Health clubs are in a pickle right now. Not only are they struggling under a load of new regulations and expectations, but they must figure out how to lure clients back into the gym —where the money is made. Just how can gyms rebuild faith in their brand, their facility, their people? Is there a roadmap to follow? Here are the Facts In truth, gyms are not petri dishes of disease. Early non-peer reviewed research shows minimal transmission of COVID-19 at gyms when proper distancing and hygiene methods are in place. The Oslo-based study randomized 3,764 people split into two groups — training and non-training. Of the 3,016 people who returned to be [...]
Read more...
What if every gym employee approached their job like a salesperson? How would that affect your health club’s businessevery day? Would it help or hurt customer retention? Why would you even want to train employees in basic sales techniques? Wouldn’t that become annoying? Probably not. See, sales is not just about selling something. It’s an attitude. Employees are a core component of any marketing strategy.They reflect the composition of your gym, your target market.They are the face of who you are as a business and you hired them because of their skills, personality, and ability to relate to customers. So take advantage of your advantage. As Zig Ziglar [...]
Read more...
When I first hit the gym in the 1990s it was a Jamie Lee Curtis video fantasy: muscle-bound men clustered around weight benches, ladies in leggings and cotton t-back leotards, body builders day-jobbing as personal trainers. Bally’s even kept a separate weight room just for women. It was all about the look and if you couldn’t keep up, you didn’t show up twice. Today’s gyms are way different. I don’t have to tell you the range of options available to everyone of any age, skill-level or interest. It has grown into a $34-billion-a-year industry in the United States, encompassing more than 38,000 clubs and studios. First To Shut Down It’s [...]
Read more...
If scientists are correct, COVID-19 is here to stay. According to Dr. Gregory Poland, director of Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group, respiratory viruses and their accompanying hospital stays are expected to be a seasonal threat to individuals across the world. Even now, an emerging virus from China, the H1N1 influenza virus, looms in our future. For gyms, fitness studios, and health clubs, navigating this tricky territory is job number one, as their business model relies on individuals congregating in a social, highly physical, generally closed environment. To keep members safe, gym owners must implement social distancing measures that, in and of themselves, absorb precious resources and restrict financial growth. It’s a tough road [...]
Read more...
Taking control of your gym’s business during the ongoing economic crisis caused by COVID-19 is not simple. It’s always been expensive to acquire new members–estimates suggest it costs 3x as much to lure a new client in the door as to keep the one you have. But in today’s uncertain environment, retaining and expanding your client base is both critical and complex. So how can you maximize every relationship? By understanding customers’ concerns, clearing up misunderstandings quickly, and using real-time information to make informed updates to your business model. Nothing does this quicker than a survey. Surveys allow gyms to take the pulse of current, prospective and past customers while deepening relationships and stimulating active change, all through a few minutes-long interaction. [...]
Read more...
In many ways, the COVID-19 gym shut-down accelerated an already intense competition in the virtual health and fitness marketplace. Companies such as Peloton and Mirror were already bringing high-end, high-quality workouts into individuals’ homes, while club-staple Les Mills’ expansion into the on-demand arena created another at-home avenueencompassing classes and training programs. Meanwhile, brick-and-mortar gym shops shut down, forcing owners to pivot and change business models within weeks. Their one option? Jump into the digital fray–which is exactly what they did–giving away free classes, offering free trials, and supercharging their online community with ad hoc Zoom classes and YouTube videos. Within weeks a brand new business vertical emerged–off-site virtual fitness and remote training. Local gyms went head-to-head with national competitors. Now, it’s time for your digital vertical to turn a profit because, demand suggests, [...]
Read more...
The COVID-19 pandemic has cast a long shadow on the question of how to maintain a clean and sanitized gym while running a successful, profitable business. The increased vigilance required by staff, the infrastructure investments, the heightened customer awareness coupled with suppressed demand all combine to swell both costs and risks. Today’s gym owner walks a fine line between keeping his or her business open and losing it all to an uncertain market. However, for gym owners, their single greatest decision could be to see this pandemic as an opportunity–a chance to grow and change for the better–rather than view it as an unnecessary financial burden. In today’s market, providing guests with a clean, sanitized facility staffed by well-trained, empathic employees is a core competency. It is a value-added benefit that, at first [...]
Read more...
It’s not always easy to know which equipment you need to stock in your gym right off the bat. Some gyms operate under strict financial constraints, while others have smaller indoor spaces than they’d ideally like. In a perfect world, of course, you would be able to start with the most essential equipment and then expand to include more as your business also expands. But where do you start? What are the essentials? And if you have to choose between a high-quality barbell cage, smith machine, or leg press machine to fill out your “lower body” equipment section, what’s the best choice? All three have distinct benefits and [...]
Read more...
When you’ve been “the boss” for a long time, it can be hard to remember what it felt like working for someone else. You get used to making the decisions, holding the power, and choosing the direction in which you want your company to go. When the future of your gym business lies on your shoulders, you feel that weight every single day. Especially now, with COVID-19 fresh in everyone’s minds and the futures of independent businesses everywhere hanging in the balance, you’re probably feeling the stress of holding everything together. You might feel like you are the glue trying to keep [...]
Read more...
As a gym owner, you have likely been concerned with keeping the fears of your paying members at bay in the post-COVID-19 world. You probably have spent the mandatory lockdown coming up with ways to maneuver your business through the crisis and putting plans in place for your grand reopening strategy once the stay at home orders are lifted. But what about your employees? Many workers are facing huge numbers of uncertainties surrounding their jobs, as well as worrying about their own health and that of their families. Now is the time to plan how you will address your employees’ fears and keep your [...]
Read more...
So many business owners are facing uncertainty due to the COIVD-19 crisis. Will your business weather this period of being closed down? How well can you recover once you reopen? What are the best ways of minimizing financial losses and maximizing health and safety standards for your staff and members? The best way to combat this uncertainty is to drive forward with a clear and determined strategy for reopening. This strategy should focus heavily on enforcing stringent health, safety, and sanitization protocols. When you take the guesswork out of your plan, you reduce your own anxiety as a business owner [...]
Read more...
What benefits does partnering with a physical therapist bring to your gym members? As the collective age of United States citizens continues to rise, so does the rate of exercise-related injuries. For many people trying to stay in shape, effectively rehabilitating an injury now means that they must see both a physical therapist and a personal trainer, often at different facilities with no communication between them, and hope that the information they receive is consistent, safe, and helpful. This is why, immediately, it seems obvious that bringing a physical therapist into your gym space would be of huge benefitto your members. They can [...]
Read more...
It’s not always easy to strike a balance between managing your employees closely and letting them take initiative. Depending on your management style, you might feel it’s more in your nature to micromanage your employees’ tasks and ensure everyone is getting the job done according to your standards. Or, if you lean toward the other end of that spectrum, you might enjoy taking your hands off the reins and allowing your workers the slack to largely manage themselves. In most cases, the “right” approach falls somewhere in the gray area between those two extremes. Only you know how your employees [...]
Read more...
The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 (also known simply as “coronavirus”) and the resulting COVID-19 pandemic has affected nearly every industry worldwide. Gyms, classified as “nonessential businesses,” have been ordered to close until the pandemic wanes and health officials deem that it is safe for the public to return to normal daily activities in public. As a gym owner, you are no doubt feeling the strain of this unplanned closure during the normally busy spring months. Thankfully, there are many things you can do with this time to not only lessen the impact of this crisis on your business, but also to [...]
Read more...
As the owner of a gym, drawing in new members is a topic that will always be near the front of your mind. Successful business owners never truly stop marketing. Over the years, you have probably run your fair share of gym promotions, membership discounts, and group signup events. Marketing strategies like these often - for good reason - make up the backbone of gym advertisement campaigns. However, sticking to these tried and true methods can feel a little stale after a while. Not to mention, if you neglect the technical and online sides of your marketing campaign, you are leaving dozens [...]
Read more...
Recent Comments