071 – From Fitness Coaching to Copywriting: How 1 Entrepreneur is Living an Unlikely Success Story
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When Joey Persia discovered copywriting, he opened the door to a huge business opportunity.
You started in the fitness realm, what is it about fitness that makes people want to take that entrepreneurial step and do their own thing?
There is a lot of autonomy in the fitness realm for people.
Another reason I think people do that is, a lot of people just get into fitness because it’s a passion of theirs and it’s changed their life. I didn’t like sales and some of these environments that were like the big box gyms, they pushed sales so hard, where it was almost too much and it took away from a lot of the training.
Looking back in retrospect, do you think a degree like that would have been helpful for the sales marketing, all that other business stuff?
It probably would have helped a little bit more. But I don’t know if that would have changed things too much.
But do you have your own business coaches and mentors and educational sources that you were using? What were those?
Yeah, definitely. A lot. That’s the thing. I’m always and probably will be heavy on the education side and the coaching side of things. When I got into copywriting, it started with just a pretty well-known copywriting course and then I figured, “Oh, this is cool and I like doing that.” I just started taking more, reading more books.
Then I hired coaches and mentors and we’ll talk about Craig’s workshop, which I went to earlier this year. Stuff like that is, I think, more than anything more helpful than a general degree in something.
You mentioned you’re in the fitness space but I’m sure there are plenty of copywriters in the fitness space. How have you gone about creating a brand that’s unique? How do you paint yourself as different in that realm?
I think for me, the decision was pretty easy to niche down in the health and fitness market, just because that’s what I was in for a while. Honestly, I haven’t built much of a brand and following from my copywriting stuff. I’m getting so busy with all my client work just from referrals, and that type of stuff where I’m not like “Okay, I’m going to build this massive business.”
I just have my course, my book for just some passive revenue to help those people out. It was easy for me to be like, “Okay I’m going to stay in health and fitness.” Then also the guys I’m working with, either they’ve hired copywriters before but they weren’t happy because someone made them sound like how they don’t talk or sound easy or salesy or something like that. Or they desperately have been needing to hire one, but that exact same reason.
They just don’t feel comfortable handing over something like that to someone that they know don’t have the knowledge and the expertise that they have. A lot of my clients are like, “Oh I trust that you won’t make me sound stupid and you know what you’re talking about, so let’s do this,” and that’s how a lot of my clients, how we start at the beginning and that’s the same way with the referrals. People are like, “Oh no, I totally trust you. Let’s do this.”
How would one go about finding a copywriter that meets their needs and what should they ask for upfront to make sure some of the things you just mentioned aren’t an issue?
They probably have some connections right? That’s the first place I would start it.
Just asking if people they know have hired someone or even anywhere like, “Hey do you know anyone that’s hired a copywriter before?” That’s where I would start no matter what. The other one would be to put out some post or something on social or whatever, asking for referrals that people have worked with them.
Basically what I would do when talking with the copywriter and seeing if it’s a good fit is a couple of things.
One is they ask you a lot of questions because a copywriter who cares will ask you a lot of questions to know exactly what you need in your business.
Can you speak to what it is about Craig and his message that really appeals to you that resonates and what’s different about it versus other coaches out there?
I think probably the biggest thing for me was because Craig came from the fitness side of things.
Another one that really stands out is how much Craig has changed as a person and how much he’s grown. He talks about it all the time with his anxiety stuff and being introverted or having introverted tendencies, he would say, and how he’s just completely on the other side of things.
What effectively is the difference between a mastermind and Craig’s workshop and how do you decide between the two?
I’ve been in a couple different masterminds and they’re all very different.
It’s hard to say but I’d say collectively that the workshop condenses your plans and your vision and all that stuff into a much shorter time period. Then you have to do the work then on the back side. Craig has with the workshops, there’s the accountability that goes along with it.
How are you going to aim to grow your copywriting business over the next five to ten years?
Working with clients who already have established businesses.
I’m doing a bit more of clients that have funnels running or something like that. Coming in and helping them be current controls or find different ways we can increase their average order value or conversions on their sales base, stuff like that. That’s one aspect that I’ve been doing more of, and I’m going to continue doing more of.
If people do want to get your course and book, where’s the best place to find it?
The best place it would be my website Joeypercia.com.
Hi, this is Craig Ballantyne, host of Early To Rise Radio. Have you ever wanted to become wealthier, healthier, wiser, or just have more time to appreciate the finer things in life? On this show, we reveal what high performers are doing every day to be more successful WITHOUT sacrificing their personal lives. Early To Rise Radio is sponsored by The Perfect Day Formula. Get your free copy of this game-changing success guide at FreePerfectDayBook.com.
Jeff Steen
Jeff Steen is the Associate Editor of Early to Rise. Previously, he worked in food and hospitality journalism, but is currently focused on bringing unique, insightful content to the ETR world.