The Little Black Book of Fitness Business Success Paperback – May 2, 2011

I have been a trainer for over 5 years now and have been self-employed for a little under a year.This book was full of useful information.I breezed through this book because it had so many bits of information that I could put into use on my own business. What really set the book apart was that this book, unlike many others, actually gives some examples of real actions you can take to increase revenue. I'm currently working on extracting a couple of programs brought up in the book that I feel can help me a great deal.While I still find them useful, I've read so many business and training books that have spoken so much in the abstract that it was quite refreshing to read something to the contrary... real, concrete, actionable ideas. Don't get me wrong, there were parts of the book that wasn't as applicable to my specific business but no one can make a book customized perfectly to everyone's situation.I only wish I found this book sooner.

I like this book. It was full of good info and tips.

As a 20 veteran of the fitness industry, it's taken me almost that long to realize that sales and marketing are as important to being a good trainer as any other aspect of your education and yet it's rarely taught. Why is it so important? Because if you don't know how to get the word out about who you are and what you do (in a very competitive field), if you're the best kept secret in your industry, how can you get to more people? Meaning, how can you HELP more people? Too many fitness professionals are embarrassed by sales, marketing, and self-promotion. This book makes sales and marketing as natural as...core training. But there's a right way and a not-so-effective way to approach it and that's where this book comes in.Pat takes you step-by-step through the concepts that personal trainers need to learn to get known, hired, and thus, in a position to help as many people as possible. And God knows we're needed out there!My only criticism is that if you're relying on these tools to build your business, and they are EXCELLENT suggestions, you might want to remember that not every strategy will work for every fitness professional-that could be better emphasized in the book.

This book is a simple, easy and fun read. The format is a little different than your average business book but I enjoyed it. It seems to be set up like a huge compilation of articles and ideas that Pat has tried and mastered and sometimes failed. So many business books do nothing but give you a bunch of smoke and mirrors along with a huge dose of "you can do it!" This book lays out a ton of ideas and strategies for you to experiment with and implement the ones that work the best for you. I highly recommend giving it your attention if you are in any service type business that wants or needs more clients.

I don't write too many product reviews, but I had to for this book. I've been in the fitness industry for 17 years now and consider myself to be very knowledgeable on fitness marketing and sales strategies. But I had over 15 pages of notes after reading this book. Think you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Think again. The book does a great job of getting rid of the fluff, and getting straight to the point on dozens of fitbiz strategies. You won't be disappointed in this book.

I offer my opinion as a personal trainer, who came to the profession after more than 2 decades in business development & PR. Always open to suggestions from seasoned veterans, I purchased this book thinking I would get just that. Unfortunately, I found merely 3 noteworthy industry specific ideas through page 49. The remaining two thirds of Mr. Rigsby's Little Black Book amounted to little more than "deja vu all over again" - a compendium of rehashed and recycled redundancies that have all the makings of an infomercial script for a "get rich quick" scheme. Forget about all the reasons you became a personal trainer. In Mr. Rigsby's fitness business formula, it's about "revenue streams." Some examples from pp. 143-4: sell supplements, nutrition & weight management workshops, DVDs, books & e-books, affiliate products & programs.... You get the picture. He then tops this list off with an "Epilogue", which is, in fact, a final sales pitch to the reader who might have been readily swept up by the hype. And, in case you were wondering, the site to which he directs his readers for the aforementioned weight management workshops - nutritionmoneymachine.com - WAS, in fact, registered to him (it no longer exists). Bottom line: If you consider yourself a fitness business PROFESSIONAL, skip this one.

I feel like after reading this book I gained really nothing. The book just talks you in circles and never really lends a big helping hand on getting a business together.

the book offered some solid info but was a little repetitive, i suspect with a purpose (to get the points across)

Simple, easy to read, practical and to the point!A lot of great advice and plans to get more clients.A must read for anybody in Fitness business.

Only gave it three stars because of price ,the content of the book is excellent and very useful. I gave it as a present so it didn't look much for the money I paid.