What Mice Have to Do With Fitness

What New Studies Are You Using to Promote Your Fitness Services?

And Why?

I recently stumbled upon an online forum discussion about using research to score media attention for a fitness business.

A new study had just come out saying exercise curbs depression. The forum discussion focused on how the study would make a good publicity hook for fitness providers. Yes … except the study’s subjects were mice, which no one mentioned.

I’m glad I found that thread because it led to two things:

1. I got the idea to co-author a couple of articles on how fitness pros can benefit from sizing up new research. One of my favorite editors just accepted both queries earlier this week.

2. I got to weigh in on how to incorporate new studies into fitness articles and media pitches.

Here’s a modified version of what I wrote on the forum:

Editors and producers like to ask "Why now?" about any potential story. A brand-new study can satisfy that question, as long as the study is truly relevant and credible. You can find plenty of new research through online newswire services. However, before you write about it, analyze it.

You don’t necessarily need to know everything about research design – just look for important points, such as if the study was sponsored by any companies (and how that might influence results) and if the subjects are similar to your target audience.

Essentially, consider whether the study is truly worth mentioning, apart from its catchy headline.

I just finished an article for Best Health where I had to dig up multiple studies published in 2007 that would be relevant to female exercisers. It would have been sloppy reporting to just see what the newswires had to say and leave it at that.

I used Reuters Health and similar sites as a starting point. Then I found the abstracts. Then I contacted the lead researchers to ask them questions and/or get a PDF of the full-text study.

Any big magazine expects this of you. Local newspapers should, too (although I don't know if all of them do). And if you write about current research for your own client newsletter or blog, you owe it to your clients to get the facts straight.

Bottom line: Use newswire services like ReutersHealth.com to get a heads up on what's out there. Then follow up by checking the actual study through journal websites and/or resources such as PubMed.

Instantly Improve Your Writing

Here's a quick writing tip for the next time you’re working on an article, memo, flyer, web page, etc. …

To streamline your writing and create stronger sentences, avoid turning verbs into nouns when you could simply use the verb. Here’s what I mean:

Instead of: Fitness pros make modifications to programs for a variety of clients.
Why not just write: Fitness pros modify programs for a variety of clients.

Instead of: This trainer provides instruction for clients about proper core training.
Why not just write: This trainer instructs clients about proper core training.

Instead of: Our first step is to conduct assessments on each client’s fitness needs.
Why not just write: Our first step is to assess each client’s fitness needs.

As long as it doesn’t change your intended meaning, zeroing in on the right verb makes your writing tighter and more conversational.

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Receive hundreds more tips and in-depth guidance in my new 50-page Special Report, ANATOMY OF AN ARTICLE. The product is for health and fitness pros who write articles (or want to write them) for magazines, websites, article directories, blogs, newspapers, newsletters and more.

Please check it out:

http://www.activevoice.ca/getart_anat.shtml

Fitness Article Fixes

Do Your Fitness Articles Need These Fixes?

Here are three simple problem-solution scenarios to make your health and fitness articles grab more attention, and help you excel at educating and inspiring your readers.

ONE

Problem: Burying the article’s lead in the second, third or fourth paragraph.

The most compelling, tell-me-more information, or a scenario that readers can relate to, should appear in the very first, attention-grabbing paragraph.

Solution: Avoid warming up with superfluous info or chit-chat at the beginning of your articles. Comb your piece’s first draft for the most relevant lead sentences (they’re usually buried a few paragraphs from the top), then rework them to fit front and center.

TWO

Problem: Introducing fitness terms or concepts without defining what you mean (even if they seem straightforward and commonplace to you).

Many fitness pros offer the following generalized tips, but readers might not understand specifically what to do:

• Work out more intensely


• Drink enough water


• Eat sensibly


• Be active every day

Solution: Offer one or two concrete examples so that your tips make sense to readers. For example, explain that working out more intensely means aiming for certain feelings and physical responses based on the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) scale.

THREE

Problem: Writing an article that ends up being one huge block of text.

It’s no use writing articles that no one reads because they look so unappealing. Your job is to make the article’s language and format as inviting as possible.

Solution: As you pen the piece, consider how to logically organize your information, then add relevant subheads to break up the text. Doing so makes your writing more enticing and informative for readers.

For 50 pages of in-depth guidance on how to write health and fitness articles that get the results you want, check out ANATOMY OF AN ARTICLE from Active Voice.

Publicity on TV

A TV Producer’s Perspective

I’ve known my friend Phairis since high school. We both studied acting, which is how we met. Now we both work in the media – she’s a TV producer, and I’m a magazine writer.

Phairis’s daughter is the same age as mine (almost 2), and one time, while we ambled along with our strollers, we chatted about what so many fitness pros want to know: How to get the media’s attention.

She and I have seen our share of good, bad and ugly pitches. And since I’m here to offer info from media insiders like Phairis and me, I asked my friend to let you in on her perspective.

Phairis has the qualifications to tell it like it is, too: She’s the former producer for the EARLY News with Deborra Hope on Global TV and the current associate producer for Global National, a nightly national newscast from a major Canadian broadcaster.

Here’s what she graciously agreed to share with you …

DON'T give me a sell job.

You're not pitching an ad or a commercial. Give me FACTS about what it is you do, or what it is you sell. People love facts. They want to learn more.

If you can tell me something I don't already know or can't get from another source - and you can do it in an entertaining way - your chances of getting publicity are far greater.

DO personalize your pitch.

For example, pick a show on a local TV station and find out who the producer is. Send that person an email. Then follow up with a phone call. Nobody likes getting mass emails – that’s an easy way to get your press release tossed in the recycling bin.

DO watch what's in the news and make your pitch when it's appropriate.

If a celebrity is suffering from a health problem or a new study comes out that’s related to your product or service (even in a small way), that's a great time to send out your pitch.

DON'T take it personally if you're turned down.

Next time, do some research about the media organization you're pitching to and really tailor your media package. Also, be sure to include the basics: who you are; what you do; where you do it; when you'll do it next; why I should care and how I, as the producer, can get in touch with you.

Marketing Beyond the Benefits

Writing Promotional Signs That Get Results

Posting signs around your gym or training studio to market your programs, events or specials can increase registration numbers and interest in your services or workouts.

Fitness pros often create a sign that focuses on the features of their offer instead of communicating the benefits in a way that makes sense to fitness consumers. This is a mistake.

Here’s an example:

Let’s say you offer 35-minute training sessions for your clients. That, in itself, is a feature. It doesn’t necessarily communicate any value to the fitness consumer.

The benefit to your clients is that a shorter-than-normal session saves them time and perhaps allows them to work out on days when their schedule is too tight for a longer gym visit.

Now, how could you communicate the benefits of your time-saving sessions in a way that’s even more meaningful to your target audience?

Well, perhaps part of your target market is new moms. When my daughter was under a year old, I would have been sold on the chance to squeeze in a decent workout AND maybe a post-exercise shower before my baby started fussing in the gym’s daycare. That would have been the benefit of 35-minute sessions to me.

With the scenario above, moms like me are happy. Babies are happy. And as the trainer, you’re happy, too, because your ability to communicate real-world benefits to your target clientele pays off.

When you promote benefits that resonate with your clients and prospects, you capture their attention, which is the purpose of your sign (or other marketing piece) in the first place.

.......

More guidance on how to write marketing material for special events and programs in the fitness industry: Profitable Fitness Events for Managers and Trainers.

Write Like You ...

Why It Doesn’t Work to Write Like You Talk

Ever heard people say you should write like you talk to create web copy, newsletters and articles that persuade and interest readers?

As a writer, I consider that advice half-baked.

I appreciate the intent behind the write-like-you-talk recommendation. Trust me, I’m not advocating formal writing in the fitness industry. (I mean, I just used the term “half-baked.”) And this isn’t about proper grammar, either!

What “write like you talk” really means is, use a conversational voice that readers can relate to. But a conversational, casual style isn’t the same as writing as if you’re speaking.

The difference is important because the write-like-you-talk approach leads to meanderings, messiness and wordiness. You don’t edit yourself when you speak. Tapping a keyboard in that same mindset convinces writers they don’t need to edit … like it might rob the writing of its casualness.

So the writer spews out an article or web page that’s three times longer than it needs to be – how unpleasant for readers.

Good conversational writing treats readers to deliberate structure and word choices. It flows. It’s enjoyable. And every word is there for a reason. (Skilled ad copy writers do more than just write like they talk. That’s why they charge so much.)

If you write like you talk, deem it your first draft. Then self-edit for the sake of your readers. Cut the words we typically use in conversation but don’t need to write. Check it out:

Instead of “write like you talk”:

As qualified fitness pros, we always do our best to ensure you reach your various fitness goals faster and easier than anything you might have tried in the past.

Try “conversational but edited”:

As qualified fitness pros, we ensure you reach your fitness goals faster and easier than in the past.

Photo credit: Jane M Sawyer

Self-Employment in the Fitness Industry

Musings from a Self-Employed Fitness Pro


A university student named Brandon Moran emailed me about a fitness business course he’s taking.

“My professor gave me an assignment to interview a fitness professional with interests that parallel my own,” he wrote. “You and your company fit the bill. Would you answer a few quick questions?”

Of course, I replied. Here’s an abridged version of what I told him. I hope my musings help you with your own fitness career – self-employed or otherwise.

What does your typical work day look like?

First thing in the morning, I work for about an hour while my husband hangs out with our toddler. Then I take over with kid duties for the next hour.

After that, I work the rest of the morning, either with developing marketing and writing resources for fitness pros or doing article research in my home office.

If I’m on deadline, I might take my laptop to a local café or park (in the summer) to work uninterrupted for about 2-3 hours.

Most afternoons, I walk the dog and take my daughter to the playground or other kid-friendly location [there we are at a petting farm in the photo above!].

If I'm not teaching a fitness class, I usually catch up on emails and surf the Net in the late afternoon and evening.

Is there anything about your current business structure you do not like?

The same thing that makes working from home great, can be one of its challenges: You work and live in the same place.

I have to be diligent about separating work and leisure time as much as possible - but it’s a constant challenge.

I might check and respond to business emails well into the evening. Or I’ll unload the dishwasher and sort laundry when I should be glued to my laptop to meet an article deadline. It’s easy to get sidetracked.

How do you envision the fitness business in the future?

Hopefully, its professional standards will be more obvious to the general public and also to fitness professionals. Self-employed fitness pros who survive in this industry will be the ones taking the job seriously.

I’m talking about seeking out proper education and also recognizing that being successfully self-employed requires business and marketing skills, not just training/teaching skills.