With more than 1 billion active monthly users, TikTok’s popularity has grown exponentially since it launched in 2016. Nearly 1.5 million UK firms are already using the app to promote their business and engage directly with their customers—so creating a TikTok as a personal trainer could be invaluable to your brand.

TikTok is unique compared to some of the other popular social media apps around today. TikTok’s algorithm is better designed to help users go viral. As a TikTok user, you may come across accounts on your ‘For You’ page with which you share no connections and have few interactions, but TikTok’s clever algorithm will have highlighted them as relevant based on your other interests.

This is ideal for personal trainers trying to promote their business as it means there’s more chance of reaching users that might not be directly connected to you, but are looking at general gym or fitness content, allowing you to connect with a wider audience.

That being said, you may be wondering how best to utilise TikTok as a personal trainer if the app is entirely new to you. Read our blog to learn how to use TikTok as a personal trainer and hear from a pro who’s been there and done it.

How to use TikTok as a personal trainer

Frank Oshodi (@frankdoesfitness)

Frank is a South London-based personal trainer and Insure4Sport ambassador with more than 10 years of experience in the fitness industry. Frank provides 1-2-1 guided gym sessions, nutrition and fitness advice, diet and meal plans, and boxing training to a wide range of clients. 

With more than 40k followers and 1.5 million likes on TikTok, it’s safe to say Frank has learnt how to grow a successful platform, and it’s even brought more clients to his business.

Frank first became a personal trainer after studying an L2/L3 personal training course and working in a gym as a fitness instructor.

“My love of fitness in my personal life and being an avid gym goer allowed me to utilise my own experience, and I wanted to push others into reaching their own personal fitness goals,” he said.

How do you use TikTok to promote your PT business?

Frank said: “I upload a variety of helpful, instructional videos on TikTok that help people understand particular exercises in the gym. I also show the fun side of me as a personal trainer and my personality through many of my videos which have gained a lot of traction. This has helped increase my visibility and gain more booking enquiries.

“TikTok is a great platform to generate potential clients and bookings as you can target a wide range of people. You can use current trends in your videos, which will help reach a certain audience, and hashtags related to the fitness industry. 

“Sometimes, the hardest part of social media is knowing where to start. It isn’t easy—TikTok can be tricky to navigate if you want to generate views. Some trends are hit-and-miss, and some videos may gain more visibility than others. What I have found to be the best technique is to show my personality and the fun side of my business, being as relatable as possible.

“Initially, you need to create an account that directly correlates with the fitness industry and personal training, so that it’s easy for people to see what services you offer. I’d suggest having a solid page of videos, whether that be tutorials or trends that you can upload onto your page.

“Then, make sure to use hashtags related to the fitness industry and follow similar and relatable accounts. Make your content unique so that it has a purpose and stands out. People often want to hear about things that can benefit them, so make sure you give them that.”

However you start, there’s evidence that putting the work in can lead to tangible results. Take Frank as a perfect example of this. “I have had great success through TikTok and many enquiries from potential clients who have eventually booked with me, all from seeing my videos,” he added.

5 tips for using TikTok as a personal trainer

1. Build a unique brand

When setting up your TikTok profile, remember that this may be the first impression prospective clients will have of you. Your profile can showcase your expertise, lead people to your website and other socials, and give potential new clients a way to get in touch with you.

When making your videos, you can also use branding to make your content immediately recognisable amongst the many other videos users will see.

Utilising other features on your profile, such as pinned videos and TikTok stories, can also help prospective clients view your latest fitness content and get an introduction to you. Your pinned videos, in particular, can be valuable in showcasing your business, your expertise, and even testimonials from your current clients.

2. Make the most of TikTok trends

Once you’ve built your profile, the best way to increase your reach is to pay attention to hashtags and current trends. Research regularly what other fitness accounts are sharing and what’s getting the most views.

Putting your own spin on a current trend, whether it’s a sound, topic, or hashtag, is a great way to get your content in front of users who are interested in fitness.

3. Be consistent

Just like with most social media, consistency is key. It works in TikTok’s favour to have as many users as possible consistently using the app, so accounts that post regularly are generally rewarded with more views.

TikTok for Business even recommends posting 1-4 times daily to test out what works best for your account and the content you’re posting. Posting that often can be challenging, so there’s nothing wrong with starting small and figuring out what’s doable for you.

4. Grow your network

As you grow your following, getting in touch with other fitness creators is a great way to expand your network. Building strong relationships with other creators can benefit both parties; whether you film videos together or run joint live streams, it can help increase the reach for both of your channels.

5. Engage your audience

Lastly, TikTok is a brilliant app for connecting with your followers. You can reply to their comments, encourage them to ask questions on certain topics, and run live streams to give advice or taster classes.

Utilising your comment section can help drive up engagement and give prospective clients an idea of what it would be like to work with you.

Specialist personal trainer insurance through Insure4Sport

TikTok is a useful tool for personal trainers, but the more your client base grows, the more potential risks there are involved in running your business.

Whether it’s damage to your equipment or an injury to yourself or one of your clients, specialist personal trainer insurance can give you the peace of mind you need should the worst happen.

Specialist insurance for personal trainers and fitness instructors through Insure4Sport can protect you against third-party claims, theft and loss of or damage to any sports equipment you own, and even loss of earnings should you suffer a personal injury that results in your inability to work.

Learn more about specialist personal trainer insurance through Insure4Sport here, or get a quick quote today.