We live in unique times, where people’s behaviour, beliefs and feelings are influenced by what they see online, on TV, and in the wider media. Understanding this, there are things you can do to elevate your professional profile. Doing so will position yourself in your local community as the health and fitness expert that you are, and it’s a great way to strengthen your fitness career and attract more people to your classes.
Use your favourite global Les Mills Ambassadors and Program Directors, and regional/local Trainers and Presenters as inspiration for how you too can crush it as an influencer on platforms like social media.
Here are ten ways to get you started.
1. CHOOSE YOUR CHANNELS
You don’t have to have a presence on all media platforms. Instead, focus your efforts on the places where your audience hangs out the most (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Telegram, WhatsApp, LINE, etc).
2. POST REGULAR CONTENT
You can share links to articles, chunks of fitness-related news, infographs, videos (people love videos!) to position your profile as a reliable source for credible health/fitness expertise. When posting content, consider using the 5:3:2 rule, which breaks down every 10 posts into the following categories:
- Curation: Five posts (50%) should be content from other sources relevant to your audience.
Examples: a widely shared April Fools Day 2024 clip, article sharing on LinkedIn, Meno Thomas sharing footage from LES MILLS LIVE Brisbane - Creation: Three (30%) posts should be content you’ve created that’s relevant to your audience.
Examples: Michael Chidley, Declan McKeown, Sam Winter, Rachael Newsham, LES MILLS DANCE in Q4.23. - Humanisation: Two (20%) posts out of 10 should be personal, fun content that humanises your brand to your audience.
Examples: Life of a Les Mills Instructor, Marlon Woods, Nel Baxter, House Chalaane.
When it comes to social media success, engagement is key. This can become more challenging once your audience grows, but until then, engage with your followers by responding to every comment, answering every question and following people back wherever possible.
3. USE CONTENT MANAGEMENT TOOLS
It’s important to plan your content in advance and be consistent in what and when you post. So, to help you organise the curation and publishing of your social media content, consider using a management platform. Examples include:
Social media management tools such as those above (and there are lots more) enable you to undertake content-related tasks such as creating, scheduling, publishing, engaging and analysing without having to jump in and out of all your different social media platforms. Some software options are free while others will incur a fee for use so do your homework to find what will best suit your needs. List sourced from Sprout Social.
4. WATCH YOUR DATA
When you know what content best resonates and who your audience is (age, gender), you’ll will then know what content to create more of. If your channel(s) don’t show you data, then take a look at what posts have the most comments and likes. Remember to ask your audience what they want to see more of and then deliver it!
5. CONSIDER A COLLAB
One way to grow your audience is by collaborating with someone who has a larger base of followers than you. To make it worth their while, give them an opportunity to promote whatever they want to, so that your content can get lots of views when they share it.
6. ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO FOLLOW YOU
To grow your following on social media, promote your profile(s) to your class participants (e.g., display a QR code or your account name(s) during classes on your cap or t-shirt, or if your club permits, via a small sign in your classes; display business cards in local businesses or on noticeboards).
7. JOIN PROFESSIONAL PLATFORMS
To promote your professional credibility and credentials, set up and maintain a profile on professional platforms such as LinkedIn and your registration organisation’s website (e.g., FITREC).
8. LEVERAGE AWARDS
Nominate yourself for industry awards (e.g., AUSactive) or get your friend/colleague to do so, and you do the same for them. Being able to promote yourself as an award winner, finalist or nominee can instantly enhance your professional credibility, especially among people who aren’t yet familiar with who you are or what you do.
9. SUBMIT ARTICLES
Submit articles for inclusion in industry publications, blogs and vlogs, and/or local newspapers (e.g., Australian Leisure Management, Asian Leisure Business, What’s New in Fitness). Inspiration is available 24/7 from Fit Planet articles – just remember, if you submit them to media for publishing, be sure to mention something like: “Includes excerpt(s) from article republished from www.lesmills.com.au." It's also crucial to include at the end of your article "[Your name]is a local Les Mills group fitness Instructor at [club’s name] who can help you achieve your health and fitness goals. To find out more contact [insert details on where people can find/follow you].
Click here to see a sample email that you can send to your local media contacts when submitting articles.
10. BE SEEN AND HEARD ON OTHER MEDIA
Approach industry podcasts and vodcasts about participation (e.g., GROUPEX). You can also approach your local community radio or TV station, if you have any, to see if they will have you on for a chat or regular segment to share health and fitness advice.
Remember, with an elevated professional profile you can position yourself as a local health and fitness expert and promote your involvement with a globally recognised brand. The flow-on effect of this is that the more people who know about you, know about Les Mills workouts, and your expertise and what you do, the more likely they will attend your classes.
As always, be sure to remain authentically YOU in everything you do and share. And remember to reference Les Mills as a way to gain instant credibility among audiences who may not immediately recognise your expertise.
Good luck!
