By Brian Danley;
Cupertino, California Personal Training.

As a fitness training professional, it will undoubtedly be an increasingly challenging task to attract adults who are 50 years of age or older as clients.  This age group is particularly skeptical and oftentimes cynical about fitness and health advertising and services.  So how does a professional personal trainer appeal to this ever-expanding target market for the promotion of his or her services?

Vogel (2007) says that the key to effectively “reaching” older adults is to properly assess their fitness level and understand their motivations.  For example, a good trainer needs to be prepared to develop a workout program for the sedentary, physically-dependent adult as well as the elite athlete.

The motivations for older adults are contrary in most cases to their younger counterparts.   Vanity is no longer the primary impetus which attracts this generation to exercise.  Instead, it’s all about increasing or maintaining quality of life, being self-independent in performing the activities of daily living, and managing or preventing chronic health conditions.

Using the right language and portrayal of fitness is paramount to appealing to the discerning older adult.  Many older adults prefer not to be categorized as “baby boomers” or “seniors”.  In fact, “older adult” or “50-plus” is the vocabulary which is more agreeable.  “Exercise” and “workout” are less likable terms as opposed to “physical activity”.  It’s better to utilize words they understand quite clearly with regard to bodyparts.  Instead of “triceps”, refer to this area of the body as “the back of the arm”.  Images of real people doing physical activity such as walking or biking is more attractive to older adults rather than the sexy, racy images of beautiful young people playing volleyball on the beach.  The traditional media marketing industry (e.g., television, radio, and internet) which advertises physical activity is wanting since the images and words are not perceived as “speaking” to their needs.  Instead, word-of-mouth is ultimately considered to be the most effective means to bridge the gap in communicating the services of the successful personal trainer.

Representatives of about fifty organizations such as AARP, ACSM, and the CDC had come together in Washington, DC in 2004 to discuss how best to promote physical activity among older adults.  The result has been an ongoing study which provides strategies for health-care professionals to effectively motivate older adults to exercise.  The study was published by Chodzko-Zajko, et al. (2004) and is entitled The National Blueprint:  Increasing Physical Activity Among Adults Aged 50 and Older.   This article details plans to market exercise to older adults and has the worthy goal of encouraging physical activity because of all the benefits it provides:  health maintenance; chronic illness reduction and disability; and enhanced well-being and functional abilities.  The article outlines strategies with regard to marketing, research, home/community, workplace, medical care, and public policy in an effort to overcome the barriers to physical activity for older adults.

My particular interest within this article entails the marketing strategies for older adults.  These strategies include:

• Establish a clearinghouse association which will disseminate public education and social marketing materials to companies
• Provide a national program which provides incentives within communities to increase physical activity
• Support efforts to develop physical activity programs targeted to specific segments of older adults
• Develop a national consensus document which recommends training standards for physical activity instructors who work with older adults.

Research for this study was minimal as most of the content was gathered based on the results of a consensus of the national meeting.  The Journal of Aging and Physical Activity (2001) and the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report (1996) are referenced.

This article notes that despite all of the wealth of evidence about the benefits of physical activity among older adults, there has been very little success in motivating these people to adopt a physically-active lifestyle.  The article concludes by saying that despite the challenges of encouraging older adults to engage in physical activity, there has been tremendous positive feedback by scholars, clinicians, public health officials, and legislators with regard to the strategies put forth.

REFERENCES

Chodzko-Zajko,W., et al. (2005).  The National Blueprint:  Increasing Physical Activity among Adults Age50 and Older.  Retrieved November 17, 2007, from http://www.agingblueprint.org/downloads.cfm.

Voget, A. (2007).  Outside the Fitness Marketing Box:  Promoting Your Services to Older Adults.  Retrieved November 16, 2007, from  http://illiad.sjlibrary.org/illiad/logon.html

To contact Brian or for more information about Brian Danley visit his Cupertino, California Personal Trainer profile page.

About Brian Danley
Brian Danley is a Certified Fitness Trainer, providing health and fitness guidance to home-based as well as Stanford University clients. Brian holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and in Mechanical Engineering from San Jose State University. In addition, he holds a Specialist in Performance Nutrition (SPN), and Fitness Therapy (FT) certification from the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA).

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