While attending the IDEA / ACSM Health and Fitness Summit, I availed myself a class taught by Billy Polson about differentiating one’s brand. That is just fancy for what makes my business stand out from the rest.

In the fitness world there are lots of big box gyms, community centers, and garage-style fitness centers. When I came up with the idea for At Home Senior Fitness, I knew that it would stand apart from all of those because of two main components. Our training would be limited to older adults (55+)–also meaning that all the trainers working with me would have training, experience, and/or specialization in that area. The other distinguishing factor would be the “at home” aspect; I do not own a brick and mortar gym, but rather provide services to my clients on Zoom or in their own homes (or in a fitness center located where they live).

These two factors differentiate me from any other business in Northeast Ohio and, as I have found out, from most other fitness firms in the USA. Many cater to older adults and many do at home training; very few do both. Even though I have my niche and have stuck to that core mission, there are still ways that I can further set my company apart from the rest. This was part of Polson’s challenge to each of us–no matter how unique our business model, we have to continue to differentiate.

What can I do to make At Home Senior Fitness excel even more? I have long talked about filming videos that demonstrate how to do various exercises safely; I have even toyed with putting together entire workouts and courses in video format. I do have regular communication with my clients, as well as someone who does social media for me, but I can probably improve on this as well. Perhaps I could also provide clients with better direction about what they should be doing on the days when they are not working with me. There are lots of ways that I can better the work that I am doing…but that all takes time.

This is why it is important for me to schedule in time (which I now do) to work on the business instead of just in the business. Once a week, I will spend one hour working on these projects. Of course, the goal is to expand my business from a financial standpoint, but more essentially the aim is to be able to reach more older adults who can benefit from physical activity and exercise.

The challenge has been put forth by Polson, and now I will do my best to rise to the challenge.