Run a Profitable Gym

Chris Cooper
  • 4.7 (94)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Semiweekly

Run a Profitable Gym is packed with business tools for gym owners and CrossFit affiliates. This is actionable, data-backed business advice for all gym owners, including those who own personal training studios, fitness franchises, and strength and conditioning gyms. Broke gym owner Chris Cooper turned a struggling gym into an asset, then built a multi-million-dollar mentoring company to help other fitness entrepreneurs do the same thing. Every week, Chris presents the top tactics for building a profitable gym, as well as real success stories from gym owners who have found incredible success through Two-Brain Business mentorship. Chris’s goal is to create millionaire gym owners. Subscribe to Run a Profitable Gym and you could be one of them.

  1. 8h ago

    Close More Gym Sales in 5 Steps

    Fill out the State of the Industry survey and get a free report card showing how your gym stacks up. Most gym owners either avoid the sales conversation altogether or waste an hour giving a tour without ever asking for the sale. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain Business CEO John Franklin and founder Chris Cooper break down the No-Sweat Intro: Two-Brain’s proven consultative sales framework. They walk through it step by step using the COACH method: connect, open, amplify, confirm and help. Chris shares what makes a good (and a genuinely bad) sales environment, and the pair role-play a full No Sweat Intro from start to finish. They show exactly how to uncover a prospect’s real goals, ask the right follow-up questions, and prescribe a solution with confidence. Tune in to see the entire consultative sales process in action, from the first hello to presenting the price. Use the link below to access the full Gym Sales Toolkit, including the No Sweat Intro script (word-for-word questions and phrasing for every step of the sales consultation). Links State of the Industry Survey Gym Sales Toolkit Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Why gym owners avoid asking for the sale 3:28 - The framework behind every high-converting gym consultation 4:16 - Set up your consultation area so prospects feel at ease 6:56 - The worst sales office mistakes we've seen at 3,500 gyms 7:46 - How to greet a prospect in the first 30 seconds 8:50 - The question that reveals why a prospect really walked in 11:08 - Why now matters more than what they want 14:07 - Confirm what you heard before you talk price 15:02 - Prescribe the plan and reveal the price 17:42 - What happens when they say no

  2. 4d ago

    How to Sell Without Feeling Slimy (For Gym Owners)

    Get the full resource kit for this series—the exact frameworks and scripts to help you sell gym memberships without feeling slimy. Ever avoided asking for the sale because it felt slimy? You're not alone, but it’s costing you clients who need your help. In this episode of "Run a Profitable Gym," Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper shares the three mindset shifts that changed the way he sells. He explains why most gym owners struggle to ask for the sale, why great coaching alone won't grow your business, and why a "maybe" is more dangerous than a "no." Chris also shares the story of a client who nearly quit more than once and later sent him a card that changed how he sees his job. Sales, done right, is simply coaching before someone officially becomes your client. Tune in to learn how to sell gym memberships with confidence, without ever feeling pushy or manipulative. Links Gym Sales Toolkit Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Why gym owners avoid asking for the sale 1:21 - The client story that changed how Chris sells 2:37 - The real reason most gym owners can't close 4:51 - Free sales scripts and frameworks for gym owners 5:14 - The expensive belief that's costing you sign-ups 8:06 - Why "no" feels so personal 10:54 - Why selling is really an act of coaching 11:42 - The thank-you card that proves why this matters 13:00 - What's coming next in this sales series

  3. Aug 10

    Why Your Gym Isn't Converting Leads Into Members

    Steal our Lead Nurture Toolkit—the exact scripts and follow-up cadence to turn “maybe” into a booked consultation. Gym owners constantly say they need more leads. The data says otherwise. The average gym gets 420 leads a year, but only 84 of them ever book an appointment. Fix that gap, and you can add tens of thousands of dollars in revenue without spending another dollar on ads. Today, Two-Brain CEO John Franklin and founder Chris Cooper share proven tactics gym owners can use to transform their lead nurture process. John presents a simple four-C framework for lead nurture: Call, Consistency, Calendar and Confirm. He explains how to optimize each of these to ensure more prospects show up at your gym. Chris shares how he pushes himself to follow up more than feels comfortable, and why availability signals more to a prospect than price does. The pair also break down real gym examples showing what NOT to do. Tune in to learn how to turn the leads you already have into more paying members. Links Lead Nurture Toolkit Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Why more leads won’t fix your gym’s sales problem 0:56 - The real numbers behind why gyms lose booked appointments 2:37 - Why gym owners chase leads instead of conversations 3:05 - The four-part framework behind every booked appointment 4:19 - Free sales scripts for gym owners 4:37 - Why responding fast changes everything 7:09 - How many times you should actually follow up 8:41 - The calendar mistakes quietly costing you new members 13:37 - Why a text beats an automated confirmation email 17:20 - Putting the whole system together

  4. Aug 6

    The 5 Biggest Sales DM Mistakes Gym Owners Make

    Turn social media leads into paying members with our free sell-by-chat scripts. What if your gym doesn’t have a lead problem? What if the real issue is what you’re saying to the leads you already have? In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain Business CEO John Franklin presents the five common mistakes gym owners make in lead-nurture conversations and the exact fix for each one. John explains why sounding scripted and robotic kills trust, and shares a simple rule: If your message could be sent to anyone, it wasn’t really sent to that person. He shows how a short, personalized opener outperforms a long, generic wall of text every time. He also covers why gym owners derail their own conversations with too much small talk, why giving free advice instead of an invitation can cost you the sale, and why response speed matters more than most owners realize. John shares his go-to method for reviving conversations that have gone cold, plus a simple reminder: A no right now isn’t a no forever. Tune in to start turning more of your existing gym leads into booked consultations. Links Sell-by-Chat Scripts Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Why your leads problem might not be a leads problem 0:52 - The chat mistake that makes you sound like a robot 3:19 - The trap that kills momentum in every lead conversation 3:57 - Free scripts and messaging frameworks for gym sales 4:22 - Why giving free advice is costing you the sale 5:54 - Why speed matters more than you think in lead nurture 7:27 - What to do when a prospect goes quiet 8:42 - The real reason gym owners think they have a leads problem

  5. Aug 3

    How to Turn Online Followers Into Paying Gym Members

    Turn followers into paying members with our free sell-by-chat scripts. You don’t need a huge following to sell more gym memberships. You need better conversations. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper and CEO John Franklin break down how to turn Instagram followers, commenters, story repliers and even former members into paying clients using simple, word-for-word DM scripts—no pushy sales tactics required. John explains the “more conversations equals more conversions” philosophy and shares his personal non-negotiable: three conversations started every day, regardless of follower count. Chris shares how he does the same with fewer than 1,400 followers, proving you don’t need to be Instagram famous to sell effectively. The pair walk through the full conversation hierarchy step by step: the opener, qualifying questions that move people off “maybe,” and the exact language to use when inviting a prospect into the gym. Chris and John also break down the math behind the strategy, showing how even a low conversion rate on DMs translates into serious results once you factor in client lifetime value. This is the first episode in a four-part series on gym sales, so tune in and start filling your gym. Up next week: lead nurture. Links Sell-by-Chat Scripts Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Why more followers won’t grow your gym 2:26 - Proof that small accounts can outsell big ones 6:37 - Free scripts and frameworks for gym sales 6:44 - The exact words that start a sales conversation 8:47 - Who to message first if you have a small following 13:01 - How to qualify someone before inviting them in 15:47 - Turning interest into a booked consultation 17:38 - What to do when someone says no or goes quiet 21:59 - The real math behind sell by chat 24:01 - The habit that will change your gym’s marketing

  6. Jul 29

    The Gym Owner's Shortcut I Wish I Had 20 Years Ago

    Get Chris Cooper's books free on Kindle this week: https://twobrain.co/4bitrbb  Chris Cooper has written 10 books, and he says it's not because he loves writing. It's because he kept watching gym owners hit the same walls over and over, at every stage of ownership. In this episode of "Run a Profitable Gym," Chris breaks down which book he'd hand you depending on exactly where you are in your journey. "Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Chief": for gym owners who feel stuck and need to know their single next step"Start a Gym": for those opening their first location or still in year one"Gym Owner's Handbook": for owners who've realized running a business is more than just being a great coach"Help First": for anyone who wants to grow without feeling slimy or salesy"Millionaire Gym Owner": for owners finally making consistent income who don't want to blow it"The Golden Hour": for gym owners who know what to do but can't get out of reaction mode long enough to do itTune in to find out which book matches your exact stage of gym ownership right now. Links Free Books Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - The lesson I wish I had 20 years ago 1:33 - The one book every gym owner should start with 3:28 - Before you open your first gym 4:33 - When coaching isn't enough anymore 5:34 - The marketing book that changes everything 7:08 - What to do when your gym finally makes money 8:18 - The habit behind every successful gym owner 9:44 - The shortcut to building a profitable gym

  7. Jul 27

    Why Your Gym Feels Stuck (And What to Do Next)

    Get Chris Cooper’s book “Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Chief” free on Kindle this week (Jul. 27-31): https://twobrain.co/4gLvR5E If you’re a gym owner who feels stuck, you probably don’t need more information. You need focus. In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper joins CEO John Franklin to break down the four distinct phases of the entrepreneurial journey, based on his book “Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Chief.” Chris explains why the Founder phase is about narrowing to one clear product and getting good at conversations and invitations—not diversifying or over-investing in space and staff. He shares the story of nearly running out of money and being told by his own mentor that he wasn’t ready for marketing yet. From there, Chris and John walk through the Farmer phase (buying back your time instead of hiring your clone), the high-risk Tinker phase (where entrepreneurs often blow up what’s working by chasing shiny new ideas), and the Chief phase, where the goal shifts from personal wealth to building a legacy that multiplies impact beyond any one person. Chris also shares real stories from his own journey, including the mentor who talked him out of opening a coffee shop and the moment that reshaped how he thinks about giving back. Tune in to figure out exactly which phase of entrepreneurship you’re in right now, and what to focus on to move forward. Several of Chris’ other books are also free on Kindle this week, including “Start a Gym” and “Millionaire Gym Owner.” Grab your copies via the link below. Links "Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Chief" More Free Books Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - The four stages every gym owner goes through 0:50 - Why Chris rewrote “Founder, Farmer, Tinker, Chief” 3:36 - How to escape the Founder phase 7:34 - Why more leads won’t fix your gym 10:50 - When you’ve officially become a Farmer 12:02 - The hiring mistake almost every gym owner makes 19:45 - Why successful gym owners get distracted 24:39 - How Tinker gym owners build lasting wealth 28:00 - What the Chief phase really looks like 31:13 - How to create a legacy beyond your gym

  8. Jul 22

    Are the CrossFit Games Dead?

    Want to run an in-gym event that brings in new members and keeps them around? Download our step-by-step Intramural Open guide. Are the CrossFit Games dead? And should gym owners even care? In this episode of “Run a Profitable Gym,” Two-Brain founder Chris Cooper joins CEO John Franklin to discuss the state of the Games, as it heads into its 20th year. Chris has been on both sides of this conversation. He worked for CrossFit HQ, recently interviewed the brand’s new CEO Bruce Edwards, and made the decision to reaffiliate his own gym. He walks through how the Games shifted from a small community meetup into an expensive, sponsor-driven spectacle, and why that shift disconnected it from the everyday members who make up most affiliate gyms. John puts Chris through a four-question report card on whether the Games still market the brand, measure real fitness, bring new people into CrossFit and keep members in affiliates longer. Chris’ answers point to one consistent theme: Gyms don’t need to wait on HQ to fix this. The pair dig into what’s actually working elsewhere, including HYROX, Spartan Race and Street Parking meetups. They explain how gym owners can borrow those ideas to build their own intramural events, using the same repeatable workouts each year so members can track real progress and feel proud of what they’ve accomplished. Tune in to hear Chris’s take on where the Games went wrong, and how any affiliate can create that same “peak moment” feeling for members without needing CrossFit HQ to get it right first. Links Intramural Open Guide Gym Owners United Book a Call 0:00 - Are the CrossFit Games still helping gym owners? 0:51 - What the CrossFit Games were originally built for 3:11 - When the Games stopped helping affiliates 7:21 - What gym members are actually looking for 10:20 - How the Open lost its original purpose 14:42 - Chris Cooper grades the CrossFit Games 20:25 - What Chris would change at CrossFit HQ 25:12 - Why fitness festivals outperform competitions 29:09 - How to reinvent the CrossFit Open for your gym 34:23 - Why Chris re-affiliated with CrossFit

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4.7
out of 5
94 Ratings

About

Run a Profitable Gym is packed with business tools for gym owners and CrossFit affiliates. This is actionable, data-backed business advice for all gym owners, including those who own personal training studios, fitness franchises, and strength and conditioning gyms. Broke gym owner Chris Cooper turned a struggling gym into an asset, then built a multi-million-dollar mentoring company to help other fitness entrepreneurs do the same thing. Every week, Chris presents the top tactics for building a profitable gym, as well as real success stories from gym owners who have found incredible success through Two-Brain Business mentorship. Chris’s goal is to create millionaire gym owners. Subscribe to Run a Profitable Gym and you could be one of them.

Information

  • Creator
    Chris Cooper
  • Years Active
    2015 - 2026
  • Episodes
    1.2K
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Run a Profitable Gym
  • Show Website
    Run a Profitable Gym

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