Tag: Business Strategies

Last year, my friend and I both started using a running app. The app coached us through sessions and let us keep track of our goals, routes, calories burned, and distances. It also gave us the option to link to our Facebook accounts so that our intentions and our successes (and, yes, failures) could be publicly broadcast. My friend chose to keep her Facebook community up-to-date; I chose to lie low.

You probably won’t be surprised to learn that she’s still running (she recently signed up for a 10K), while I’ve called it quits. We started out pretty equal in terms of experience, fitness, and determination levels — but she found the motivation to keep going, while somewhere along the way I got bored or distracted or lazy or something. To be honest, I don’t entirely know why I stopped. But I suspect I know why she didn’t: She had a community to support her.

It’s a scientifically verified fact that when we have a community supporting our efforts to accomplish a goal, we’re much more likely actually to actually accomplish it. In one study conducted by Weilos, a social media site where people post about their attempts to lose weight, individuals who documented their progress by publicly posting photos of their bodies lost 1.2 pounds per week, while individuals who relied only on a diet and exercise program lost .27 pounds. In another study, published in 2013 in Translational Behavioral Medicine, one group of participants enrolled in a weight-loss program was asked to publish progress, questions, and requests for support on Twitter; a second group was asked to post nothing. While the two groups showed equal amounts of weight loss, individuals who posted most frequently always lost the most weight. The message is clear: Establish a community and you’re more likely to stick to your goals.

The thing is, not everyone whose goals involve weight loss or fitness wants a virtual community. That’s where fitness facilities come in. With a fitness facility, you are able to provide exercisers with real-life access to a group of people with similar goals and real-life access to a staff whose purpose is to help further those goals. Those are huge assets, and we constantly hear industry stories suggesting that facilities with the best member retention and most successful word-of-mouth new membership campaigns are the ones that make people feel they are a part of something. As Anthony Wall, Director of Professional Education at the American Council on Exercise in San Diego, California, expressed it in a recent post on the IHRSA blog: “Exactly how a club creates a sense of belonging and community will depend, to some extent, on the type of facility. However, at the end of the day, it comes down to making members feel welcome…. the one thing that all successful health and fitness facilities have in common is staff who are genuinely concerned about members, and enjoy being part of their involvement in club activities.”

Ali Lucas, Director of Marketing for BodyBusiness Health Club and Spa in Austin, Texas, agrees. “Hire and fire the right people,” she said in the same blog post. “Define your purpose and values, and compare every decision against them. Compensate and reward employees based on their performance. Train them to create a consistent member and guest experience.” She tells the story of a former member who had to cancel because she was moving out of state. The member posted a video testimonial — which in itself is telling — saying that she was going to miss two things: her church and her health club. “Lots of gyms have nice equipment and good classes,” the member said in the video, “but it’ll be hard to find one with the same kind of heart.”

That’s what you want: for your members to recognize the heart in your facility, and to feel an emotional attachment to the community they have there. Building such a community depends first of all, on your staff. It also depends on your efforts to promote social interaction, whether you introduce members to each other, hold networking events, form clubs that address members’ interests, or, yes, build up an online social media presence. Whatever your approach, make it part of your membership and retention strategy to make your facility a true community. You’ll know you’ve achieved that when you hear a member call it “home.”

I have a confession to make: Exercise bores me. Don’t get me wrong — I love staying fit, and I love the way I feel after a great workout, but no matter what exercise routine I try, after a while I get bored and want something new. For a while I was into spin classes. Then it was Zumba. Then aquatic aerobics, HIIT-style repetitions, and just plain jogging. Now I’m all about indoor climbing. I was starting to think there’s something wrong with me, but then I stumbled across a post on the “Be Active Your Way” blog, a publication of the Department of Health and Human Services. Written by Alexandra Black, a dietician and IHRSA’s Health Promotion Manager, the article is not about keeping exercise interesting — but it nevertheless put my mind at ease and inspired me to continue trying new routines.

What the article is about is this: using trial and error to determine the best workouts for individuals. “Each person,” Black writes, “has a unique genetic makeup, different life experiences, and varied medical histories that make it nearly impossible to prescribe one great diet or one great fitness plan for all.” Because of this, she says, the best way for individuals to figure out what works for them is through trial and error. The health and medical industries are beginning to recognize this, and the result of moving away from a one-size-fits-all mindset is better care and better long-term health for people. Black puts it this way: “As the trend towards individualized healthcare continues, we’re recognizing that every person is different, and that treating them as such — both in healthcare and in wellness — is often where the real magic happens.”

Which brings me back to my boredom issue. Reading Black’s thoughts on trial and error made me realize that the only way for me to find a routine that doesn’t eventually bore me is to keep trying new ones — and that it’s okay to do so. Maybe I just haven’t found the right one yet, and I need to keep searching until I do. Or maybe it’s the case that my genetic makeup, life experiences, and medical history make me a person who needs constant changes in her workout routine in order to most benefit from working out. Whatever the case, thinking about fitness as something that requires an individualized approach completely changes the way I think about working out. It gives me a feeling that I have permission to keep trying whatever I want to try.

Why am I sharing all this? Because chances are that an individualized fitness approach is something that would appeal to your members too. Of course, if you have personal trainers or some kind of personalized workout program, you already promote individualized fitness — but doing so explicitly could put your members at ease (enough so that they renew their memberships and talk your facility up to all their friends and social network connections). Defining individualized fitness and explaining its benefits — through posters, emails, social media, and one-on-one sales and promotion pitches — can help your members feel freer to engage in their own trial and error, giving new workouts and exercises a try, experimenting until they know what works best for them. And helping them in that way greatly increases the chances that they’re going to keep coming back to you.

I’m guessing you barely even have time to read this, so I’m going to get straight to the point: The January rush is on. You’ve been preparing for it, no doubt, since early last month. Take a breather (a really short one) and make sure you’ve got all your ducks in a row. If you don’t, don’t panic: You still have time to create solutions and ready yourself and your facility for the swell of 2016 resolution-makers you’re going to see in the coming weeks. Here are some top tips:
1) Ensure that any new staff members you’ve hired to handle the busy time are fully trained and confident. You probably lined those new employees up several weeks ago, and no doubt you’ve been teaching them the ins and outs of your facility’s operations. Don’t assume they’re ready to fly, though: You need to check in with them frequently (several times a day for the first week or so) to make sure they understand your procedures and are handling your most valuable resources (your customers) with great care. Give them ample opportunity to ask questions about anything they don’t understand. Create checklists for them to simplify their tasks. Hold staff meetings once a week, and publicly recognize the contributions of your temporary staff members so they feel invested in your facility.
2) With all staff, old and new, temporary and long term, make sure you’ve conveyed a clear idea about what to expect. They need to be prepared to handle lines of people checking in, chaotic situations, and possibly some impatient customers. The more prepared they are, the more likely they’ll be to keep their cool in tough situations.
3) Your sales team needs to be as highly prepared as your greeters and front desk staff. Educate the team about the specific ways in which your club stands out from the competition. In order to leave prospects with the impression that it’s simply a fact that your club is better, your sales staff should be able to spew off your club’s distinguishing features effortlessly and with great confidence. On a related note, if there’s any time of the year to offer sign-up incentives, this is it. Figure out what extras your facility can offer to attract new members, and make sure prospects understand exactly what those extras are.
4) Increase your staff’s efficiency. Arm sales people and other employees with tablets or other mobile devices that make processes seamless for both prospects and current members. Front desk folk can walk down the line of waiting customers, checking them in. Sales staff can iron out the enrollment process by having paperless forms at their fingertips.
5) Adjust schedules to accommodate heavy traffic. Slate classes for non-peak hours in order to channel people toward slower periods. If, during these heavily trafficked weeks, you realize your current schedule isn’t working, don’t be afraid to make changes. Customers will easily adjust once they realize their own needs are better served by more efficiently scheduled classes.
Whatever you do during this beginning-of-the-year rush, take note of what works for you and what doesn’t. Reflect on ways in which you might be better prepared next year. If necessary, make resolutions of your own about getting started in November this year. Post-Halloween is the perfect time to begin setting yourself up for New Year’s success — and to make things run so smoothly that you’re setting your new and existing members up for success as well.

So, here’s a question: How many of your facility’s offerings have to do with helping your clients strengthen their core? If you answered, “A lot,” that’s a good start, or so would say some industry leaders who believe focusing on the core is the best possible strategy right now — for both fitness businesses and clients. If you answered, “All of them,” you’re at the forefront of a new trend: facilities that make core-training the foundation of their entire business model. A recent, fascinating article on the IHRSA website takes a close look at the growing trend and at the expansion of core-training offerings at fitness facilities around the country.

Mike Z. Robinson, IDEA’s 2015 Personal Trainer of the Year and owner of MZR Fitness, a training studio in San Luis Obispo, California, told IHRSA he’s “seen a definite increase in the number of boutique studios that feature core-based movements — facilities that focus, for example, on Pilates and barre. Their main selling point is a workout constructed around the core. At the same time, traditional gyms are offering more core-centric classes, because consumers have become aware of the benefits. Program schedules are reflecting the trend, the demand.”

Some trainers go so far as to say the trend is taking over. Amy Dixon, the national creative manager for group fitness for Equinox Fitness and a master trainer for BOSU and Shockwave, told IHRSA, “For a while, we saw a push toward the high-intensity end of the spectrum. Today, I believe, the pendulum is swinging back…. We’re seeing clubs integrate core into all their classes.” In other words, the focus now is turning toward exercises necessary for sharpening the core and away from the kinds of high-intensity activities that stress the importance of raising, and then resting, the heart rate.

Why the renewed interest in core-based exercising? Dixon, Robinson, and other trainers argue that a strong core is the foundation of good fitness. “When you help clients improve their core strength,” said Kim Ingleby, founder of the Energised Performance studio in Bristol, England, “you’re making it possible for them to progress to more complex exercises while simultaneously reducing the probability of injury.” A strong core, therefore, lowers the chances of sprains and other pains, and increases the chances of improved results for members. At the same time, it reduces liability concerns for clubs, because clients are progressing through strength-training safely and appropriately.

How do you jump on the trend? It’s easy to incorporate core basics into an existing program. Think beyond crunches, which are effective but not as effective as other moves; it’s better to focus on motions that truly integrate the core, such as squats, push-ups, or lateral lunges. As Dixon puts it, “Multidimensional movement is the key.” Think about how you might pull such movements into, say, classes for skiing or triathlons. Also, keep in mind that manufacturers are coming out with more and more core-focused pieces, such as BOSU, CoreTex, and Core Stix. Other equipment mentioned by some of the trainers IHRSA spoke with include TPX, ViPR, and Life Fitness’s SYNRGY360. Also, consider designing a core-for-beginners class, one aimed at a population that never has thought much about its core, let alone exercised it before. “Everyone, no matter their age or their initial condition, needs core work,” Dixon pointed out, “and, with the right training, they will improve.” But they need to be given the chance to get started.

Wherever you boost up your core offerings, keep in mind that it’s crucial to let your clients know, first of all, that you consider core-work vital, and second of all, that you’re creating more possibilities for clients to focus on the core. Use social media, email blasts, face-to-face sales, and attractive flyers to get the word out. And make sure you emphasize the possibility for fun when it comes to core-training — and the great potential benefits.

“The 20 Best Gyms and Health Clubs in New York City,” “The Best Gyms in America for Every Workout,” “The 31 Best Gyms in America 2015”: Gyms, fitness centres, and sports facilities are subject to the near-constant publication of such lists, ones which, with varying degrees of validity, have great power to influence consumer decision-making. Every time you turn around, some magazine or other is ranking our businesses, comparing them with one another, and fitting their comparisons into some possibly arbitrary list that consumers might swallow wholesale when they’re contemplating putting money down. What’s a fitness facility to do?

First of all, don’t ignore the lists. It might be painful to read them, you might feel disempowered by them or frustrated by what you see as their meaninglessness, but you’ve got to keep in mind that your members are reading them, your competition is reading them, and your employees are reading them. And while you might not agree with their criteria or believe in their research methods, you need to keep up with what they’re saying about the industry. So, read the lists, even if you never appear on one or if you appear low down — or if you’re high up.

You want to read them not just because they give you information about what your colleagues, competitors, and membership know or believe to be true about fitness facilities, but also because they can give you clues about how to improve your business. Are the cleanest and hippest gyms the highest rated? If so, maybe it’s time to impose draconian standards for cleanliness and get yourself a new look. Are the sports facilities with former pro athletes the top-ranking ones? If so, maybe you need to reconsider who you’re hiring. Use the criteria in the best-of lists to help you make decisions about changes you could instigate in your facility.

That said; don’t give every list equal weight. Some best-of lists are drawn up with minimal research, and the meaninglessness you sense in the conclusions they draw is very real. Consider the publication the list appears in — is it one you think highly of yourself, or one you don’t really care about? Is it one with a large readership, or not much more than a cheap brochure? If it’s a web-only publication, how prominent is the advertising? That, more than anything, could determine who makes the publication’s lists and who doesn’t. Another factor to consider is reader input: Was the list created based on results of a survey that readers responded to? Or was it drawn up in an editorial meeting by people who perhaps have never been in a gym in their lives? If the latter, maybe you can take it with a grain of salt (read it, for the reasons stated earlier, but don’t pay it too much heed). If the former, you should tune in: The votes of readers and consumers probably do hold meaning, or at the very least probably can tell you what it is many of your members and prospective members consider important and attractive in a facility.

Take, for example, the article “31 Best Gyms in America 2015,” published recently by Active Times. While this magazine may not be as popular or as commercially significant as Fitness or Self, its best-of list is based on reader responses to a survey. What did the survey reveal? That cleanliness, community, and membership cost, in that order, are the three factors consumers consider most important when choosing a fitness facility. Would you ever have guessed that cost comes after cleanliness? Now look around you: How do you prioritize cleanliness vs. cost? Does your facility reflect members’ concerns adequately?

The bottom line is this: You can learn from best-of lists; you can even improve your operation based on what they say. And you should pay close attention when the lists are the result of reader responses. But you shouldn’t pay them too much mind overall — whatever list you’re not on today, you might be on tomorrow, and who can say why?