,,Today we have a guest email from BFU coach Ben “The Secret Weapon” Pickard. Ben recently had the dreaded “Key Hire Loss.” But because he’s a bad-ass, he leveraged this opportunity to actually improve his sales process before getting a replacement to take the role...
Business Planning & Growth
Bad News Coming Down The Pike…
There are some economic headwinds a-blowin’. It would be unwise to completely ignore them. And even sillier to not be prepared if things keep going south. The good news is most training gyms can buffet macroeconomic storms pretty well. If you’ve been doing the right...
Writing Emails People *actually* Want To Read [5 Tips]
This weekend is our Unicorn Society retreat in Portland, OR. Our team and Unicorn Society members are spending the weekend working on their businesses, drinking amazing coffee and craft beer, and enjoying summer in one of my favorite cities. And I’m not gonna be...
The Only Way You’ll Ever be Free
Today is an exciting day, as I’m heading to Perform Better in Orlando. It’s one of my favorite events, and it feels so good to be back in person for the first time in two years. I’m giving a talk that covers the 10 Ways To Grow Your Training Business in 2022. If you...
BFU’s #1 Blog Post
First up, I want to share an awesome (free) offer from my pal Sumit at Naamly. I’m speaking at Perform Better in Orlando, FL next week from June 3rd-5th, and thanks to Sumit, you can see me speak for free. We know inflation has made things super expensive and we also...
I’m nervooooous [Help Requested]
I’ve mentioned this a couple of times, but after a few months of working out the kinks, lots of learning, and getting up the first batch of videos… I’m proud/ nervous to debut the new Mark Fisher YouTube Channel! Your support would mean so much. I’ve been working...
Does Your Facility Look Like sh*t?
Maybe that’s the issue Now I don’t actually know, of course. I’ve not been to most of your facilities. But some fitness facilities do look like doodoo. As the oft-quoted, possibly made-up, but still reasonable-to- believe stat goes, the number one reason people leave...
How Can I Sell Without Feeling Sleezy?
Today we’re going to cover how to sell your services without feeling sleezy. First point: if you’re concerned about this, you probably don’t need to worry. At the end of the day, those of us that are concerned about turning people off or being too pushy usually don’t...
How To Learn Faster
If you’re a long-time reader you know I’m pretty aggressive about my education.BEHOLD. *Cue the Majestic Trumpets of Angels” In all honesty, I can’t think of anything more fun than learning. In fact, if there’s one thing I know about myself, it’s this: Mark Growing/...
36 hours Of Pain
One of the hardest parts of running a business is “ripping off band-aids.” The band-aid in question can be any number of situations demanding a change: A pricing model that won’t allow for profitability A long term employee that’s no longer working out A new hire that...
I Messed This One Up…
Let’s discuss something I could have done better during MFF’s first 9+ years. You see, I will forever identify as an artist. I want MFF to be the most human business possible. I don’t want to overly constrict our operations by forcing people into the straight jack of...
Why Your Marketing Sucks (And How to Fix It)
It’s ok. Don’t beat yourself up! Not all of us had the good fortune to receive a BFA in musical theater, the widely accepted gold standard for education in fitness business excellence. *Mark humbly bows to you with a flourish of his top hat* Furthermore, the confusion...
Fitness Business Coaches [The Truth]
Here’s a common point of debate in the Fitness Business Guru Industrial Complex: Do fitness business coaches need to be running their own training gym? (Longer one today… get a cup o’ joe to sip on…) One side of the issue says: “Yes. If you’re not (currently) running...
Why Should You Start a Business?
My dearest, please indulge me as today we’re getting semi-philosophical. There are lots of reasons to start a business. To help more people. To be the captain of your professional fate. To have fun. To increase your earning potential. To learn and grow as a human...
240 Words on Building a Business
Building a business is not for everyone. It takes guts, vision, and persistence. If you want to build a business... You’ve got to have a vision for the value you can bring to the world and be willing to fight like hell to make it happen. You...
What Can You Learn From 2019?
We’d all like to believe that we’re the kind of person who learns from our past to improve our future. That is exactly what my article will help you do today. As 2019 comes to a close, give yourself the gift of self-reflection to consider all the highs and lows of the...
The New Must-Have Skillset for Business Leaders
(Disclaimer: Hey Fitness People! To avoid any confusion, when I use the word coach in this context I’m talking about the umbrella term for any professional who guides and instructs and not specifically a personal trainer or fitness coach. Cool? Disclaimer over.)...
Why Should People Listen to You? [5 Strategies for Establishing Your Credibility and Authority]
In nearly every type of business, it is essential to position yourself as an authority. You are an expert on solving a specific problem for your customers and you are asking them to trust you with their time, attention and money. The first question any responsible...
5 Quick(ish) Thoughts On Luck, Survival, and Success
Behold! Some useful and provocative business musings to make your life and business better. ************************ Beware Of Advice From Successful, Lucky Idiots A strong operator can handle a crappy market. An amazing market can prop up a sloppy operator. The right...
Getting More Leads By Multiplying Your Clients: 4 Questions For Effective Referral Programs
We all know word of mouth from satisfied customers is the cheapest, easiest, and best way to grow your business. In fact, it’s not uncommon for a relatively new business owner to brag about “not doing any marketing.” And to be sure, organic growth from word of mouth...
What’s Cash Flow And Why Should You Give A Sh*t?
You have heard the expression cash is king, right? Well, in business that couldn't be more true. Let's start with the basics. What is cash flow? Cash flow is the total amount of money being transferred into and out of your business on a regular basis....
The Ultimate Booklist for Entrepreneurs: 48 Books to Supercharge Your Business
For anyone who knows me in real life or follows me on the interwebz, it’s no secret I have a problem. You see… I’m a junkie. Every day I wake up and live a life of servitude to my addiction. It’s all consuming. It’s obsessive. And at times, it’s truly a burden for...
How To Use Public Speaking to Establish Authority and Grow Your Business (Even If You Hate Speaking In Public): Part 2
In the first part of our deep dive into public speaking, we covered how to create a structure that sets you up for success. By crafting a strong opening and ending, logically ordering your content, and designing a strong slide deck, you’re off to a great start. (Did...
How To Use Public Speaking to Establish Authority and Grow Your Business (Even If You Hate Speaking In Public): Part 1
According to conventional wisdom, most people fear public speaking more than death. While this sounds extreme at first, upon reflection, it does follow a certain logic. After all, we’ve been designed by natural selection to feel a healthy dose of nerves anytime we’re...
MFF’s Best Blog Post of 2018 (And What You Can Learn From It)
One of the most common issues I heard from business leaders in 2018 was how difficult it can be to create online content that gets traction. With so much noise on our social platforms these days and the rising cost of online advertising, it can harder than ever for...
Know Your Numbers: A Non-Intimidating Overview of Key Performance Indicators
There comes a point in every business’s life where it’s time to grow up. In the beginning, many businesses are run with a heavy focus on getting leads and customers. The bank account is closely watched, but only so we can be certain to not run out of cash. Over time,...
16 Ways To Improve Your Customer Service, Part 2: Grow Your Revenue and Increase Retention By “Giving A Sh*t”
And without further ado, let’s take a deep dive into the second half of our two part series and learn more ways to up-level your customer service. In part two, we’ll cover: The perils of standardizing “wow” moments How to stand out by actually being a real live human...
16 Ways To Improve Your Customer Service, Part 1: Grow Your Revenue and Increase Retention By “Giving A Sh*t”
Call me old-fashioned, but I find great customer service inspiring. Based on your industry, customer service can take many forms. It can be an expertly prepared and served meal. It can be a thoughtfully curated travel experience. It can simply be a warm and personal...
Become a Learning Machine: How to Leverage Books to Supercharge Personal and Professional Development
Estimated Reading Time: 10 Minutes I’ve been reading (or listening to) an average of two to three books a week since August of 2010. At the time of this writing, I can safely estimate I’ve read more than a thousand books over the last eight years. I don’t say...
Our Free System for Managing Customer Experience
At Mark Fisher Fitness (MFF) feedback is our greatest currency. When we foster an open dialogue between our team and our Ninjas (aka clients) our culture and community thrive as a result. With the currency of feedback, you can buy what we all seek in our relationships...
51/49 or 49/51?: A Provocative Question Regarding Business Growth, Self-Knowledge, and Making Good Art
Dearest reader, today I take a brief pause from tactical musings to offer you a thought experiment that may make you uncomfortable. If there’s one thing that consistently destroys beautiful businesses, it’s looking to scale at all costs. Growing a business can be a...
Creating Effective In-Services: A Done-For-You System To Train Your Team
As covered previously on this blog, meetings are often a boring waste of time that take us away from our actual job.But it doesn’t have to be that way. Meetings can be a place for brainstorming to find solutions. They can be a place for vigorous debate to address a...
How to Onboard New Clients for Long Term Relationships
The beginning of any relationship is always a delicate thing. You’re setting the tone for how things are going to go. Your actions and behaviors are telling the story of how you’ll be showing up for the other party. And understandably, the other party makes a lot of...
3 Questions to Ask When Hiring Your First Team Member
One of the most important decisions you will make when you are starting or growing your business is who to hire as your first team member. While hiring the right people for your team is always important, making your first hire as a new business is uniquely critical....
How to Define Your Company’s Values and Make Them Stick
Let’s start at the very beginning. (I hear it’s a very good place to start. #musicaljokes) What the heck are values? Values are our standards of behavior, our judgment of what is important in life. If I were to ask you about the things you value most in your personal...
3 Steps to Better Retention: Reduce Stress, Make More Profits, and Create Satisfying Long Term Relationships
Most businesses are not great at retention. And man… it’s heartbreaking. You work your ass off to get the word out about your business, nervously “putting yourself out there.” You try to be available as often as possible to follow-up immediately on leads. You finally...
The 5 Minute Mission Statement
Your company’s mission statement answers the simple question, why do you exist? Having a good answer to that question isn’t trivial. Having a good answer to that question will influence every decision you make about your business. It defines your purpose. Without a...
10 ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS FOR BUILDING A BUSINESS
It was July 16th, 2011, in the living room of Mark Fisher’s apartment in Astoria, Queens. I took the train from Philadelphia, where I had been living at the time, for our first ever face-to-face meeting about how to grow Mark Fisher Fitness. I showed up with an...
DEAR FITNESS INDUSTRY
[Originally Posted October 2016, Updated June 2018] Dear Fitness Industry, Am I invisible? Every day I see your ads online, on TV, and in the street, but none of them seem to be for me. I can see you, can you see me? I know you are a big industry with lots of...
YOUR SECRET WEAPON FOR BUILDING TEAM MORALE
It’s Wednesday afternoon at your fitness facility, 4:30 pm. Your evening trainers are just shuffling in to prepare for the tidal wave of clients that will be pouring through the door in the next few hours. Let’s take a closer look at your training team to see how...
5 SURPRISING KEYS TO “NEXT LEVEL” GROWTH IN YOUR FITNESS BUSINESS
When we first opened MFF, I assumed that our path to success was going to be a simple equation. Lots of Clients (High Revenue) + Lean Team & Low Overhead (Low Expenses) = Retiring Early to a Tropical Location (Getting Rich as F*ck!) And yes, I wasn’t wrong. You...
THE ONE THING YOU MUST KNOW FOR UNREASONABLE BUSINESS SUCCESS
Sorry for the linkbaity title. But there really is one thing you must know. First, let’s think about your death. You’re gonna die one day. So am I. What type of impact do you want to make on the world while you’re here? Whether you own a business or work for a...