Artificial intelligence didn’t write this blog—and you might want to think twice before you get AI to write one for your gym, personal-training business or affiliate.
In a recent discussion in our private group for gym owners, several said they had success using one of the many AI systems now out there. Enter a few details and AI can crank out blogs, ad copy, scripts for videos, job descriptions and more.
So does AI-produced content have any place in a gym business?
Maybe—but definitely not as Step 1. And definitely not as a substitute for real relationships with your clients.
Two-Brain’s “AI Content“
A lot of people don’t know Two-Brain actually has a version of an “AI system for gyms.” It’s our Content Vault. (Two-Brain Growth clients, click here.)
Because Chris Cooper knows gym owners need to produce content but often struggle to do it, we created a huge pile of done-for-you, customizable assets—customization is a key part of the plan.
The giant collection includes social-media posts, email campaigns, blogs, video scripts, lead magnets and more. The vault has enough content to help a gym build an audience for an entire year, and the content is tailored exactly to microgyms and coaching businesses.
A lot of gym owners know the Content Vault exists but still can’t find the time or will to use it.
I’d suggest the same issue will come up with AI-generated media.
It’s one thing to know you have a problem—a lack of content—and see a potential solution—the Content Vault or perhaps an AI content producer. It’s another thing to actually take action and build the systems that will ensure everything goes according to plan.
Here’s the thing: AI content producers are no different than virtual assistants and done-for-you marketing agents. They are automation. Automations work best as Step 3 in this critical series: systemize, optimize, automate.
Most people skip the first two and jump straight to automation.
Gym AI on Autopilot
Here’s what can happen when a gym automates content production without creating a system to govern output:
- A gigantic pile of content is created but never posted because the gym owner doesn’t have a “publishing habit” or system to get content out.
- Tone-deaf content reaches clients and confuses them. Example: An email about eating like a carnivore goes out to an audience that would be better served by info on habits such as “eat some vegetables at every meal.” Example 2: Posts about barbell deadlifts reach people who have no interest in barbell training.
- Email and text lead-warming campaigns run on autopilot and annoy people with irrelevant messages and non sequiturs.
- Generic, AI-written blogs are posted to a website with a broken appointment-booking button.
- Direct-message questions from real people go unanswered on social media or just receive an enthusiastic thumbs-up emoji from a bot or virtual assistant.
- People who see an AI-created social-media post call a business to find out more, but their calls go unanswered and their messages aren’t returned.
I’m not making this stuff up. It’s all too common.
I’ve done content audits and found hosts of broken links on gym websites. I’ve seen posts that clearly don’t sync with the gym’s “perfect client.” I’ve read emails with messed-up merge tags that make the interaction taste bad: “Hey [FIRSTNAME]! Thanks for the message. You can drop in for a chat at [ADDRESS].”
I’ve written hundreds of emails for gym owners to deploy, and I’ve actually seen them generate stuff like this when they aren’t supported by the right business systems:
- “I signed up two weeks ago. Why do you keep asking me to book an appointment to find out about your gym?”
- “I already requested your pricing. You didn’t reply.”
- “Why are you asking me if I want nutrition help? I’m asking about personal training.”
No Systems, No Success
You and I both know phones sometimes don’t get answered. Busy entrepreneurs might consider “I didn’t see that message in my in-box” to be the song of our people. And “I forgot to post to social” is as common as a missed double-under in a gym.
Some will suggest you can bolt in more bots to solve these and other problems. And yes, you can definitely use virtual assistants and even real people to address the issues. But without an air-tight system, they’ll fail, too. If you’re reading this, you know that’s gospel truth because you’ve seen staff—human or virtual—flounder in your business without support, guidance and standard operating procedures.
A lack of business systems will derail even the best AI content—and you should consider a few other speed bumps. Like this one: AI-produced content is going to be generic and inauthentic. Prospective clients shrug off that stuff, and search engines like Google hate it.
But for now, remember this: If you automate a process without creating a system and optimizing it, the system will break down and you’ll be right back where you started.
On the other hand, if you create a media machine, make it perfect and then fill it with gas, the engine will purr.
Here’s an example of what it looks like when real people take action that will get real results:
