# How to get online training clients without a big following Source: https://dual.fit/learn/get-online-training-clients-without-a-following Checked: 2026-11-10 Publisher: DUAL (https://dual.fit) **The short answer.** Start with people who already know your coaching: current and past clients, then the people they refer. In two surveys of trainers, word of mouth was the main source of clients for more than half. Recommendations from people we know were the most trusted form of advertising in Nielsen's global survey. You need conversations far more than you need followers. **Key numbers** - 69% | of trainers in one survey find clients mainly by word of mouth[^canopy] - 89% | of US respondents trust recommendations from people they know[^nielsen] - About half | of trainers get under a quarter of their clients online[^canopy] ::: The advice to "build an audience first" has the order backwards for most coaches. An audience is a slow way to meet strangers. In the accounts we read, the first online clients were usually people the trainer already knew. ## Where do trainers' clients actually come from? From other people. The evidence here is soft: we found no large independent survey, and the two that exist cover trainers in general, most of them working in person. The surveys that exist agree with each other, and with what trainers say when asked. | Source | What it found | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | A survey of 133 US trainers, run by an insurer[^canopy] | 69% named word-of-mouth referrals as their main way of finding clients. About half said fewer than a quarter of their clients came from online sources | | A survey of nearly 500 trainers, run by a certification provider[^mentors] | More than half named word of mouth and referrals as their primary source. Social media was second, at 30.2% | | Nielsen's Trust in Advertising study, 2021[^nielsen] | Recommendations from people they know were the most trusted channel, at 89% of US respondents | | A three-year study of about 10,000 bank customers[^referral] | Referred customers were worth at least 16% more than similar customers who were not referred, and stayed longer | The last one is a bank, not a gym, so read it as a pattern. A referred client arrives already trusting you, and trust is the thing a stranger on social media does not have yet. ## Does a small following hold you back? Less than it seems. Reach and engagement per follower both fall as an account grows. - Creators with 1,000 to 10,000 followers have a median engagement rate of 1.78%. For the largest accounts it is about 0.33% to 0.35%.[^hype] - In one benchmark of brand accounts, Stories reached 6.5% of followers for accounts under 10,000, and 1.2% for accounts over 200,000.[^rivaliq] **Median Instagram engagement rate, by account size** The figure for the largest accounts is the middle of a reported range of 0.33% to 0.35%.[^hype] - 1,000 to 10,000 followers = 1.78 ! - The largest accounts = 0.34 ::: Those figures measure attention, not sales. We found no credible study that links follower count to purchases. Trainers describe the same pattern from experience. In one forum thread, a coach reports a full roster from an account of under 3,000 followers, and credits years of in-person coaching for it. Another warns that a large count can be inflated by inactive accounts.[^reddit2] A following of 800 people who have watched you coach for a year is worth more than 20,000 who followed for one video. ## What do trainers say worked for their first clients? We read five threads from the last three years in a large personal training forum where trainers answered this question.[^reddit1][^reddit2][^reddit3][^reddit4][^reddit5] These are individual accounts, not data. The same answers came up across the threads, in roughly this order. 1. **Current and past in-person clients, then their referrals.** The most common answer. 2. **Asking directly, with something to try.** A free sample, and a plain request for a referral. 3. **A small, engaged group over a large, quiet one.** One trainer described a post in a fitness group of a few hundred people that, by their account, brought 80 enquiries. 4. **A niche and patience.** Writing useful answers for one specific kind of person, and accepting that search takes months to pay off. 5. **Not starting with content alone.** Several trainers said posting works over time but is too slow to be the first step. Paid adverts had supporters and critics, and were not a common first step. ## What is a realistic plan for the first ten? **The first-ten plan** - List everyone you have ever coached, in person or informally. Aim for 30 names - Message the ten most likely, one by one, by name. Say what you now offer and ask whether it would suit them - Give each of them one session to try on their own, for free - Ask every person who says yes for one introduction - Ask every person who says no whether they know someone it would suit - Join one community where your kind of client already gathers, and answer questions there for a month before mentioning your coaching - Post one real session a week, so people who look you up see how you coach - After each client's first month, ask for two sentences you can share ::: **A message to a past client** ```text Hi [name], I hope training is going well. I have started coaching online: [one line on what it is, such as "a 6-week strength program you follow on your phone, with me checking in each week"]. I thought of you because [a real reason, such as "you moved before we finished what we started on your squat"]. Would you like to try the first session for free and tell me what you think? No pressure either way. ``` **Asking for an introduction** ```text Thanks for the kind words about the program. It means a lot. Can I ask a favour? If you know one person who would get on well with this kind of training, would you introduce us, or pass on this link: [link] I will look after them the way I have looked after you. ``` ## How long does it take? There is no reliable figure, and anyone who quotes one is guessing. The threads do not settle it either: answers ran from days, for one trainer using paid adverts, to many months. The one consistent point was that publishing content takes months to pay off, which is the best argument for starting with people you know. ## FAQ ### How many followers do you need to be an online coach? None, to begin. In the threads we read, most trainers found their first online clients among people they had already coached. A following helps later, as a place where people can see how you work before they get in touch. ### Do paid ads work for getting online training clients? Trainers disagree. Some report quick results and others call ads a waste without a clear offer and a way to follow up. There is no independent data either way. Ads make more sense after you know your offer sells to people who know you. ### Is it worth posting content if nobody sees it? Yes, for a different reason than reach. When someone is referred to you, they look you up. A handful of posts that show real sessions and real coaching gives them something to find. ### Should my first online clients pay full price? That is your decision. A free trial session lowers the barrier without lowering your price. Charging something from the start tells you whether people value the coaching, which free clients cannot tell you. ## Sources [^canopy]: Keller J. [How personal trainers attract clients in a competitive new year](https://athletechnews.com/how-personal-trainers-attract-clients-in-a-competitive-new-year/). Athletech News, December 2024, reporting an Insurance Canopy survey. [^mentors]: Fitness Mentors. [Survey results: the best in personal training and fitness industry trends](https://www.fitnessmentors.com/best-in-fitness-industry-personal-training-2025/). Read November 2026. [^nielsen]: Nielsen. [Trust in Advertising study, United States](https://develop.nielsen.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/02/2021-Nielsen-Trust-In-Advertising-U.S.-sell-sheet.pdf). 2021. [^referral]: Schmitt P, Skiera B, Van den Bulte C. [Referral programs and customer value](https://faculty.wharton.upenn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Schmitt-Skiera-vandenBulte-2011-Referral-Programs-Customer-Value.pdf). Journal of Marketing, 2011. [^hype]: Net Influencer. [Long-tail creator supply meets retention-driven platforms, report finds](https://www.netinfluencer.com/long-tail-creator-supply-meets-retention-driven-platforms-report-finds/). February 2026, reporting HypeAuditor's State of Influencer Marketing 2026. [^rivaliq]: Rival IQ. [2024 Instagram Stories benchmark report](https://www.rivaliq.com/blog/instagram-stories-benchmark-report/). January 2024. [^reddit1]: r/personaltraining. [How did you get your first 5 online clients starting from scratch?](https://www.reddit.com/r/personaltraining/comments/1nyifa1/how_did_you_get_your_first_5_online_clients/) Reddit thread, read November 2026. [^reddit2]: r/personaltraining. [How to get clients online if you don't have thousands of followers?](https://www.reddit.com/r/personaltraining/comments/1d8gphk/how_to_get_clients_online_if_you_dont_have/) Reddit thread, read November 2026. [^reddit3]: r/personaltraining. [How are you actually getting clients right now?](https://www.reddit.com/r/personaltraining/comments/1qfu1n4/how_are_you_actually_getting_clients_right_now/) Reddit thread, read November 2026. [^reddit4]: r/personaltraining. [Online training without large social following?](https://www.reddit.com/r/personaltraining/comments/1r3zaih/online_training_without_large_social_following/) Reddit thread, read November 2026. [^reddit5]: r/personaltraining. [How long did it take for you to get your first online client?](https://www.reddit.com/r/personaltraining/comments/1l6g6uo/how_long_did_it_take_for_you_to_get_your_first/) Reddit thread, read November 2026.