As you grow as a fitness professional and creator, chances are you’ll get to the point where you’ll want to eventually own your own business. Especially if you are in the fitness industry, you can very easily make that transition because you most likely already have clientele who love you and have built a personal relationship with you! 

However, sometimes it can be nerve wracking to make the transition from free content to paid, higher quality services for your audience. But don’t worry! If you properly prepare your supporters and follow the right strategy to launch your new business, they will be super excited for you and be there for you every step of the way! 

Let Your Audience Know Beforehand 

If you drop the bomb on your audience that they will now have to pay for your content all at once, chances are they will be less inclined to support you. Instead, use whatever platform you use now to give your audience content, and slowly start introducing the idea to them. 

Try letting them know as soon as possible so that they can be with you every step of the way and have the chance to get excited with you! Keep them up to date on the whole process so they can make the decision if they want to keep supporting you or not (and they most likely will!). 

Make sure to communicate with them the reason you will now be charging for a membership. Is your content improving? Is your schedule getting busier? Is your clientele growing? These are all very logical reasons to transition from free to paid content, and your audience will most likely understand this! Let them know why the paid content is going to be worth it, and you could even give your most loyal supporters a discount on the membership or any merch you may have! You can also give them a referral code to encourage them to tell their friends and family about you. 

Send a Weekly Newsletter! 

As we wrote about in our piece Starting a Newsletter as a Virtual Fitness Instructor newsletters are a great tool to utilize as a fitness professional. This tool can remind your audience of what they can expect from you as a fitness professional, and can also be a fun way to interact with them! You can share behind the scenes content of what you’re working on so that they feel like you care and you want them to enjoy the process with you. 

You can also start giving out information about the perks of continuing to support you as a professional. Why should they continue with you specifically, instead of the thousands of other creators out there? This is the question you should focus on answering. 

Answer All of Their Questions! 

Your audience will most likely have some questions for you. And if they don't get them answered, they may be less inclined to pay for your content. So be open and honest with your audience, give them a platform to ask questions! 

For example, in your weekly newsletter you could announce you’re hosting a live Q&A on your Instagram to give your audience all the information they need to decide if they want to stick with you. Encourage them to come up with questions! And make sure to be prepared beforehand so that you can answer everyone in an efficient manner.