What to Look for in Personal Trainer Software [+Top 5 Tools]
Last Updated on 30 September, 2024
The personal training industry will continue to grow steadily—predicted to reach $51.69 billion by 2028 with an annual growth rate of 6.1%.
A continued focus on wellness, a celebrity and influencer culture of normalizing personal training, and virtualization are all contributing to this growth.
If you want to capture demand for your services, grow your clientele, and provide a superior experience, then you need the right personal trainer software to help you along the way.
In this guide, we dive into:
13 features to look for in personal trainer software
Need help vetting your options? Look for these key features.
1. Appointment booking and payments
An effective software for personal trainers must include appointment booking features so clients can easily select a time that fits within their schedule.
You should be able to block off and adjust your schedule via the online platform at any time.
Your software should also make it super easy for clients to pay you online via credit card, debit card, or ACH transfer. You can collect payments upfront and never have to worry about chasing down your clients for money.
2. Session packages
You’ll also want to make sure that your platform allows you to sell packages. This is essential for personal trainers who want to stop selling just one-off sessions and make their income more regular. You might sell a package of 10 sessions, for example, or monthly and quarterly subscriptions.
3. Automated reminders
Personal trainers need to remind clients of upcoming appointments to reduce no-shows and last-minute cancellations. Make sure to choose a platform that lets you customize automated text and email reminders. If you have a mobile app for your clients (more on that later), you can send push notifications as well.
4. Client management
The system should also include client data management so you can see all the details about your clients in one place: names, contact information, previous activity, purchase history, etc.
The platform should also allow you to take notes after appointments so you can keep track of the goals you’re working on with each individual client.
5. Team schedules
Personal trainer management software should allow your company to manage multiple personal trainers if needed. You should be able to enable clients to book with the trainer of their choice.
Make sure your software can connect to multiple staff schedules accurately, while still allowing individual staff to block off their own calendars and set their own availability.
6. Loyalty program
When you offer a loyalty program, you can give clients points for buying packages, booking appointments, referring friends, writing online reviews, and posting about your business on social media. Rewards might be free sessions, discounts, or products.
Make sure to choose a platform that automatically keeps track of points, so you don’t have to.
7. Staff app
If you have multiple trainers and staff at your fitness studio, you’ll benefit from having a staff app where staff can check their schedules, adjust their availability, book appointments for clients, and clock-in when on site.
8. Segmented marketing campaigns
Whether you’re an individual personal trainer or run a personal training studio, you need segmented marketing to help you reach your revenue goals. Choose a platform that lets you create segments based on client activity. For instance, you might send a special offer to clients who haven’t booked a session with you in over six weeks to catch people before they fall off the fitness wagon completely.
9. Video library
According to a survey created by the Personal Trainer Development Center, 86% of personal trainers who earn over six figures a year offer some sort of online training. You can create a video library to offer paid courses on fitness, nutrition, and wellness topics or showcase demo videos of specific exercises or fitness programs.
10. Virtual sessions
It’s also a good idea to choose software that lets you offer virtual sessions. This can be useful when your clients are out of town for work or vacation—so you can keep them motivated and continue to earn revenue. If you’re growing your social media following worldwide then virtual sessions can help you capitalize on your efforts (so you’re not only reliant on local clients).
11. In-person POS
For personal training studios and gyms, it’s a good idea to have a point of sale (POS) system for accepting in-person payments.
This way, you can sell water bottles, recovery drinks, sweatshirts, and other merchandise in addition to accepting payments for sessions if needed.
12. Inventory management
By the same token, you might want to choose a platform that offers inventory management. Personal training studios and fitness centers can boost revenue by offering branded products, equipment, and sports nutrition. Personal trainers can then recommend the products that clients will enjoy and benefit from the most.
Choose an inventory management platform that also synchs with your website so you can sell products online (for delivery, in-person pick up, or both).
13. Client app
It’s also a great idea to offer an app for your clients. Clients should be able to do all of the following in your custom-branded mobile app: book appointments, view upcoming appointments, earn loyalty program points and choose rewards, and purchase products.
Essentially all of the client-facing features mentioned above should be available in your mobile app.
5 personal trainer software to consider
Check out these great platforms for managing your personal training business as a studio owner or freelancer.
1. WellnessLiving
WellnessLiving is the ideal platform for personal training studios and fitness centers that have personal trainers on staff. You can manage every aspect of your fitness studio from appointments to staff to products and marketing. Our all-in-one platform is the most comprehensive and gives you the best features within core plans—without all the expensive add-ons of our competitors.
2. Vagaro
Vagaro is similar to WellnessLiving in that it’s designed for managing studios. It offers a variety of essential features like online appointment booking, package sales, and email marketing. However, Vagaro lacks a video library, events management, and automated review requests. So, if you’re looking for a more holistic solution, check out WellnessLiving.
3. Glofox
Like Vagaro and WellnessLiving, Glofox is a business management platform for personal training and fitness studios. You can use it to create a portal for your staff as well as apps for staff and clients. However, Glofox lacks rewards program management and automated review requests.
4. My PT Hub
My PT Hub is a great solution for freelance personal trainers. It offers appointment booking, nutrition plans, virtual sessions, event livestreams, Apple watch integrations, and email marketing.
5. Acuity Scheduling
Like My PT Hub, Acuity Scheduling is designed for individual personal trainers (rather than studios). Acuity Scheduling is a very affordable solution for managing schedules, appointments, payments, and notifications. But it doesn’t offer client management or marketing features. As you’ll grow your business, you’ll need to graduate to a more robust platform or purchase additional software.
Looking for the best software to help you manage your studio and PT staff?
Request a demo of WellnessLiving to see our personal training software in action.
