12 Helpful Tips to Build Your Health & Wellness Business

Sound mind. Sound body. They’re two of the essential ingredients of a happy, healthy life. They’re likely part of the philosophy you’ve adopted for yourself and turned into a business.

And your timing probably couldn’t be better. According to 2021 data, the U.S. wellness industry is valued at $1.2 trillion.* That’s one way of saying that there’s a healthy outlook for the health and wellness market.

So what’s the best way to take advantage of this growth trend to start building a wellness business that lasts and will serve you well into your future? We have some information to help here.

From personal care to wellness tourism, there are many types of businesses that fall into the health and wellness sector. We’ll focus on three in this article:

• Nutritionists
• Personal trainers
• Health coaches

While we offer suggestions and ideas for each of these types of businesses, you may find a tip for, say a nutritionist, may also work well for your health coaching business, and vice versa.

How to Build a Nutrition Business: 3 Ways

A good nutritionist knows the value of a balanced diet. Generally, the human body needs proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and other nutrients to function properly and to stay healthy. The same can be true when it comes to strategies and tactics to build your nutrition business.

We took a look at a blend of approaches, from ways to add clients to ideas for new revenue streams.

1. Become a nutritionist that accepts health insurance.

This can be a great way to bring in more clients. Here are some reasons why:

• Insurance providers typically cover nutritionist visits

When an insurance provider is willing to cover nutrition counseling sessions it can make it easier for a potential client to walk through your door.

• You become part of the referral network

By working with a health insurer, you’re likely to be listed on their referral network, which can help clients find you in your area.

• Referrals from other healthcare professionals

Physicians may be more likely to send patients your way if they know the visits may be covered.

2. Reach out to other wellness professionals.

You might be a nutritionist, but perhaps you know a physical therapist in your area whose clients could benefit from your services.

Let’s say a local physical therapist who you met by networking at a health business growth conference is working with a client who had knee replacement surgery. Strengthening the knee is only part of the recovery plan.

Helping the client shed some weight also could help. There’s an opportunity for creating a good eating plan. If the physical therapist knows about you, they may refer their client.

In the world of private practice specialists, never discount the power of reciprocity. From gastroenterologists and endocrinologists to personal trainers and physical therapists, you all share a similar wellness goal for your clients and patients. You can help each other as well as your clients.

3. Learn how to run nutrition workshops.

While much of your business may be working one-on-one with clients, sharing your expertise with groups can be a good way to reach more potential clients.

This is another area where networking with other health and wellness professionals can help. Look for opportunities where there’s both a venue you can use and an audience who would be interested in your topic. Here are a few examples:

• Cafes
• Fitness studios
• Health-oriented restaurants
• Wellness centers and clinics

You also could work with human resources and benefits managers at local companies to offer your workshop. Ask if they offer “lunch and learn” sessions for their employees. Speaking about nutrition (live or via Zoom) during lunch could be a great fit.

3 Methods to Get Personal Training Clients

If you’re a personal trainer, you’re focused on helping your clients to get physically fit. Here are a few ideas that can help do the same for your business.

1. Establish a loyal client base.

Have you ever driven by a house with beautiful landscaping and thought, “Wow, I wish my yard looked that good”? If so, the landscaper’s work is doing some powerful marketing. Your clients can do much the same for you.

Whether it’s losing weight, improving conditioning, or overcoming the effects of age or an injury, you’re helping people achieve their goals and even improve their quality of life. For many people, that’s something they’re proud of and would want to share.

So encourage them to do so. Ask them to write online reviews, pass on your business card, or simply just tell others about you. Word of mouth marketing can be a great way to build your personal training business.

2. Set up a referral program.

If you have happy clients, why not give them added incentive to spread the word about you? That’s where a referral program can help.

You can be as creative as you want here. It could be a small “thank you,” such as a gift card if one of their referrals becomes a client. Or $10 off their monthly membership for every friend that signs up for a membership. You also may want to consider discounted rates for their family members.

Inviting your clients to bring along a friend for their first few training periods also can lead to sign-ups. Think about providing an incentive, such as a free session for everyone referred to you.

3. Learn how to start a personal trainer blog.

Offering advice, insights, and helpful information about various physical fitness topics does a couple of things. One, it shows you’re a subject-matter expert, which is great self-promotion. Two, it shows how committed you are to your clients’ well-being, which could help with retaining current clients and attracting new clients.

Use your website to host your blogs and lean on your social channels and email to help promote them. (We have more on that below). Think about different topics that might be of interest to your audience.

One week might be a personal story about overcoming obstacles. Another week might be helpful tips to strengthen your core and avoid lower back problems. Another might be about new strength training classes you’re offering.

How to Get Clients as a Health Coach: 3 Smart Tips

If you’re a health coach and you skipped down to this section, kudos for your laser-like focus. And while we have some specific ideas for your health coaching business, you also may find some helpful information in the sections above.

1. Share your why.

For individuals trying to navigate and understand medical diagnoses, therapy regimens, and behavioral plans, it can be a bit overwhelming. As a health coach, you get that; it’s what you do.

It’s also what other health coaches do. So what can help you stand out from the competition? Your why. Think about why you do what you do, and use that story to help differentiate you on your website, your social channels, even in the elevator pitch you may share with potential clients and fellow health and wellness providers.

2. Tell your story.

You’ve articulated your why. You’ve got your elevator pitch down. Now look for ways to get your story out there. Take a look at popular blogs and podcasts related to your specialty. Offer to appear as a podcast guest or contribute to the blog. This is where you can use that elevator pitch to quickly communicate what’s unique about your coaching business.

3. Consider specializing.

Health coaches may have clients with a variety of needs, including dietary issues, chronic illnesses, and just trying to get fit. Think about what you’re best at and what interests you. It doesn't have to be a single specialty, either. Then consider integrating that into your online profile and other contact information.

So, for example, instead of being “John Doe, Health Coach,” potential clients could see you as “John Doe, Health Coach, specializing in diabetes, weight loss, and food allergy treatment.”

Something for Every Growing Business: Insurance

Whether you’re helping people reach fitness goals, eat healthier, or simply find the best way to live a more fulfilled life, your clients are relying on your knowledge, experience, and advice. You want them to feel comfortable and confident about their choice to work with you.

That’s one of the benefits of business insurance. Showing clients you’re covered for the unexpected can help increase their level of trust. That’s where we can help.

We’ve helped insure tens of thousands of small businesses throughout the U.S. And much like each of your clients is different, so are the businesses we serve. We specialize in customizing insurance options specifically for each one.

Just tell us a little bit about your business online or over the phone, and we can help find the coverages small business owners like you need the most, including:

• General liability insurance
• Professional liability insurance
• Workers’ compensation insurance

We also make it fast and affordable. We can often find policies in just a few minutes. And because we work with many of the nation’s leading insurers, we can shop for rates and let you choose the price and policy that’s best for you.

Got questions? Our licensed insurance pros are happy to help. Just give them a call at 844-654-7272, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-8 p.m., ET.

We’re Not Done Yet

We don’t just insure small businesses — we’re dedicated to helping them thrive. Along with some of the tips we mentioned above for specific health and wellness businesses, we also have some other ideas that can help nearly any business grow.

1. Start a Facebook Business Page.

Want to reach and engage with new and existing customers and others who may follow what your business offers? Try a Facebook Business Page. It can be a great way to provide basic information about your business, improve your SEO performance, and drive traffic to your website.

We can even help you get started with this helpful guide.

You can use your Facebook Business Page to share information about wellness and your particular specialty. It also can be a great way to announce workshops, referral programs, and some of the other business-building ideas we’ve mentioned so far.

Once your Facebook Business Page is up and running, you might also consider using different social media platforms. For example, you may want to try your hand at making TikTok ads work for your business.

2. Make sure you have a Google Business Profile.

This is a free listing for certain businesses online. And that’s where many of your clients may start their search for a nutritionist, personal trainer, or health coach. Knowing how to use Google can help you connect with them.

With a Google Business Profile, you can improve your visibility, as your information may show up in Google Search, Google Maps, and Google Shopping. We have more information, including how to get your profile up and working for you, in this article.

3. Send out emails.

Looking for an effective way to reach more clients, is relatively easy to do, and won’t cost a fortune? Try email.

Much like Facebook and other social media channels, email can help spread the word about events, promotions, and that podcast or blog you may be contributing to.

People on an email list have usually “agreed” or “opted in” to hearing from you. So in many cases, you’re talking to an interested audience. In fact, there’s a good chance you’re reading this article because it was featured in an email.

With no stamps to buy or envelopes to stuff, email marketing can be an affordable way to market your health and wellness business. It can cost as little as $19 to $29 per month. We have more helpful information on email and how to get it to work for your business right here.

Nurture and Grow

Seeing clients thrive and live better lives with your help can be one of the best parts of being a health and wellness professional. Seeing your business grow and prosper can be just as rewarding.

One way to approach helping your business can be similar to how you approach helping your clients. Not every technique may be right. Start with what seems doable and check the results. Adjust the program as needed. And stick with it.

Think of this article as a starting point. If you need more ideas or tips on just about anything related to running a small business, check out our free online resource center, Simply U.

Be well.

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