As a personal trainer, the relationship between you and your clients is perhaps the most important aspect of the job. A good bond helps to ensure a loyal customer base that you can rely on to keep coming back for more sessions. In addition, this will also directly benefit clients by placing them in an environment where they feel more comfortable.
Sometimes, to best build this connection, you need to ask a few questions, both of yourself and your clients. Here are five of the most important.
Are you asking your clients the right questions?1. Are you taking the right training approach?
Not everybody responds the same way to each and every training approach that you’ll learn in a personal training course. There are plenty of people out there who relish being pushed to the absolute limit of their abilities, but there are just as many who may require a gentler approach. If you’re at all concerned, it’s always best to ask rather than leave a client unhappy.
2. What are their goals?
Perhaps this seems like a very simple question – your client wants to get into good shape. Of course, this may be true, but what’s more important is understanding why. The way you’ll approach training is very different if you’ve got someone trying to look good for their wedding versus someone wanting to dominate the Sunday football field. While your pre-screening will help to find out this info initially, it’s always worth regularly revisiting a client’s goals. Not only are they a great tool to show how far a client has progressed, but they’re also an opportunity to check in and see if training objectives have changed.
3. What are their expectations?
Similar to their goals is what a client actually expects of you. Many might be looking for a supportive voice outside of the gym as well as inside it, and if you aren’t delivering, there’s no guarantee that they’ll stick around. If you don’t know what someone wants, you can’t exceed those expectations, so make sure you ask regularly to see if your customers are satisfied. Of course, this works both ways – it’s important you make your services and limitations clear to begin with, so there’s no confusion as to what you can and cannot provide. This will ensure you’re both on the same page.
Clients might have concerns about their diet, or weight, in which case you can provide more.
4. What other aspects of health concern them?
For people that have decided to hire a PT, the chances are that they are interested in more aspects of their health than general fitness. Clients might have concerns about their diet or weight, in which case you can provide more than basic training services. This is especially true if you’re skilled in specific areas with courses like the Certificate IV in Weight Management.
5. How can we improve
The emphasis here is on the ‘we’, and this question is perhaps the most important of all. For both you and your client, the ultimate goal should always be to improve – whether in terms of fitness or as a professional PT. You can’t get better without knowing your weaknesses, so answering this question honestly is absolutely key.
By asking these five questions, you’ll be well on your way to better, healthier client relationships. For more information on being the best PT you can be, get in touch with Onfit Training College today.
