How Much Money Does It Cost To Be a Beachbody Coach?

NOTE: The information below was last updated December 2014.

Short answer: It depends.
Long answer: Keep reading . . . 🙂

I thought I’d write a post explaining more in detail exactly what it costs to start and maintain a Beachbody coaching business. For some reason I found this information rather difficult to find while doing my own research. Hopefully it can help you make an informed decision if you’re currently in the same boat I was before I joined.

Basically, what I discovered during my first week as a coach is that there’s two different cost scenarios depending on how you want to work the business (if at all). I think that’s why there tends to be a bit of confusion on the issue, because different people may not be working towards the same goal.

OPTION #1

1. You simply want to purchase Beachbody products at wholesale and have the opportunity to earn extra income by helping your friends, family, co-workers, etc. purchase Beachbody programs via affiliate marketing. In this case, it will cost you $39.95 to sign-up and then $15.95 per month after that. That’s it. No other strings attached. Simple, right? According to the Beachbody corporate folks, this is what more than 85% of Beachbody coaches choose to do.

1.a. Monthly cost after initial sign-up: $15.95

OPTION #2

2. You want to use the Beachbody Coaching Program to build a business and a support team (here’s where it starts to get a bit more complicated). In this case, it will also cost you $39.95 to sign-up (unless you purchase a challenge or showcase pack and in that case this fee is waived) and then $15.95 per month after that. However, in addition to the $15.95 monthly fee, you will need to purchase or refer at least $55 worth of merchandise (or the equivalent of 50 personal volume points) every 35 days to remain ACTIVE. And once you reach the status of EMERALD COACH (explained below) you will also need a Team Beachbody Club membership which costs $38.87 every 3 months.

So…

2.a. Monthly cost after initial sign-up: $29 (as long as you refer at least $55 worth of sales during the past 35 days.)
2.b. Monthly cost after initial sign-up: $84 (if you’re unable to refer at least $55 worth of sales during the past 35 days you will need to purchase the merchandise yourself.)

UPDATE: The $39.95 sign-up fee is waived if you purchase a Showcase or Challenge Pack during the coach sign-up process. The price of each pack varies ($160-305) depending on what workout or nutrition program(s) you choose. Both are great options because they give you everything you need to start your new business: a new program to get you motivated, 30 days of Shakeology, 30 days free enrollment in the Club membership, and discounted shipping. With the SHOWCASE pack you’ll receive three fitness programs instead of one: 21-Day Fix, Focus T25 and P90X3 (all workouts are 30 minutes or less).

Want MORE details? Keep reading . . .

On Beachbody’s Coaching FAQ page it says, “It only costs $39.95 to start a Beachbody business. That includes your first month’s Business Services Fees and your Coach Business Kit, which comes with everything you need to begin earning income.”

While this is most certainly true, it doesn’t quite give you the entire picture. Yes, in order to “begin” the process of becoming a Beachbody coach there is a $39.95 activation fee. This includes the maintenance of a few different websites affiliated with your account that you can use to sell products. However, if you plan on using your account for more than just purchasing products at wholesale and affiliate marketing, there will eventually be more costs involved.

No biggie though…this is a BUSINESS right?!? Not only that, you can potentially earn six or seven figures with this business if you’re patient and willing to do the work!

After the $39.95 activation fee, there is a $15.95 monthly fee to remain in the program. Beachbody refers to this as the BUSINESS SERVICES FEE. They describe it as “a monthly service fee that supports your online office tools and personal Web site. In order to receive commission and bonus payments you must remain current on all Business Services Fees.”

Sounds fair enough to me!

Also, a couple years ago the monthly fee was raised from $14.95 to $15.95. The reason for the price increase was because we now have access to a huge library of personal development material in our coach online office thanks to a partnership with Success magazine. Seriously, that alone is worth $15.95 a month!

Active vs. Inactive Coaches

Once you join the Beachbody Coaching Program, you are listed as INACTIVE. This is because your account is brand new and you still haven’t made any sales. You achieve ACTIVE status once you’ve earned a minimum of 50PV (personal volume) points within the last 35 days. Each item that Beachbody sells is assigned a point value according to the purchase price. The more expensive an item is, the higher the number. 50PV is roughly equivalent to $55. Your Personal Volume points include your own purchases as well as the purchases made by customers through your affiliate links or website. If you purchase a Challenge Pack during the coach sign-up process your account will automatically be considered ACTIVE as soon as the system updates (every Thursday morning).

At one time I was falsely under the impression that you needed to purchase at least $55 worth of products from Beachbody every month to qualify as a coach and earn money. This is not true. As long as your customers are purchasing at least 50PV worth of products every month, you don’t need to buy anything. Even so, it’s important to know that you don’t even need to be ACTIVE in order to receive commissions.

However, you do need to be ACTIVE in order to earn team BONUSES. Bonuses are NOT the same thing as commissions! 🙂 Commissions you earn from clients…BONUSES you earn from building a team of coaches and training them to be successful. These bonuses are paid to you by Beachbody, it is not money or commissions you take out of their pockets!! We can talk about that a little bit more if you decide to join my team…since I can sense your head is getting ready to explode!

Be Proof the Products Work

Even so, if you plan on building a successful Beachbody business you need to be using the products right? Duh! So really, it’s not that hard to stay active. Just drinking Shakeology is enough to do that…a home direct order of Shakeology gives you 90PV every month right on schedule. As a coach, Shakeology will cost you $100 a month. You can choose to factor this into your monthly costs, but I typically don’t because it’s FOOD and you need FOOD whether you’re a coach or not! A bag of Shakeology will give you 30 nutrient-dense meals…which is a pretty good deal in my opinion. If you went to the store and tried to put together 30 meals with the equivalent nutritional value of Shakeology, not only would it be impossible…it would cost you A LOT more than than $100…that’s for sure!

Both my husband and I are coaches, and between our own personal supply of Shakeology, Shakeology samples, the workout programs, Ultimate Reset supplements, equipment, etc. there is PLENTY enough to keep us both active!! Plus, I’m able to refer some clients to his website and that keeps him active too. That’s the great thing about this business…you are buying products that you WANT to use, WANT to share with others and improve your life at the same time…both physically AND financially.

In addition to that, in order to qualify for other incentive programs like Success Club (where Beachbody gives you paid customer leads), you’ll also need to be on Shakeology home direct.

It’s YOUR Business…So Do What You Want!

Here’s the thing, you can simply use your Beachbody Coaching Business just like any other type of affiliate program. Beachbody gives you 25% of every sale you refer (minus shipping and handling). You don’t have to start building a support team right away if that seems too overwhelming. However, building a support team is the absolute BEST way to exponentially increase your revenue using the coaching program. But it’s certainly not anything you’re required to do if it’s just not your thing.

If your plan is to do more than just affiliate marketing with Beachbody’s Coaching Program your first order of business will be to become an EMERALD COACH. In order for this to happen, you need to personally invite at least two ACTIVE people to join your support team. Once you become an Emerald Coach you are eligible to qualify for Beachbody’s Customer Lead Program. In a nutshell, Beachbody gives you clients. However, in order for this to happen, you need to be a member of the Team Beachbody Club, which costs $38.87 every 3 months.

Remember we talked about that earlier? 🙂

Additional costs to consider:

Once you get going you might want to consider some additional tools which would benefit your business. Things like business cards, product samples, a website, etc. Beachbody offers all their coaches an area within their online “office” where they can order things like business cards, promo DVDs, brochures, t-shirts, etc. You can purchase 250 single-sided business cards for $28.99. However, I think it’s important to keep in mind that YOU are the brand you’re building…not Beachbody. And don’t worry if that seems a little confusing, because my support team has training on how all that works!

Honestly, I don’t see business cards as a huge “must-have” item. When you’re talking to people face-to-face it’s much better to collect their personal information (phone #, email, Facebook, etc.) so you have a way to follow-up with them later. Business cards are kinda old-school marketing if you are just handing them out willy-nilly, but can still be helpful if you use them the right way.

One thing you’ll definitely want to do is establish your own personal website or blog. Yes, Beachbody provides you with your own “store” but how are people going to find it? Google isn’t going to magically send them there! You also need to distinguish yourself from all the other Beachbody coaches out there. The best way to do that is with a blog or website that highlights your unique story and personal experiences. And yes, I can help you with that too!

This isn’t something you have to get going as soon as you join (in fact I advise against it) but is definitely something you’ll need once you understand the ins and outs of the business.

You don’t want to use a free blogging platform like Blogger or WordPress.com to host the website for your Beachbody business. You want to have total control over what happens to your website, and the only way to do that is with a domain name that you personally own and web hosting. Using a “free” website or blogging service is a lot like renting a house. At any moment they can pull the rug out from underneath you. If you’re going to invest the time and energy it takes to establish a website, it only makes sense to do it right from the beginning.

Final words of advice:

Just like anything else in life, you will get out of Beachbody’s Coaching Program whatever you put into it. You’ve probably heard the expression, “You need to spend money to make money” and Beachbody’s Coaching Program is no exception to the rule!

If you wanted to open your own brick and mortar business or a traditional business franchise, you would need to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars even before seeing a profit. Here you have the opportunity to earn a full-time income (and then some) representing the most popular health and fitness products made on the planet for ~ $100 a month. I think that’s a pretty sweet deal!!

If you’re interested in joining my coaching team I would love to talk to you first just to make sure we’re both on the same page. I’m very careful about who I share this business with! Please contact me so I can learn more about your goals and if I think you would be a good fit. I consider blogging to be my area of expertise, so if you’re interested in using a blog as the home base for your Beachbody business I would LOVE to work with you!

If you’d like to know the nitty-gritty details be sure to check out the Beachbody Policies and Procedures Guide and their Statement of Independent Coach Earnings. If you have any additional questions about the coaching program or anything else you read here, please feel free to leave a comment or use my contact form.

Thanks! :o)