you’ve handled every possible objection and they’re ready to buy… it doesn't matter if the subscriber doesn't open your email.
Don’t waste that investment due to a poorly timed email.
Even if you’ve written an incredible and persuasive email sequence that’s got your potential customer falling over themselves to give you their credit card details, you’ve handled every possible objection and they’re ready to buy… it doesn't matter if the subscriber doesn't open your email.
Don’t waste that investment due to a poorly timed email.
Send on the Right Day of the Week
The research is largely conflicted about how timing impacts open rates. There’s a general consensus that Monday’s aren’t great days - something about an office worker’s general malaise - that peak days are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays - and that from Friday to Sunday open rates are down because only workaholics and entrepreneurs are checking e-mail.
However, if your target demographic is another business - such as communicating directly with a gym, for example, using a weekend might be sensible as there’s less email traffic to compete with.
Send on the Right Day of the Month
Research by Omnisend showed positive results for the first half of the month, with the 5th coming out on top. Closely followed by the 12th and then the 7th.
This might be worth keeping in mind if your email is selling something. Towards the end of the month, funds might be a little tighter, and people are having to budget more carefully.
Send at the Right Time of Day
This is very much based on a target demographic and preferred devices. People with traditional white collar jobs are opening email on a desktop around 10am, with other peak times reported as 2pm (after lunch, according to hubspot) and 8pm after the workday is over.
One thing that was evident was the importance of optimising for handheld devices for emails opened early in the morning and late at night. They suggested that light, easy to consume content was better in the morning and that heavier email which might call for purchases might be better ‘nudged’ in the evening.
Almost all providers, even free ones, allow you to schedule an email at a later date and time, including overnight. However, this is likely to be a time where you’re competing with lots of other senders and you might get buried down the list - most emails that get opened at all are opened within the first hour of sending.
Email Marketing Tips to Improve Open Rates
So with early in the month, mid week, mid morning emails as the best time to send emails, what are some other strategies we can use to get more email open rates.
Attention Grabbing Headlines
It seems that even more important than the timing of your email is your ability to write an attention grabbing headline. Creating curiosity in your reader by grabbing their attention here first and giving them a desire to read the content of your email by providing value to them is a good indicator of open rates - especially while you’re in the early stages of building a relationship with your audience.
A Consistent Schedule
Emailing them consistently and not overwhelming them and coming across as spammy is an essential element in building that Know, Like & Trust with your audience. It's good practice to tell your audience how often you'll email them when they sign up.
For example: Get Your Free Fat Loss eBook Plus Weekly Health Tips
Mobile Ready Emails
Make sure whatever you send out is mobile friendly - testing it across phones, tablets as well as computers will be essential in making it easy to consume. Spacing out sentences so that on a mobile it’s not a giant block of text, for example, might be harder to spot if you only ever write on a laptop.
Write Kick Ass Content
It goes without saying that the real “hack” to your open rates is writing awesome, useful content and building relationships over a consistently long term. Not sexy but you have to put your time in. Kind of like fitness isn’t it? Keep putting one foot in front of the other: put your reps in.
There are a few senders that I’ll always open emails from - and often go back to them and keep for reference because the value is massive. They could send those any time. I have my own schedule and I’m sure you do too.
Attention Grabbing Headlines
It seems that even more important than the timing of your email is your ability to write an attention grabbing headline. Creating curiosity in your reader by grabbing their attention here first and giving them a desire to read the content of your email by providing value to them is a good indicator of open rates - especially while you’re in the early stages of building a relationship with your audience.
A Consistent Schedule
Emailing them consistently and not overwhelming them and coming across as spammy is an essential element in building that Know, Like & Trust with your audience. It's good practice to tell your audience how often you'll email them when they sign up.
For example: Get Your Free Fat Loss eBook Plus Weekly Health Tips
Mobile Ready Emails
Make sure whatever you send out is mobile friendly - testing it across phones, tablets as well as computers will be essential in making it easy to consume. Spacing out sentences so that on a mobile it’s not a giant block of text, for example, might be harder to spot if you only ever write on a laptop.
Write Kick Ass Content
It goes without saying that the real “hack” to your open rates is writing awesome, useful content and building relationships over a consistently long term. Not sexy but you have to put your time in. Kind of like fitness isn’t it? Keep putting one foot in front of the other: put your reps in.
There are a few senders that I’ll always open emails from - and often go back to them and keep for reference because the value is massive. They could send those any time. I have my own schedule and I’m sure you do too.
How to Decide on the Best Send Times For Your Business
Your audience is unique and so these general broad principals relating to email might not work specifically for the demographic you train.
If you work in a 24 hour commercial gym and you primarily serve shift working clients like doctors and nurses these factors won’t make that much difference to you.
Understanding your own audience and their needs is the only way to write useful and engaging email content for them.
You could consider surveying your audience formally through polls every 6 months or so - to figure out what time of day they dedicate to sitting and reading their email shows you as a thoughtful trainer.
Informally testing by A/B splitting your email list and observing your own open & click through rates is something that you can do with any email management software.
This is exactly tailored to your audience and their preferences and as your list develops and grows over time it may need to be repeated and adjusted over time.
If you work in a 24 hour commercial gym and you primarily serve shift working clients like doctors and nurses these factors won’t make that much difference to you.
Understanding your own audience and their needs is the only way to write useful and engaging email content for them.
You could consider surveying your audience formally through polls every 6 months or so - to figure out what time of day they dedicate to sitting and reading their email shows you as a thoughtful trainer.
Informally testing by A/B splitting your email list and observing your own open & click through rates is something that you can do with any email management software.
This is exactly tailored to your audience and their preferences and as your list develops and grows over time it may need to be repeated and adjusted over time.
