1. Do the homework

Check with your local village administrator
Before doing anything, find out if there are any permits you'll need to obtain or fees you'll have to pay to run your business in your local municipality. In general, fees are inexpensive, but in some cases, a permit to run a microgym from home can be challenging to obtain. Use "home occupation" when using a search engine to research state and county laws for home-based businesses.

We offer a little more on this subject in our blog post Opening A Microgym - Laws & Regulations.
Call your home insurance provider
Some Home Owners Insurance's consider a home business liability not worth covering and will refuse to cover you outright.  Call them next and find out where they stand on the idea of you starting a home-based microgym.  Often HOI's will require you to get additional insurance.  Good thing you're doing that anyway!
Form your business
There is much to consider in beginning any business, and deciding what business structure to file under is one of the more important considerations.  We get into the difference of two of your options in our blog post Forming Your Home Microgym: Sole Proprietorship vs. Limited Liability Company (LLC).
Get affordable commercial general liability insurance
Commercial General and Professional Liability insurance is relatively inexpensive and easy to get.  Need an insurance broker?  We are big fans of Affiliate Guard.  Get a quote today. Click here.

For more on this subject, check out our blog post Insuring A Home Microgym - Protect Your Business.
Certify as a personal traier or group fitness instructor
There are many reasons to be a certified trainer when opening your microgym, and ACE, NASM, ISSA, AFAA all offer certifications in group fitness, personal trainer, and more.  There are other organizations to choose from, and we recommend that whichever you choose, make sure it is accredited.  We also require certification for any affiliated microgym that elects to offer personal training and/or small group fitness classes.
Outfit your gym to your specs
If you're still piecing together, or plan to purchase new equipment figure that out before going much further.  Understand the space you've set aside, and select equipment that best utilizes it.  Measure the lengths of your walls, height of your ceiling, etc.  For some tips check out this blog post.
Understand your competition
Do some research on the market around you. What do the gyms in your area charge for similar services? How do they attract new customers? Figure out what they're doing, and how you fit into the local ecosystem.  Capitalize on the unique benefits inherent to all microgyms.

2. Setup the backend

Establish your presence online
When our app drops, you will be set up with a profile and dashboard. That doesn't mean you won't have use for social media or a website, though.  If you're planning to maintain one, websites come cheap these days.  Platforms like Wix.com, Weebly.com, or Wordpress.com offer a lot for a little.
Please note: This section contains affiliate links.
Setup your Stripe account

When our app launches, it will process payments for you. We use Stripe as our payment gateway to make that work. You will need to create an account with them, too.  It's free to open one, and when you're ready to get started, click here.

Open a business banking account

A business banking account makes tax time smoother and more efficient.  With one, you will easily track your earnings and expenditures and ensure all of your transactions are accounted for in one place. Below are three different banks to choose from the many out there.

Nova Bank (Recommended)
Bluevine
Chime

Novabank

$50
Minimum deposit
Go there

Bluevine

$0
Minimum deposit
Go there

Chime

$0
Minimum deposit
Go there
No minimum balance
No monthly service fees
No minimum balance
No monthly service charge
No fees at participating ATMs
No monthly service charge
No early account closing fee
No fees for non-sufficient funds
transfer fees
Create and verify your Google My Business (GMB) profile

Don't overlook this step because optimized GMB profiles get hundreds to thousands of views a month, through search and map discoveries.  We expound on some of the reasons we recommend you create a GMB profile in our blog post here.

3. Build your brand

Plan your services
What do you offer? What problem will you solve for your clients?  This is where you think through your marketing plan that explains to prospective clients how you will help them.  Will you offer personal training, small group fitness classes, nutrition coaching, or something else entirely?
Design your logo
There are free tools out there that allow anyone with basic graphic design skills (or no skills at all) to make professional looking graphics in minutes.  Canva.com and Designspiration are two great examples.  Of course, if you'd rather hire a professional without breaking the bank, check out Fiverr.com and get up to $100 off your first order.

For more on building your brand, Fiverr and Canva, check out the post 4 Tips to Build Your Microgym's Brand from our blog.

Please note: This section contains affiliate links.
Embrace your tone and personality
This is more advice than anything and is just about being yourself. Sure, if you were opening a globo gym you might want to take a more corporate approach in your branding as a whole. You are opening a home-based microgym, so by design, you're intricately woven into the brand. Let that show.
Apply your branding across your business
Branding and logos are not just a way to make your business look good, they create the whole story of who you want people think you are. Apply your branding across all platforms you are using, whether social media, blog, website, etc.  One way to help make sure that your branding is consistent is to create a Brand Style Guide.

4. Start earning

Affiliate with GORX fitness

Affiliate and join the social network of independent home-based microgym owners changing the game.  Affiliates can expect:
1. Client Funneling.
2.Promotion from GORX Fitness on website, social media, and other platforms.
3. Trademark License to use the company branding in affiliate promotional material.
4. All features on our app (coming soon)

Promote your brand

Generate leads quickly through social media marketing.  Pay nothing to post an "ad" in your local area's Facebook groups, and reach hundreds for as much as a cup of coffee by running an actual Facebook or Instagram ad.

Land more clients

Make it easy for leads to discover you. Start focusing on your programming and less on reaching and landing leads. Our microgym locator makes you easily discoverable and connects you directly with people in your area.

Earn passive income

GORX Fitness does the heavy lifting in getting you drop-ins for your area. Fill up those hours that are otherwise unutilized with fitness enthusiasts.  We offer up some other ideas in our blog post 5 Ways To Make Some Extra Cash With Your Home Gym.

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