Fitness Website Design: 10 Things Your Website Should Have (Part 2)

I was recently looking online for an athletic trainer for my teenage son and came across a lot of websites that were just plain BAD.  Some of the sites had missing pages, incorrect/incomplete information, or just didn’t work at all with my browser.  After smh for a while, I decided I would compile a list of things that every fitness website should include.

Here is a quick list of 10 things (Numbers 6-10) you must have on your website as a fitness professional. 

To see numbers 1-5, click here.

Testimonials – Honest words from your current clients help make your products and services more tangible to online visitors. They help build trust in you, especially if you are new to the fitness industry. I suggest having at least 5 on your site, and make sure they are prominently displayed.

Call to Action – Always give your visitor a task to complete, I mean literally tell them what you want them to do. This is your call to action. “Call now for free week of boot camp”, or “Sign up today to receive our free newsletter”; are both examples of an effective call to action. I suggest using special buttons or highlighted text to direct attention to these calls. Free giveaways are always a great way to entice your visitors to complete your call to action, so offer them something useful for complying.

Social Media – If I have to say anything more than “Social Media” you have bigger problems than it not being linked to your website. When the internet first came out, it was called the “Great Equalizer”; well Social Media is the “Next Great Equalizer”. There is no better way to connect with your clients on a personal (without getting too personal) and business level than via Facebook, Twitter or LinkIn. Social Media allows you and your clients to engage one another in a way never before possible. And when done properly, this engaging can lead to sales for you!

Google Analytics (GA) – When you run your own business you cover every base. You are the CEO, CFO, CIO, and any other initials you can think of. Google Analytics is for the VP of Marketing in you! It tracks visitors from all referrers, including search engines, display advertising, pay-per-click networks, email marketing and digital media such as links within PDF documents. Tracking all of these items are necessary to ensure your marketing dollars and efforts are actually working for you.

Video – Video is gaining more and more popularity today with the emergence of sites like YouTube, ULead, and others. Make sure you get a piece of that pie as well! Reading your words is good, but seeing you speak them is GOLDEN. Anytime you can get your message out by way of video, do it. Video can show things like excitement, energy and personality; all things clients are looking for in a fitness trainer. Somehow reading bolded and italicized words just doesn’t do it always. Show videos of your boot camp class hard at work, examples of exercises that can be done at home, or even an introductory video to your facility.

Based in Columbus, Ohio, Fit Web Solutions designs websites and other digital solutions for Fitness Professionals throughout the United States and Canada.